I don’t think you can assume that all critics of evolution believe all animals lived alongside one another. I doubt they are all evangelical Christians.
You are correct that a hit on a chance-favoring theory could be a support for another chance-favoring theory, but that is only if there are other chance-favoring theories competing with eacother in at least some way. When you have a theory as monolithic in nature as evolution, it is for all intents and purposes THE chance-favoring theory. Things could change in the future though, and maybe another chance-favoring theory could at least get some foothold. However, as long as we are in our current situation any support of evolution is a hit on design theories in general and vice-versa.
Some beliefs that are usually incorporated to support evolution are:
-The world is purely physical/material in nature
-There is no such thing as real agency (free will)
There is no real purpose/meaning in the universe
These are philosophical/belief points that directly or indirectly help a persons belief in evolution. If for example a person does not accept that all of existence is physical in nature, then he is more likely to question the ‘evidence’ of evolution. If he further believes in free-will (real free will) then he is even more likely to question evolution. And if he believes there is a purpose to the universe....and so on.
Some beliefs that are usually incorporated to support evolution are:
-The world is purely physical/material in nature
-There is no such thing as real agency (free will)
There is no real purpose/meaning in the universe
I’d be curious where you can point to these being used as evidence for evolution. You won’t see them in any major biology textbook. Note that even if they are used that way that doesn’t become a problem with evolution by itself.
. If for example a person does not accept that all of existence is physical in nature, then he is more likely to question the ‘evidence’ of evolution.
This statement is probably true. But why is it true? It doesn’t have anything to do with evolution as an issue and primarily has to do with the fact that most classical religions have creation stories and other aspects which make evolution uncomfortable for them, and people who are religious form a substantial overlap with people who make claims about non-physical or non-material existence. Similar remarks apply to your other bits. These are people who are unhappy with evolution not because of evidence but because it goes against their theological predilections.
Biology textbooks reflect the belief that “The world is purely physical/material in nature” by not even entertaining the possibility that there could be a super natural cause for anything. Any natural activity is assumed to have a physical/material cause. This is philosophy, so it may not be physically written out that way in the biology textbooks, but everything in the textbooks points to this major world assumption.
Same with the issue of free will. Any act by a species is seen in a way that needs to be explained in chemical/biological/mechanical manner. There is no room for this mysterious/other-worldly notion called free will.
Same with the idea that there is no real purpose or meaning to the universe.
As for this statement:
If for example a person does not accept that all of existence is physical in nature, then he is more likely to question the ‘evidence’ of evolution.
It is not necessarily true because of specific theological beliefs only. Lets say a person has absolutely no theological beliefs from any religion, but he does not automatically assume that all of existences is physical/mechanical. That person, because of this world view by itself, now all of a sudden has a higher chance of rejecting evolution than someone who only believes in a physical/mechanical world view.
The real debate is on the level of philosophy, not science. That is because ones science is driven by his philosophical interpretations....whether he realizes it or not.
I don’t think you can assume that all critics of evolution believe all animals lived alongside one another. I doubt they are all evangelical Christians.
You are correct that a hit on a chance-favoring theory could be a support for another chance-favoring theory, but that is only if there are other chance-favoring theories competing with eacother in at least some way. When you have a theory as monolithic in nature as evolution, it is for all intents and purposes THE chance-favoring theory. Things could change in the future though, and maybe another chance-favoring theory could at least get some foothold. However, as long as we are in our current situation any support of evolution is a hit on design theories in general and vice-versa.
Some beliefs that are usually incorporated to support evolution are:
-The world is purely physical/material in nature
-There is no such thing as real agency (free will)
There is no real purpose/meaning in the universe
These are philosophical/belief points that directly or indirectly help a persons belief in evolution. If for example a person does not accept that all of existence is physical in nature, then he is more likely to question the ‘evidence’ of evolution. If he further believes in free-will (real free will) then he is even more likely to question evolution. And if he believes there is a purpose to the universe....and so on.
I’d be curious where you can point to these being used as evidence for evolution. You won’t see them in any major biology textbook. Note that even if they are used that way that doesn’t become a problem with evolution by itself.
This statement is probably true. But why is it true? It doesn’t have anything to do with evolution as an issue and primarily has to do with the fact that most classical religions have creation stories and other aspects which make evolution uncomfortable for them, and people who are religious form a substantial overlap with people who make claims about non-physical or non-material existence. Similar remarks apply to your other bits. These are people who are unhappy with evolution not because of evidence but because it goes against their theological predilections.
Biology textbooks reflect the belief that “The world is purely physical/material in nature” by not even entertaining the possibility that there could be a super natural cause for anything. Any natural activity is assumed to have a physical/material cause. This is philosophy, so it may not be physically written out that way in the biology textbooks, but everything in the textbooks points to this major world assumption.
Same with the issue of free will. Any act by a species is seen in a way that needs to be explained in chemical/biological/mechanical manner. There is no room for this mysterious/other-worldly notion called free will.
Same with the idea that there is no real purpose or meaning to the universe.
As for this statement:
If for example a person does not accept that all of existence is physical in nature, then he is more likely to question the ‘evidence’ of evolution.
It is not necessarily true because of specific theological beliefs only. Lets say a person has absolutely no theological beliefs from any religion, but he does not automatically assume that all of existences is physical/mechanical. That person, because of this world view by itself, now all of a sudden has a higher chance of rejecting evolution than someone who only believes in a physical/mechanical world view.
The real debate is on the level of philosophy, not science. That is because ones science is driven by his philosophical interpretations....whether he realizes it or not.