”In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was formless, void and empty, and darkness was over the face of the deep, and the Spirit or Wind of God hovered over the face of the waters.” Genesis 1:1-2 gives an overview of the beginning of God’s creation of the universe. Verses 3-31 complete the story of creation, which the Bible sets out as occurring on six days. Did God create the universe in a total of 144 hours of our time, or are other interpretations more likely? Judging from the discussions of this and related questions on various threads on both the CF and other Christian message boards I have seen thus far, there seems to be a split of opinion among the following major lines:
1. Those who tend to ignore what the Bible says with regard to creation, or who disbelieve it or discount it, and who support mainstream scientific theory and evidence regarding the forming of the universe, including our planet and the life found on planet Earth; These are listed as options 1A, 1B and 1C;
2. Those who believe what the Bible says with regard to creation and who disbelieve or discount mainstream scientific findings and discoveries relating to creation; These are listed as options 2A, 2B and 2C; and
3. Those who believe what the Bible says with regard to creation and who also believe mainstream scientific findings and discoveries relating to creation; These are listed as options 3A, 3B, 3C and 3D.
1. There are those who ignore what the Bible says with regard to at least the non-spiritual aspects of creation, or who disbelieve it or discount it, and who support mainstream scientific theory and evidence regarding the forming of the universe, including our planet and the life found on planet Earth.
1A. Some of this group hold that the Bible is intended to be a spiritual guide and is not a history or science guide book. They do not feel the need to ignore what the Bible says about spiritual matters or what science says about scientific principles, but rather let each lead to a higher total truth than either could do alone. They choose not to try to shoehorn science to fit the Bible or the Bible to fit science. Christians and Jews in this group would probably add that the Bible is God's word to us regarding spiritual matters.
1B and 1C. Others in this group tend to dismiss the Bible's account of creation as a fable or a story Moses merely inserted to answer questions from an unenlightened people wandering in the wilderness. They point out that scientific measurements place the age of the universe as being between 11-20 billion years of age, with the most likely time being about 12-16 billion years of our time. They say that there is no way to reconcile the biblical account of creation to the factual evidence, and therefore they choose to ignore at least this portion of the Bible. Since they tend not to be Christians or Jews and generally do not recognize the Bible as being the word of God, any biblical evidence to the contrary is generally brushed aside and discounted, or is used to support their claim that the Bible cannot really be trusted as being true. Option 1B limits this scorn of the Bible to those areas where a perceived conflict exists with science, while option 1C says the Bible has no relevance to anything.
2. At the other extreme are those who believe the English translation of the Bible's creation account should be applied literally, and any scientific evidence to the contrary should be ignored or discounted since it is perceived as being at odds with the word of God.
2A. Some within this group believe the Bible means six consecutive 24-hour periods of time (i.e., 144 hours total), and they choose to ignore, disbelieve or discount the scientific evidence to the contrary, often stating that the appearance of a universe billions of light years across is merely an illusion (much as the fossils and rock strata that appear to be millions or billions of years old were merely “aged” by God to give them the appearance of being ancient), and that God is deceiving us in order to test our faith. Under this theory, the important thing is to not let one’s faith waiver in the face of contrary scientific evidence but rather to stand true to God’s word and one’s faith.
2B. One offshoot of this theory is interpreting the scriptures [Psalms 90:4 and 2Peter 3:8] that tell us that “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” as meaning that each day of Genesis should be treated as a thousand years. Under this variation, creation took 6,000 years instead of six days.
2C. Another variation off this theory is the Gap theory (also known as the Interval and Restitution theory, the Divine Judgment theory, and the Recreation theory) which was more popular about 50-80 years ago than it is now. The Gap theory is usually largely based upon the fact that Hebrew tends to be more general and less specific than English or Greek. Thus, Hebrew words can often have a wider range of meanings. In the first part of Genesis 1:2 ["and the earth it was formless, void and empty"], the verb hayethah (which is generally translated "it was") can also be translated as "it became." Proponents of the Gap Theory therefore generally claim that Genesis 1:2 should be translated to read "and the earth became formless, void and empty" rather than using the more common translation of the phrase. This theory uses passages (primarily in Isaiah and Ezekiel) regarding the fall of Satan or Lucifer to bolster the theory that the world was created in Gen. 1:1 but became formless and void because of Satan's fall, and then creation continued in verse two. There are, however, some proponents of the Gap theory who go about it slightly differently. Instead of translating hayethah as "it became" they use verse one of Genesis to emphasize that God had created the Earth "in the beginning" of creation, but by verse two, the Earth was formless, void and empty. These persons tend to ignore the fact that Hebrew had no single word for universe and that the Hebrew phrase "the heavens and the earth" is the Hebrew equivalent of the English word universe.
