I prefer a science based
creation. Science describes the world
around us, what we can see, taste, hear, and touch. It also describes what composes our “world,”
the subatomic to the cosmic. When
knowledge gets to the edge of understanding, science admits it does not know. Everyone can make a guess. Eventually, it rejects theories that the
natural evidence does not support. It
holds onto or revives theories that new evidence confirms. This produces a “standard” of knowledge that
modifies as we learn about nature. Science
is based in the reality that anyone, from any background, can study.
That does not mean I reject the
Bible. It contains information that lab tests
cannot evaluate. But we still must
discern what we are told. If Genesis 1
is true, then God created everything, and everything should point to God. However, that is not what the church teaches. Most denominations preach a perfect beginning
that was corrupted by sin. Yet, if
nothing perfect remains, then there is no physical way to determine if that
belief is true, partly true, or completely myth. Not even believers can prove perfection
existed, and they want non-believers to simply accept it as true.. Without any evidence, we must have blind
faith in the first chapter of the Bible, the one that tells us God created
everything. That is not a great way to
start.
For most of my life, Genesis One,
and many other passages, irritated me until I researched what I had been
taught. I needed to find out if what I
believed was a myth. What I found was equal
parts frustrating and amazing.
Christian Creationism is not one
doctrine, but many. Several exist
today. Doctrines contradict each other
on how to interpret the Bible and nature.
Some even contradict themselves. Creationism
changes as theological beliefs change. All
those things are problems, as it shows Creationism is not simple or straightforward. If Christians cannot agree on what the Bible
says about God’s creation, how can an unbeliever trust anything spiritual in
the Bible as true?
Like science, Creationism changes
with our knowledge of nature. That is understandable. Even Augustine of Hippo said it would (in c. 400
AD). However, religion resists and rejects
change. It will hold onto tradition even
when the tradition is not useful, even when it is a lie. They hold on so tight that tradition becomes
dogmatic. Promoters of Creationism say
they have the truth, but they distort the evidence to fit their concept of
nature. They twist what scientists say to
make them sound foolish. Anyone who
opposes their conclusions is promptly condemned. Why would a believer or an unbeliever choose
to follow such people?
For most of the last 600 years, European
science (naturalism) was a Christian institution run by priests and clergymen. Those people actually looked at the world and
discovered that their beliefs about nature were wrong. Yet, Christianity slowly lost its leadership
in science because too many leaders rejected the evidence because it did not
match their interpretation of Genesis.
There are Muslim groups who do the exact same thing. How is “our” belief better when both reject
parts of what is found in nature?
Because of the various beliefs, I
wrote down all the creation details I could find and hunted for biblical reference.
I also wanted to see how much of the
text matched science. Sadly, I found
very few details from Creationism as biblical.
However, many of the biblical details “almost matched” science. There was something I was missing.
After about five years of daily searching,
I had an epiphany. Genesis One never
used the word “perfect.” Removing
perfectionism let Genesis 1 match science perfectly. Not just almost, but every detail in the
chapter matched. Removing perfectionism
let Genesis 2-11 match science almost perfectly. Only a few details do not align.
That in itself is
miraculous. Science actually verified Bronze
Age creation stories as truth. But
removing perfectionism did something more amazing. It changed my perception of humanity. The God of creation stopped being angry. He loves us with joy. We are part of His good creation. Our Creator turned into the Abba Jesus adored.
[Lessons learned from Creation’s Parables: Genesis and Standard
Science, Sung as One, by Jo Helen Cox.]