Young Earth Creationism is the belief, based on a literal reading of the Book of Genesis, that the Earth and universe were created by God in six 24-hour days, sometime between 5,700 and 10,000 years ago. This view stands in contrast to Old Earth Creationism, which accepts the scientific evidence that the Earth is around 4.5 billion years old, as well as evolution and other scientific theories, while still holding that God created the universe.
Some key beliefs of Young Earth Creationism include:
– The Book of Genesis provides an accurate, literal account of the origin and history of the universe and life on Earth. The six days of creation were six literal 24-hour days.
– The Earth is only somewhere between 5,700 and 10,000 years old, based on biblical chronologies and genealogies, not the 4.5 billion years claimed by modern science.
– God created distinct kinds of plants and animals supernaturally and separately, not through a process of evolution from common ancestors.
– Fossils were largely formed during a global flood described in Genesis, known as Noah’s Flood. This flood also deposited most of the world’s sedimentary rocks.
– The fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden brought sin and death into the previously perfect world. Before this fall, there was no death or suffering.
– Most geological formations were shaped primarily by the global flood, not by millions of years of gradual processes.
Young Earth Creationists take a literal approach to interpreting Genesis and construct elaborate scientific models and theories to reconcile apparent contradictions between the biblical account and scientific evidence.
For example, to explain how light from distant stars could reach Earth if the universe is only thousands of years old, some propose that God created the light “in transit,” so that Adam could see the stars immediately without having to wait millions of years for the light to reach Earth. Others suggest Einstein’s theory of relativity means that no time passed on Earth while light traveled millions of lightyears from distant stars.
Young Earth Creationist groups like Answers in Genesis and the Institute for Creation Research actively promote their views through publications, websites, seminars, debates, and creation museums. They seek to challenge mainstream science and provide an alternative creation-based worldview centered on the authority and accuracy of the Bible.
Key Biblical Passages
Here are some key biblical passages related to Young Earth Creationism:
Genesis 1-2 – Describes the six-day creation account, with God creating the universe, Earth, plants and animals, and humans over six regular 24-hour days. Provides details like God creating light on the first day, the sun and stars on the fourth day, fish and birds on the fifth day, animals and humans on the sixth day.
Genesis 5-6 – Traces the genealogy from Adam to Noah, indicating humans were created around 6,000 years ago according to calculations of the ages provided.
Genesis 7-9 – Describes the global flood during Noah’s time that destroyed all life on dry land except what was saved on the ark. Indicates that the flood deposited major sedimentary rock layers.
Exodus 20:11 – The fourth commandment to remember the Sabbath says God created the heavens, earth and sea in six days and rested the seventh day, mirroring the creation week.
Psalm 90:4 – Says that in God’s eyes, a thousand years is like a day, indicating the days of creation were literal 24-hour days.
Romans 5:12 – Says that death entered the world through the sin of Adam, supporting the young Earth view that there was no death prior to the fall.
2 Peter 3:5-6 – Points to the creation and flood as evidence that scoffers willfully forget what God did, establishing the creation and flood as historical events.
While these and other verses provide the biblical basis for Young Earth Creationism, there are also alternative interpretations of Genesis more open to modern science, viewing aspects of the account as symbolic, literary, or metaphors accommodating to early understandings. But Young Earth Creationists hold to the literal approach.
History of Young Earth Creationism
Throughout much of the 19th century, geology and paleontology yielded evidence that the Earth was far older than a few thousand years, and that extinct creatures like dinosaurs died out long before humans existed. This recognition prompted reconsideration of biblical chronologies and the Genesis account among Christians in three main ways:
1. The Day-Age Interpretation – This accepts geological evidence of an old Earth but holds each creation “day” refers to an extended epoch or age, not a 24-hour day. It allowed reconciliation of science and Genesis.
2. The Gap Interpretation – This claims there is a “gap” of millions of years unmentioned in Genesis between an original creation and later reconstruction after Lucifer’s rebellion and fall. This gap allows for fossils before the 6-day creation remaking the world.
3. Theistic Evolution – This fully accepts the old Earth and cosmological evolution as God’s intended mechanisms for developing life over billions of years. It reinterprets Genesis as theological, not scientific.
Young Earth Creationism developed largely in reaction to these reinterpretations that abandoned the literal six 24-hour days and young Earth. Prominent early advocates included:
– George McCready Price (1870-1963) – Adventist who wrote works like The New Geology (1923) promoting flood geology and attacks on evolution.
– Henry M. Morris (1918-2006) – Engineer and co-author of seminal young Earth work The Genesis Flood (1961) that sparked modern creation science.
– John C. Whitcomb – Old Testament scholar and co-author with Morris of The Genesis Flood.
