“Intelligent Design” is a new name for Creationism. It is an attempt to make Creationism appear scientific by hiding their basic premise that the Bible is 100% scientifically accurate and a cosmic Intelligent Designer (God) created the world and all living things by superceding the laws of nature.
It is not science.
Science is about watching the world around us and making observations about how it appears to work, and making predictions based on those observations. If those predictions are wrong, it shows that we have to change our observations and make new predictions. This is a basic human instinct, although it can be seen in other animals as well.
The “Intelligent Designer” is a God who can do whatever he wants, without regard for the laws of nature, then that means that the laws of nature are not absolute – that they could change, or be changed at any moment. Cause-and-effect would be totally disconnected. Things could happen for no reason at all. If mankind followed this path we would still be shivering in caves with no way of knowing what would happen next – perhaps we’d suddenly explode, gravity would reverse or fire would freeze into ice? How could we trust anything? Will a wire conduct electricity or will it turn into a frog?
Most modern Christians (and other religions) don’t believe in that sort of God. Their God is more spiritual and does not break the laws of nature. He is not that deceptive. Creationists believe that although some science works, some things in the world are so complex and work so well that they must have been created by some divine being. They cannot say how God created these things, because that’s divine magic – God willed them into existence. This is religion not science.
See Creationism, also
UPCOMING PUBLIC TALK – Creationism vs Education