Difference between revisions of "Creationism" - New World Encyclopedia

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''This article is about the [[Abrahamic religions|Abrahamic]] belief; '''creationism''' can also refer to [[origin belief]]s in general or, centuries earlier, to an alternative to [[traducianism]].''
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[[Image:Dore_light.jpg|thumb|right|"The Creation of Light" by [[Gustave Doré]]]]
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'''Creationism,''' in its most widely used sense, is a set of [[religion|religious]] positions opposed to modern [[materialism|materialistic]] views of the origin of the [[Earth]] and of [[life|living things]]. In a different and much older sense, creationism is a particular theological position on the origin of the human [[soul]]. Both senses are described here.
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'''Creationism''' or '''creation [[theology]]''' is the belief that [[human]]s, [[life]], the [[Earth]], and the [[universe]] were created by a [[supreme being]] or [[deity]]'s [[supernatural]] intervention. The intervention may be seen either as an ''act of creation'' from nothing (''[[ex nihilo]]'') or the emergence of order from preexisting chaos.
 
  
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Most who hold "creation" beliefs consider such belief to be a part of religious [[faith]], and compatible with, or otherwise unaffected by [[science|scientific]] views, while others maintain the scientific data supports creationism.  
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In the first sense, creationism (not to be confused with the doctrine of [[creation]]) has various meanings. Most broadly, it can mean simply that the universe was divinely created. Somewhat more specifically, it can also mean that life on Earth was divinely created. Even [[Charles Darwin]] (1809-1882) could have been called a "creationist" in this second meaning, since he concluded ''The Origin of Species'' (after the first edition) with the statement that life was “originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or into one.” But Darwin believed that the evolution of living things after their initial creation could be explained without God’s further involvement,<ref>P.J. Bowler, ''Evolution: The History of an Idea,'' 3rd ed. (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003, ISBN 0520236939).</ref> and “creationist” is usually used to describe someone who rejects this aspect of Darwin’s theory of [[evolution]].
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Proponents of [[theistic evolution]] may claim that understood scientific mechanisms are simply ''aspects'' of supreme creation. Otherwise, science-oriented believers may consider the [[scripture|scriptural]] account of [[creation]] as simply a [[metaphor]].
 
  
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Those who hold literal creation views often reject modern views of science and certain [[scientific theory|scientific theories]] in particular. Most notable is the rejection of [[evolution]] and its implications for current [[evolutionary biology]]. While the general idea of [[natural selection]] may fit into various particular views, the evolutionary concept of [[common descent]] &mdash;that humans are "descended from lesser creatures" &mdash; is a point of great issue with most creation believers. Some creationists may also dispute scientific accounts of the [[origin of life]], [[human evolution|origin of the human species]], the [[Age of the Earth|geological history of Earth]], [[solar nebula|the formation of the solar system]], [[Big Bang|the origin of the physical universe]], and a few even support such ideas as [[modern geocentrism|geocentrism]].
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In the second sense, Christian theologians have debated for centuries whether the human soul is created directly by [[God]] (“creationism”) or produced by human parents (“traducianism”). The former is more consistent with the immaterial and eternal nature of the soul, while the latter makes it easier to explain the transmission of [[original sin]].
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In modern controversies over cosmic and biological origins, creationism takes two general forms: '''Old-Earth creationism (OEC)''' and '''young-Earth creationism (YEC)'''. The former infers from evidence in nature that the Earth is many millions of years old, and it interprets [[Genesis]] to mean that God created the universe and living things through a long process of change. The latter interprets Genesis to mean that God created the universe and living things in a short time (usually six 24-hour days) a few thousand years ago, and it regards the natural evidence as compatible with this interpretation. [[United States|U.S.]] courts have ruled that creationism is a religious view that cannot be taught in public school science courses, though polls show that most Americans subscribe to some form of it. Creationism is often confused with [[intelligent design]], but there are significant differences between them.
  
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==Religious context==
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==Old-Earth creationism (OEC)==
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The term '''creationism''' is most often used to describe the belief that creation occurred literally as described in the book of [[Genesis]] or the [[Qur'an]], for  [[Judaism|Jews]] and [[Christianity|Christians]], and for [[Islam|Muslims]], respectively. Although the [[Hebrew Bible]] may be translated to implicitly deny "creation out of nothing" (''creatio ex nihilo'') and, according to some scholars, may even suggest differing accounts of creation, some Jews and Christians use Genesis exclusively as a support of their beliefs about origins. Refer to [[creation according to Genesis]].    
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Before 1800, Western scientists generally took for granted the chronology of the first chapters of [[Genesis]], which describe the creation of the universe in six days, and of biblical genealogies that seemed to establish the creation of human beings about six thousand years ago. (In the seventeenth century, Church of Ireland Archbishop [[James Ussher]] [1581-1656] used the [[Bible]] to calculate that the universe had been created on October 23, 4004 B.C.E..) With the rise of modern [[geology]] in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, however, Christians began to reinterpret biblical chronology to accommodate growing evidence that the Earth was much older than six thousand years.<ref>C.C. Gillispie, ''Genesis and Geology: The Impact of Scientific Discoveries upon Religious Beliefs in the Decades Before Darwin'' (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1951, ISBN 0674344812).</ref>
  
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The terms '''creationism''' and '''creationist''' have become particularly associated with beliefs conflicting with the [[theory of evolution]] by [[natural selection]]. This conflict is most prevalent in the [[United States]], where there has been sustained [[creation-evolution controversy]] in the public arena. On the other hand, many faiths, including Abrahamic denominations, which believe in divine creation accept evolution by natural selection, as well as, to a greater or lesser extent, scientific explanations of the origins and development of the [[universe]], the [[Earth]], and [[life]] &ndash; such beliefs have been given the name "theistic evolution" or "evolutionary creationism".
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In the nineteenth century, there were two common ways of interpreting scripture in the light of geological evidence. The first was the '''“gap” theory,''' according to which the original creation of "the heavens and the Earth" recorded in Genesis 1:1 was followed by an indefinitely long interval before the subsequent days described in Genesis 1:2-2:3. The second was the '''“era”''' or '''“day-age” theory,''' according to which the days of Genesis represented periods of indefinite duration.<ref>J.R. Moore, "Geologists and Interpreters of Genesis in the Nineteenth Century,” in D.C. Lindberg and R.L. Numbers (eds.), ''God & Nature: Historical Essays on the Encounter between Christianity and Science'' (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1986, ISBN 0520056922).</ref>
  
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In a Christian context, many creationists adopt a [[literal]] interpretation of creation narratives, and say that the Bible provides a factual account, given from the perspective of the only one who was there at the time to witness it: God. They seek to harmonize [[science]] with what they take to be an eye-witness account of the origin of things (see [[Young Earth Creationism]], for example). However, [[scientific evidence]] as an [[empirical]] source for information on [[natural history]] is usually understood as contradictory to the Bible, if the Bible is understood as these creationists interpret it.
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When [[Charles Darwin]] published ''The Origin of Species,'' in 1859, it generated considerable controversy, but not over the age of the Earth. Many critics rejected Darwin’s [[evolution#theory of natural selection|theory of natural selection]] on strictly scientific grounds, and most nineteenth century creationists who rejected it on religious grounds did not rely on biblical chronology. For example, Princeton geologist Arnold Guyot (1807-1884) and Canadian geologist John William Dawson (1820-1899) accepted the evidence pointing to an old Earth but rejected Darwin's theory in favor of a progressive form of evolution in which human beings were created by God. Presbyterian theologian Charles Hodge (1797-1878) criticized Darwin's theory of unguided evolution because it denied the doctrines of creation and providence, not because it contradicted a literal reading of Genesis.<ref>J.R. Moore, ''The Post-Darwinian Controversies: A Study of the Protestant Struggle to Come to Terms with Darwin in Great Britain and America 1870-1900'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979, ISBN 0521285718). </ref>
  
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Almost all churches teach that God created the cosmos, but many now reject reading the Bible as though it could shed light on what the events of creation were, which they now conclude are best understood in a naturalistic way. [[Liberal theology]] assumes that Genesis is a poetic work, and that human understanding of God increases gradually over time; and just as understanding of God grows, human understanding of God's will and of the world also grows, and has grown since Biblical times.
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Like Guyot, Dawson, and Hodge, most creationists in the first decades of the twentieth century accepted the geological evidence for an old Earth. In 1909, the widely used ''Scofield Reference Bible'' promoted the gap theory. Geologist George Frederick Wright (1838-1921), who contributed an essay titled “The Passing of Evolution,” to ''The Fundamentals'' (from which “Fundamentalism” gets its name), advocated the day-age theory. Baptist clergyman [[William Bell Riley]] (1861-1947), who founded the World’s Christian Fundamentals Association (WCFA) in 1919, said there was no “intelligent fundamentalist who claims that the Earth was made six thousand years ago; and the Bible never taught any such thing.” Riley, like Wright, defended the day-age theory. So did [[William Jennings Bryan]] (1860-1925), who prosecuted [[John Scopes]] in 1925 for teaching that humans descended from lower animals. Creationist Harry Rimmer (1890-1952), who served for years as field secretary for Riley’s WCFA, disagreed with Riley on the age issue, but only because Rimmer preferred the gap theory to the day-age theory.<ref>R.L. Numbers, ''The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design'' (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2006, ISBN 0674023390).</ref>
  
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However, many believers in a literal interpretation argue that once a poetic view of the creation account in [[Genesis]] has been adopted, it leads one to question the historicity of other central topics of that book. Furthermore, the liberal approach suggests, sometimes outright, that [[Jesus]] as seen in the New Testament, or the writers of the Bible, had a mistaken understanding of the reliability of the Bible, and erroneously believed the book of Genesis to be literal history; a proposition that, if adopted, has radical implications for Christian faith and the reliability of the Bible.
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When young-Earth creationism emerged in the U.S. in the 1930s, the Evolution Protest Movement (EPM) was formed in Britain by electrical engineer [[John A. Ambrose]] (1849-1945), submariner Bernard Acworth (1885-1963), and barrister Douglas Dewar (1875-1957). The EPM took no official position on the interpretation of biblical chronology, though it consisted largely of old-Earth creationists.<ref>Numbers (2006), chapter 8.</ref> (In 1980, the EPM became a young-Earth organization and changed its name to the Creation Science Movement.)<ref>Creation Science Movement (CSM), [http://www.csm.org.uk/whoweare.php?PHPSESSID=1c60ba1dbfbda2b5eab2a2cb91257cc4 Who we are,] ''Creation Science Movement'' (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref> In the [[United States]], evangelical scientists formed the American Scientific Affiliation (ASA) in 1941, as a forum to discuss issues on which “there is honest disagreement between Christians.” Although the ASA believed in “the divine inspiration, trustworthiness, and authority of the Bible in matters of faith and conduct,” it did “not take a position” on the creation-evolution controversy.<ref>American Scientific Affiliation, [http://www.asa3.org/ASA/faithASA.html What does the ASA believe?] ''American Scientific Affiliation'' (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref> Nevertheless, the ASA soon became dominated by old-Earth progressive creationists and theistic evolutionists who were critical of young-Earth creationism.<ref>Numbers (2006), chapter 9.</ref> (Progressive creation and theistic evolution are varieties of old-Earth creationism; although the terms have been used in various ways, the first usually refers to the view that God has acted by periodically intervening in the history of the universe or of living things, while the second usually refers to the view that God has acted through an unbroken chain of natural causes.)
  
