By Tim Lambert
The Early Church and Genesis
Creationism is the belief that the book of Genesis in the Bible is literally true and that the Earth is only about 6,000 years old. However, it’s a myth that the Church has always taught that. The early Christians did not, of course, know how old the Earth is, but they often did not take Genesis literally.
Among the early scholars of the Church, Clement of Alexandria (c. 150 – c. 215 AD) believed that God created the world instantly and the days of Genesis were not meant to be taken literally. Origen of Alexandria (c. 184–253 AD) also did not believe that Genesis is literally true. Like Clement, Augustine of Hippo (354-430) thought that God created the universe instantly.
In the Middle Ages, too, theologians didn’t necessarily believe that Genesis was literally true. William of Conches (c. 1090-1154) argued that Genesis should not be interpreted literally. So did Robert Grosseteste (1175-1253).
Of course, people in the past had no idea how old the Earth is, and most assumed it was only thousands of years old. However, in the 18th century, scientists began to understand how rocks were formed, and they realised the Earth must be much older than 6,000 years. Once it became clear that the Earth is much older, most Christians did not object.
In 1859, Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution. Most Christians accepted it and thought it was true. Also in the 19th century, it became clear that the story of Noah’s flood – a flood that covered the entire Earth – could not be literally true. In 1872, George Smith discovered an Ancient story, the Epic of Gilgamesh. It was written in Sumer (Ancient Iraq) and included a story about a universal flood. It was much older than the Biblical story. It became clear that the story of Noah’s flood was influenced by it.
Creationism in the 20th Century
However, in the early 20th century, some Christians argued that humans did not evolve from animals. William Jennings Bryan (1860–1925) campaigned against teaching Evolution in schools. George McCready Price (1870–1963), a Seventh-day Adventist, wrote books claiming the Earth was young. (He did not claim that the entire Universe was young, only the Earth!).
In 1925 came the Scopes Trial. In 1925, the State of Tennessee passed a law making it illegal to teach that humans evolved from animals. (It did not forbid teaching that animals evolved into other animals). John Scopes taught it anyway, and he was arrested. Scopes was found guilty and was fined $100. The case caused fierce debate, but the law in Tennessee was not repealed until 1967.
In 1928, Arkansas passed a similar law, but in 1968, the Supreme Court ruled that laws forbidding the teaching of human evolution were unconstitutional.
In 1961, a book called The Genesis Flood was published. It was written by a civil engineer, Henry M Morris, and a theologian, John C. Whitcomb. Their book claimed that the story of Noah’s flood was literally true. The great majority of scientists rejected the book’s claims, but it did become popular among some Evangelical Christians. It started the modern Creationist movement. In the USA the Creation Research Society was formed in 1963. However, Creationism never became common in Britain.
In 1981, Arkansas passed a law that both Evolution and ‘Creation Science’ be given equal time in schools. However, in 1982, the District Court in Arkansas ruled that ‘Creation Science’ was a religious teaching and that teaching it in public schools violated the First Amendment.
In 1981, Louisiana also passed a law requiring that ‘Creation Science’ be taught in schools alongside evolution. However, in 1987, the US Supreme Court ruled it was unconstitutional as it violated the First Amendment.
Most Christians today accept Evolution as fact and see no contradiction between their faith and science.
