People once believed the earth was flat. It was just taken as fact – presupposed as true and without need of question.
Of course, there was the also the belief that the earth was the center of the universe and the sun revolved around it. Another presupposition that nobody questioned.
There are still people who believe the earth is flat, but they are viewed with amusement by those who are better informed. There may even remain a few who believe the sun revolves around the earth, but the evidence against these views is now compelling. Evidence, of course, which comes from science and practical observation of what is around us.
Belief in a flat earth, and geocentric universe, were presuppositions that did not leave the stage without a struggle, but observable and scientific evidence were overwhelming. Christians in particular fought vigorously against the exit of this view because it went against their presuppositions that the Bible taught these things as fact. In reality they were interpretations.
Presuppositions are very powerful. Samuel Shenton, leader of the Flat Earth Society in the 1950′s, when confronted with the first images of the earth viewed from space, had this to say:
“It’s easy to see how a photograph like that could fool the untrained eye.”
The “presupposition” here is the belief that the earth is flat. We can pretty safely assume the “training” is the learning of reasoned arguments in favor of their presupposition and against what the eye is observing!
The Flat Earth Society ended up saying the Lunar landing was a hoax, and the space photos a product of NASA’s creative arts department. One can only wonder why they did not find it more obvious to question the presupposition than to accept arguments like this.
Today there is a reasonably common belief that the earth and life on it was created just 6000 years ago. This view is particularly dominant among conservative Christians.
As with the flat earth and geocentric universe, many informed people are trying to usher this teaching from the arena to replace it with the view that this earth and life on it are millions of years old. This issue can be very intense as presuppositions are confronted with science and observable facts.
The perceived stakes are very high. In Christian circles many see the suggestion that life developed over a long time, on a very old earth, as a challenge to their basic belief in God and the clear teachings of the Bible. On my page The “Evolution Deletes God” Myth I present reasons why belief in an old earth and life does not mean the end of God. Age of the earth and belief in God are in fact two separate presuppositions or beliefs, both of which need to be tested in their own right.
The “Evolution Deletes God” Myth
Put it this way: I can presuppose that God IS. AND I can also presuppose that this earth is very young or that it is very old. Whichever choice I make in my second presupposition, it is not a challenge to the first. Either way I can still believe in God.
The first thing Christians who believe in a young earth must do is separate these two points. It would take a lot of fear and heat out of the debate. The second thing we need to do is recognize the importance of being humble enough to allow questions of our presuppositions. For some this may even mean taking the first step of recognizing that their belief, or point of view, may in fact be a presupposition which needs testing. It is also important to realize the folly of doing what the believers in a flat earth have done in attempting to train the eye so that the facts can never get in the way of the presupposition. This does not lead to faith.
Many times throughout my life I have behaved with what I call “unintended arrogance” by treating my presuppositions as fact, and refusing to admit they could be faulty. Sadly, I believe there is a growing level of unintended arrogance being generated by extreme positions within the “young earth” community. It is very confronting to have ones presupposition of a 7 day creation week just 6000 years or so ago exposed to scrutiny.
The core of the problem is that just as the observable facts confronted the flat earth, and geocentric belief, so they confront belief in a 7 day creation. I believe there is so much evidence available in support of old earth and life that to hold a young earth view in spite of it is the result of either inability to grasp the facts or questionable honesty and integrity.
Today, our knowledge of the earths crust, the fossil record, and geology are profoundly greater than they were just a few decades ago. The geologic column is documented by thousands of drill holes, along with volumes of other data. If that is not enough, fossilized coral reefs in the Great Western Deserts of Egypt, when compared with Biblical history, demonstrate that Noah’s flood cannot explain the vast amount of deposited material which stretches thousands of meters below the desert sands. Put simply, there is now compelling amount of observable and scientific evidence that this earth and life on it are indeed very, very old. As noted on my page Creation Vs Evolution, there is enough evidence to render a short life earth and recent creation a very unlikely event.