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== Political context ==
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In 1986, astronomer Hugh Ross founded Reasons to Believe (RTB), a Christian ministry dedicated to showing that science and faith are “allies, not enemies,” and to communicating “the uniquely factual basis for belief in the Bible as the error-free Word of God.” RTB accepts the evidence for an old Earth and interprets the days in Genesis as long periods of time, but it rejects Darwinism and theistic evolution on the grounds that “God has miraculously intervened throughout the history of the universe in various ways millions, possibly even billions, of times to create each and every new species of life on Earth.”<ref>Reasons to Believe, [http://www.reasons.org/about/index.shtml About us] (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
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{{main|Creation-evolution controversy}}
 
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In the secular sense, "creationism" refers to a [[politics|political doctrine]] which asserts the validity and superiority of a particular religiously-based origin belief over those of other [[belief systems]], including those in particular espoused through secular or scientific rationale &mdash; i.e. "[[Creation-evolution controversy]]." The meaning of the term "creationism" depends upon the context wherein it is used, as it refers to a particular origin belief within a particular political culture.
 
  
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In the [[United States]], more so than in the rest of the world, creationism has become centered in political controversy, in particular over [[public education]], and whether teaching evolution in science classes conflicts unfairly with the creationist worldview. Currently, the controversy has come in the form of whether advocates of the [[Intelligent Design movement]] who wish to "[[Teach the Controversy]]" in science classes have overstepped the boundaries of [[separation of church and state]].
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==Young-Earth creationism (YEC)==
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In the 1850s, American businessmen (and brothers) Eleazar Lord (1788-1871) and David N. Lord (1792-1880) published books maintaining that creation had occurred in six 24-hour days about six thousand years ago. During the same decade, British preacher and [[biology|biologist]] Philip H. Gosse (1810-1888) published ''Omphalos,'' in which he argued that even if the Earth were very young, God would have had to create it with the appearance of great age.  
  
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{{main|Creation science}}
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It was not until after the turn of the century, however, that self-educated American geologist [[George McCready Price]] (1870-1963) became the first widely influential advocate of young-Earth creationism. As a Seventh Day Adventist, Price held to a literal six-day creation and rejected both the gap theory and day-age theory. Price also attributed the [[fossil]] record and many features of the Earth’s surface to Noah’s flood. He called his view “flood geology” and maintained that it resolved “every major problem in the supposed conflict between modern science and modern Christianity.” The publication of his book, ''The New Geology,'' in 1923, stimulated the rise to prominence of young-Earth creationism in the twentieth century.<ref>Numbers (2006), p. 97.</ref>
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''[[Creation science]]'' represents an attempt by creationists to legitimize religious scriptures in scientific terms, by attempting to demonstrate compatability between [[science]] and their creationist worldview. The scientific status of [[Creation Science]], despite its name, is disputed; it is not regarded as a true science by the scientific community, because Creation Science begins with the desired answer and attempts to interpret all evidence to fit in with this predetermined conclusion, whereas, in theory, pure science works by using the [[scientific method]] to formulate theories and predictions based on solid evidence; however it would be naive to assume that individual scientist work without any personal [[presupposition]]s.
 
  
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== History of the concept of creation ==
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Price, together with erstwhile Pentecostal [[Dudley J. Whitney]] (1883-1964) and conservative Lutheran [[Byron C. Nelson]] (1893-1972), formed the Religion and Science Association (RSA) in 1935. Price put the RSA on record as condemning the gap and day-age theories and upholding flood geology, but within two years the organization was torn apart by disagreements over the interpretation of scripture and the age of the Earth. In 1938, Price and other Seventh Day Adventists started the Deluge Geology Society (DGS) to promote the view that creation took “six literal days, and that the Deluge should be studied as the cause of the major geological changes since creation.”<ref>Numbers (2006), p. 137.</ref>
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{{main|History of creationism}}
 
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The history of creationism is tied to the [[history of religions]]. Creationism in the West primarily had some of its earliest roots in [[Judaism]]. For example, [[Abraham ibn Ezra]]'s (c. 1089–1164) commentary on Genesis is greatly esteemed in traditional rabbinical circles and he was a creationist.
 
  
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In the [[18th century|18th]] and [[19th century|19th]] centuries, [[naturalist]]s challenged the [[Biblical]] account of [[creation]] as to be in conflict with [[empiricism|empirical observations]] of [[natural history]] from [[science|scientific inquiry]]. Creationists consider their primary source to be the ancient [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] text describing [[creation according to Genesis]]. While the term ''creationism'' was not in common use before the late [[19th century]] they see themselves as being the philosophical and religious offspring of the traditions that held that text sacred. The biblical account of history, [[cosmology]] and [[natural history]] was believed by [[Judaism|Jews]], [[Christianity|Christians]] and [[Islam|Muslims]] and its accuracy was unquestioned through the [[Medieval]] period. Most people in [[Europe]], the [[Middle East]] and other areas of the [[Islam]]ic world believed that a supreme being had existed and would exist [[eternal]]ly, and that everything else in existence had been created by this supreme being, known variously as [[God]], [[Yahweh]], or [[Allah]]. This belief was based on the authority of [[Genesis]], the [[Qur'an]], and other ancient histories, which were held to be historically accurate and no systematic or scientific inquiry was made into the validity of the text.
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Flood geologists were divided on the origin of new species, or “[[speciation]].” Price and Nelson maintained at one point that all species were created by God in the beginning, but Whitney, backed by Adventist Harold W. Clark (1891-1986), argued for subsequent speciation within the basic “kinds” described in Genesis. In the early 1940s, young-Earth creationist [[Frank L. Marsh]] (1899-1992) sided with Whitney and Clark and coined the word “baramin” from Hebrew words meaning “created” and “kind.”<ref>Numbers (2006), p. 150.</ref> Young-Earth creationists engaged in “baraminology” now analyze living species with the goal of classifying them into their created kinds.<ref>T.C. Wood, [http://www.creationresearch.org/crsq/articles/43/43_3/baraminology.htm The current status of baraminology,] ''Creation Research Society Quarterly'' 43(2006): 149-158. Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
  
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Islamic scholars preserved ancient [[Greece|Greek]] texts and developed their ideas, leading to the [[Renaissance]] which brought a questioning of biblical [[cosmology]]. With [[the Enlightenment]] a variety of scientific and philosophical movements challenged traditional viewpoints in Europe and the Americas. [[Natural history]] developed with the aim of understanding God's plan, but found contradictions, which in revolutionary [[France]] were interpreted as science supporting [[evolution]]. Elsewhere, particularly in [[England]], clerical naturalists sought explanations compatible with interpretations of biblical texts, anticipating many later creationist arguments.
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By the mid-1940s, the DGS (like the RSA before it) fell victim to disagreements over scriptural interpretation and the age of the Earth. In 1958, the Geoscience Research Institute (GRI) was founded in Loma Linda, California by the Seventh Day Adventist church, which believes that the creation week occurred in the relatively recent past.<ref>Geoscience Research Institute (GRI), [http://www.grisda.org/about.htm About us,] (2005). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref> At about the same time, two Christians who were not Adventists, Bible teacher John C. Whitcomb and engineer Henry M. Morris (1918-2006), teamed up to write ''The Genesis Flood,'' which defended a literal six-day creation and attributed much of the Earth's geology to a worldwide flood.<ref>J.C. Whitcomb and H. M. Morris, ''The Genesis Flood: The Biblical Record and Its Scientific Implications'' (P& R Publishing, 1960, ISBN 0875523382).</ref> The authors based their argument partly on the grounds that [[fossil]]-bearing rock strata could have been produced only after death was introduced by the fall of [[Adam and Eve]]. Although they cited scientific evidence to support their views, Whitcomb and Morris insisted that the real issue “is not the correctness of the interpretation of various details of the geological data, but simply what God has revealed in His Word.”<ref>Numbers (2006), p. 232.</ref>
  
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While the concept of an ancient earth became widely accepted, [[Charles Darwin]]'s theory of [[natural selection]] directly challenged belief in God's involvement in creating [[species]], and in response Creationism arose as a distinct movement aiming to justify and reassert the literal accuracy of sacred texts, particularly the words of [[Genesis]].
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In 1963, Morris joined with geneticist [[Walter E. Lammerts]] (1904-1996) and several others to form the Creation Research Society (CRS).<ref>Creation Research Society, [http://www.creationresearch.org/about_crs.htm About CRS] (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref> The same year, Lutheran pastor Walter Lang (1913-2004) started the ''Bible-Science Newsletter'' to promote young-Earth creationism.<ref>Creation Moments (formerly the Bible-Science Association), [http://www.creationmoments.com/about/ About us] (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref> In the early 1970s, Morris founded the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) near San Diego, California, and [[biochemistry|biochemist]] (and ICR staff member) Duane T. Gish published a best-selling book defending flood geology, ''Evolution: The Fossils Say No!'' In 1974, Morris published ''Scientific Creationism,'' which came in two versions: One for public schools that omitted biblical references, and another for Christian schools that included a chapter on the Bible.<ref>Numbers (2006).</ref>
  
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The history of creationism has relevance to the [[creation-evolution controversy]]. Proponents of creationism claim that it has a rich heritage grounded in ancient recorded histories and consistent with scientific observation, whereas opponents, particularly of what they regard as the [[pseudoscience]]s of [[creation science]] and [[intelligent design]], claim that those are a modern reactionary movement against science.
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Originally affiliated with Christian Heritage College, ICR became autonomous in 1981, when it received approval from the State of California to offer Master of Science degrees in Astronomy, Biology, Geology, and Science Education.<ref>Institute for Creation Research, [http://www.icr.org/discover/index/discover_history/ History] (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
  
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==Types of creationism==
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Influenced by Whitcomb and Morris, physician Carl Wieland founded the Creation Science Association (CSA) in Australia in 1977. The CSA soon merged with another Australian group to form the Creation Science Foundation (CFI), the staff of which included geologist Andrew A. Snelling and science teacher Kenneth A. Ham. In 1984, Snelling started the organization’s ''Technical Journal,'' and in 1986, Ham was loaned to the ICR in California. In 1994, Ham left ICR and moved with his family to Kentucky to set up a new ministry, Answers in Genesis (AiG). In 2005, the Australian organization (with branches in Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and elsewhere) was renamed Creation Ministries International (CMI). By 2006, AiG had collected $20 million for a planned Creation Museum in Kentucky.<ref>Creation Ministries International (CMI), [http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/43/61/ Creation on the Web] (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
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Creationism covers a spectrum of beliefs which have been categorised into the broad types listed below. Not all creationists are in dispute with scientific theories, though very few modern scientists are creationists.  
 
