dissent

When first published, Darwin's Origin of Species was greeting with widespread scepticism by the
scientific community. Robert E Clark wrote: "The scientific world also was almost wholly against the
Origin. In later years, T. H. Huxley, speaking of the year 1860, described the situation by saying, ‘The
supporters of Mr. Darwin’s views were numerically, extremely insignificant. There is not the slightest
doubt that if a general council of the church scientific had been held at that time, we should have been
condemned by an overwhelming majority’." (Darwin: Before and After, Moody Press, Chicago, 1967, p.
63).
Darwin was troubled by the criticisms of his work, and made many modifications and amendments to
later editions. Dr Michael Denton, an agnostic critic of evolution, wrote, "The popular conception of a
triumphant Darwin increasingly confident after 1859 in his views of evolution is a travesty. On the
contrary, by the time the last edition of the Origin was published in 1872, he had become plagued with
self doubt and frustrated by his inability to meet the many objections which had been leveled at his
theory. According to Loren Eiseley: ‘A close examination of the last edition of the Origin reveals that in
attempting on scattered pages to meet the objections being launched against his theory the
much-labored upon volume had become contradictory…. The last repairs to the Origin reveal… how
very shaky Darwin’s theoretical structure had become. His gracious ability to compromise had
produced some striking inconsistencies. His book was already a classic, however, and these
deviations for the most part passed unnoticed even by his enemies’." (Evolution: a Theory in Crisis,
Burnett Books, 1985,.p.69).

About 700 doctoral scientists — including 154 biologists — have signed a public statement
expressing their scepticism about the contemporary theory of Darwinian evolution. They include
member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the Russian Academy of Sciences. It reads:
“We are sceptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the
complexity of life. Careful examination of the evidence for Darwinian theory should be encouraged.”
(see www.dissentfromdarwin.org for details).
Dr Jerry Bergman has also published a list of several thousand scientists who oppose evolution,
listing their qualifications and scientific disciplines.
Although not all the Darwin dissenters are creationists, most would support belief in intelligent
design, and they all have serious doubts about Darwinism, even though they often face fierce
opposition from Darwinists.
There is, however, a growing minority of scientists who accept the Biblical creationist view. These
include almost 700 scientists with a Masters and Doctors degree who belong to the Creation
Research Society. There is also an extensive list of creationist scientists on the Answers in Genesis
website.
In South Korea, the Korean Association of Creation Research has a membership of more than
1000 scientists, including about 500 Ph.D.'s. Most of the members hold jobs as university
professors, research scientists or engineers.
Since the collapse of communism there has been a new interest in alternatives to evolution in
Russia, and the Moscow Creation Society has over 300 scientists in membership. Quite a nomber
of creationist books have been translated into Russian, and regular symposiums are held.