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Dr Mortimer Adler’s life-long ‘crusade against evolution’Jerry Bergman

Dr Mortimer Adler’s conversion from an evolutionist to a creationist and, eventually, to Christianity, is a story typical of many persons in our modern age. A critical factor in his acceptance of Christianity was his life long study of evolution that eventually resulted in rejection of the Darwinist world view. He went on to publish several books and articles that explained in detail the reasons for his conclusions.

Dr MortimerAdler (1902–2001) was considered by

manyleadingintellectualsoneofthegreatest thinkersofalltime,andaccordingtoa1987Time magazinearticle,hewasthe‘lastgreatAristotelian’.Adlerhaswrittenorco-authoredover45books(allofthemverysuccessful)and200articles.HewasalsochairmanoftheboardofeditorsofEncyclopaedia Britannicaformanyyears.His54-volume Great Books of the Western Worldhassoldoveraquarterofamillioncopiessince1952.1

DrAdler did his undergraduate work at ColumbiaUniversity, where he finished a four-year program in three years, was ranked highest in his class, and was ranked first on thePhiBetaKappa list.2 HecompletedhisPh.D. inpsychologyatColumbia,andthenservedasaprofessorattheUniversityofChicagofortwelveyears,becomingafullprofessorbeforehebecameinvolvedwiththeEncyclopaedia Britannica.HisworkisofsuchstaturethatanationalcenterbasedonhiseducationalconceptswasestablishedinChapelHill,NorthCarolina.

An outspoken opponent of Darwinism

AdlerwasalsoanactiveandoutspokenopponentofDar-winismforalmostahalf-century.3In1985,Time magazinenotedthatAdler‘dismastsDarwin’because,amongmanyother reasons,Darwinismcategorizeshumans‘assimplyananimalwithhighersensoryperceptions’.4TheskepticMartinGardnerevenconcludes thatAdler ‘has forsometimebeencarryingonaone-mancrusadeagainstevolution’.Adler’slifelonginterestinDarwinismeventuallyresultedinhiswritingtwobooksonthetopic.Inhisbook,What Man Has Made of Man,Adlerbrandedevolution‘a“popular

myth”,insistingitisnotanestablishedfact’.5

Adlerusedtheword‘myth’torefertohisconclusionthat Darwinist conclusions ‘vastly exceed the scientific evidence ... . Thismythisthestoryofevolutionwhichistoldtoschoolchildrenandwhichtheycanalmostvisualizeasifitwereamovingpicture’(emphasismine).6 Specifi-cally,Adlerhasconcludedthetheoryofevolution‘isnotatheory in the sense of a systematic organization of scientific factsandlaws,inthesenseinwhichNewton’sPrincipiaisatheory’butisonlyatheory:

‘…inthesenseinwhichthereisanattempttoexplain certain facts, which have been scientifically established in thebiologicalsciences,bymakinghypotheseswhicharenotpropositionstobeproved,but are merely imaginative guesses about unob-servableprocessesorevents.ThisisthesenseofhypothesisinwhichNewtonsaidnoscientistshouldmakethem(emphasisinoriginal).’7

Adleraddsthatevolutionasatheoryis‘wildspecu-lation’andthat

‘Darwinhimselfispartlyresponsibleformuchofthisspeculation. The Origin of Species isfullof guesses which are clearly unsupported by theevidence. (Totheextent thatThe Origin of Spe-cies contains scientifically established facts, these factsarenotorganizedintoanycoherentsystem.)Furthermore, these guesses, which constitute thetheory of evolution, are not in the field of scientific knowledgeanyway.Theyarehistorical.Thiscon-jecturalhistory,begunbyDarwin,wasevenmorefancifullyelaboratedbythe19thcenturyevolution-ary“philosophers”.’8

He adds that work of the ‘post-Darwinian “scientific cosmologies”:Spencer,Haeckel...[and]...thepost-Darwin-ian“evolutionaryphilosophies”:e.g.Bergson’consistsofwildspeculations.Adlerconcludedthatbiological

‘ … “evolution” is not a scientific fact, but atbestaprobablehistory,ahistoryforwhichtheevidence is insufficient and conflicting ... [and that the]relevantfactsarefactsinembryology,genet-ics, palaeontology, comparative anatomy. Thesefactsestablishonlyonehistoricalprobability:thattypesofanimalswhichonceexistednolongerexist,andthattypesofanimalsnowexistingatonetimedidnotexist.Theydonotestablishtheelaboratestoryinwhichisthemythofevolution;nordotheyestablishanyoftheaetiologicalguessesaboutthewayinwhichspeciesoriginatedorbecameextinct,suchasnaturalselection,adaptationtoenvironment,struggle for existence, transmission of acquiredcharacteristics,etc.’9

Heconcludesbystating‘Ifthegrandmythofevolution,asahistoryof

thedevelopmentoftheformsoflife,andthegrandtheory of evolution, as an explanation of how itall happened, are not scientific knowledge, how

