http://www.dissentfromdarwin.org/

The top of their petition reads:

“We are skeptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the complexity of life. Careful examination of the evidence for Darwinian theory should be encouraged.”

It has been signed by hundreds of scientists from various nations who are interested in pursuing the study of alternative explanations of the origin of life.

Also, a recent article on this topic appeared on Probe, written by Dr Ray Bohlin, a scientist and apologist who holds qualifications in zoology and biology. Go to http://www.probe.org/content/view/1110/130/ to read the article.

• The London Natural History Museum’s online “Dino Directory.”
• “Hadrosaurinae” at the Thescelosaurus! website.
• Ham, K. The great dinosaur mystery solved!: a Biblical view of these amazing creatures. Green Forest, Arizona, USA: Master Books; 1998. Currently available at: Koorong, Master Books, CMI Online Store.
• Dinosaurs and the Bible frequently asked questions (CMI Australia).
• The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible homepage (CAN USA).
• How do dinosaurs fit in (with the Bible)? (ICR USA).

Article from the website of archaeologist Dr Livingston: “The ‘Days’ of the Creation Week.” (2003)

http://www.ancientdays.net/creationdays.htm

In this, the author give s a clear and easy-to-read overview of various interpretations of Genesis 1 given by Christians, as well as a discussion of what the Bible itself actually says.

Excerpt:

What are the “DAYS”? How long were they?

Some Dates for Creation:

• Septuagint 5270 BC
• Jewish 3760 BC
• Josephus 5555 BC
• Luther 3961 BC
• Kepler 3993 BC
• Ussher 4004 BC

Some Interpretations of the Meaning of “Days”

1. Revelational day: God revealed to Moses how He did it in 6 visionary days, or during a 6 day period.
2. Long period of time — a geological age — a “day-age”.
3. Literal day (24 hours), separated by long ages.
4. See chart below…

[Read more...]

And, from another Dr Livingston article, “Five Pillars of Evolution” (2003):

http://www.ancientdays.net/fivepillars.htm

This website is worth a look. Dr Livingston is an archaeologist and theologian, and the rticles will be useful for anyone exploring apologetics.

This is from the Days of Praise devotional (January 3, 2008), written by Dr Henry Morris. I couldn’t have written it more clearly, so I’ve reproduced it here.

 ”Instantaneous Creation”

“Let them praise the name of the LORD: for He commanded, and they were created” (Psalm 148:5).

The concept of “fiat creation” is opposed by evolutionists and all who believe in the so-called geologic ages. Nevertheless, this is clearly the teaching of the word of God, and God was there! Psalm 148 exhorts all the stars to praise the Lord, and then notes that, as soon as God spoke, they “were created.” Similarly, “By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. . . . For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast” (Psalm 33:6,9).

It is worth noting that whenever the verbs “create” or “make” are used in reference to God’s work of creation, they are never in the present tense. God is not now creating or making stars or animals or people as theistic evolution requires; at the end of the six-day creation period, in fact, God “rested from all His work which God created and made” (Genesis 2:3).

This is the teaching of the New Testament also. “The worlds |that is, the space/time cosmos, the ‘aeons’| were framed |not ‘are being framed’| by the word of God |not ‘by processes of stellar evolution’|, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear |not ‘out of preexisting materials,’ as required by theories of chemical and cosmic evolution|” (Hebrews 11:3).

The Lord Jesus Christ Himself confirmed the doctrine of recent creation. “From the beginning of the creation |not, that is, four billion years after the solar system evolved| God made them |Adam and Eve| male and female” (Mark 10:6). Thus, those who believe in the geological ages are rejecting both the Biblical record and the authority of Jesus Christ in order to attain ephemeral acceptance by the ungodly. This is a poor exchange! HMM

A recent question that a Christian asked of me:

“Do you think God created life elsewhere in the universe? Otherwise, why would it be so big?”

Some thoughts:

- The Fall of humanity subjected all Creation to the curse of suffering and death (Genesis 3; Romans 8:19-22). So, would intelligent, sentient aliens would suffer for human sin? Is this just?

- The Church, the Body of Christ, is described as as ‘Bride.’ One day the Bride will be married to the Bridegroom (Revelation 21). Is Christ a polygamist? (Genesis 2:24; Mark 10:7; Ephesians 5:31.)

- The Bible tells us that God specifically created humanity as His image bearers (Genesis 1:26-27). What about the aliens? Are they super-intelligent yet soulless? Or did God send Jesus to die for them, on their planets, too?

