This document is copyright 1999 and 2000 Matthew S. Tiscareno. Full permission is given to reproduce or distribute this document, or to rearrange/reformat it for other media, as long as credit is given and no words are added or deleted from the text.

 

NOTE: This website has not been updated since early in this decade. I do not have the time or inclination to maintain it, but I have decided to keep it available as a product of its time. So please read with discernment and check sources. -MST (10 September 2009)

 

For the past several decades, the question of the age of the Earth has been a very divisive one among Christians. Many people (known as "Young-Earth Creationists") believe that the only valid interpretation of the Bible indicates that the Earth is 10,000 years old or less, and they also claim to have scientific evidence that supports this view of the Earth. At the same time, there are many others who believe that scientific evidence overwhelmingly supports the claim that the Earth is about 4.6 billion years old, while the Universe as a whole is 10 to 20 billion years old. Many people in this latter category affirm the intimate involvement of God in this process of creation.

 

It is not the purpose of this paper to discuss theology, but this author firmly believes that a literal interpretation of Genesis allows for an Old-Earth view that is consistent with mainstream science. I say this only to emphasize that this paper is not intended to oppose any Christian beliefs, or to tear down anyone's faith. Rather, the purpose of this paper is to ensure that our Faith is based firmly on Truth, and not merely wishful thinking.

 

Through the ages, many people have denied certain facts of nature because those facts did not fit into the belief system that they desired to hold to. Both Christians and atheists are commonly guilty of this error. It should be obvious that any Christian who believes that God is the ordainer and framer of this world, and that God is the initiator of all logic and scientific thought, should never take such a position. The purpose of this paper is to show that Young-Earth Creationists, however unintentionally, have in fact done this. Regardless of what we may think the Bible says, the facts of nature are also ordained by God, and it is not right deny them or to misrepresent them in order to support any particular belief system. The purpose of this paper is to set forth the facts of nature in light of the claims made by Young-Earth Creationist leaders in hope that, by better understanding the facts of nature, we will also come to a better understanding of God's greater source of revelation - the words of the Bible.

 

Concerning References: A large number of articles from scientific journals are referenced in this fact sheet, and I strongly encourage interested readers to look at this source material. In general, these journals should be available at your local university library, and in some cases the public library. If not, you can ask your librarian about an inter-library loan, which is generally available for a nominal fee. Many journal articles are also available online, one good source for finding them is the Astrophysical Data System Abstract Service (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abstract_service.html). All of the young-Earth claims addressed in this fact sheet can be found in books published by Young-Earth organizations. In brackets, after the title of each claim, are references indicating where the claim can be found, in case the reader would like to look at the source to better understand the Young-Earth arguments. Most references are from the 1995 version of The Defender's Bible (DB), an official ICR publication, or the 1992 version of The Illustrated Origins Answer Book (OAB) by Paul S. Taylor. Both of these are Young-Earth publications that include extensive lists of "young-Earth evidences," and both of them are still distributed by the Institute for Creation Research (the most prominent young-Earth organization), and so can be assumed to receive their approval. The references to the Defender's Bible give the page number followed by the number that the claim receives on that page. All of the arguments from the Origins Answer Book are found on pages 18-20, and are numbered from 1 to 107. I also included a few claims from the ICR Creation Online course (http://www.creationonline.org/frame.htm).

 

Acknowledgements: Thanks to all those that have offered comments and advice for this fact sheet, including Hill Roberts, Tim Swindle, William Keel, Mike Tice, George Bendo, Adam Crowl, Kyle Witten, Marj Harmon, and Bob Stuart. Additionally, some useful lines of reasoning were suggested to me by writings of Hugh Ross, Don Stoner, and Hill Roberts, which are referenced below.

 

Note to Reader: The most important element of this fact sheet to me is its scientific accuracy. My purpose is to investigate "young-Earth evidences" honestly and responsibly, confident that God will be glorified by the Truth regardless of its theological implications. Therefore, if you have any comments or suggestions regarding anything in this fact sheet, please contact me. My goal of clarity and accuracy can only be fully reached with the help of others who are also familiar with the material. Although I would love comments on any part of the fact sheet, I would particularly appreciate any help on the few remaining sections that are printed in italics, indicating places where the fact sheet is not yet finished. My email address is matthewt at lpl dot arizona dot edu Thanks and God bless you.

 

Matthew Tiscareno
October 7, 1999