Question for those that claim that Darwin recanted...?

Question

Let's ignore the fact that Darwin did not develope the Theory of
Evolution, (just for information purposes it was the principles of Natural Selection that he proposed) where did you hear/read that Darwin recanted. I'm about to get my BS in Biology and in my entire educational career I have never heard of this, I have breifly read a biography on Darwin. So please inform me as to where you get your information about this, because I have found several sites that claim this without proof, and I've found several that claim his recanting was just a hoax. For instance the following site: http://www.youdebate.com/DEBATES/creation_darwin_recant.HTM

PS: I'm not looking to back up my own viewpoints, while I welcome all viewpoints, I would like to hear from those that do believe or have knowledge of Darwin's alleged recanting of Evolution.

Under One God: Your answer is well stated, you believe there are no intermediate steps to the eye? I fear you have stated something that you believe rather than something you know.

To whoever thumbed down all the answer, that's not very considerate. Just to let you know it wasn't me I thumbed all the answers except the one that said they didn't care.

Answer 1

It is characteristic of the desperation of anti-evolutionists that they perpetuate this nonsense. It is because they think that we (non-theists) hold figures like Darwin to be as totemic as they hold Jesus (we don't, he was just a man - like Jesus).

You should read other biographies of Darwin if you have time, though the best of the bunch about this case is James Moore's "The Darwin Legend". It puts the case to sleep. Read his (and Adrian Desmond's) biography of Darwin as well. Superb scholarship. A lot of people here would benefit from an example like theirs.

http://members.aol.com/steamdoc/writings/moore94.html

EDIT

For the record, Darwin died in 1882 aged 73. Lady Hope lived in the same part of Kent as Darwin but was not a frequent visitor to his home. She FIRST made the claim that she had been by his bedside when he died, and had heard him renouce his evolutionary ideas, THIRTY-THREE YEARS after Darwin's death. It never occurred to her to mention it to anyone before then. She also made the announcement on a trip to the USA. No-one in Britain had ever heard her story before. The family who had been with him issued a firm denial that she had been anywhere close to Darwin when he died. It's not REALLY a case of he-said she-said.

Lady Hope was an evangelical Christian. She was also a liar.

Answer 2

From what ive read, Darwin passed away in the 1880s, at a very old age.

And many years after his death, stories that Darwin recanted and renounced his theory of evolution, have surfaced.

The most noted being the story attributed to a Lady Hope, who claimed she had personal knowledge of his death-bed conversion.

Although this and many other similar narratives have surfaced or resurfaced, Darwin's own family have denied any of it and even leading Creationists have said that this & other similar stories are likely to be old-wives tales.

But all we have are hear-say & she said, he said--there's actually nothing much to go on.

Anyway, all these have no bearing on the theory itself but rather is about the idea that a dying man may have seen the light and have converted to be God-believer, before he died.

Answer 3

I have never found anything to back this up factually. People claim it of course because they think it weakens evolution, but academically Darwin recanting just doesn't hold water. Besides, I'm under the impression that Darwin was a Christian (shock of shocks)--what would he have needed to recant? He had no problem with the ideas of natural selection and Christianity coexisting so far as I'm aware.

Answer 4

If they can believe in god, it's not too much of a stretch for them to believe Darwin recanted!

Answer 5

The story comes directly from "Lady Hope" who went to visit Darwin in his last weeks. She made up the story that he said something to her in private.

Of course we know this is false because Darwin would have told his wife Emma. Nothing would have made her more happy. But she never said such a thing had occurred.

Answer 6

It is very unlikely that it is true. If it were true, it would be similar to Newton recanting or Einstein "recanting." These people proposed models verified by thousands of scientists so that even if the founder of a valid proposition were to change his or her mind it would only represent one opinion- the value of their work must be judged on its own merits.

Answer 7

I was a young man with uninformed ideas.
I threw out queries, suggestions, wondering all the time over everything; and to my astonishment the ideas took like wildfire. People made a religion of them.

Answer 8

You won't find any credible sites of this because it was fundamental Christians propagating a lie.

Answer 9

Lady Hope made that claim. Darwin's daughter said it was not true.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Hope

Answer 10

he said [apart from your quote] that if there was ever an adaption [sans intermediate steps his theory would be invalidated ] the eye meets this [his own measure ]