Day-age creationism
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Nutty Roux (Talk | contribs) (Copyedit and add some context. This still needs a lot of work. Add Hugh Ross and other Day-Agers (I've got a list somewhere).) |
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| − | '''Day Age Creationism''' is the belief that [[God]] created the [[universe]] in six days, but | + | '''Day-Age Creationism''' is a [[wp:exegesis|exegetical approach]] to reading the [[Genesis#The_two_creation_myths_in_Genesis|Genesis creation story]] according to a [[Biblical literalism|literal]] framework. Day-Age Creationism is the belief that [[God]] created the [[universe]] in six days, but that crucial words in the creation story indicate that "day," as ''yom'' is sometimes translated, refers to a much longer period of time than the 6 24 hour solar days urged by [[Young Earth Creationism|Young Earth Creationists]]. The Day-Age and [[Framework approach|Framework]] approaches are utilized by [[Old Earth Creationism|Old-Earth Creationists]], who both accept an [[age of the Earth]] that is consistent with scientific evidence (about 4.54 billion years) and read the Genesis creation story literally, to arrive at acceptable literal reading of ''yom.'' The day-age approach is rejected by [[Young Earth Creationism|Young Earth Creationists,]] whose approach to [[Biblical literalism]], frequently arrived at by using the [[wp:historical-grammatical method|historical-grammatical method]], leads to a reading of ''yom'' as referring to literal 24 solar hour days. Jews and Christians who attempt to read Bible in a literal manner may accept these various approaches to Genesis. |
==Biblical Hebrew Text== | ==Biblical Hebrew Text== | ||
{{cquote|And there was evening, and there was morning— Era one}} | {{cquote|And there was evening, and there was morning— Era one}} | ||
| − | The Hebrew story of the creation of the world divides the work into 6 "days", with one day for rest. The term used in ''B'reishit'' 1:1-1:12 is "יוֹם", ''yom''. Yom is used over 2000 times in the Hebrew scriptures, and careful analysis suggests that it is surprisingly similar to the English word, "day". Like "day", it can mean a 24 hour period, from sunset to sunset. But it can also mean the sunny part, "day" vs., "night". But more importantly to this argument, it can mean a period of time, an interval when a single theme dominated the era. "In the days of King Judah", "In the Days of Paradise", or "Days long gone". It is this more abstract sense of era that Old Earth Creationists use to find a continuity between their religion and Science. There is | + | The Hebrew story of the creation of the world divides the work into 6 "days", with one day for rest. The term used in ''B'reishit'' 1:1-1:12 is "יוֹם", ''yom''. ''Yom'' is used over 2000 times in the Hebrew scriptures, and careful analysis suggests that it is surprisingly similar to the English word, "day". Like "day", it can mean a 24 solar hour period, from sunset to sunset. But it can also mean the sunny part, "day" vs., "night". But more importantly to this argument, it can mean a period of time, an interval when a single theme dominated the era. "In the days of King Judah", "In the Days of Paradise", or "Days long gone". It is this more abstract sense of era that Old Earth Creationists use to find a continuity between their religion and Science while still reading the Bible literally. There is substantial debate among Biblical literalists about the correct interpretation of ''yom'' referring to the creation "days" as literal 24 solar hour days or substantially longer periods of time. |
| − | The typical | + | The typical argument offered by [[Young Earth Creationism|Young Earth Creationists]] for why ''yom'' cannot refer to periods longer than a 24 solar hour day is that ''yom'' as used in the Genesis creation story is followed with an ordinal, as in "day one". However, throughout the bible, Yom is also associated with ordinals to indicate periods of time under particular kings, periods of time under the lawlessness of exile, etc., e.g. periods of time substantially longer than a single solar day. |
| − | + | The YEC approach does not explain how the division between night and day could have happened before the [[Earth]] was created, or before it started to rotate. <ref>[http://www.exploringcreation.info/science/age.htm What is the Day Age Theory] (A YEC site attempting to explain why both science and scripture are incompatible with Day Age Creationism)</ref> | |
| − | + | ||
Revision as of 17:11, 27 June 2011
Day-Age Creationism is a exegetical approach to reading the Genesis creation story according to a literal framework. Day-Age Creationism is the belief that God created the universe in six days, but that crucial words in the creation story indicate that "day," as yom is sometimes translated, refers to a much longer period of time than the 6 24 hour solar days urged by Young Earth Creationists. The Day-Age and Framework approaches are utilized by Old-Earth Creationists, who both accept an age of the Earth that is consistent with scientific evidence (about 4.54 billion years) and read the Genesis creation story literally, to arrive at acceptable literal reading of yom. The day-age approach is rejected by Young Earth Creationists, whose approach to Biblical literalism, frequently arrived at by using the historical-grammatical method, leads to a reading of yom as referring to literal 24 solar hour days. Jews and Christians who attempt to read Bible in a literal manner may accept these various approaches to Genesis.
Biblical Hebrew Text
“”And there was evening, and there was morning— Era one
|
The Hebrew story of the creation of the world divides the work into 6 "days", with one day for rest. The term used in B'reishit 1:1-1:12 is "יוֹם", yom. Yom is used over 2000 times in the Hebrew scriptures, and careful analysis suggests that it is surprisingly similar to the English word, "day". Like "day", it can mean a 24 solar hour period, from sunset to sunset. But it can also mean the sunny part, "day" vs., "night". But more importantly to this argument, it can mean a period of time, an interval when a single theme dominated the era. "In the days of King Judah", "In the Days of Paradise", or "Days long gone". It is this more abstract sense of era that Old Earth Creationists use to find a continuity between their religion and Science while still reading the Bible literally. There is substantial debate among Biblical literalists about the correct interpretation of yom referring to the creation "days" as literal 24 solar hour days or substantially longer periods of time.
The typical argument offered by Young Earth Creationists for why yom cannot refer to periods longer than a 24 solar hour day is that yom as used in the Genesis creation story is followed with an ordinal, as in "day one". However, throughout the bible, Yom is also associated with ordinals to indicate periods of time under particular kings, periods of time under the lawlessness of exile, etc., e.g. periods of time substantially longer than a single solar day.
The YEC approach does not explain how the division between night and day could have happened before the Earth was created, or before it started to rotate. [1]
External sites
References
- ↑ What is the Day Age Theory (A YEC site attempting to explain why both science and scripture are incompatible with Day Age Creationism)
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