Do you agree with Albert Einstein or Charles Darwin ?

Question

A.
"Everyone who is seriously interested in the pursuit of science becomes convinced that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the universe—a spirit vastly superior to man, and one in the face of which our modest powers must feel humble."-Albert Einstein




B.
"To suppose that the eye, with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree." (The Origin of Species, Chapter 6).-Charles Darwin

Answer 1

Did not know Einstein said it: we like answer A.

Answer 2

The Darwin quote is taken out of context.

"To suppose that the eye with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of Spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest degree. When it was first said that the sun stood still and the world turned round, the common sense of mankind declared the doctrine false; but the old saying of Vox populi, vox Dei ["the voice of the people = the voice of God "], as every philosopher knows, cannot be trusted in science. Reason tells me, that if numerous gradations from a simple and imperfect eye to one complex and perfect can be shown to exist, each grade being useful to its possessor, as is certain the case; if further, the eye ever varies and the variations be inherited, as is likewise certainly the case; and if such variations should be useful to any animal under changing conditions of life, then the difficulty of believing that a perfect and complex eye could be formed by natural selection, should not be considered as subversive of the theory."

This misquotation is just another example of how people who promote creationism and intelligent design over evolution don't really bother to first learn what evolution actually says.

Answer 3

I tend to agree with Einstein. No matter how many times I have read and heard Darwins theory of natural selection explained to me I have never been able to accept that there was no life force or universal spirit behind it all. I think Darwins theory explains much and there is a great deal of truth involved in it but , no pun intended I have always felt that there was a missing link in the theory. Its impossible for me to look at the complexity of life and of the universe generally without thinking that their is indeed a driving force at a work.

Answer 4

Aren't they both suggesting the same thing? Einstein that scientists suspect an unexplainable intelligence behind the fine tuning of the laws of physics and Darwin pointing to where his theory of evolution fails to account for the evidence before him, opening up the door to the possibility of intelligent deisign? I must agree with them both.
Darwin also said that if further discoveries in molecular science revealed the presence of irreducible complex systems , his theory of natural selection would fall apart. Such discoveries have indeed been found but today we still teach Darwinian evolution to our children in school.
Also Einstein admitted that the inclusion of his "fudge factor" in his theory of relativity was because his mathematical equations pointed to a beginning of the universe, which he thought would ruin his credibility as a scientist. Later he admitted that this was the greatest blunder in his career. as a physicist.

Answer 5

NO!...Not Me!...I Don't Believe In Science Fiction!....I Need Something Concrete & Real In My Life, That's Why I Have Jesus!.....But No One Is Stoping you....You Can Believe In Einstein & Charles Darwin All You Want...Doesn't Bother me!.....Just Don't Knock What Anyone Else Believes In!...Fair Enough!

Answer 6

In Einstein? I know he contributed a great deal to science and I admire him so much. He will be acknowledged wrong in some of his theories, but that is normal. He is a great scientist and I respect him.

In Darwin however, I completely ignore and refuse to accept any of his theories although he is a great thinker and philosopher, yet he proved to be an idiot be refusing to accept that God is behind all creation.

Answer 7

I think you took B out of context. I don't know that passage off hand, but I wouldn't be surprised that after that he said something like even though it's unlikely it's still probably true. And Einstein's work didn't really ever threaten religion as we know it so why should that be so surprising that he was religious?

Answer 8

Personally I agree with Einstein when he said this ....

"A man's ethical behaviour should be based effectually on sympathy, empathy, education, common sense and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death. "

Answer 9

A. I don't know enough about people that are serious in the pursuit of science to agree or disagree.

B. I don't know enough about natural selection to agree or disagree.

Einstein did NOT believe in a personal god though. That quote should not make you think he did.

Answer 10

I believe what Einstein said there. I also agree that evolution sounds absurd, but I believe quote A, too.

Answer 11

Einstein was not referring to God, nor was he referring to "creation." Einstein was an atheist and used the word "God" to describe the orderliness of the universe. He did not use it to describe a creator.

The two questions are unrelated so why did you pose it as an "or" proposition?