Charles Thaxton
Encyclopedia
Charles B. Thaxton is an intelligent design
author and Fellow of the Discovery Institute
's Center for Science and Culture
.
from Iowa State University
. He went on to complete post-doctorate programs in the history of science
at Harvard University
and the molecular biology
laboratories of Brandeis University
.
Thaxton has co-authored several books, including The Mystery of Life's Origin and The Soul of Science. In The Mystery of Life's Origin, Thaxton argues for "Special Creation
by a Creator beyond the Cosmos", and asserts that Special Creation holds "that the source that produced life was intelligent".
He was the editor of the first edition of the controversial Intelligent Design
textbook, Of Pandas and People
. The book was featured prominently in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District
and the sequence of drafts that show the transition between the terms "creation" and "creator" to "design", "designer", and "intelligent design", proved important in the judge's decision.
Thaxton stated that he preferred intelligent design to creationism
because he "wasn’t comfortable with the typical vocabulary that for the most part creationists were using because it didn’t express what I was trying to do. They were wanting to bring God into the discussion, and I was wanting to stay within the empirical domain and do what you can do legitimately there."
Thaxton and his wife, Carole Thaxton, run the "KONOS Connection," which is a non-profit educational Christian organization in Fayetteville, GA. He also teaches at Charles University.
Intelligent design
Intelligent design is the proposition that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a form of creationism and a contemporary adaptation of the traditional teleological argument for...
author and Fellow of the Discovery Institute
Discovery Institute
The Discovery Institute is a non-profit public policy think tank based in Seattle, Washington, best known for its advocacy of intelligent design...
's Center for Science and Culture
Center for Science and Culture
The Center for Science and Culture , formerly known as the Center for the Renewal of Science and Culture , is part of the Discovery Institute, a conservative Christian think tank in the United States...
.
Biography
Thaxton earned a doctorate in physical chemistryPhysical chemistry
Physical chemistry is the study of macroscopic, atomic, subatomic, and particulate phenomena in chemical systems in terms of physical laws and concepts...
from Iowa State University
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
. He went on to complete post-doctorate programs in the history of science
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and the molecular biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
laboratories of Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
.
Thaxton has co-authored several books, including The Mystery of Life's Origin and The Soul of Science. In The Mystery of Life's Origin, Thaxton argues for "Special Creation
Special creation
In Creationism, special creation is a theological doctrine which states that the universe and all life in it originated by unconditional fiat or divine decree....
by a Creator beyond the Cosmos", and asserts that Special Creation holds "that the source that produced life was intelligent".
He was the editor of the first edition of the controversial Intelligent Design
Intelligent design
Intelligent design is the proposition that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a form of creationism and a contemporary adaptation of the traditional teleological argument for...
textbook, Of Pandas and People
Of Pandas and People
Of Pandas and People: The Central Question of Biological Origins is a controversial 1989 school-level textbook written by Percival Davis and Dean H. Kenyon and published by the Texas-based Foundation for Thought and Ethics...
. The book was featured prominently in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District
Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District
Tammy Kitzmiller, et al. v. Dover Area School District, et al. was the first direct challenge brought in the United States federal courts testing a public school district policy that required the teaching of intelligent design...
and the sequence of drafts that show the transition between the terms "creation" and "creator" to "design", "designer", and "intelligent design", proved important in the judge's decision.
Thaxton stated that he preferred intelligent design to creationism
Creationism
Creationism is the religious beliefthat humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe are the creation of a supernatural being, most often referring to the Abrahamic god. As science developed from the 18th century onwards, various views developed which aimed to reconcile science with the Genesis...
because he "wasn’t comfortable with the typical vocabulary that for the most part creationists were using because it didn’t express what I was trying to do. They were wanting to bring God into the discussion, and I was wanting to stay within the empirical domain and do what you can do legitimately there."
Thaxton and his wife, Carole Thaxton, run the "KONOS Connection," which is a non-profit educational Christian organization in Fayetteville, GA. He also teaches at Charles University.
External links
- KONOS Connection - Ran by Charles Thaxton
- Online articles of Charles Thaxton, Discovery InstituteDiscovery InstituteThe Discovery Institute is a non-profit public policy think tank based in Seattle, Washington, best known for its advocacy of intelligent design...
- Online articles of Charles Thaxton, Discovery Institute
- "Christianity and the Scientific Enterprise (I)" by Charles Thaxton