Coyne was a vocal proponent of the view that a scientific view of evolution in its classic form, including its random nature, is compatible with Catholic teaching. In August 2005, he sharply critiqued an op-ed column in which Cardinal Christoph Schönborn appeared to question that position. He wrote that "If they respect the results of modern science, and indeed the best of modern biblical research, religious believers must move away from the notion of a dictator God or a designer God, a Newtonian God who made the universe as a watch that ticks along regularly.” He proposed an alternative view of God's role as creator: "God in his infinite freedom continuously creates a world that reflects that freedom at all levels of the evolutionary process to greater and greater complexity. He is not continually intervening, but rather allows, participates, loves." In November 2005, he said that "Intelligent design isn't science even though it pretends to be. If you want to teach it in schools, intelligent design should be taught when religion or cultural history is taught, not science."