about science and the book of Genesis.

Science has advanced at an astonishing rate over the last century.  We now know many things with a very high level of probability.  What implications do these findings have regarding the Christian faith?  Has science disproved the Bible?  What about the book of Genesis, which gives an account of creation? 

Below are brief summaries of some of the different beliefs that Christians hold concerning science and the claims laid out in the book of Genesis:

Theistic Evolution

Francis Collins is the scientist that headed up the team that decoded the human genome.  He is currently the Director of the National Institutes of Health, and he is a committed Christian.  Collins believes that the creation account in the book of Genesis is a poetic story, much like the Psalms and Song of Solomon.  He does not believe that we should look to it for any understanding of the origins of our universe or life on earth.  I recommend his book The Language of God for more on his views.

Young Earth Creationism

Ken Ham is the president of the Creation Museum and the Answers in Genesis organization.  He interprets the creation account in Genesis as a literal six days, and he believes that the universe and all of life was created in that time period less than 10,000 years ago.  I recommend his book The New Answers Book 1 for more on his views.

Old Earth Creationism

Hugh Ross is an accomplished astrophysicist and Christian apologist.  He, like Ken Ham, also believes in a literal understanding of Genesis.  However, he interprets the text differently than Ham does.  Ross believes that the bible is the only religious text that accurately describes the origin of life and the universe.  I recommend Ross’ book The Genesis Question for more on his views.

I purposely chose to personalize each of the views above by including the name of one of the people that embrace them.  I did that because we humans are typically quick to polarize and pick sides rather than research the evidence and engage in civil, intelligent conversation with people of differing views, and I thought that maybe it would help make the point that we can disagree on the nonessentials and still get along.  Would you reject Francis Collins as a sincere follower of Jesus because you disagree with him?  Would you question the authenticity of Ken Ham’s relationship with God because his views don’t fit your interpretation of origins?  Do Hugh Ross’ beliefs arouse anger or distress? (not that anyone has expressed these sentiments) There are things worth fighting for, but this isn’t one of them.  Let’s love and respect each other, keeping in mind that, “Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Cor. 13:12)

Followers of Jesus do not need to fear truth, what others believe or what science discovers.