3. Then there are those who attempt to reconcile scientific evidence with biblical evidence. Persons who adhere to one of these theories tend to believe that since God is responsible for both the biblical revelation and the natural world, the words of the Bible are true and at the same time are consistent with the facts of nature. In other words, they tend to think that God’s character and attributes are expressed through both channels, and neither negates nor contradicts the other. The theories listed below are the primary explanations I have found thus far that attempt to reconcile science and the Bible:
3A. Some advocates of the Gap theory [see 2C, above] combine it with one of the theories more consistent with mainstream science (the theories listed here as 3B, 3C and 3D), instead of with the young earth creationists.
3B. Since the Bible does not specifically say that the six days are consecutive, there are those who assert that each “day” is the time God spoke the next period of creation into existence—but there is an undetermined period of time (possibly lasting billions of years) between each day. In other words, adherents of this theory say there were six days of creation (each of which could be 24 hours—or 1,000 years—or some other period of time) separated by other periods of time. Some who follow this theory also point to the staccato pattern revealed in the fossil record, which indicates that there were periods of time when new forms of life suddenly burst onto the scene.
3C. There are those who point out that the Hebrew word for “day” is yom, which can mean either a 24-hour period of time or an indefinite period of time. Thus, those who follow this theory say that each “day” was of an indefinite period of time (even millions or billions of years) and Christians shouldn’t get caught up in insisting that the Bible means something here that it probably does not mean.
3D. The final theory is one that has been advanced by physicist and Hebrew Bible scholar Dr. Gerald L. Schroeder. He has proposed that the six “days” are in fact six consecutive 24-hour periods of time measured at the speed of outward thrust using Einstein's theory (or law) of relativity and a universal time-clock based on cosmic background radiation and the wavelength of light beginning about the time God initiated creation (what science now calls the Big Bang). Because of time dilation, 144 hours measured at a speed calculated by using such a universal time-clock would be equal to about 15.75 billion Earth-years looking back toward the time of creation.
What is your belief? Please vote in the poll, and then tell us your reasons. Thank you.
1. Those who tend to ignore what the Bible says with regard to creation, or who disbelieve it or discount it, and who support mainstream scientific theory and evidence regarding the forming of the universe, including our planet and the life found on planet Earth; These are listed as options 1A, 1B and 1C;
2. Those who believe what the Bible says with regard to creation and who disbelieve or discount mainstream scientific findings and discoveries relating to creation; These are listed as options 2A, 2B and 2C; and
3. Those who believe what the Bible says with regard to creation and who also believe mainstream scientific findings and discoveries relating to creation; These are listed as options 3A, 3B, 3C and 3D.
1. There are those who ignore what the Bible says with regard to at least the non-spiritual aspects of creation, or who disbelieve it or discount it, and who support mainstream scientific theory and evidence regarding the forming of the universe, including our planet and the life found on planet Earth.
1A. Some of this group hold that the Bible is intended to be a spiritual guide and is not a history or science guide book. They do not feel the need to ignore what the Bible says about spiritual matters or what science says about scientific principles, but rather let each lead to a higher total truth than either could do alone. They choose not to try to shoehorn science to fit the Bible or the Bible to fit science. Christians and Jews in this group would probably add that the Bible is God's word to us regarding spiritual matters.
1B and 1C. Others in this group tend to dismiss the Bible's account of creation as a fable or a story Moses merely inserted to answer questions from an unenlightened people wandering in the wilderness. They point out that scientific measurements place the age of the universe as being between 11-20 billion years of age, with the most likely time being about 12-16 billion years of our time. They say that there is no way to reconcile the biblical account of creation to the factual evidence, and therefore they choose to ignore at least this portion of the Bible. Since they tend not to be Christians or Jews and generally do not recognize the Bible as being the word of God, any biblical evidence to the contrary is generally brushed aside and discounted, or is used to support their claim that the Bible cannot really be trusted as being true. Option 1B limits this scorn of the Bible to those areas where a perceived conflict exists with science, while option 1C says the Bible has no relevance to anything.
2. At the other extreme are those who believe the English translation of the Bible's creation account should be applied literally, and any scientific evidence to the contrary should be ignored or discounted since it is perceived as being at odds with the word of God.
