Paul A. Nelson (b. 1958) is a philosopher of science, American
young earth creationistYoung Earth creationism is the religious belief that the Heavens, Earth, and life on Earth were created by direct acts of God during a short period, sometime between ca 5,700 and 10,000 years ago....
and
intelligent designIntelligent design is the assertion 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 modern form of the traditional teleological argument for the existence of God, but one which...
advocate.
Biography
Nelson is the grandson of the creationist author and Lutheran minister Byron Christopher Nelson (1894-1972) and edited a book of his grandfather's writings. He is married to Suzanne Nelson, an assistant professor of pediatrics at
Northwestern University{{Infobox university|name = Northwestern University|image_name = NU seal.png|motto = Quaecumque sunt vera |mottoeng =Whatsoever things are true |established = 1851|type = Private|calendar = Quarter...
and they have two daughters.
In 1998, Nelson gained a PhD in
philosophyPhilosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems concerning matters such as existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing these questions by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on reasoned...
from the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
. The Discovery Institute's Wedge Document, amongst other sources, claimed that Nelson was publishing a work derived from his thesis, "Common Descent, Generative Entrenchment, and the Epistemology in Evolutionary Inference", criticizing the principle of
common descentA group of organisms is said to have common descent if they have a common ancestor. In modern biology, it is generally accepted that all living organisms on Earth are descended from a common ancestor or ancestral gene pool....
, as part of the
Evolutionary Monographs series. The
Evolutionary Monographs series is edited by evolutionary biologist
Leigh van ValenLeigh M. Van Valen is an American evolutionary biologist. he is professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Chicago....
. Biologist John M. Lynch however notes that it is a "second-tier publication" unsuited to such work, and that the work has been "forthcoming" for quite some time.
Nelson is a fellow of the
Discovery InstituteThe Discovery Institute is a conservative non-profit public policy think tank based in Seattle, Washington, best known for its advocacy of intelligent design. Its Teach the Controversy campaign aims to teach creationist anti-evolution beliefs in United States public high school science courses...
's
Center for Science and CultureThe 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...
and of the
International Society for Complexity, Information and DesignThe International Society for Complexity, Information, and Design was a non-profit professional society that promoted intelligent design.and rejected evolution....
. He is frequently cited by opponents of intelligent design as an example of ID's "
big tentIn politics, a big tent party or catch-all party is a political party seeking to attract people with diverse viewpoints. The party does not require adherence to some ideology as a criterion for membership.-Definition:...
" strategy in action. He has written about "Life in the Big Tent" in the Christian Research Journal.
Nelson said in an interview in
Touchstone MagazineTouchstone Magazine is a monthly publication of the Fellowship of St. James. It is subtitled A Journal of Mere Christianity, which replaced A Journal of Ecumenical Orthodoxy...
that there is no
scientific theoryIn the sciences generally, a scientific theory comprises a collection of concepts, including abstractions of observable phenomena expressed as quantifiable properties, together with rules that express relationships between observations of such concepts...
of
intelligent designIntelligent design is the assertion 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 modern form of the traditional teleological argument for the existence of God, but one which...
, which directly contradicts the Discovery Institute stance.
Young Earth Views
Nelson was a contributor to the book
Three Views on Creation and Evolution, edited by J. P. Moreland and John Mark Reynolds, in which he, along with Reynolds, represented the young earth creationist position. In their discussion in that book he and Reynolds acknowledged that "Natural science at the moment seems to overwhelmingly point to an old cosmos. Though creationist scientists have suggested some evidence for a recent cosmos, none are widely accepted as true. It is safe to say that most recent creationists are motivated by religious concerns" (p. 49).
External links
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