A faithful catechist in Fr. Martin Hilbert’s parish came to see him. “Father Martin,” she said, “I have been teaching children about Adam and Eve, just as the Catechism tells us. But we can’t be expected to believe that, can we? What is the real story?”
Her question was the catalyst for a new book, out today from Discovery Institute Press, A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design. In taut, accessible prose, Fr. Hilbert draws upon his broad learning in science, philosophy, history, and theology to show that modern evolutionary theory, including theistic evolution, faces a rising wave of disconfirming evidence. Meanwhile, the evidence for both intelligent design and a first human couple, Adam and Eve, is stronger than ever. What about the problem of suffering, disease, and death in a world created by a wise and good Creator? Fr. Hilbert tackles that issue as well, and explains why the theory of intelligent design, rightly understood, harmonizes perfectly with the Catholic theological tradition. Get a copy for yourself, a friend, or a family member today.
Praise for A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design
In 1950 Pope Pius XII stated that discussion regarding the hypothesis of the evolutionary origin of the human body is not forbidden for Catholic theologians. However, the expected debate never happened. Theologians, by and large, interpreted the Pope’s permission as unequivocal support for an essentially naturalistic account of human origins. Now, over seventy years later, the theological community finally has a chance to take the turn indicated by the Pope and ask fundamental questions about modern evolutionary theory, intelligent design, human origins, and the Christian understanding of creation. Fr. Hilbert’s book is an important voice in this debate. He does not follow the easy and greatly wanting path of mixing Christianity with naturalism in the form of theistic evolution. Instead, he looks at evidence with an open mind and incorporates anything good and true he finds in modern science and traditional theology. This book will be an eye-opener for those who never thought that a Catholic can support intelligent design and be scientifically informed.
FR. MICHAEL CHABEREK, PHD, MEMBER OF THE POLISH DOMINICAN PROVINCE; AUTHOR OF CATHOLICISM AND EVOLUTION (2015) AND AQUINAS AND EVOLUTION (2017)
For too long advocates of Darwinism have taken advantage of the openness of the Catholic Church to true science in order to insinuate their barely disguised materialistic philosophy. In easy-to-follow writing, Fr. Martin Hilbert summarizes why modern scientific evidence stacks decidedly against Darwinism — and strongly in favor of the traditional Catholic understanding that life was purposely made by an intelligent designer.
MICHAEL J. BEHE, PHD, PROFESSOR OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, LEHIGH UNIVERSITY; AUTHOR OF DARWIN’S BLACK BOX, THE EDGE OF EVOLUTION, AND DARWIN DEVOLVES
What a delightful discovery this book has been, superb not only from a theological and philosophical point of view, but also by biological, biochemical, anthropological, and even engineering standards. In crystal clear prose, Hilbert shows that Darwinism is not so much the most successful contemporary theory of human origins as the most powerful contemporary myth of human origins, one which slants our views of who we are and how we are related to our Designer in unwarranted ways. Naturally his defense of the classical Christian view will deeply interest Catholics, but by rights his book should command the attention of all people interested in thinking clearly.
J. BUDZISZEWSKI, PROFESSOR OF GOVERNMENT AND PHILOSOPHY, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN, AUTHOR OF COMMENTARY ON THOMAS AQUINAS’S TREATISE ON THE ONE GOD (CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS)
Fr. Hilbert has written a deeply insightful and broad defense of intelligent design for Catholics, based on scientific, philosophical, and theological arguments. He thoughtfully distinguishes claims that are clearly supported by the evidence from questions difficult to answer conclusively. The book is also highly engaging as he shares his own personal journey of seeking the truth and explores the intrigue of individuals and social forces that has led many Christians into materialist intellectual captivity. This work is a must-read for anyone concerned about the future of the Church.
