What Effects Does Evolutionary Theory Have Upon Modern Agendas? Beth Haven Creation Conference May 14, 2017
Limits of empirical knowledge Galaxies 22 20 Man created to have dominion Solar over nature starting with the 18 System correspondence God created 16 between many of man’s Deductions empirically-based conceptions 14 Telescope Spatial Domain of Nature Sun and nature’s design 12 10 8 Mountains Space: Log 10 (cm) 6 4 Man Conjecture 2 BUT the scientific method Ultra-speed 0 One cm filming requires special additions -2 (worldview dependent Bacteria Microscope conjectures) in order to -4 penetrate unobservable Deductions -6 past & future domains -8 Deductions -10 Atom Molecules Temporal Domain of Nature -12 -18 -16 -14 -12 -10 -8 -6 -4 -2 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 Visible Light Historical Sound One Second Beginning Universe X-Ray One Hour One Year Age of Period Period Period Life Period Time: Log 10 (seconds) 36
Shall I bow to my Creator? • NO! • YES! – ancient myths – ancient monotheism – eastern religions – ancient Israel – western philosophy – Bible – modern theology – fundamentalism • Continuity of Being • CREATOR/creature – nature > gods > man – God || man | nature – transmutation / evolution – everlasting distinctions • IMPERSONAL FATE & • PERSONAL CHANCE SOVEREIGN – ultimate victimization – ultimate responsibility 37
A candle “clock” Starting Burn Burn Measured length rate duration length (in) (in/hr) (hr) now (in) L o – [L/t] * T = L m Solving for burn duration. . . [L o – Lm] = T [L/t] 38
Uniformitarianism decoded Lyell used the term “Uniformity” as purposeful equivocation in 1830 S. J. Gould first exposed the equivocation in 1980—150 years later! Different meanings Explanation Uniformity of law Presupposition of all science Uniformity of process Past processes no different kinds (actualism) from presently observed processes Uniformity of process Processes common to past and rates (gradualism) present have same rates 39
Problems of uniformitarianism acknowledged by the “Establishment” “It can be said that the geologists’ knowledge of the past is based upon pretheoretical assumptions, often of a metaphysical nature, not susceptible to logical or empirical proof. In a certain sense, they are the products of the geologists’ imagination.” Gadi Kravitz in Rethinking the Fabric of Geology (2013), 21 40
Intelligent Design movement thinks that naturalism began with Darwin “I myself would adopt [young-earth creation] in a heartbeat except that nature seems to present such strong evidence against it. ... In our current mental environment, informed as it is by modern astrophysics and geology, the scientific community as a whole regards young-earth creationism as untenable.” William A. Dembski, The End of Christianity: Finding a Good God in an Evil World (Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing, 2009), 55. “Most scientific evidence sets the age of the world at billions of years.” Norman L. Geisler, Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1999), p. 272 41
Problems with Old Earth Creationism 1. Hermeneutics of special revelation must yield to naturalistic/uniformitarian interpretations of general revelation. 2. Genealogies compromised—death and suffering before the fall; flood has to be local; Jesus and apostles erred in affirming Genesis; physical resurrection can’t be explained by a gradual natural process. 3. Engage in “straw man” fallacies about “young earth” creationists—we use “flat earth” hermeneutics, claim “old earth” people aren’t saved, claim “yom” never used figuratively, etc. 42
Consequences for personal relationship to the Lord Personal Nature is all there is Creator Eternality Deep Time Omnipresence Impersonal Universe Omnipotence All powerful Nature Sovereignty Fatalism & hyper-regulatory state Love Sentimental deity & total dependency upon other people’s love 43
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