One of my favourite books on this topic is Alien Intrusion, by Australian apologist Gary Bates. It offers a balanced and sensible approach to the topic of alien life forms, and their relation to different worldviews.

I found a short article that summarises some of Bates’ main arguments here. Here is a brief excerpt and a link to the rest of the article.

Did God create life on other planets?

Otherwise why is the universe so big?

by Gary Bates (2006)

Many people, Christian or otherwise, struggle with the notion that the earth is the only inhabited planet in this enormous universe.

Those who believe life evolved on the earth usually see it as virtual ‘fact’ that life has evolved on countless other planets. Discovering life on other planets would in turn be seen as confirming their evolutionary belief.

But even many Christians think, ‘God must have created life elsewhere, otherwise this enormous universe would be an awful waste of space.’ However, our thinking should be based on what God said He did (the Bible), and not what we think He would or should have done. [Read more...]

Good question! It was one that I often wrestled with as a teenager. Why did we, as Roman Catholics (as I was at the time) celebrate the brutal, torturous death of Jesus? What was the significance of it?

 While I don’t have time right now to exposit on it (it is, in essence, a central aspect of the Christan Gospel message), I have written a summary of the Gospel message at  http://darthmaulmakesmesmile.wordpress.com/the-bible/.

CMI have published a brief article, “Genesis and the Cross,” on their apologetics ministry website. Here’s a brief extract and link to the rest of the article.

Genesis and the Cross

by Tas Walker  [Published: 21 March 2008]

It may seem odd for people to celebrate the humiliating defeat of their leader and hero. But the suffering, shame and death of Jesus Christ are a source of hope to Christians.

No one wants to live in a world where evil is ignored, or worse still, approved. Everyone yearns for justice when they have been mocked, insulted, betrayed or abused. [Read more at http://creationontheweb.com/content/view/5679/...]

It’s a reasonable question - if Earth’s history is one of suffering and pain, how could a loving God have created all this? It’s a question that I asked many times… But, for many years, no Christians were able to give me an answer (2 Corinthians 10:5; 1 Peter 3:15). That’s not to say that there aren’t answers.

Here’s a link to an article that discusses this issue - written for a Christian audience.

Excerpt from: http://creationontheweb.com/content/view/508/

The god of an old earth

Does the Bible teach that disease, bloodshed, violence and pain have always been ‘part of life’?

by Ken Ham

The late Carl Sagan, in his book Contact, wrote:

‘If God is omnipotent and omniscient, why didn’t he start the universe out in the first place so it would come out the way he wants? Why is he constantly repairing and complaining? No, there’s one thing the Bible makes clear: The biblical God is a sloppy manufacturer. He’s not good at design, he’s not good at execution. He’d be out of business if there was any competition.’¹

 

It’s easy to understand why Carl Sagan viewed the God of the Bible this way. Sagan believed that the fossil record, with all its death, mutations, disease, suffering, bloodshed and violence, represented millions of years of Earth’s history. …

Read more…

The poor long-suffering people around me often have to sit through my impromptu apologetics preaching sessions. I can’t help it! Well, I’m sure I could learn to keep my mouth closed but I’m just really enthusiastic about it. I might be biased because it was largely apologetics that opened my mind to the possibility of accepting Christ.

 My all-time favourite apologetics resource technically isn’t a book - it’s a magazine! I have been subscribing to it for a few years now and, when each new edition rolls around every 3 months I can’t wait to sit down with a cup of organic green tea and read all about the latest in science, faith, archaeology and society.  I feel like I’m starting to sound like one of those awful mid-afternoon telemarketing shows. That’s not true, though. I’m not being paid to promote it!

 Anyway, if you’re interested in finding out more, it’s called Creation magazine. As the name suggests, it’s focus is on the world around us, and finding God’s hand at work in nature - whether the amazing diversity of lifeforms, or the complexity of the Universe - I find it an inspiring read.

It’s published in Australia, by Creation Ministries International, and available in a number of countries.

To learn more, try the following links:

About Creation / subscriptions - http://creationontheweb.com/content/view/3871/97

Article archive - http://creationontheweb.com/content/view/23

CMI also publish Journal of Creation, which offers a Bible-based slant on science. I personally find it a bit technical at times, but if you’re science-minded it should suit you.

To find out CMI’s position on the Gospel, the Bible and science / faith issues, try their “What We Believe” page.

 For apologetics articles on a variety of topics,  go to their “Frequently Asked Questions” Topic Index.