EINDHOVEN, Holland (BNc) – Dr. Mike Houts presented an afternoon of lectures at the NatLab center in Eindhoven on December 7th, 2019. Sixty-five were present, including Christians from other places and a number of visitors from the city.
Brother Houts used the obvious ability of people to make choices as a proof against materialism. If there were nothing but matter in motion, everything that a person does would simply be the consequence of the deterministic movement of matter and one could not logically be held responsible for any of his actions. There are spiritual realities, however, and man is capable of making choices and is responsible for the choices he makes.
He discussed the inability of mutations and natural selection to account for the many marvelous purpose-built living systems on earth. He showed that the large number of random permutations that would be required even for the smallest life forms to develop by chance is so high that evolution by natural selection is statistically impossible.
He discussed the lack of evidence for evolution in the fossil record and gave examples of various hoaxes that had been perpetrated in support of evolution.
He pointed out that all methods of dating fossils and rocks are based on unproved assumptions and often involve circle reasoning.
There was a question period after each of the two sessions.
Here is a video of the second session.
The event was organized by Gijs Bardoel and Ivo Van Erp of the church of Christ in Eindhoven.
Those who attended the lectures on Saturday were invited to attend the services of the church in Eindhoven on Sunday. Brother Houts taught the Bible class and delivered the sermon.
A staunch evolutionist through his early twenties, Dr. Houts came to believe in God by noticing flaws and discrepancies in the materialistic view of reality, and by noticing the dogmatic nature of the promotion of evolution in institutions of higher learning.
Dr. Houts and his wife were baptized into Christ in 1999.
Dr. Mike Houts holds B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Nuclear Engineering from the University of Florida, as well as a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He worked 11 years with Los Alamos National Laboratory serving in various positions including Team Leader for Criticality, Reactor, and Radiation Physics, Deputy Group Leader of the 70-person Nuclear Design and Risk Analysis Group, and also served as chairman of the 15th, 16th, 17th, and 25th Symposiums on Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion. In addition to his duties with Apologetics Press, he presently serves as Nuclear Research Manager at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center where he provides guidance and technical advice on research and development related to the design, development, and utilization of space nuclear power and propulsion systems. He has been the lead author on more than two dozen technical papers related to space nuclear power and propulsion, as well as additional papers related to Accelerator Transmutation of Waste, Plutonium Disposition, and other topics. He has co-authored over 100 technical papers and has received numerous distinguished performance awards, including a NASA Exceptional Service Medal, a NASA Exceptional Engineering Achievement Medal, and was selected as an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
2019-12-21 at 6:57 pm
I’m not familiar with this speaker, but he’s a charlatan who should not be representing the church in any capacity. Evolution is one of the most well-established theories in all of biology. Any attempt to dismiss evolution as “lack of evidence” demonstrates an ignorance of that evidence. Any attempt to dismiss evolution on religious grounds demonstrates an internal struggle to form a god in their own image. I hope that you showed this man the door and never invited him back.
2019-12-23 at 5:00 am
Thank you for your comment, Thomas. It illustrates an attitude some people have toward anyone who dares question evolution. Few people who believe in evolution have read Darwin’s “Origin of Species”. I have, and in it he acknowledges that there are weaknesses in the theory. He was much less dogmatic that many of his followers are. Dr. Houts is certainly not a charlatan. Anyone with an open mind can benefit from his material. Roy Davison
2020-02-05 at 6:25 am
I have met and heard Dr. Houts speak. I have read a few of his articles. He is a man to be trusted and respected. I have read some of Darwin’s “The Origin of Species.” I encourage the doubter to get the 446 page book and read some of it. I encourage him/her to read the comments of his critics, especially those by his defender, Thomas Henry Huxley.