BRIAN MILLER, PHD, RESEARCH COORDINATOR AND SENIOR FELLOW FOR THE CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND CULTURE, AN ORGANIZER OF THE CONFERENCE ON ENGINEERING IN THE LIFE SCIENCES (CELS), AND CONTRIBUTOR TO MULTIPLE BOOKS AND JOURNALS COVERING THE DEBATE OVER INTELLIGENT DESIGN, INCLUDING THE MYSTERY OF LIFE’S ORIGIN: THE CONTINUING CONTROVERSY AND INFERENCE REVIEW
“Children by nature are theists.” So begins A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design by Fr. Martin Hilbert, who as a child escaped Communism, but not before he “knew that evil was real.” Later he came to the view that Darwinism, whatever else it might be, “was an attack on the power of reason to know reality and to arrive at the Creator.” He holds a PhD in the history and philosophy of science and teaches a course on the subject to seminarians. But he is by no means an ivory tower intellectual. He holds a master’s in electrical engineering and pastors a Catholic parish, dealing with the day-to-day concerns and suffering of his flock. Fr. Hilbert’s good sense shines through every page of this brave and refreshing work.
As a Catholic physician, I couldn’t agree more with what this highly educated, well-rounded, down-to-earth spiritual father thinks of Darwinism. “Its primary purpose is to serve as a creation myth for the secular society in which we live,” he writes. “In this role it contributes to an impoverished view of humanity and society, and is a constant threat to the Christian understanding of the creation and fall of man. Moreover, the thought patterns it engenders are destructive of common sense and of a responsible use of reason. It is, I contend, an unmitigated intellectual disaster, whose myriad shortcomings need to be dragged into broad daylight.” Indeed! And that’s exactly what this book accomplishes. It’s a comprehensive, up-to-date exposure and take-down of Darwinism.
Fr. Hilbert also provides a nuanced look at the theory of intelligent design, clearing up common misconceptions about the research program and critically analyzing the explanations and key claims of its leading proponents, and doing so in the light of perennial philosophy and the teachings of the Catholic Church.
For Catholics who find their faith undermined by prominent spokespersons for contemporary science, Fr. Hilbert has a message of hope, one that draws an important distinction between actual scientific evidence on the one hand, and on the other hand, scientism and materialism masquerading as science. “The good news for the Catholic is that the contemporary scientistic worldview is false,” he writes. “If the world at large has not heard of Darwinism’s demise, it is because the work of the ID community has been dismissed and ridiculed, and a collection of fawning Catholics and other Christians with prominent platforms have rushed to the defense of Darwinism and tried to change the Church’s teachings to accommodate it. Yet in the midst of this sad state of affairs, the faithful need not worry that the Church has been wrong on the origin of life, man, and sin.”
One senses that Fr. Hilbert was driven to write this incisive and wide-ranging book. As a kindred spirit, who hails from his alma mater, I am sure that when the time comes, he will hear what all of us, deep in our hearts, hope to hear: “Well done my good and faithful servant; come share your master’s joy” (Matthew 25:21).
HOWARD GLICKSMAN, MD, CO-AUTHOR OF YOUR DESIGNED BODY
Faithful Catholics should be delighted with the emerging new evidence for intelligent design in nature. The evidence confirms the settled Catholic teaching that nature is teleological and that we can know by reason from the creation that a Creator exists. But for obscure reasons, many Catholic academics object to intelligent design. Fr. Martin Hilbert is the perfect person to dispel these objections. His knowledge of theology, philosophy, engineering, and the philosophy of science allows him to navigate the troubled waters of the intelligent design debates deftly and accessibly.
I’m especially fond of the way Fr. Hilbert integrates traditional philosophical arguments for God’s existence with the more empirically focused — and modest — arguments for intelligent design. A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design is bound to become a classic contribution to the growing literature on ID. Bravo!
JAY W. RICHARDS, EDITOR OF (AND CONTRIBUTOR TO) GOD AND EVOLUTION: PROTESTANTS, CATHOLICS, AND JEWS EXPLORE DARWIN’S CHALLENGE TO FAITH, CO-AUTHOR OF THE PRIVILEGED PLANET: HOW OUR PLACE IN THE COSMOS IS DESIGNED FOR DISCOVERY, AND DIRECTOR OF THE RICHARD AND HELEN DEVOS CENTER FOR LIFE, RELIGION, AND FAMILY AT THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION
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