I would predict that within the next generation, belief in a 7 day creation just 6000 years ago will be viewed with the same amusement as the flat earth theory is today.
The question is, what are we Christians going to do about it? Engage in a bitter battle to defend our presuppositions? Or recognize that acceptance of the science and the facts around us do not challenge the existence of our God. (That is a separate problem). This “mind-shift” does not need to destroy faith, or belief in God, but it will mean accepting other ways of interpreting Scripture.
Failure to accept this mind shift may in fact do more to destroy faith in God.
Surfing the net recently, I came across a site which powerfully described the risks Christians face if we continue our attempts to “train the eye”, and refuse this mind shift. The quote is a letter written to Church leaders about a program being conducted by the Church the writer attended. TTP stands for “The Truth Project” . Sounds familiar doesn’t it?
“I would hold that the “either evolution or God” is a false dichotomy. I would also hold that it is a dangerous one. In TTP, evolution and God’s creation are held out as mutually exclusive options: in this mindset, then, evidence for evolution becomes evidence against God. I have seen students struggle with this issue as they study biology. This is a mindset we would do well not to saddle young people with (or anyone, for that matter).
Contrary to what you hear through many Christian channels, there is ample evidence for evolution, human evolution included. When students encounter this evidence with the either/or mindset, it can shipwreck their faith. When outsiders who know Biology come into the church, they write us off as ignorant and dismiss the claims of Christ along with our flawed Biology. In both cases, our poor handling of science raises unnecessary barriers to faith.
I would suggest, especially for the science section of TTP, that there be a willingness to engage a discussion in the church about the full range of Christian responses to evolution, and even explore some of the reasons why Christians in the biological sciences feel that evolution is a valid scientific theory. I’m not normally one for pushing these discussion, but we’ve never had the opposing views taught through an official venue before either.”
What are Christians going to do? Is not this false dichotomy exactly where many are at? Are we not telling people “believe in an old earth, and you can’t believe in God”? Are we likely to join the flat earth belief, becoming a fossil of a bygone era, useful to nobody?
What a price to pay in lost ability to reach people? What a loss to all the people who may find the Churches irrelevant to their lives simply because we could not get past our presuppositions and fear?
Maybe its not too late. Perhaps we can let go our presuppositions and simply let God be God, without the unintended arrogance of believing He needs our defense of what is at the end of the day only an interpretation.
Copyright: oldearthmygod.com 1. 01. 2011
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- Noah’s Flood?
- The “Evolution Deletes God” Myth
- The “Theistic Evolution Deletes the Gospel” Myth
- Global Warming
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Very good. I agree with you 100% I recently came back to the faith after realizing I can believe in God and science. The opposition to science among some is a big stumbling block. When I see the facts of science and nature and yet am told I can’t believe them and believe the Bible too, if I am intellectually honest, I have to reject one and accept the other. What a yoke of bondage! Both the book of scripture and the book of nature are important. Both are revelations from God and do not contradict. Young earth creationism contradicts God’s revelation in nature. It is their wrong interpretation of scripture that leads to a wrong interpretation of nature. And the reverse is true too. It is circular “reasoning” on their part.
In the debate over creation vs evolution (young earth/old earth), there is the integrity of both Moses and Jesus to consider. They both give testimony of a global flood. Do we call Jesus uninformed and ignorant? In the quest for truth, we cannot discard the
supernatural power of GOD, or we will most definitly struggle with our faith in Him.
There are many examples of errors and flaws in science which are convieniently covered up or discarded entirely. One that comes to mind is the fossil of a whale standing upright through layers of strata (millions of years old). I could go on and on with these examples of evidence of a global flood. What do we do with these challenges? Ignore them? That is what is happening. Science won’t retract the information they have fed the intire world, that would mean defeat to them. Or worse; Maybe there is a God after all who is very capable of creating a universe at the command of his voice!