  
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*[[Young Earth Creationist|Young-Earth Creationism]] &mdash; The belief that the Earth was created by [[God]] a few thousand years ago, literally as described in [[Creation according to Genesis]], within the approximate timeframe of the [[Ussher-Lightfoot Calendar]] or somewhat more according to the interpretation of biblical genealogies. (They may or may not believe that the [[Universe]] is the same age.) As such, it rejects not only [[radiometric dating|radiometric]] and [[isochron dating]] of the [[age of the Earth]], arguing that they are based on debatable assumptions, but also approaches such as [[ice core]] dating and [[dendrochronology]], which make the barest of assumptions of [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarianism]], and which hint that the Earth is far older than the [[Ussher-Lightfoot Calendar]] suggests. Instead, it interprets the geologic record largely as a result of a [[Noah's Ark|global flood]]. This view is held by many Protestant Christians in the USA, and by many [[Haredi Judaism|Haredi Jews]]. For Christian groups promoting this view, see the [[Institute for Creation Research]] (ICR), [[El Cajon, California]], USA, and the ''Creation Research Society'' (CRS), [[Saint Joseph, Missouri]], USA.
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==U.S. court decisions and public opinion polls==
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In 1925, the Tennessee General Assembly passed the Butler Act, which made it a crime for public school teachers to teach “any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man had descended from a lower order of animal.” The [[American Civil Liberties Union]] (ACLU) offered to defend anyone accused of violating the law, and substitute teacher John T. Scopes (1900-1970) was persuaded to make himself a defendant. Old-Earth creationist [[William Jennings Bryan]] argued the case for the prosecution, and [[Clarence S. Darrow]] (1857-1938) argued the case for the defense. After a well-publicized trial, Scopes was convicted and the judge fined him $100. The ACLU appealed the conviction to the Supreme Court of Tennessee, which declared the law valid but overturned the fine on the grounds that it had not been imposed by a jury.<ref>''The State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes'' (July 21, 1925).</ref>
  
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:Because Young Earth creationists believe in the literal truth of the description in Genesis of divine creation of every "kind" of plant and creature during a week about 6,000 years ago, they dispute parts of [[evolution]] (specifically Universal Common Ancestry) which describes all [[species]] developing from a common ancestor without a need for divine intervention over a much longer time. Different young-earth creationists offer different explanations for the [[fossil record]], which gives the appearance that the Earth is much older:
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In 1928, the Arkansas legislature adopted a similar law that prohibited teaching in public schools “that mankind ascended or descended from a lower order of animals.” In the 1960s, the Arkansas Education Association enlisted high school teacher Susan Epperson to challenge the law, and the case subsequently went all the way to the [[Supreme Court of the United States]]. In 1968, the Court decided in ''Epperson v. Arkansas'' that “the sole reason for the Arkansas law” was “that a particular religious group considers the evolution theory to conflict with the account of the origin of man set forth in the Book of Genesis.” The Supreme Court declared the law unconstitutional on the grounds that it violated the First Amendment mandate of “governmental neutrality between religion and religion, and between religion and nonreligion.”<ref>U.S. Supreme Court, [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=393&invol=97 Epperson v. Arkansas, 393 U.S. 97 (1968),] ''FindLaw'' (1968). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
  
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::*[[Modern geocentrism]] &mdash; The view that God recently created a spherical world, and placed it in the center of the universe. The [[Sun]], [[planets]] and everything else in the universe revolve around it. All scientific claims about the age of the Earth are lies; evolution does not occur. Very few people today maintain such a belief. See, for example, the ''[http://www.csama.org/ Creation Science Association for Mid-America]'', in [[Cleveland, MO]], USA.
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Adopting a different strategy, creationist legislators enacted a 1981 Arkansas law that mandated “balanced treatment” of evolution and “creation science.” By “creation science,” the law meant a “relatively recent inception of the Earth and living kinds,” the “occurrence of a worldwide flood” that explained much of the Earth’s geology, changes only within “originally created kinds,” and the “separate ancestry” of humans and apes.<ref>Numbers (2006), 6-7, 272-279.</ref> Some Arkansas taxpayers, supported by the ACLU and various Christian and Jewish organizations, sued the Arkansas Board of Education. In 1982, a U.S. District Court held that “creation science” is actually [[religion]], and that the Arkansas law requiring it to be taught alongside evolution constituted “an establishment of religion prohibited by the First Amendment to the Constitution.”<ref>''McLean v. Arkansas Board of Education,'' 529 F. Supp. (E. D. Ark. 1982).</ref>
  
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::*God created the Earth only recently, but made it appear much older. This is the belief of a small subgroup of Young Earth creationists, which is sometimes termed the [[Omphalos hypothesis]]. This argument was first made by [[Philip Henry Gosse]] in [[1857]]. He held that because the world operates in cycles (chicken to egg to chicken on so on), certain physical and biological processes need the appearance of age to function. It is termed the Omphalos hypothesis because it is based on the question of whether or not [[Adam]] (or [[Eve]] for that matter) had a [[navel]] (given that they were created as  adults rather than [[birth|born]], they can be assumed to have never possessed an [[umbilical cord]]).  Gosse postulated that Adam ''did'' have a navel because it is how humans are formed.  So the appearance of history (the belly button) is there, even though he was just created. He likewise postulated that for the earth to work, it must have been established with the ''appearance'' of age to function correctly. While many creationists hold this view for some smaller aspects of creation, for example the existence of the fossil record, the argument has been largely superseded.
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When Louisiana adopted a similar law, it was also challenged in a case that reached the U.S. Supreme Court, in 1987. In ''Edwards v. Aguillard,'' the Court ruled that the law violated the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution. Although “teaching a variety of scientific theories about the [[human evolution|origins of humankind]] to schoolchildren might be validly done with the clear secular intent of enhancing the effectiveness of science instruction,” a majority of the justices concluded that the “primary purpose” of the Louisiana law was “to endorse a particular religious doctrine” embodied in creation science, namely, “that a supernatural being created humankind.” Justices Scalia and Rehnquist dissented on the grounds that the Louisiana legislators had “specifically articulated the secular purpose they meant it to serve,” and the law could not be judged unconstitutional “by impugning the motives of its supporters.”<ref>U.S. Supreme Court, [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=482&invol=578 Edwards v. Aguillard, 482 U.S. 578 (1987),] ''FindLaw'' (1987). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
  
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::*[[Flood geology]] &mdash; The view that God created the Earth only recently, and the fossil record is the record of the destruction of the global flood recorded in Genesis.  The present [[biodiversity|diverse]] land [[animal]]s are all descendants of the animals on [[Noah's Ark]], having heavily diversified after the flood. A variety of mechanisms is suggested to be involved, including genomic modularity -- the ability for animals to reorganize their [[genome]] in response to stress or other outside influence, heterozygous fractionation (heterozygous genes in parents can lead to speciation by having multiple homozygous genes in children), and standard evolution.
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Court decisions notwithstanding, several Gallup polls taken from 1982 to 2006 show that about 45 percent of [[United States|Americans]] believe that “God created human beings in pretty much their present form at one time within the last 10,000 years.” The same polls show that about another 38 percent of Americans believe that humans evolved “over millions of years from less advanced forms of life, but God guided this process.”<ref>Pew Research Center, [http://people-press.org/commentary/display.php3?AnalysisID=118 Reading the polls on evolution and creationism] (September 28, 2005). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
  
−
*[[Old Earth Creationist|Old-Earth Creationism]] &mdash; The view that the [[universe|physical universe]] was created by God, but that the creation event of Genesis is not to be taken strictly literally. This group generally believes that the [[age of the Universe]] and the [[age of the Earth]] are as described by [[astronomers]] and [[geologists]], but that details of the [[evolutionary theory]] are questionable.
+
The 45 percent who believe God created humans within the last ten thousand years are certainly creationists, but not necessarily young-Earth creationists, since the Earth could be much older than the human species. The 38 percent who believe that humans evolved over millions of years with God's guidance are certainly not young-Earth creationists, but except for those who might reject the creationist label in favor of “theistic evolution,” they would count as old-Earth creationists. So even though creationism has been effectively prohibited in public schools for the past quarter century, a majority of Americans are still, technically, creationists. Although it should be noted that the supreme courts' decisions were likely intended to protect the minority of Americans who are not creationists.
  
−
::Old-Earth creationism itself comes in at least three types:
+
==Creationism and intelligent design==
 +
[[Intelligent design]] (ID) is sometimes confused with creationism, especially by people defending [[Darwinism|Darwinian evolution]]. Unlike creationism, however, ID neither bases its claims on the [[Bible]] nor identifies the designer as [[God]].
  
−
::*[[Gap creationism]], also called "Restitution creationism" &mdash; The view that life was immediately created on a pre-existing old Earth. This group generally translates Genesis 1:2 as "The earth ''became'' without form and void," indicating a destruction of the original creation by some unspecified cataclysm. This was popularized in the ''[[Scofield Reference Bible]]'', but has little support from Hebrew scholars.
+
The most prominent OEC organization, at least in the U.S., has publicly distinguished its views from ID. While applauding the “efforts and integrity” of intelligent design advocates, Hugh Ross of Reasons to Believe wrote in 2002: “Winning the argument for design without identifying the designer yields, at best, a sketchy origins model. Such a model makes little if any positive impact on the community of scientists and other scholars… The time is right for a direct approach, a single leap into the origins fray. Introducing a biblically based, scientifically verifiable creation model represents such a leap.”<ref>H. Ross, [http://www.reasons.org/resources/fff/2002issue10/index.shtml#more_than_id More than intelligent design,] ''Facts for Faith'' Issue 10 (Pasadena, CA: Reasons to Believe, 2002). Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
  
−
::*[[Day-age creationism]] &mdash; The view that the "six days" of [[Genesis]] are not ordinary twenty-four-hour days, but rather much longer periods (for instance, each "day" could be the equivalent of millions of years of modern time). This theory often states that the [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] word "y&ocirc;m", in the context of Genesis 1, can be properly interpreted as "age." Some adherents claim we are still living in the seventh age ("seventh day").  
+
Two of the most prominent YEC organizations in the world have likewise distinguished their views from intelligent design. Henry M. Morris of the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) wrote, in 1999, that ID, “even if well-meaning and effectively articulated, will not work! It has often been tried in the past and has failed, and it will fail today. The reason it won't work is because it is not the Biblical method.” According to Morris: “The evidence of intelligent design… must be either followed by or accompanied by a sound presentation of true Biblical creationism if it is to be meaningful and lasting.”<ref>H.M. Morris, [http://www.icr.org/article/859/17/ Design is not enough!] ''Back to Genesis'' No. 127. (Santee, CA: Institute for Creation Research, 1999.) Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref> In 2002, Carl Wieland of Answers in Genesis (AiG) criticized design advocates who, though well-intentioned, “left the Bible out of it” and thereby unwittingly aided and abetted the modern rejection of the Bible. Wieland explained that “AiG’s major ‘strategy’ is to boldly, but humbly, call the church back to its Biblical foundations… [so] we neither count ourselves a part of this movement nor campaign against it.”<ref>C. Wieland, [http://www.answersingenesis.org/docs2002/0830_IDM.asp AiG’s views on the Intelligent Design movement,] ''Answers in Genesis'' (2002). Retrieved April 25, 2007. </ref>
  
−
::* [[Progressive creationism]] &mdash; The view that species have changed or evolved in a process continuously guided by God, with various ideas as to how the process operates (often leaving room for God's direct intervention at key moments in Earth/life's history). This view accepts most of modern physical science including the age of the earth, but rejects much of modern evolutionary biology or looks to it for evidence that [[evolution]] by [[natural selection]] alone is incorrect. This view can be, and often is, held in conjunction with other Old-earth views such as Day-age creationism or framework/metaphoric/poetic views.
+
Nevertheless, a U.S. District court in Pennsylvania ruled in 2005, that the constitutional prohibition against teaching creationism in public schools also applies to intelligent design.<ref>U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, [http://www.pamd.uscourts.gov/kitzmiller/kitzmiller_342.pdf Memorandum opinion, Kitzmiller et al. v. Dover Area School Board, Case No. 04cv2688 (December 20, 2005),] ''U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania'' (2005). Retrieved April 25, 2007. </ref> For details, including criticisms of the decision, see the entry on [[intelligent design]].
  
