What Exactly Do Creationists Believe?
In short, a creationist believes that the universe was 'created'. Beyond that, there is debate that falls within 'Orthodoxy'. In other words, the age of the universe is open to debate. Many people have misunderstood Christianity as declaring that the universe is approximately 6000 years old. But there is NO verse in the Bible that dictates this. This dating is derived assuming that the 'day's in Genesis mean literal 24 hour days, and then adding up ages from the various genealogies. Clearly not a specific and clear task.
But the debate is acceptable, because it places God in control of the creation. Many believe that Christianity is diminished by a belief in 'Old Earth' creationism, because they assume that acceptance of apparent 'myth' in Genesis puts the remainder of the Bible in question. But many believe that God reveals Himself in the Natural Revelation, and can square what the Bible 'means' with what is evident with Scientific discovery.
What Are The Reasons To Believe In A Young Earth Creationism?
There are quite a few to consider and study. First and foremost, there is the Bible and its assignment of the description 'days' in Genesis. Literal 24 hour days are an acceptable translation of the Hebrew term 'Yom'. And contrary to popular belief, there are several apparent scientific evidences to consider as well. For instance, some claim to have studied items such as the Not enough mud on the sea floor. The current levels could indicate approximately 12 million years of accumulation, based upon certain assumptions (and keep in mind that any other conclusion is based upon certain assumptions of its own!) Or Not enough salt in the seas - Some assumptions and estimates would date the seas at 62 million years, not the generally 'accepted' 3 billion.
There are other 'evidences' such as the population of the planet. There are currently six billion people live on the planet. That is a LOT, but not really. In reality, all of us could fit on an island the size of England with 20 square meters each. So is it feasible that all six billion of us could have come about since the time of the flood, estimated to be ~4500 years ago? Considering that the current growth rate of the world's population is about 1.7% per year. That means that for every 100 million people, 1.7 million are added every year, births net of and deaths. This is the average, with some countries growing faster, predominately third world countries. And some obviously have less, like the United States. For the world to arrive at six billion today from Noah and his family 4500 years ago, we would have had to grow at a rate of 0.5% per year!
If people had been around for billions of years like the evolutionists claim, some terrific results would be evident. In fact, they would be absurd. If man showed up on the scene just a million years ago, and assuming a growth rate of only 0.01% per year (doubling every 7000 years) there would be 1043 people today! Well something must be wrong! So lets assuming a 'stone age' of about 100,000 years, with a range from 1 or 10 million people on the earth during this time frame. With these assumptions mankind would have buried between 4 billion or 40 billion bodies (and artifacts) by now, assuming a generation span of 25 years. This is required to keep the current level at 6 billion! For a real time example, consider the Australian Aboriginal people. When Europeans first settled the continent in 1788, they estimated that there were 300,000 Aborigines. Yet today, the evolutionists claim that they have been there for 60,000 years or more. Such a growth rate is almost nil!
Clearly the population of the world cannot be used to 'prove' the 'old earth' theories, but it can help provide evidence for 'young earth' theories! Where Are All The People?; Creation Magazine; 23(3) pg 52
What Are The Reasons To Believe In An 'Old Earth Creationism'? Again, first of all there is warrant to accept that the Hebrew term 'Yom' can refer to 'age'. An interpretation of this sort would allow the combination of a timeless God and apparently overwhelming evidence of universe age to coincide. While a Young Earth Creationist might dispute scientific dating techniques, they are generally accepted by the vast majority of scientists (and certainly that fact alone is worth consideration!)
So What's The Bottom Line? This issue is a stumbling block to many Christians, and to many non-believers. However, it is enlightening and comforting to know that there are many respected Christian Creationists are on both sides of the discussion. For instance, Norm Geisler, one of the most respected Christian Apologists alive today, admits that he is a Young Earth Creationist on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but an Old Earth Creationist on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. It is comforting to know that the issue is not resolved, yet is within Orthodoxy. It is certainly an interesting debate.
Invariably the discussion of evolution emerges from these considerations. While we address the fallacies of macro-evolution elsewhere, I will assert here that I see no evidence of 'molecules-to-man' evolution whatsoever, and neither an Old Earth Creationism viewpoint or a Young Earth Creationism viewpoint demand the acceptance of a believe in macro-evolution.
For Further Study
On The Web:
Answers In Genesis An organization dedicated to researched and promoting the 'evidences' of a young earth creationist view. Develops a monthly popular journal, and a quarterly scholarly journal.
Reasons To Believe Hugh Ross, a controversial yet reputable scholar of the Biblical support of the old earth creationist view (his version of creationism is known as 'Progressive Creationism'. He is a prolific author and debater on this subject.
Creation Science Online Full of resources and answers to many questions
Creation Science Research Center Also full of resources and answers Books: The Right Questions - Truth, Meaning, and Public Debate; Phillip E. Johnson. Johnson is best known as one of the driving forces behind the Intelligent Design movement. In this book he describes why he believes that the question of the age of the earth is not the right question to be debating at this time. He postulates that Christians should focus on John 1:1, which places inherent value in Jesus as the Creator, which in turn places inherent value in man. Three Views On Creation And Evolution One of the excellent 'Views' series, this is a debate within a book. Provides an initial argument for each view, and then the interlocutors respond. Includes analysis of Young Earth Creationism, Old Earth (Progressive) Creationism, and Theistic Evolution. Creation Hypothesis - J.P. Moreland Rapidly becoming a classic, Moreland is one of the best Apologists around today. Journals: Creation The Journal from the 'Young Earther' Answers In Genesis organization Science And Christian Belief A journal concerned with the interactions of Science and Religion, with particular reference to Christianity.
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