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muchlessaretheyphilosophi-calknowledge. (Thistypeofspeculation, peculiar to the19thcentury,didmuchtobringdiscredit upon the name ofphilosophywhichitsowronglyarrogated to itself.) For themostpart,thewildspeculationsofSpencer,Haeckel,Schopen-hauer and Bergson are nowgenerally discredited both byscientistsandphilosophers.’10

While still just a youngman,Adler had read a collectionofarticlesbydifferentauthorsina1924bookbyErnstHaeckelandotherstitledEvolution and Modern Thought11whichhesaidcausedhimtobe‘puzzled’by the ‘conflicting points of view’ on evolution expressed bythedifferentauthors:

‘Try as I might, I simply could not figure out howevolutionwassupposedtowork.Ispenthourswritingnotestomyselfandmakingdiagramsinanefforttoputdownthestepsbywhichanewspeciescameintobeing.’12

Headdsthatthispuzzlementremainedwithhimforyears,andonlywhenhereadDarwin’sOrigin of Speciesfor the third time did he believe that he finally understood Darwinism. However, when he finally understood evolution hefoundmuchwithwhichhedisagreed.GardnerconcludedthatoneofthethingstowhichAdlerobjectedwastheviewthatlifelies‘onacontinuuminwhichonespeciesfadesintoanotherbyimperceptiblechanges.Theevidenceindicates,heargues,that“species”differnotindegreebutinkind,witharadical“discontinuity”separatingthem.’13

The radical discontinuity between humans and animals

Adlerdevotedanentirebooktothe‘radicaldiscontinu-

ity’betweenhumansandanimals.Inthisbook,titledThe Difference of Man and the Difference It Makes,14hearguesthatthedifferenceisbothmajorandcritical.Inhisautobi-ography,Adlerstressesthatthethemeofthisentirebookisthathumansandanimalsdiffernotjustindegree(quantity),butinkind(quality)aswell.Helateraddedthat

‘sinceThe Difference of Man and The Differ-ence It Makes was published [in 1957], scientific investigationshaveturnedupadditionalevidencerelevant to [my conclusion] ... that man, withthe powers of syntactical speech and conceptualthought,differsinkindfromallnonlinguisticani-malsremainsasclearandcertainasbefore.’15 This view is reflected in many of Adler’s other

writings.16As do all creationists (in the broadest sense),Adler

recognizesthatvariationwithintheGenesiskindsisvalid,

andwritesindetailaboutthisprobleminhisbook,Prob-lems for Thomists17(aThomists—afollowerofSt.ThomasAquinas—championstheviewthatthereexistsa‘self-ex-istent Prime Mover’ an uncaused first cause, i.e. a creator, namelyGod).Inthisbook,Adlerexaminesingreatdetailthequestionofhowmany‘species’existsohecananswerthequestion

‘ … how many creative acts of God arerequired to explain the evolutionary jumps? …Adler’s … view, which he considers “almostcompletelydemonstrated”,is…Withinaspecies,changeshaveoccurred,buteachspeciesitselfisafixed type—immutable in its essence, and coming intobeingonlybyanactofGod.Adlersuspectsthateachspecieswascreatedinseveraldifferenttypes, underived from each other—for example,the separate creation of flowering and non-flower-ingplants.’18

Ofcoursemoderncreationistswouldnotequatethecreatedkindswiththeman-madecategoryofspecies.

Adlerwasanactiveanti-evolutionistfordecades.Theconference on Science, Philosophy and Religion held inNewYorkCityeachyeardrewmany‘topscientists’andphi-losophersincludingDrAdler.AtthesemeetingsAdler,whooncesaidDarwinismis‘fullofguesseswhichareclearlyunsupported by the evidence’ expressed concern about‘materialist ideology’ and ‘Scientism which dominateseveryaspectofourmodernculture’.19GardnerconcludesthatoneofmanyexamplesofwhathecallsAdler’s‘blasts’againstevolutionwasexpoundedinalecture

‘ … at the University of Chicago, in 1951. Menandapes,hedeclared,areasdifferent“asasquareandatriangle.Therecanbenointermedi-ate—no three and one-half-sided figure.” Most of Adler’sargumentswerestraightoutofthearsenalofBibleBeltevangelism....Ifascientistwouldonlyproduceanape thatcouldspeak“insimpledeclarativesentences”,Adlersaid,hewouldadmitaclosebondbetweenmanandmonkey....Onlytwoexplanations will fit all the facts, Adler concluded hisspeech.Eitherman“emerged”fromthebrute

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byasuddenevolutionaryleap,orhewascreateddirectlybyGod.’20

Adleroncesaid‘Scientists...aretheologicallyna-ive.Butthatdoesn’tseemtostopthemfromtalkingaboutbeginningsandendings.Thebeginningwasn’tabigbangand the end won’t be a final freeze. But don’t try telling a scientistthat’.21

MortimerAdler was one of millions ofAmericans(includingmorethan40,000activescientists)thatdonotacceptDarwinism.22Fortunately,DrAdlerwaswillingtospeakoutabouthisdoubtsaboutDarwinisminhislectures,articles,andbooks. Asaresult,hehasarticulatedsomemajorconcernsthathavenotbeensatisfactorilyaddressedbyevolutionists,eventoday.Andasexpected,DrAdlerhasenduredhisshareofattacksbyDarwinists,especiallythoseintheatheisticcommunity.21–24

