Darwinism was the lynchpin of Naturalistic Materialism. Since Darwinism is not accepted by many scientists anymore, that role has been replaced by the neo-Darwinist synthesis built on genetics and DNA.
Is the theory of the evolution of species separable from naturalistic materialism? Is the principle of adaptation sufficient in its explanatory power to bring about consciousness? Is man a spiritual or merely a highly complex physical being?
These are the questions that civilized life turns on. Darwin argued that morality evolved from the social instinct and language. If so, then those who discover this (or have been taught it on Darwin’s authority) have escaped from that evolved morality.
As we reflect on liberty in the follow-up to this past conference and on the nature of man in preparation for the next, these are the sorts of questions we need to reflect on.
It took a long time to prepare for the day, but the world changed when Darwin published his Origin of Species and his The Descent of Man.
So far, the human soul and therefore human society has not been able to adapt to the changes. What then are the foundations of this theory and what are its implications?
Foundation one: sound knowledge of the world is gained only through the empirical approach of the natural sciences.
Implication one: The human brain has adapted to the environment so as to enable the survival of the species, but it is not capable of knowing it according to its nature and essence.
Therefore the first implication undoes the first foundation.