−
*[[Theistic evolutionism]], also known as "evolutionary creationism" &mdash; The general view that some or all classical religious teachings about [[God]] and [[creation (theology)|creation]] are compatible with some or all of the [[scientific]] [[scientific theory|theory]] of [[evolution]]. It views evolution as a tool used by God and can synthesize with gap or day-age creationism, although most adherents deny that Genesis was meant to be interpreted as history at all. It can still be described as "creationism" in holding that divine intervention brought about the [[origin of life]] or that divine Laws govern formation of species, but in the [[creation-evolution controversy]] its proponents generally take the "evolutionist" side while disputing that some scientists' ''methodological'' assumption of [[materialism]] can be taken as ''[[Ontology|ontological]]'' as well. Many creationists would deny that this is creationism at all, and should rather be called "theistic evolution", just as many scientists allow voice to their spiritual side. In particular, this view rejects the doctrine of special creation and other doctrines.  For example, evolutionary theory assumes death is a natural part of life and it had an integral part in the formation of life, but the Bible teaches that only Life begets life and that death is a result of sin.
+
==Origin of the soul==
 +
Early Christian thinkers had several different opinions about the origin of the human soul. [[Tertullian]], a third-century Latin [[theology|theologian]], maintained that after God first breathed a soul into Adam each subsequent soul was generated by human parents in the same act that produces the body. After the fall, the descendants of [[Adam and Eve]] still had free will but inherited original sin as a stain on the soul. Tertullian’s view was known as “traducianism.”
  
−
*[[Intelligent Design]] movement &mdash; The main proponents of intelligent design have intentionally distanced themselves from other forms of creationism, preferring to be known as wholly separate from creationism as a philosophy. One of the chief websites of the movement defines it thus: "The theory of intelligent design holds that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as [Darwinian] natural selection." Intelligent design styles itself as a philosophical approach to the origin of information and complexity within nature, and, its adherents claim publicly, is not concerned with religion, or the identity or nature, whether natural or supernatural, of any possible designer(s). Ostensibly, intelligent design does not oppose the theory of evolution. However, the leading proponents of intelligent design are Christian theists who vociferously oppose evolution and acknowledge to their constituency "our strategy has been to change the subject a bit so that we can get the issue of intelligent design, which really means the reality of God, before the academic world and into the schools" and that "this (the ID movement) isn't really, and never has been a debate about science. It's about religion and philosophy." Critics cite such statements as proof that intelligent design is creationism in new clothing (see [[Wedge strategy]]).
+
[[Origen]], a third century Greek theologian, taught that souls pre-exist their bodies&mdash;a teaching that was compatible with the Manichaen view of bodies as inherently evil and was later formally condemned by the church. Other Greek and Latin theologians taught instead that each soul is created independently by God when the body is physically produced by its parents, a view known as “creationism.” This view was held by Pelagius, who maintained that we are all born sinless but become sinful when we succumb to the evil circumstances that surround us. For Pelagius, Christ was merely an example of how all can save themselves if we act morally.
  
−
==Jewish creationism==
+
In opposition to Pelagius, [[Augustine of Hippo]] taught that people cannot save themselves because their souls are tainted with original sin, inherited from the fall of Adam and Eve, and that original sin can be removed only by Christ. [[Augustine]] regarded his view as more consistent with traducianism than creationism, though he never fully embraced the former or rejected the latter.<ref>J.N.D. Kelly, ''Early Christian Doctrines'' (New York: Harper & Row, 1978, ISBN 006064334X).</ref>
−
[[Jewish creationism]] includes a continuum of views about creationism, on aspects including the origin of life and the role of evolution in the formation of species as debated in the creation-evolution controversy. In general, the major [[Jewish denominations]], including many Orthodox Jewish groups, accept evolutionary creationism or theistic evolution. The contemporary general approach of Judaism, excepting Orthodox traditions, is to not take the [[Torah]] as a literal text, but rather as a symbolic or open-ended work. As far as Orthodox Jews, who seek to reconcile discrepancies between science and the Bible, go, the notion that science and the Bible should even be reconciled through traditional scientific means is questioned. To these groups, Science is as true as the Torah and if there seems to be a problem, our own epistemological limits are to blame for any apparent unreconcileable point. They point to various discrepancies between what is expected and what actually is (see [[science#Some counter-intuitive findings|science]]), to demonstrate that things are not always as they appear. They point out to the fact that the even root word for "world" in the [[Hebrew language]] &mdash; עולם (oh•luhm) &mdash; means hidden. Just as they believe God apparently created man and trees and the light on its way from the stars in their adult state, so too can they believe that the world was created in its "adult" state, with the understanding that there are, and can be, no physical ways to verify this. This belief has been advanced by Rabbi Dr. Dovid Gottlieb, former philosophy professor at Johns Hopkins University. Also, relatively old Kabbalistic sources from well before the scientifically apparent age of the universe was first determined are in close concord with modern scientific estimates of the age of the universe, according to Rabbi [[Aryeh Kaplan]]. Other interesting parallels are brought down from, among other sources, [[Nachmanides]], who expounds exegetically that there was a [[Neanderthal]]-like species with which [[Adam and Eve|Adam]] mated (he did this long before Neanderthals had even been discovered scientifically).
 
  
−
== Christian God as absolute origin ==
+
Most later theologians, including the Roman Catholic [[Thomas Aquinas]] and the Calvinist Francis Turretin, defended creationism and rejected traducianism on various philosophical and theological grounds, though the issue was not completely resolved.<ref>F. P. Siegfried, [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04475a.htm Creationism,] ''The Catholic Encyclopedia,'' Volume IV (New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908.) Retrieved April 25, 2007.</ref>
  
−
All denominations of Christianity assert that God is the origin, the [[Cosmological argument|first cause]]. The [[Roman Catholic Church]] holds as an unchangeable tenet of Christian faith, that "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth". Here, clearly, creation is described as an absolute beginning, which includes the assertion that the very existence of the universe is contingent upon a necessary higher being, a [[God]] who is not himself created. Therefore the doctrine of biblical creation places the knowledge of God central in the pursuit of the knowledge of anything, for everything comes from God. Nevertheless, this view does not mandate the concept of special creation; it says nothing about the mechanism by which any thing was created.
+
It may be that there is an element of truth in both creationism and traducianism: A soul is created with an original mind that reflects God’s image, but it is also tainted by original sin that is passed down from Adam and Eve. Philosophical views that accept some degree of continuity between matter and spirit can allow for the conception of a human soul through the joint action of God and the parents.  
  
−
Although phrased differently, this [[doctrine]] of creation is common in many branches of other [[religion]]s. The strictness to which adherents are required to accept these views, and the sense in which these definitions are official, vary widely.
+
==Notes==
−
 
+
<references/>
−
== Prevalence of creationism ==
 
−
 
 
−
=== United States ===
 
−
 
 
−
According to a [[2001]] [[Gallup]] poll on the origins of humans, they estimate that 72% of Americans believe in some form of creationism (as defined above). They also estimate that about 45% of Americans concurred with the statement that "God created man pretty much in his present form at one time within the last 10,000 years."
 
−
 
 
−
In [[1987]], [[Newsweek]] reported: "By one count there are some 700 scientists with respectable academic credentials (out of a total of 480,000 U.S. earth and life scientists) who ascribed to Biblically literal creationism." 
 
−
 
 
−
In [[2000]], a [[People for the American Way]] poll estimated that:
 
−
:20% of Americans believe public schools should teach evolution only;
 
−
:17% of Americans believe that only evolution should be taught in science classes &mdash; religious explanations should be taught in another class;
 
−
:29% of Americans believe that Creationism should be discussed in science class as a 'belief,' not a scientific theory;
 
−
:13% of Americans believe that Creationism and evolution should be taught as 'scientific theories' in science class;
 
−
:16% of Americans believe that only Creationism should be taught;
 
−
 
 
−
Less-direct [[anecdotal evidence]] of the popularity of creationism is reflected in the response of [[IMAX]] theaters to the availability of ''[[Volcanoes of the Deep Sea]]'', an IMAX film which makes a connection between human [[DNA]] and [[microbe]]s inside undersea [[volcano]]es. The film's distributor reported that the only U.S. states with theaters which chose not to show the film were [[Texas]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], [[North Carolina]], and [[South Carolina]]:
 
−
:We've got to pick a film that's going to sell in our area. If it's not going to sell, we're not going to take it," said the director of an IMAX theater in Charleston that is not showing the movie. "Many people here believe in creationism, not evolution." [http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/23/volcano.movie.ap/index.html]
 
−
 
 
−
=== The western world outside the United States ===
 
−
Most vocal creationists are from the United States, and creationist views are much less common elsewhere in the Western World.
 
−
 
 
−
According to a [[PBS]] documentary on evolution, Australian Young Earth Creationists claimed that "five percent of the Australian population now believe that Earth is thousands, rather than billions, of years old."  The documentary further states that "Australia is a particular stronghold of the creationist movement."  Taking these claims at face value, Young Earth Creationism is very much a minority position in Western countries.
 
−
 
 
−
In [[Europe]], creationism is a less well-defined phenomenon, and regular polls are not available. However, evolution is taught as scientific fact in most schools. In countries with a [[Roman Catholic]] majority, [[pope|papal]] acceptance of evolution as worthy of study has essentially ended debate on the matter for many people. Nevertheless, creationist groups such as the German ''[[Studiengemeinschaft Wort und Wissen]] (Study group 'word and knowledge')''[http://www.wort-und-wissen.de/] are actively lobbying in Germany. In the [[United Kingdom]] the [[Emmanuel Schools Foundation]] (previously the Vardy Foundation), which runs two government-funded high schools in the north of England (out of several thousand in the country) and plans to open several more, teaches that creationism and evolution are equally valid "faith positions". In [[Italy]], the prime minister [[Silvio Berlusconi]] wanted to retire evolution from schools in the middle level; after one week of massive protests, he reversed his opinion. [http://www2.onnachrichten.t-online.de/dyn/c/19/01/33/1901336.html]
 
−
 
 
−
Of particular note for [[Eastern Europe]], [[Serbia]] suspended the teaching of evolution for one week in [[2004]], under education minister [[Ljiljana Čolić]], only allowing schools to reintroduce evolution into the curriculum if they also taught creationism. [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/09/09/wdarw09.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/09/09/ixworld.html]
 
−
"After a deluge of protest from scientists, teachers and opposition parties," says the BBC report, Ms Čolić's deputy made the statement, "I have come here to confirm Charles Darwin is still alive," and announced that the decision was reversed.
 
