Is God Dead? Irreducible complexity

Ty B. Kerley

DMin

William Paley was an 18th – century English clergyman, Christian apologist, and philosopher. He is best known for his design argument for the existence of God. Paley suggested that if a person were walking through the forest and came upon a rock, it would gain no special attention because it is something that is naturally expected, and fully at home in the forest.

However, if a person walking in the forest came upon a watch, it would be known by instinct that the watch was not part of the forest and stood at odds with the surrounding environment.

But more than that, where the rock is a naturally occurring object, the watch is an object with an intricate and purposeful design. In other words, a highly designed watch indicates a Watchmaker.

But there are those that say no, the apparent design observed in nature is the result of millions of years of random trial and error. If you roll the dice enough times, so it is thought, anything can happen . . . even a fine-tuned universe. But cosmology is not the only place we see fine-tuning. We see many examples of fine tuning in biological systems as well.

Where fine tuning arguments for the existence of God from design in the cosmos are called Teleological Arguments, arguments for the existence of God based upon the fine-tuning observed in biological systems, including man, are generally called Design Arguments.

In 1859 Charles Darwin put forward a theory of evolution in his book On the Origin of Species. Darwin had based his model on the premise that all life evolved from some primordial primitive cells, and that genetic mutation, natural selection, and “survival of the fittest” over millions of years, led to the evolution of modern human beings.

For Darwin’s theory to work, there must be a genetic mutation that is a benefit to the organism that helps its survivability. These advantageous mutations then build upon each other over the generations becoming more and more complex and beneficial.

But Darwin also made an important comment; he said, “If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down.”

In 1996 a biochemist named Michael Behe wrote a book titled Darwin’s Black Box. In the book Behe took on Darwin’s challenge. What Behe argued was that there are indeed complex organs whose origin cannot possibly be explained by numerous slight modifications. Behe termed this phenomenon “Irreducible Complexity.”

An irreducibly complex system is one which has many parts, and each part is necessary to the overall function of the system. If one single part is defective or missing, the entire system is nonfunctional.

Behe gives the design of a mousetrap as an example of an irreducibly complex system. A mousetrap is composed of several parts; it requires a flat wooden platform to act as a base, a metal hammer to crush the little mouse, a spring with extended ends to press against the platform and the hammer when the trap is tripped, a sensitive catch that releases when the slightest pressure is applied, and a metal bar that connects to the catch and holds the hammer back when the trap is set.

            Visualizing a mousetrap, we can reason to the conclusion that there is not a single part that can be eliminated and the trap still function. That indicates the mousetrap is an irreducibly complex system. It cannot be reduced to a simpler form and still function. If we take that same idea and apply it to various systems in biology it is discovered that there are many such systems.

One particular example that Behe presents is that of bacterial flagellum.  Flagellum are small tail-like structures that propel bacterial bodies through fluids. It turns out that this little tail-like structure is a lot more complex than one might think.

The structure that powers the flagellum is called a motor, and it is designed much like a mechanical boat motor. There is a propeller, a universal joint, a shaft, a stator, and a rotor. But it is not powered by ATP, the energy source used by all other cells.

The flagellum motor is powered by a highly complex system that pumps acid through a membrane to generate energy. All told there are some forty different specialized proteins that make up flagellum and its motor. If any one of the motor’s parts, or even one of the forty proteins is missing, the flagellum is worthless. That makes it an irreducibly complex system.

Darwin’s evolution says that complex systems arise through numerous successive, slight modifications over many generations that are beneficial for survival of the species.”

But we have just seen that bacterial flagellum is a highly complex system that could not have been the product of numerous slight modifications over a great period of time because the flagellum system is a complete packaged unit.

It shows both design and complexity, two things that evolution cannot explain. These are but a few of “the things that have been made” that suggests an intentional Designer. Until next week, keep looking up!

Ty B. Kerley, DMin., is an ordained minister who teaches Christian apologetics. You can contact him at: dr.kerley@isGoddead.com.