Science and God

Stacy Lore

Science and God, UE141M

4/27/11

In 2005 when Dover High School introduced "Intelligent Design" to their ninth-grade biology curriculum, there was uproar in Dover, Pennsylvania. The entire town was divided on whether intelligent design should be included in their children's education, or if learning only about Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution was sufficient. Eleven parents decided that they did not want their children exposed to the questionably scientific idea of intelligent design, and chose to take legal action against the school district (Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District, 2005). The basis for the lawsuit was that by being taught about intelligent design, their children's first amendment rights were being violated. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution includes the Establishment Clause, which calls for the separation of church and state. This clause also prohibits the United States government, and any body of it, including public schools, from promoting or discouraging any certain religion. The plaintiffs (in this case the parents) claimed that teaching intelligent design was promoting Christianity, and thus a transgression of the Establishment Clause.

Various private foundations have financially assisted or helped to promote the intelligent design movement. One example of this is the Thomas Moore Law Center. It is an independent public interest firm in Michigan which calls itself the "sword and shield for people of faith". It also gave legal representation to the Dover Area School District during the trial. Another example is the Discovery Institute. They are the nation's leading intelligent design supporter. This firm is a strong advocate for intelligent design, and assisted with and supported the development of a textbook, Of Pandas and People.

During the trial for the case of Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District, the school board's chief witness was a well respected professor of biochemistry...