David C. C. Watson

For other people of the same name, see David Watson (disambiguation).

David C. C. Watson
Born	February 20, 1920(1920-02-20) Bharatpur, India
Died	January 12, 2004(2004-01-12) (aged 83) Worthing
Occupation	Teacher
Nationality	British
Period	1975-1996
Genres	Christian theology, apologetics

David Charles Cunningham Watson, (20 February 1920–12 January 2004) was an English teacher, author and creationist, born in Bharatpur, India.^[1]

Biography

Watson graduated from the University of Cambridge with First class honours in Classics, winning the Carus Greek Testament Prize in 1947. He was later a Senior Scholar at Trinity College.^[2]

He then served as a missionary in India, teaching at a Christian school near Madras (now Chennai).^[3] There he came into contact with Hannington Enoch, Professor of Zoology at Presidency College,^[4] whose articles Watson cited as influential on his own creationist efforts.^[5] In 1951 he was a founding member and the magazine editor of the Inter Collegiate Evangelical Union (ICEU) of Madras, which was one of a number of movements that later formed the Union of Evangelical Students of India.^[4]

In 1975 and 1976 he published The Great Brain Robbery and Myths and Miracles, which were later translated into other languages including German, Spanish and Finnish.

In 1976 Watson, who was a member of the Evolution Protest Movement, lost his job teaching religious education at a state school in the United Kingdom. Although creationists publicly reported that this dismissal was for refusing "to teach that Genesis is myth" and rallied to his support, they privately intimated opinions about his inability to control pupils classroom behaviour and failure to follow the prescribed syllabus. The Times Educational Supplement reported that students interrupted his class with shouts of "rubbish".^[6]

As of 1980 he was Director of the Institute for Creation Research's Midwest Center in Illinois,^[7] but in September of that year Walt Brown assumed that role.^[8] In 1997, the journal of another UK creationist group published an article that included Watson's views in a table comparing the opinions of "leading creationists".^[9]

He died in Worthing in 2004.^[1]

Works

Creationism

• The Great Brain Robbery: Creation or Evolution? (1975) 105pp. ISBN 978-0854799602
  [Reprint (Dillon's book, 1989) 140pp. ISBN 978-0951453803
• Myths and Miracles: A New Approach to Genesis 1-11 (1976) 120pp. ISBN 978-0854796014
  [Reprint (Creation Science Foundation, 1991) ASIN B000WO6FOY].
• Ten articles in Origins, journal of the Biblical Creation Society (1989 to 1995)^[10]

In translation:

• Die grosse Gehirnwäsche: Schöpfung oder Evolution? (1977) Schulte, ISBN 3877395457.
• Weltschöpfung und Urgeschichte aus wissenschaftlicher Sicht (1987) Schulte, ISBN 3877393195.
• El gran fraude intelectual (1981) Clie, ISBN 8472285898.
• Mitos y milagros (1980) Clie, ISBN 8472285553.
• Elämän synty: sattumaa vai suunnittelua? (1979) Ristin voitto, ISBN 9516055877.

General evangelical theology

• Fact or Fantasy: Authenticity of the Gospels (1980) 142pp. ISBN 978-0854790227
• The End is Nigh (Creation Science Movement, Pamphlet 296, 1994)
• Gospel According to Matthew: Commentary (Welsh Riviera Press, 1996), ISBN 978-1899654260

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Obituary". The Hindu. 8 February 2004. http://www.hinduonnet.com/2004/02/08/16hdline.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-26. 
2. ^ Watson, David, Great Anglican Divines — (5) John Pearson, Cross†Way, Winter 1986, Church Society.
3. ^ Johnson, Douglas, Contending for the Faith: A History of the Evangelical Movement in the Universities and Colleges, IVP (1979), 273.
4. ^ ^{a b} History of UESI Union of Evangelical Students of India.
5. ^ Watson, David C.C., The man who got me hunting down evolution! Professor Enoch, Creation 13(1) (December 1990), 39.
6. ^ Numbers, Ronald (November 30, 2006). The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design, Expanded Edition. Harvard University Press. pp. 300, p521–522:n31. ISBN 0674023390. 
7. ^ Morris, Henry, ICR staff list in ICR's Acts & Facts magazine, August 1980.
8. ^ Dutton, Julie A., 'Scientific creationism' challenges theory of evolution, Illinois Issues/23, February 1981
9. ^ Bradshaw, Robert I., Disagreements Among Leading Creationists Over Biblical Interpretation in "The Interpretation of Nature & the Bible", Origins (1997), journal of the Biblical Creation Society. Republished on author's website BiblicalStudies.org.uk
10. ^ Contents list for Origins, journal of the Biblical Creation Society

Persondata
Name	Watson, David C C
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1920-02-20
Place of birth	Bharatpur, India
Date of death	2004-01-12
Place of death	Worthing