John Dewey and the new truth of Evolution

When apologists for Evolution claim that it's not merely a theory but true, as true as anything could possibly be, what do they mean? If you're not a student of philosophy you might be surprised.

Quotes and comments;

A. In summarizing the view of truth espoused by the Pragmatist John Dewey, a scholar has said; 'From this, the pragmatic theory of truth becomes evident. If a meaningful idea is useful in adjusting to a practical situation, if it helps to predict events and thus control what happens to us, it is deemed true.' [1.]

B. In the words of Dewey himself; "This is the meaning of truth; processes of change so directed that they achieve an intended consummation." [2.]
- In other words, truth is a concrete result produced by the deliberate actions of men, not an accurate picture of reality.

- For Dewey, knowledge begins with a problem. (Knowledge amounts to being a 'useful' solution to a problem.) The 'problem' for radical thinkers in the Enlightenment was this; 'how can we rid ourselves of the evil called Christianity?' The suggestion was offered that Christianity could be destroyed by destroying its foundations in the book of Genesis. This led to a practical problem of how to do this. It was suggested that this could be done by offering an alternative account of origins. This new account (based almost entirely on criticism and speculation) was pictured as progressive and scientific and thus better than the old.

- Darwinism is considered true by our Humanist elite, not because it's an accurate picture of reality - but because it has been an accurate prediction and a useful result. i.e. various non-Christian thinkers predicted it would radically harm a belief in Christianity (especially among the college educated) and this prediction has come true. It has also been useful in damaging the credibility of the Bible and the influence of c. thinkers. It has been truly useful we might say. (This pragmatic view of truth is based on the belief that absolute truth doesn't exist - and so 'truth' must be redefined as what is useful. i.e. by what is considered useful by the political and social elite.)

Summary;
When materialists called evolution or Darwinism true, they're using a different conception of truth. (As in liberal theology, the words are the same but the meaning is radically different.) They simply mean that it's a useful fiction; one that brings them results that they find valuable. I don't believe anyone really believes that living organisms somehow magically emerge from inert matter. The truth of evolution isn't a matter of scientific discovery, but of social engineering.

Michael Johnson [frfarer - at - gmail.com]

Notes;
1. Foundations of Christian scholarship - edited by Gary North/Pragmatism, Prejudice and Presuppositionalism - Greg Bahnsen/246
- This is a valuable essay, as is another essay in the collection he wrote called 'Socrates or Christ'.
2. ibid/p.247
3. Dewey was an ardent Darwinian, and a collection of his essays is entitled 'Darwin's influence on philosophy'
4. When I use the term evolution in this brief post, I'm referring to molecules to man (M2M) evolution.