−
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3642460.stm] Ms. Čolić resigned after the government said that she had caused "problems that had started to reflect on the work of the entire government". [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3663196.stm]
 
−
 
 
−
== Criticism of creationism ==
 
−
 
 
−
=== Scientific critique of creationism ===
 
−
Creationism was never based primarily upon scientific findings or upon a scientific approach to uncovering the origins of life. Many modern forms of creationism, particularly Young Earth Christian creationism, were created to defend the literal interpretation of the [[Creation_according_to_Genesis|biblical account of creation in genesis]], when evolution started to become scientific orthodoxy.
 
−
Many modern creationists are widely regarded as 'anti evolutionists' rather than as people putting forward an honest alternative to explain the origins of life. Indeed, virtually all creationist arguments take the form of attacks on evolutionary theories.
 
−
 
 
−
Creationists sometimes minimize the explanatory power and validity of evolution theory by criticizing it as being "just a theory"  implying that the word "theory" is synonymous with "conjecture" or "speculation", instead of the technical, [[scientific method|scientifically]] accepted use of the word "theory" to mean a model of the world (or some portion of it) from which [[falsifiability|falsifiable]] [[hypothesis|hypotheses]] can be generated and verified through empirical observation. In this sense, evolution is a very powerful theory.
 
−
 
 
−
Critics charge that Creationism is not a theory that has come about through a similar systematic accumulation of evidence. It is based on a literal interpretation of religious scripture and the emphasis of scripture over other sources of knowledge. Young Earth Creationism also fails the criteria of falsifiability and parsimony. While the hypothesis that the Earth is only a few thousand years old allows many predictions, evidence which refutes these predictions cannot invalidate creationism, because creationism itself is a belief and not a scientific theory. The belief can persist in spite of evidence to the contrary.
 
−
 
 
−
There is a fundamental difference between the scientific approach and the approach used by creationist advocates. The scientific approach uses the [[scientific method]] as a means of discovering information about the natural world. Scientists use observations, hypotheses and deductions to propose explanations for natural phenomena in the form of theories. Predictions from these theories are tested by experiment. If a prediction turns out to be correct, the theory survives. This is a [[Meritocracy|meritocratic]] form of systematic enquiry, where the best ideas supported by evidence and positive experimental results survive. Science does not seek answers that fit a certain pre-determined conclusion, but rather works to construct viable, testable, and provable theories based on a solid evidential foundation. Creationism works in the opposite direction: creating the conclusion first and working backwards to 'discover' corresponding evidence. This is fundamentally unscientific, and a hallmark of [[pseudoscience]].
 
−
 
 
−
All scientific [[theory|theories]] are falsifiable; that is, if evidence that contradicts any given theory comes to light, or if the theory is proven to no longer fit with the evidence, the theory itself is shown to be invalid and is either modified to be consistent with all the evidence or is discarded. Evolution is a theory that fits in with all known biological evidence, fits in with all known genetic evidence, and is backed up by overwhelming evidence in the [[Fossil|fossil]] record. Contrary to frequent claims by [[Christianity|Christian]] and [[Islam]]ic opponents of evolutionism, [[Transitional fossil|transitional fossils]] exist which show a gradual change from one species to another. Moreover, evolutionary selection has been observed in living species (for instance, "tuskless elephants"—''see [[elephant]]''). Because of this and other evidence, there is little debate within scientific circles as to whether evolution is a fact or not, and none of it suggests creationism as a viable alternative. It is worth pointing out that even if evolution as biologists currently understand it turned out to be false, this would not automatically mean that special creation was true (such a binary view being a [[logical fallacy]]). It is exclusively in the public sphere, where [[Young Earth creationism|young Earth creationists]] (especially in the US) have fought for recognition of their [[world view]], that the debate about creationism and evolution rages.
 
−
 
 
−
In addition to that, no conclusive proof for Creationism or Intelligent Design has been ever brought forward. Because both styles of Creationism presume the actions of a supernatural being (God or the "Designer"), any person capable of proving either of the theories is eligible for the sum of $1,000,000 (see [[James Randi]]'s offer).
 
−
 
 
−
===The Christian critique of creationism===
 
−
Many professing Christians support evolutionary creationism rather than young earth creationism. This is because, in the view of many creationists, science has more or less explained the development of the universe. However, science could never explain the ''existence'' of the universe. In "Intelligent Design as a Theological Problem," George Murphy argues against the common view that life on Earth in all its forms is direct evidence of God's act of creation (Murphy quotes Phillip Johnson's claim that he is speaking "of a God who acted openly and left his fingerprints on all the evidence."). Murphy argues that this view of God is incompatible with the Christian understanding of God as "the one revealed in the cross and resurrection of Jesus." The basis of this theology is [[Isaiah]] 45:15, "Truly, thou art a God who hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Savior." This verse inspired [[Pascal]] to write, "What meets our eyes denotes neither a total absence nor a manifest presence of the divine, but the presence of a God who conceals himself." In the ''Heidelberg Disputation'', [[Martin Luther]] referred to the same Biblical verse to propose his "theology of the cross": "That person does not deserve to be called a theologian who looks upon the invisible things of God as though they were clearly perceptible in those things which have actually happened ... He deserves to be called a theologian, however, who comprehends the visible and manifest things of God seen through suffering and the cross." 
 
−
 
 
−
Luther opposes his theology of the cross to what he called the "theology of glory":
 
−
:A theologian of glory does not recognize, along with the Apostle, the crucified and hidden God alone [I Cor. 2:2]. He sees and speaks of God's glorious manifestation among the heathen, how his invisible nature can be known from the things which are visible [Cf. Rom. 1:20] and how he is present and powerful in all things everywhere.
 
−
For Murphy, Creationists are modern-day theologians of glory. Following Luther, Murphy argues that a true Christian cannot discover God from clues in creation, but only from the crucified Christ. However, Luther also defended the notion of creation in six normal-length days about 6,000 years ago, and a global flood.
 
−
 
 
−
Murphy observes that the execution of a Jewish carpenter by Roman authorities is in and of itself an ordinary event and did not require Divine action. On the contrary, for the crucifixion to occur, God had to limit or "empty" Himself. It was for this reason that Paul wrote, in Philippians 2:5-8,
 
−
:Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.
 
−
 
 
−
Murphy concludes that,
 
−
:Just as the son of God limited himself by taking human form and dying on the cross, God limits divine action in the world to be in accord with rational laws God has chosen.  This enables us to understand the world on its own terms, but it also means that natural processes hide God from scientific observation.
 
−
For Murphy, a theology of the cross requires that Christians accept a ''methodological'' naturalism, meaning that one cannot invoke God to explain natural phenomena, while recognizing that such acceptance does not require one to accept a ''metaphysical'' naturalism, which proposes that nature is all that there is. 
 
−
 
 
−
According to Emil Brunner, "God does not wish to occupy the whole of space Himself, but that He wills to make room for other forms of existence ... In so doing, He limits Himself."  It is where God has limited Himself that humans must use their own intelligence to understand the world &mdash; to understand the laws of gravity as well as evolution &ndash; without relying on God as an explanation.  It is only through the cross and the resurrection that one may find God.
 
−
====Plea to reject nonsense ====
 
−
In his work ''The Literal Meaning of Genesis'' (De Genesi ad litteram libri duodecim), [[Augustine of Hippo|Saint Augustine]] ([[354]]-[[430]]), embarrassed by Christians who would not accept this implication of the Doctrine of Creation, wrote against them. This translation is by J. H. Taylor in ''Ancient Christian Writers'', Newman Press, 1982, volume 41.
 
−
 
 
−
: "Usually, even a non-Christian knows something about the earth, [..] and this knowledge he holds as being certain from reason and experience. Now, it is a disgraceful and dangerous thing for an infidel to hear a Christian, presumably giving the meaning of Holy Scripture, talking nonsense on these topics; and we should take all means to prevent such an embarrassing situation, in which people show up vast ignorance in a Christian and laugh it to scorn. The shame is not so much that an ignorant individual is derided, but that people outside the household of faith think our sacred writers held such opinions, and, to the great loss of those for whose salvation we toil, the writers of our Scripture are criticized and rejected as unlearned men. If they find a Christian mistaken in a field which they themselves know well and hear him maintaining his foolish opinions about our books, how are they going to believe those books in matters concerning the resurrection of the dead, the hope of eternal life, and the kingdom of heaven, when they think their pages are full of falsehoods and on facts which they themselves have learnt from experience and the light of reason?" [1 Timothy 1.7]
 
−
 
 
−
== Creationism and naturalism ==
 
−
 
 
−
Creationists believe that a divine power created life, sometimes believing that every "kind" of living thing was separately "created", while [[Naturalism (philosophy)|naturalists]] believe life came into being or developed into different species through natural means. This spectrum of opposing views has led to the debate commonly known as the [[Creation evolution controversy|creation evolution debate]].
 
−
 
 
−
==Creationism in Popular Culture==
 
−
Many products across several forms of media feature elements of Creationism, like humans and dinosaurs living together.  These examples may or may not be intentional.
 
−
*[[After Eden]]
 
−
*[[B.C. (comic)]]
 
−
*[[The Flintstones]]
 
−
*[[One Million Years B.C.E.]]
 
−
*[[When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth]]
 
−
*[[The Lost World]]
 
−
 
 
−
{{sectstub}}
 
−
 
 
−
==Etymology==
 
−
{{wiktionary}}
 
−
The word '''creation''' comes from the Latin word, ''creatio''.
 