BornofJewishparents,he‘fellawayfromreligiousobservance’ as ayoungman to thepointofbecominga‘religiousscoffer’.25Onlyin1984whenhewas82didhebecomeaprofessingChristian.26 Andeversince,hehasbeenactiveinwritingandspeakingabouthisfaith.Thereason he became a Christian was because his life-longresearchprovedtohimthat‘Christianityistheonlylogi-cal,consistentfaithintheworld’.27Heneverexpressedhisconclusionsonsuchtopicsastheageoftheearth,butnevercriticizedtheconservativebiblicalvieweither.

Conclusions Until he died, DrAdler was deeply committed to

demonstrating God’s existence scientifically ‘beyond rea-sonabledoubt’.28,29 His confidence in God’s existence was basedonthecosmologicalargument(theconclusionthattheexistenceofacreationprovesthecreator),andthefactthatnoformofevolutionism,includingNeo-Darwinism,canaccountforthecreationofeitherlifeorthecosmos.30Furthermoreasaphilosopher,heconcludedthatbeliefinChristianityiscriticalindevelopingaworkable,humanesystemofethicsandmorality.31

References

1. Bowen,E.,ThelastgreatAristotelian,Time 4May1987pp.84–85.

2. Rothe,A.andLohr,E.(Eds),Current Biography,H.W.WilsonCo.,NewYork,1952.

3. Gardner,M.,Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science,Dover,NewYork,1957.

4. Bowen,E.,Aphilosopherforeveryman,Time6May1985,p.68.

5. Gardner,Ref.3,p.135.

6. Gardner,Ref.3,pp.135–136.

7. Adler,M.J.,What Man Has Made of Man,Ungar,NewYork,p.115,1957.

8. Adler,Ref.7,pp.115–116.

9. Adler,Ref.7,pp.116–117.

10. Adler,Ref.7,p.117.

11. Haeckelet al.,Evolution in Modern Thought,ModernLibrary,NewYork,1924.

12. Adler, M.J., Philosopher at Large; An Intellectual Autobiography 1902–1976,Collier-Macmillan,NewYork,p.13,1977.

13. Adler,Ref.7,p.136.

14. Adler,M.J.,The Difference of Man and The Difference It Makes,Holt,RinehartandWinston,NewYork,1967.

15. Adler,Ref.12,p.300.

16. Holley,I.B.Jr,ReviewofIntellect: Mind over MatterbyMortimerAdler,American Scientist80(2):202–203,1992.

17. Adler,M.J.,Problems for Thomists; The Problem of Species,SheedandWard,NewYork,1940.

18. Gardner,Ref.3,p.136.

19. Witham,L.,Where Darwin Meets the Bible,OxfordUniversityPress,NewYork,2002.

20. Gardner,Ref.3,p.137.

21. Muck,T.C.,Truth’sintrepidambassador,Christianity Today34(17):32–34,19Nov.1990;p.33.

22. Bergman,J.,TheattitudeofvariouspopulationstowardsteachingCreationandevolutioninpublicschools,TJ 13(2):118–123,1999.

23. Stein,G.,ReviewofThe Angels and Us byMortimerJ.Adler,The Ameri-can Rationalist27(1):14,1982.

24. Ravitch,D.,Gwiazda,R.E.,McKenzie,F.D.,Berry,M.F.,Carnoy,M.,CahnS.M.andAdler,M.J.,Symposium:ThePaideiaProposal, Harvard Educational Review 53(4):377–411,1983.

25. Adler,M.J.,How to Think About God: A Guide for the 20th-Century Pagan,Macmillan,NewYork,1980.

26. Adler,M.J.,Aphilosopher’sreligiousfaith; in:Clark,K.J.(Ed.),Phi-losophers Who Believe: The Spiritual Journeys of 11 Leading Thinkers,InterVarsityPress,DownersGrove,pp.203–221,1993.

27. quotedinMuck,Ref.21,p.33.

28. Adler,Ref.25,p.19.

29. Adler,M.J.,Truth in Religion; The Plurality of Religions and the Unity of Truth,Collier-Macmillan,p.107,1990.

30. Adler,Ref.25,pp.136–137.

31. Adler,M.J.,The Time of Our Lives; The Ethics of Common Sense,Holt,RinehartandWinston,NewYork,1970.

Jerry Bergmanisworkingonhisninthacademicdegree.Hismajorareasofstudyforhispastcollegeworkwereinbiology,chemistry,psychology,andevaluationandresearch.HegraduatedfromWayneStateUniversityinDetroit,Medi-calCollegeofOhioinToledo,andBowlingGreenStateUniversity among others. A prolific writer, Dr Bergman teachesbiology,chemistryandbiochemistryatNorthwestStateinArchbold,Ohio.

Dr Mortimer Adler’s life-long ‘crusade against evolution’ — Bergman