The Creation Debate Rages On

May 28, 2014

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The Creation account in the Bible Book of Genesis continues to be one of the most hotly debated topics in our culture.

Nowhere is this debate fierier, than on college and university campuses. Even Evangelical Christian campuses, where one would think Creation was accepted without question, are engaged in polarizing deliberations over the origin of man.

Recently, Bryan College an Evangelical Christian school in Dayton, Tennessee, with a total enrollment of approximately 1,400 students, stepped onto center stage in this continuing debate

As a Christian school, all faculty and staff members must subscribe to Brian College’s 8-point Statement of Belief. Included in the 80-year-old Statement of Belief is a reference to the creation of man.

“[We believe] that the origin of man was by fiat of God in the act of creation as related in the Book of Genesis; that he was created in the image of God.”

To further clarify the college’s stance on the Genesis Creation account, the school’s Board of Trustees issued a statement late last month, clarifying the Statement of Belief.

“We believe that all humanity is descended from Adam and Eve,” the Board explained. “They are historical persons created by God in a special formative act, and not from previously existing life forms.”

Two professors at Bryan College have objected to being required to subscribe to the clarified statement of faith and have filed suit against the college. They state in their suit that their contracts are not being renewed due to their refusal to subscribe to the Statement of Belief, particularly the statement on the Creation of man.

Over 300 students signed a petition in support of the professors and a no confidence vote against the President of the college.

However, some Bryan College alumni say the school’s commitment to the biblical creation account is admirable.

“The Bible just flat out really does say that the universe was created by God over a time period of six days and that mankind had no ancestors but was, instead, crafted by God’s own hand,” Seth Julin, a 1993 Bryan College graduate, wrote in a letter to the school’s student website. “The Bible does make those claims, and no amount of scoffing, theorizing, pontificating or wishing it were not so will overcome that fact.”

Surprisingly,” most Christian colleges do not believe in the traditional historically held view of the Genesis six-day creation account. They generally accept the secular Big Bang scenario (adding God to it in various ways) and many even accept and teach evolution as a fact.”

In fact, there are 106 Christian colleges in what is called “The Christian College Coalition.” Five of the 106 hold to the literal understanding of the Genesis Creation account and 101 do not, believing rather in some form of Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. 

But what about American society in general? 

In a December 2013 Harris Poll, respondents were asked their views on Creationism. 36% of respondents said they did not believe in creationism, 31% affirmed a belief in creationism, and 33% were uncertain as to the origin of life on Earth. 

Surprisingly, a Pew Forum poll suggests that 23% of Evangelical Protestant Christians find evolution to be the most likely explanation for the origin of man. -

So it is clear that that, although many people believe in evolution, many do not, and an equal number do not know what they believe. In fact, many people continue to believe in the Genesis creation account.

Nevertheless, the debate between the Genesis Creation account and Darwin’s Evolution Theory rages on, even in the Christian Church.

It is important for all to remember that Darwin’s Theory has never been scientifically proven, nor can it be.

Charles Darwin, in his book “The Origin of Species”, noted that without appropriate fossil evidence, his general theory would be disproved.

Today, with over 100,000 species represented in the fossil record, not only is the theory not proven, the lack of evidence for the general theory of evolution is greater than ever, with no substantiation of the intermediate life forms necessary for the theory to hold water.

On the other hand, we do have the infallible, unerring Word of God and the Book of Genesis which clearly states how life on Earth began.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1) and Genesis 2:7 further tells us that “the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living soul.”

Since none of us was present at the moment when God created life on Earth, we do well to remember what He said to Job in Chapter 38, “Where were you…?”