−
 
 
−
==See also==
 
−
{|
 
−
|
 
−
* [[Abrahamic religions]]
 
−
* [[Biblical cosmology]]
 
−
* [[Biblical inerrancy]]
 
−
* [[Clockmaker hypothesis]]
 
−
* [[Cosmogony]]
 
−
* [[Cosmological argument]]
 
−
* [[Cosmology]]
 
−
* [[Creation evolution controversy]]
 
−
* [[Creation science]]
 
−
* [[Creation (theology)]]
 
−
* [[Creator God]]
 
−
* [[Dating Creation]]
 
−
* [[Deism]]
 
−
* [[Divine simplicity]]
 
−
* [[Earth]]
 
−
||
 
−
* [[Evolution]]
 
−
* [[Existence]]
 
−
* [[Intelligent design]]
 
−
* [[Irreducible complexity]]
 
−
* [[Larry Booher]]
 
−
* [[List of famous young-earth Creationists]]
 
−
* [[Lysenkoism]]
 
−
* [[Myth]]
 
−
* [[Origin belief]]
 
−
* [[Starlight problem]]
 
−
* [[Theism]]
 
−
* [[Timeline of the Universe]]
 
−
* [[Tzimtzum]]
 
−
* [[Ultimate fate of the Universe]]
 
−
|}
 
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
−
* [[Bernhard Anderson|Anderson, Bernhard W.]] (editor) ''Creation in the Old Testament'' (ISBN 0800617681)
+
*Alters, B. J. and S. M. Alters. ''Defending Evolution: A Guide to the Creation/Evolution Controversy''. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2001. ISBN 0763711187
−
* [[Bernhard Anderson|Anderson, Bernhard W.]] ''Creation Versus Chaos: The Reinterpretation of Mythical Symbolism in the Bible'' (ISBN 159752042X)
+
*Bowler, P.J. ''Evolution: The History of an Idea,'' 3rd ed. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003. ISBN 0520236939
−
* [[Ian Barbour]] ''When Science Meets Religion'', 2000, Harper SanFrancisco
+
*Brand, L. and D.C. James. ''Beginnings: Are Science and Scripture Partners in the Search for Origins?'' Nampa, ID: Pacific Press Publishing, 2005. ISBN 0816321442
−
* Ian Barbour ''Religion and Science: Historical and Contemporary Issues'', 1997, Harper SanFrancisco.  
+
*DeYoung, D. ''Thousands… Not Billions.'' Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2005. ISBN 0890514410
−
*[http://www.robibrad.demon.co.uk/Chapter3.htm  Bradshaw, Robert I.,  "The Early Church & the Age of the Earth"]
+
*Eldredge, N. ''The Triumph of Evolution and the Failure of Creationism''. New York: Owl Books, 2001. ISBN 0805071474
−
* [[Stephen Jay Gould]] ''Rock of Ages: Science and Religion in the fullness of life'', Ballantine Books, 1999
+
*Gillispie, C.C. ''Genesis and Geology''. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1951. ISBN 0674344812
−
* Edward J. Larson and Larry Witham ''Leading scientists still reject God'' in ''Nature,'' Vol. 394, No. 6691 (1998), p. 313. Online at http://www.freethought-web.org/ctrl/news/file002.html
+
*Ham, K. (ed). ''The New Answers Book''. Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2007. ISBN 0890515093
−
* Scott, Eugenie C., 1999 (Jul/Aug). The creation/evolution continuum. Reports of the National Center for Science Education 19(4): 16-17,21-23.
+
*Larson, E.J. ''Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America’s Continuing Debate over Science and Religion''. New York: Basic Books, 1997. ISBN 0465075096
−
*[http://www.religioustolerance.org/ev_publi.htm US poll results - Public beliefs about evolution and creation]
+
*Moore, J. R. ''The Post-Darwinian Controversies: A Study of the Protestant Struggle to Come to Terms with Darwin in Great Britain and America 1870-1900''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979. ISBN 0521285178
−
 
+
*Numbers, R.L. ''The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design''. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2006. ISBN 0674023390
−
<H3>References (historical)</H3>
+
*Newman, R.C., and H. J. Eckelmann, Jr. ''Genesis One and the Origin of the Earth''. Hatfield, PA: Interdisciplinary Biblical Research Institute, 1989. ISBN 0944788971
−
 
+
*Perloff, J. ''The Case Against Darwin: Why the Evidence Should Be Examined''. Refuge Books, 2002. ISBN 0966816013
−
* Gosse, Henry Philip, 1857. Omphalos: An Attempt to Untie the Geological Knot. J. Van Voorst, London
+
*Pigliucci, M. ''Denying Evolution: Creationism, Scientism, and the Nature of Science''. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, 2002. ISBN 0878936599
−
 
+
*Rana, F. ''Who Was Adam? A Creation Model Approach to the Origin of Man''. Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress Publishing Group, 2005. ISBN 1576835774
−
<H3>References (Christian)</H3>
+
*Ross, H. ''The Creator and the Cosmos: How the Latest Scientific Discoveries of the Century Reveal God''. Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress Publishing Group, 2001. ISBN 1576832880
−
*Murphy, George L., 2002, "Intelligent Design as a Theological Problem," in ''Covalence: the Bulletin of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Alliance for Faith, Science, and Technology'' 4(2)
+
*Ross, H. ''Creation as Science: A Testable Model Approach to End the Creation/Evolution Wars''. Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress Publishing Group, 2006. ISBN 1576835782
−
 
+
*Ruse, M. ''The Evolution-Creation Struggle''. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2005. ISBN 0674016874
−
<H3>References (Jewish)</H3>
+
*Sarfati, J. ''Refuting Compromise: A Biblical and Scientific Refutation of 'Progressive Creationism' (Billions of Years) as popularized by Astronomer Hugh Ross''. Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2004. ISBN 0890514119
−
 
+
*Scott, E.C. ''Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction''. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2004. ISBN 0520246500
−
* Aviezer, Nathan. In the Beginning: Biblical Creation and Science. Ktav, 1990. Hardcover. ISBN 0-881253-28-6
+
*Snoke, D.W. ''A Biblical Case for an Old Earth''. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2006. ISBN 0801066190
−
* Carmell, Aryeh and Domb, Cyril, eds. ''Challenge: Torah Views on Science'' New York: Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists/Feldheim Publishers, 1976. ISBN 0873061748
+
*Wise, K. P. ''Faith, Form, and Time: What the Bible Teaches and Science Confirms About Creation and the Age of the Universe.'' Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2002. ISBN 0805424628
−
* Aryeh Kaplan, ''Immortality, Resurrection, and the Age of the Universe: A Kabbalistic View'', Ktav, NJ, in association with the Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists, NY, 1993
 
−
* Joel R. Primack and Nancy Ellen Abrams ''In a Beginning...: Quantum Cosmology and Kabbalah'', Tikkun, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp. 66-73
 
−
* Schroeder, Gerald L. ''The Science of God: The Convergence of Scientific and Biblical Wisdom'' Broadway Books, 1998, ISBN 0-767903-03-X
 
−
* Jeffrey H. Tigay, ''Genesis, Science, and "Scientific Creationism"'', Conservative Judaism, Vol. 40(2), Winter 1987/1988, p.20-27, The [[Rabbinical Assembly]]
 
−
 
 
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== External links ==
 
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<!-- overviews of creationism, i.e. all these links are similar because they describe the variety of viewpoints that have been described as creationist. —>
 
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* [http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/creationism/ Stanford Encyclopedia entry on Creationism]
 
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* [http://www.familyradio.com/graphical/literature/when/when_contents.html GOD IS THE CREATOR]
 
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* [http://www.howstuffworks.com/creationism.htm How creationism works]
 
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* [http://images.derstandard.at/20051012/Evolution-and-Creationism.pdf Evolution and Creationism]. A Guide for Museum Docents (PDF)
 
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* [http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/wic.html What is creationism?] from [[talk.origins]]
 
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* [http://www.ncseweb.org/resources/articles/1593_the_creationevolution_continu_12_7_2000.asp The Creation/Evolution Continuum] by [[Eugenie Scott]].
 
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*[http://truth.endoftheinternet.org Why Creationism is Wrong] by Amit Deshwar.
 
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=== Organisations ===
 
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[[talk.origins]] maintains an extensive list of [http://www.talkorigins.org/origins/other-links.html general links relevent to creationism] and [http://www.talkorigins.org/origins/other-links-cre.html a full list of creationist websites].  The following are links to the main organisations espousing a variety of viewpoints:
 
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'''Young Earth Creationism'''
 
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* [http://www.answersingenesis.org/ Answers in Genesis] A group promoting Young-Earth Creationism.
 
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* [http://www.familyradio.com/graphical/literature/calendar/calendar_contents.html The Biblical Calendar of History]
 
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* [http://www.icr.org/ Institute for Creation Research] "A Christ-Focused Creation Ministry"
 
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* [http://www.creationresearch.org/ The Creation Research Society]
 
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* [http://www.trueorigin.org/ The True.Origin Archive]
 
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*[http://www.nwcreation.net/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page CreationWiki]
 
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'''Old Earth Creationism'''
 
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* [http://www.reasons.org Reasons to Believe] led by [[Hugh Ross]]
 
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* [http://www.answersincreation.org Answers In Creation] led by [[Greg Neyman]]
 
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'''Intelligent design'''
 
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* [http://www.arn.org/ Access Research Network]
 
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* [http://www.discovery.org/csc/ Discovery Institute Center for Science and Culture]
 
  
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''' Evolutionary creationism''' <!-- These are a bit thin on the ground. —>
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==External links==
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* [http://koning.ecsu.ctstateu.edu/religion/scifaith.html Faith of a scientist: a personal witness]
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All links retrieved January 11, 2024.
  
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'''Evolution'''
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===Pro-OEC===
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* [http://www.reasons.org/ Reasons to Believe].
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* [http://www.oldearth.org/ Old Earth Ministries].
  
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* [http://www.talkorigins.org talk.origins Archive]
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===Pro-YEC===
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* [http://www.ncseweb.org/ National Center for Science Education]
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* [http://www.icr.org/ Institute for Creation Research].
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* [http://www.uni-wuerzburg.de/mineralogie/palbot/evolution/creationism.html Evolution Sciences versus Doctrines of Creationism and Intelligent Design] A pro-evolution or anti-creationism link directory
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* [http://www.answersingenesis.org/ Answers in Genesis].
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* [http://www.creationresearch.org/ Creation Research Society].
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* [http://www.csm.org.uk/ Creation Science Movement].
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* [http://www.trueorigin.org/ The True.Origin Archive].
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* [http://www.creationmoments.com/ Creation Moments].
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* [http://creation.com/ Creation Ministries International].  
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* [http://www.grisda.org/ Geoscience Research Institute].
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* [http://www.conservapedia.com/Creationism Creationism] Conservapedia.
  
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===Anti-Creationist===
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[[Category:Theology]]
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* [http://www.aclu.org/religion/gen/16154res20020311.html American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)].
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[[Category:Creationism|*]]
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* [http://www.talkorigins.org/ TalkOrigins].
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* [http://www.pandasthumb.org/ The Panda’s Thumb].
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* [http://www.talkreason.org/ Talk Reason].
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* [http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/science/creationism/ The Secular Web].
  
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Latest revision as of 06:18, 11 January 2024


Creationism, in its most widely used sense, is a set of religious positions opposed to modern materialistic views of the origin of the Earth and of living things. In a different and much older sense, creationism is a particular theological position on the origin of the human soul. Both senses are described here.

In the first sense, creationism (not to be confused with the doctrine of creation) has various meanings. Most broadly, it can mean simply that the universe was divinely created. Somewhat more specifically, it can also mean that life on Earth was divinely created. Even Charles Darwin (1809-1882) could have been called a "creationist" in this second meaning, since he concluded The Origin of Species (after the first edition) with the statement that life was “originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or into one.” But Darwin believed that the evolution of living things after their initial creation could be explained without God’s further involvement,[1] and “creationist” is usually used to describe someone who rejects this aspect of Darwin’s theory of evolution.

In the second sense, Christian theologians have debated for centuries whether the human soul is created directly by God (“creationism”) or produced by human parents (“traducianism”). The former is more consistent with the immaterial and eternal nature of the soul, while the latter makes it easier to explain the transmission of original sin.