Organizations like Answers in Genesis continue efforts to develop young Earth scientific models as an alternative to evolution and deep time. But it remains a fringe view rejected by most scientists.
Scientific Rebuttals
Young Earth Creationism is almost universally rejected by scientists based on extensive evidence from diverse fields confirming the old age of the Earth and universe. Some major scientific rebuttals and problems include:
Astronomy
– Light from stars billions of lightyears away establishes the universe is billions of years old, not thousands.
– Distant galaxies show more primitive early characteristics, indicating changing galaxies over billions of years.
Physics
– Radiometric dating verifies the 4.5 billion year age of meteorites and Earth rocks through decay rates of isotopes with half-lives up to billions of years.
– Thermoluminescence dating of stone tools indicates human artifacts hundreds of thousands of years old, not just thousands.
Geology
– Sedimentary rock layers miles thick with evidence of slow deposition confirm an old Earth, contradicting catastrophic deposition by a flood.
– Fossil sequences showing transitions from simple to complex forms prove creation over hundreds of millions of years, not single creation events.
Paleontology
– Identification of hundreds of human fossils much older than possible biblical timeframes disproves the young Earth view.
– Evolutionary progression in fossil forms like the horse and whale cannot be explained by separate creation events but confirm common ancestry.
Biology
– Anatomical homologies in skeletal structures across species confirm evolution from common ancestors over eons, not independent creation.
– Genetic comparisons between species reveal shared mutations accumulated over hundreds of thousands of generations, not thousands.
Anthropology
– Ancient tree ring, ice core, and cave formations date back over 40,000 years, well before biblical chronology.
– Recorded human civilization extends back over 6,000 years, contradicting young Earth models placing humans last in creation week.
These and many other scientific disciplines discredit Young Earth Creationism through up these and other extensive evidence for an ancient universe. Young Earth explanations fail to account for this evidence in a compelling way.
Theological Issues
In addition to conflicting with science, critics argue Young Earth Creationism causes theological problems and misunderstandings about the nature of biblical authority, God’s revelation, and the purpose of Genesis.
Not the Original Intent of Genesis
– The ancient Near Eastern context suggests Genesis was not written as a literal scientific origins account but as a theological polemic and metaphor accommodating to early Hebrew understandings.
Does Not Take Scripture Seriously
– By dogmatically elevating one interpretation that contradicts science and requires distortions of the natural world, it fails to let the full breadth of scripture speak for itself.
Makes Christianity Appear Absurd
– The demonstrable scientific falsehoods of young Earth claims present Christianity as irrational and absurd, undermining the faith’s credibility.
Causes Confusion and Division
– The insistence on Young Earth Creationism has caused unnecessary confusion, doubt, and division within the church.
Undermines Faith for Some
– For those who eventually see the overwhelming evidence against it, Young Earth Creationism sometimes leads to a sense of betrayal and loss of faith.
Distorts the Nature of God
– Presenting the creator God as deceiving us about the age of the universe paints God as dishonest and unworthy of worship.
These and other theological critiques argue Young Earth Creationism wrongly dogmatizes an interpretation of Genesis never intended as scientifically literal, causing confusion, intellectual problems, and distrust, especially among youth.
Education Controversies
The promotion of Young Earth Creationism has sparked controversy over how creation and evolution should be taught in schools:
Teaching Creationism
– Young Earth groups lobby aggressively to include creationist teachings in science curricula as an alternative to evolution, despite lack of scientific merit.
Mandating Equal Time
– Creationists have fought to require equal time for teaching creationism whenever evolution is taught, arguing exclusion is religious discrimination, despite the scientific consensus favoring evolution.
Teaching the Controversy
– As an alternate strategy, creationists advocate teaching the “controversy” around evolution theory by presenting intelligent design critiques of evolution.
Disclaimers on Evolution
– Creationists push for evolution textbooks to include stickers or disclaimers highlighting evolution as “just a theory” with conceptual problems.
Legal Battles
– Dozens of court cases have addressed the constitutionality of teaching creationism and disclaimers on evolution, with mixed rulings but overall favoring evolution.
Scientific organizations universally endorse evolution as validated science and creationism as religion, not science. But over 40% of Americans believe God created humans in the last 10,000 years, ensuring the evolution vs. creationism educational debate persists.
Conclusion
Young Earth Creationism stems from a staunch biblical literalism that rejects modern science in favor of faith in biblical inerrancy. For adherents, supposed scientific proofs for an old Earth result from rejecting the clear Genesis account and must be reinterpreted. Critics counter that this forces distortions of science and Genesis, undermining the credibility of Christianity. The tension continues between Young Earth and Old Earth views. Young Earth Creationism demonstrates how worldviews centered on specific biblical interpretations collide with mainstream science, sparking controversy about origins that has impacted culture, education, and the faith.