2A. Some within this group believe the Bible means six consecutive 24-hour periods of time (i.e., 144 hours total), and they choose to ignore, disbelieve or discount the scientific evidence to the contrary, often stating that the appearance of a universe billions of light years across is merely an illusion (much as the fossils and rock strata that appear to be millions or billions of years old were merely “aged” by God to give them the appearance of being ancient), and that God is deceiving us in order to test our faith. Under this theory, the important thing is to not let one’s faith waiver in the face of contrary scientific evidence but rather to stand true to God’s word and one’s faith.
2B. One offshoot of this theory is interpreting the scriptures [Psalms 90:4 and 2Peter 3:8] that tell us that “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” as meaning that each day of Genesis should be treated as a thousand years. Under this variation, creation took 6,000 years instead of six days.
2C. Another variation off this theory is the Gap theory (also known as the Interval and Restitution theory, the Divine Judgment theory, and the Recreation theory) which was more popular about 50-80 years ago than it is now. The Gap theory is usually largely based upon the fact that Hebrew tends to be more general and less specific than English or Greek. Thus, Hebrew words can often have a wider range of meanings. In the first part of Genesis 1:2 ["and the earth it was formless, void and empty"], the verb hayethah (which is generally translated "it was") can also be translated as "it became." Proponents of the Gap Theory therefore generally claim that Genesis 1:2 should be translated to read "and the earth became formless, void and empty" rather than using the more common translation of the phrase. This theory uses passages (primarily in Isaiah and Ezekiel) regarding the fall of Satan or Lucifer to bolster the theory that the world was created in Gen. 1:1 but became formless and void because of Satan's fall, and then creation continued in verse two. There are, however, some proponents of the Gap theory who go about it slightly differently. Instead of translating hayethah as "it became" they use verse one of Genesis to emphasize that God had created the Earth "in the beginning" of creation, but by verse two, the Earth was formless, void and empty. These persons tend to ignore the fact that Hebrew had no single word for universe and that the Hebrew phrase "the heavens and the earth" is the Hebrew equivalent of the English word universe.
3. Then there are those who attempt to reconcile scientific evidence with biblical evidence. Persons who adhere to one of these theories tend to believe that since God is responsible for both the biblical revelation and the natural world, the words of the Bible are true and at the same time are consistent with the facts of nature. In other words, they tend to think that God’s character and attributes are expressed through both channels, and neither negates nor contradicts the other. The theories listed below are the primary explanations I have found thus far that attempt to reconcile science and the Bible:
3A. Some advocates of the Gap theory [see 2C, above] combine it with one of the theories more consistent with mainstream science (the theories listed here as 3B, 3C and 3D), instead of with the young earth creationists.
3B. Since the Bible does not specifically say that the six days are consecutive, there are those who assert that each “day” is the time God spoke the next period of creation into existence—but there is an undetermined period of time (possibly lasting billions of years) between each day. In other words, adherents of this theory say there were six days of creation (each of which could be 24 hours—or 1,000 years—or some other period of time) separated by other periods of time. Some who follow this theory also point to the staccato pattern revealed in the fossil record, which indicates that there were periods of time when new forms of life suddenly burst onto the scene.
3C. There are those who point out that the Hebrew word for “day” is yom, which can mean either a 24-hour period of time or an indefinite period of time. Thus, those who follow this theory say that each “day” was of an indefinite period of time (even millions or billions of years) and Christians shouldn’t get caught up in insisting that the Bible means something here that it probably does not mean.
3D. The final theory is one that has been advanced by physicist and Hebrew Bible scholar Dr. Gerald L. Schroeder. He has proposed that the six “days” are in fact six consecutive 24-hour periods of time measured at the speed of outward thrust using Einstein's theory (or law) of relativity and a universal time-clock based on cosmic background radiation and the wavelength of light beginning about the time God initiated creation (what science now calls the Big Bang). Because of time dilation, 144 hours measured at a speed calculated by using such a universal time-clock would be equal to about 15.75 billion Earth-years looking back toward the time of creation.
What is your belief? Please vote in the poll, and then tell us your reasons. Thank you.
. I read an intresting article (in the new Scientific America) about the posiblity that we live in a two dimensional world and we only percieve it to be a 4d world. Or the possiblity that reality is nothing like what we percieve. Physics is comming across some strange an unusal findings. It could revolutionize the way all sceintiest "observe" the universe around us. So perhaps the faith that we have in what our eyes tell us is not exactly what actually is. in fact its more than likely the case.