In modern controversies over cosmic and biological origins, creationism takes two general forms: Old-Earth creationism (OEC) and young-Earth creationism (YEC). The former infers from evidence in nature that the Earth is many millions of years old, and it interprets Genesis to mean that God created the universe and living things through a long process of change. The latter interprets Genesis to mean that God created the universe and living things in a short time (usually six 24-hour days) a few thousand years ago, and it regards the natural evidence as compatible with this interpretation. U.S. courts have ruled that creationism is a religious view that cannot be taught in public school science courses, though polls show that most Americans subscribe to some form of it. Creationism is often confused with intelligent design, but there are significant differences between them.

Old-Earth creationism (OEC)

Before 1800, Western scientists generally took for granted the chronology of the first chapters of Genesis, which describe the creation of the universe in six days, and of biblical genealogies that seemed to establish the creation of human beings about six thousand years ago. (In the seventeenth century, Church of Ireland Archbishop James Ussher [1581-1656] used the Bible to calculate that the universe had been created on October 23, 4004 B.C.E.) With the rise of modern geology in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, however, Christians began to reinterpret biblical chronology to accommodate growing evidence that the Earth was much older than six thousand years.[2]

In the nineteenth century, there were two common ways of interpreting scripture in the light of geological evidence. The first was the “gap” theory, according to which the original creation of "the heavens and the Earth" recorded in Genesis 1:1 was followed by an indefinitely long interval before the subsequent days described in Genesis 1:2-2:3. The second was the “era” or “day-age” theory, according to which the days of Genesis represented periods of indefinite duration.[3]

When Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species, in 1859, it generated considerable controversy, but not over the age of the Earth. Many critics rejected Darwin’s theory of natural selection on strictly scientific grounds, and most nineteenth century creationists who rejected it on religious grounds did not rely on biblical chronology. For example, Princeton geologist Arnold Guyot (1807-1884) and Canadian geologist John William Dawson (1820-1899) accepted the evidence pointing to an old Earth but rejected Darwin's theory in favor of a progressive form of evolution in which human beings were created by God. Presbyterian theologian Charles Hodge (1797-1878) criticized Darwin's theory of unguided evolution because it denied the doctrines of creation and providence, not because it contradicted a literal reading of Genesis.[4]

Like Guyot, Dawson, and Hodge, most creationists in the first decades of the twentieth century accepted the geological evidence for an old Earth. In 1909, the widely used Scofield Reference Bible promoted the gap theory. Geologist George Frederick Wright (1838-1921), who contributed an essay titled “The Passing of Evolution,” to The Fundamentals (from which “Fundamentalism” gets its name), advocated the day-age theory. Baptist clergyman William Bell Riley (1861-1947), who founded the World’s Christian Fundamentals Association (WCFA) in 1919, said there was no “intelligent fundamentalist who claims that the Earth was made six thousand years ago; and the Bible never taught any such thing.” Riley, like Wright, defended the day-age theory. So did William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925), who prosecuted John Scopes in 1925 for teaching that humans descended from lower animals. Creationist Harry Rimmer (1890-1952), who served for years as field secretary for Riley’s WCFA, disagreed with Riley on the age issue, but only because Rimmer preferred the gap theory to the day-age theory.[5]

When young-Earth creationism emerged in the U.S. in the 1930s, the Evolution Protest Movement (EPM) was formed in Britain by electrical engineer John A. Ambrose (1849-1945), submariner Bernard Acworth (1885-1963), and barrister Douglas Dewar (1875-1957). The EPM took no official position on the interpretation of biblical chronology, though it consisted largely of old-Earth creationists.[6] (In 1980, the EPM became a young-Earth organization and changed its name to the Creation Science Movement.)[7] In the United States, evangelical scientists formed the American Scientific Affiliation (ASA) in 1941, as a forum to discuss issues on which “there is honest disagreement between Christians.” Although the ASA believed in “the divine inspiration, trustworthiness, and authority of the Bible in matters of faith and conduct,” it did “not take a position” on the creation-evolution controversy.[8] Nevertheless, the ASA soon became dominated by old-Earth progressive creationists and theistic evolutionists who were critical of young-Earth creationism.[9] (Progressive creation and theistic evolution are varieties of old-Earth creationism; although the terms have been used in various ways, the first usually refers to the view that God has acted by periodically intervening in the history of the universe or of living things, while the second usually refers to the view that God has acted through an unbroken chain of natural causes.)

In 1986, astronomer Hugh Ross founded Reasons to Believe (RTB), a Christian ministry dedicated to showing that science and faith are “allies, not enemies,” and to communicating “the uniquely factual basis for belief in the Bible as the error-free Word of God.” RTB accepts the evidence for an old Earth and interprets the days in Genesis as long periods of time, but it rejects Darwinism and theistic evolution on the grounds that “God has miraculously intervened throughout the history of the universe in various ways millions, possibly even billions, of times to create each and every new species of life on Earth.”[10]

Young-Earth creationism (YEC)

In the 1850s, American businessmen (and brothers) Eleazar Lord (1788-1871) and David N. Lord (1792-1880) published books maintaining that creation had occurred in six 24-hour days about six thousand years ago. During the same decade, British preacher and biologist Philip H. Gosse (1810-1888) published Omphalos, in which he argued that even if the Earth were very young, God would have had to create it with the appearance of great age.

It was not until after the turn of the century, however, that self-educated American geologist George McCready Price (1870-1963) became the first widely influential advocate of young-Earth creationism. As a Seventh Day Adventist, Price held to a literal six-day creation and rejected both the gap theory and day-age theory. Price also attributed the fossil record and many features of the Earth’s surface to Noah’s flood. He called his view “flood geology” and maintained that it resolved “every major problem in the supposed conflict between modern science and modern Christianity.” The publication of his book, The New Geology, in 1923, stimulated the rise to prominence of young-Earth creationism in the twentieth century.[11]

Price, together with erstwhile Pentecostal Dudley J. Whitney (1883-1964) and conservative Lutheran Byron C. Nelson (1893-1972), formed the Religion and Science Association (RSA) in 1935. Price put the RSA on record as condemning the gap and day-age theories and upholding flood geology, but within two years the organization was torn apart by disagreements over the interpretation of scripture and the age of the Earth. In 1938, Price and other Seventh Day Adventists started the Deluge Geology Society (DGS) to promote the view that creation took “six literal days, and that the Deluge should be studied as the cause of the major geological changes since creation.”[12]

Flood geologists were divided on the origin of new species, or “speciation.” Price and Nelson maintained at one point that all species were created by God in the beginning, but Whitney, backed by Adventist Harold W. Clark (1891-1986), argued for subsequent speciation within the basic “kinds” described in Genesis. In the early 1940s, young-Earth creationist Frank L. Marsh (1899-1992) sided with Whitney and Clark and coined the word “baramin” from Hebrew words meaning “created” and “kind.”[13] Young-Earth creationists engaged in “baraminology” now analyze living species with the goal of classifying them into their created kinds.[14]

By the mid-1940s, the DGS (like the RSA before it) fell victim to disagreements over scriptural interpretation and the age of the Earth. In 1958, the Geoscience Research Institute (GRI) was founded in Loma Linda, California by the Seventh Day Adventist church, which believes that the creation week occurred in the relatively recent past.[15] At about the same time, two Christians who were not Adventists, Bible teacher John C. Whitcomb and engineer Henry M. Morris (1918-2006), teamed up to write The Genesis Flood, which defended a literal six-day creation and attributed much of the Earth's geology to a worldwide flood.[16] The authors based their argument partly on the grounds that fossil-bearing rock strata could have been produced only after death was introduced by the fall of Adam and Eve. Although they cited scientific evidence to support their views, Whitcomb and Morris insisted that the real issue “is not the correctness of the interpretation of various details of the geological data, but simply what God has revealed in His Word.”[17]

In 1963, Morris joined with geneticist Walter E. Lammerts (1904-1996) and several others to form the Creation Research Society (CRS).[18] The same year, Lutheran pastor Walter Lang (1913-2004) started the Bible-Science Newsletter to promote young-Earth creationism.[19] In the early 1970s, Morris founded the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) near San Diego, California, and biochemist (and ICR staff member) Duane T. Gish published a best-selling book defending flood geology, Evolution: The Fossils Say No! In 1974, Morris published Scientific Creationism, which came in two versions: One for public schools that omitted biblical references, and another for Christian schools that included a chapter on the Bible.[20]

Originally affiliated with Christian Heritage College, ICR became autonomous in 1981, when it received approval from the State of California to offer Master of Science degrees in Astronomy, Biology, Geology, and Science Education.[21]

Influenced by Whitcomb and Morris, physician Carl Wieland founded the Creation Science Association (CSA) in Australia in 1977. The CSA soon merged with another Australian group to form the Creation Science Foundation (CFI), the staff of which included geologist Andrew A. Snelling and science teacher Kenneth A. Ham. In 1984, Snelling started the organization’s Technical Journal, and in 1986, Ham was loaned to the ICR in California. In 1994, Ham left ICR and moved with his family to Kentucky to set up a new ministry, Answers in Genesis (AiG). In 2005, the Australian organization (with branches in Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and elsewhere) was renamed Creation Ministries International (CMI). By 2006, AiG had collected $20 million for a planned Creation Museum in Kentucky.[22]

U.S. court decisions and public opinion polls

In 1925, the Tennessee General Assembly passed the Butler Act, which made it a crime for public school teachers to teach “any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man had descended from a lower order of animal.” The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) offered to defend anyone accused of violating the law, and substitute teacher John T. Scopes (1900-1970) was persuaded to make himself a defendant. Old-Earth creationist William Jennings Bryan argued the case for the prosecution, and Clarence S. Darrow (1857-1938) argued the case for the defense. After a well-publicized trial, Scopes was convicted and the judge fined him $100. The ACLU appealed the conviction to the Supreme Court of Tennessee, which declared the law valid but overturned the fine on the grounds that it had not been imposed by a jury.[23]

In 1928, the Arkansas legislature adopted a similar law that prohibited teaching in public schools “that mankind ascended or descended from a lower order of animals.” In the 1960s, the Arkansas Education Association enlisted high school teacher Susan Epperson to challenge the law, and the case subsequently went all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States. In 1968, the Court decided in Epperson v. Arkansas that “the sole reason for the Arkansas law” was “that a particular religious group considers the evolution theory to conflict with the account of the origin of man set forth in the Book of Genesis.” The Supreme Court declared the law unconstitutional on the grounds that it violated the First Amendment mandate of “governmental neutrality between religion and religion, and between religion and nonreligion.”[24]

Adopting a different strategy, creationist legislators enacted a 1981 Arkansas law that mandated “balanced treatment” of evolution and “creation science.” By “creation science,” the law meant a “relatively recent inception of the Earth and living kinds,” the “occurrence of a worldwide flood” that explained much of the Earth’s geology, changes only within “originally created kinds,” and the “separate ancestry” of humans and apes.[25] Some Arkansas taxpayers, supported by the ACLU and various Christian and Jewish organizations, sued the Arkansas Board of Education. In 1982, a U.S. District Court held that “creation science” is actually religion, and that the Arkansas law requiring it to be taught alongside evolution constituted “an establishment of religion prohibited by the First Amendment to the Constitution.”[26]

When Louisiana adopted a similar law, it was also challenged in a case that reached the U.S. Supreme Court, in 1987. In Edwards v. Aguillard, the Court ruled that the law violated the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution. Although “teaching a variety of scientific theories about the origins of humankind to schoolchildren might be validly done with the clear secular intent of enhancing the effectiveness of science instruction,” a majority of the justices concluded that the “primary purpose” of the Louisiana law was “to endorse a particular religious doctrine” embodied in creation science, namely, “that a supernatural being created humankind.” Justices Scalia and Rehnquist dissented on the grounds that the Louisiana legislators had “specifically articulated the secular purpose they meant it to serve,” and the law could not be judged unconstitutional “by impugning the motives of its supporters.”[27]

Court decisions notwithstanding, several Gallup polls taken from 1982 to 2006 show that about 45 percent of Americans believe that “God created human beings in pretty much their present form at one time within the last 10,000 years.” The same polls show that about another 38 percent of Americans believe that humans evolved “over millions of years from less advanced forms of life, but God guided this process.”[28]

The 45 percent who believe God created humans within the last ten thousand years are certainly creationists, but not necessarily young-Earth creationists, since the Earth could be much older than the human species. The 38 percent who believe that humans evolved over millions of years with God's guidance are certainly not young-Earth creationists, but except for those who might reject the creationist label in favor of “theistic evolution,” they would count as old-Earth creationists. So even though creationism has been effectively prohibited in public schools for the past quarter century, a majority of Americans are still, technically, creationists. Although it should be noted that the supreme courts' decisions were likely intended to protect the minority of Americans who are not creationists.

Creationism and intelligent design

Intelligent design (ID) is sometimes confused with creationism, especially by people defending Darwinian evolution. Unlike creationism, however, ID neither bases its claims on the Bible nor identifies the designer as God.

The most prominent OEC organization, at least in the U.S., has publicly distinguished its views from ID. While applauding the “efforts and integrity” of intelligent design advocates, Hugh Ross of Reasons to Believe wrote in 2002: “Winning the argument for design without identifying the designer yields, at best, a sketchy origins model. Such a model makes little if any positive impact on the community of scientists and other scholars… The time is right for a direct approach, a single leap into the origins fray. Introducing a biblically based, scientifically verifiable creation model represents such a leap.”[29]

Two of the most prominent YEC organizations in the world have likewise distinguished their views from intelligent design. Henry M. Morris of the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) wrote, in 1999, that ID, “even if well-meaning and effectively articulated, will not work! It has often been tried in the past and has failed, and it will fail today. The reason it won't work is because it is not the Biblical method.” According to Morris: “The evidence of intelligent design… must be either followed by or accompanied by a sound presentation of true Biblical creationism if it is to be meaningful and lasting.”[30] In 2002, Carl Wieland of Answers in Genesis (AiG) criticized design advocates who, though well-intentioned, “left the Bible out of it” and thereby unwittingly aided and abetted the modern rejection of the Bible. Wieland explained that “AiG’s major ‘strategy’ is to boldly, but humbly, call the church back to its Biblical foundations… [so] we neither count ourselves a part of this movement nor campaign against it.”[31]

Nevertheless, a U.S. District court in Pennsylvania ruled in 2005, that the constitutional prohibition against teaching creationism in public schools also applies to intelligent design.[32] For details, including criticisms of the decision, see the entry on intelligent design.

Origin of the soul

Early Christian thinkers had several different opinions about the origin of the human soul. Tertullian, a third-century Latin theologian, maintained that after God first breathed a soul into Adam each subsequent soul was generated by human parents in the same act that produces the body. After the fall, the descendants of Adam and Eve still had free will but inherited original sin as a stain on the soul. Tertullian’s view was known as “traducianism.”

Origen, a third century Greek theologian, taught that souls pre-exist their bodies—a teaching that was compatible with the Manichaen view of bodies as inherently evil and was later formally condemned by the church. Other Greek and Latin theologians taught instead that each soul is created independently by God when the body is physically produced by its parents, a view known as “creationism.” This view was held by Pelagius, who maintained that we are all born sinless but become sinful when we succumb to the evil circumstances that surround us. For Pelagius, Christ was merely an example of how all can save themselves if we act morally.

In opposition to Pelagius, Augustine of Hippo taught that people cannot save themselves because their souls are tainted with original sin, inherited from the fall of Adam and Eve, and that original sin can be removed only by Christ. Augustine regarded his view as more consistent with traducianism than creationism, though he never fully embraced the former or rejected the latter.[33]

Most later theologians, including the Roman Catholic Thomas Aquinas and the Calvinist Francis Turretin, defended creationism and rejected traducianism on various philosophical and theological grounds, though the issue was not completely resolved.[34]

It may be that there is an element of truth in both creationism and traducianism: A soul is created with an original mind that reflects God’s image, but it is also tainted by original sin that is passed down from Adam and Eve. Philosophical views that accept some degree of continuity between matter and spirit can allow for the conception of a human soul through the joint action of God and the parents.

Notes

  1. ↑ P.J. Bowler, Evolution: The History of an Idea, 3rd ed. (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003, ISBN 0520236939).
  2. ↑ C.C. Gillispie, Genesis and Geology: The Impact of Scientific Discoveries upon Religious Beliefs in the Decades Before Darwin (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1951, ISBN 0674344812).
  3. ↑ J.R. Moore, "Geologists and Interpreters of Genesis in the Nineteenth Century,” in D.C. Lindberg and R.L. Numbers (eds.), God & Nature: Historical Essays on the Encounter between Christianity and Science (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1986, ISBN 0520056922).
  4. ↑ J.R. Moore, The Post-Darwinian Controversies: A Study of the Protestant Struggle to Come to Terms with Darwin in Great Britain and America 1870-1900 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979, ISBN 0521285718).
  5. ↑ R.L. Numbers, The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2006, ISBN 0674023390).
  6. ↑ Numbers (2006), chapter 8.
  7. ↑ Creation Science Movement (CSM), Who we are, Creation Science Movement (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  8. ↑ American Scientific Affiliation, What does the ASA believe? American Scientific Affiliation (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  9. ↑ Numbers (2006), chapter 9.
  10. ↑ Reasons to Believe, About us (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  11. ↑ Numbers (2006), p. 97.
  12. ↑ Numbers (2006), p. 137.
  13. ↑ Numbers (2006), p. 150.
  14. ↑ T.C. Wood, The current status of baraminology, Creation Research Society Quarterly 43(2006): 149-158. Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  15. ↑ Geoscience Research Institute (GRI), About us, (2005). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  16. ↑ J.C. Whitcomb and H. M. Morris, The Genesis Flood: The Biblical Record and Its Scientific Implications (P& R Publishing, 1960, ISBN 0875523382).
  17. ↑ Numbers (2006), p. 232.
  18. ↑ Creation Research Society, About CRS (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  19. ↑ Creation Moments (formerly the Bible-Science Association), About us (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  20. ↑ Numbers (2006).
  21. ↑ Institute for Creation Research, History (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  22. ↑ Creation Ministries International (CMI), Creation on the Web (2007). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  23. ↑ The State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes (July 21, 1925).
  24. ↑ U.S. Supreme Court, Epperson v. Arkansas, 393 U.S. 97 (1968), FindLaw (1968). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  25. ↑ Numbers (2006), 6-7, 272-279.
  26. ↑ McLean v. Arkansas Board of Education, 529 F. Supp. (E. D. Ark. 1982).
  27. ↑ U.S. Supreme Court, Edwards v. Aguillard, 482 U.S. 578 (1987), FindLaw (1987). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  28. ↑ Pew Research Center, Reading the polls on evolution and creationism (September 28, 2005). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  29. ↑ H. Ross, More than intelligent design, Facts for Faith Issue 10 (Pasadena, CA: Reasons to Believe, 2002). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  30. ↑ H.M. Morris, Design is not enough! Back to Genesis No. 127. (Santee, CA: Institute for Creation Research, 1999.) Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  31. ↑ C. Wieland, AiG’s views on the Intelligent Design movement, Answers in Genesis (2002). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  32. ↑ U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Memorandum opinion, Kitzmiller et al. v. Dover Area School Board, Case No. 04cv2688 (December 20, 2005), U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania (2005). Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  33. ↑ J.N.D. Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines (New York: Harper & Row, 1978, ISBN 006064334X).
  34. ↑ F. P. Siegfried, Creationism, The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume IV (New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908.) Retrieved April 25, 2007.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Alters, B. J. and S. M. Alters. Defending Evolution: A Guide to the Creation/Evolution Controversy. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2001. ISBN 0763711187
  • Bowler, P.J. Evolution: The History of an Idea, 3rd ed. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003. ISBN 0520236939
  • Brand, L. and D.C. James. Beginnings: Are Science and Scripture Partners in the Search for Origins? Nampa, ID: Pacific Press Publishing, 2005. ISBN 0816321442
  • DeYoung, D. Thousands… Not Billions. Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2005. ISBN 0890514410
  • Eldredge, N. The Triumph of Evolution and the Failure of Creationism. New York: Owl Books, 2001. ISBN 0805071474
  • Gillispie, C.C. Genesis and Geology. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1951. ISBN 0674344812
  • Ham, K. (ed). The New Answers Book. Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2007. ISBN 0890515093
  • Larson, E.J. Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America’s Continuing Debate over Science and Religion. New York: Basic Books, 1997. ISBN 0465075096
  • Moore, J. R. The Post-Darwinian Controversies: A Study of the Protestant Struggle to Come to Terms with Darwin in Great Britain and America 1870-1900. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979. ISBN 0521285178
  • Numbers, R.L. The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2006. ISBN 0674023390
  • Newman, R.C., and H. J. Eckelmann, Jr. Genesis One and the Origin of the Earth. Hatfield, PA: Interdisciplinary Biblical Research Institute, 1989. ISBN 0944788971
  • Perloff, J. The Case Against Darwin: Why the Evidence Should Be Examined. Refuge Books, 2002. ISBN 0966816013
  • Pigliucci, M. Denying Evolution: Creationism, Scientism, and the Nature of Science. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, 2002. ISBN 0878936599
  • Rana, F. Who Was Adam? A Creation Model Approach to the Origin of Man. Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress Publishing Group, 2005. ISBN 1576835774
  • Ross, H. The Creator and the Cosmos: How the Latest Scientific Discoveries of the Century Reveal God. Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress Publishing Group, 2001. ISBN 1576832880
  • Ross, H. Creation as Science: A Testable Model Approach to End the Creation/Evolution Wars. Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress Publishing Group, 2006. ISBN 1576835782
  • Ruse, M. The Evolution-Creation Struggle. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2005. ISBN 0674016874
  • Sarfati, J. Refuting Compromise: A Biblical and Scientific Refutation of 'Progressive Creationism' (Billions of Years) as popularized by Astronomer Hugh Ross. Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2004. ISBN 0890514119
  • Scott, E.C. Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2004. ISBN 0520246500
  • Snoke, D.W. A Biblical Case for an Old Earth. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2006. ISBN 0801066190
  • Wise, K. P. Faith, Form, and Time: What the Bible Teaches and Science Confirms About Creation and the Age of the Universe. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2002. ISBN 0805424628

External links

All links retrieved January 11, 2024.

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