Science in the Bible

I'm not a scientist. I won't be able to put this blog entry into scientific terms. But recently, some things have been turning over in my head so I kinda have to say it, even if I can't be scientifically accurate about what I want to say.

I am sure everyone is aware of the debates in the education systems: should evolution be taught in the public schools, is it fact, is it theory, is the Bible's account just a myth or a creative rendition, etc.

Recently, it has been suggested to me that the Bible's depiction of the creation of the world does not contradict the secular ideas about the creation of the world, and that the two ideas may be two sides of the same story. Many people believe that if the Big Bang Theory is truth, then the Earth must be billions upon billions of years old. Many Christians believe the Bible depicts a creation of the earth in 7 24-hour days (6 with a day of rest), and that this occurred only a few thousand years ago. The time discrepancy is sometimes explained by the fact that God created Adam and Eve as mature humans (probably had belly buttons- indicating a history prior to their creation) and therefore the whole earth could have a history of billions of years even though it was only created five thousand years ago. Although it sorta makes sense I kind of feel that this human explanation is an insult to God's ingenuity. I think he could (and probably did) make a much better story of the creation of the universe.

As to the time difference, as one person pointed out, time works differently in space than it does on Earth, and time is affected by gravitational fields. Time passes differently on Jupiter than it does on Earth because Jupiter has a huge gravitational field. If all the matter in the universe is located very close together, time will pass differently than if all the matter in the universe is spread out (and I believe that somehow, it has been proven that the universe is continuing to expand). So, seven 24-hour days back then could have been the equivalent of millions or billions of years today, and today's 24-hour days will be different than the 24-hour days of a million years in the future. Also, the Big Bang Theory is a reference to the creation of the whole universe, not the planet, so it is very egocentric of us to put the time line in terms of earth-years.

Because I'm not a theologian, I haven't studied the original Hebrew words that were used, or the ancient Greek into which the Bible was translated years ago in an effort to preserve it in the great libraries of the day. When the Bible says "water," does that mean hydrogen dioxide? Does it mean fluid? When the Bible says "heavens," does it mean sky or a spiritual location? Even the word "beginning" is obscure (kind of on par with "I'll do it later," well when is later?). But I, like everyone else, am just trying to make sense of the world with what I've got, and I'd be silly if I dismissed something that the ancient Greeks found important enough to keep in their libraries.

Because I'm not a scientist, I really can't explain much about anything regarding the Big Bang. What I can explain is my interpretation as I have understood it, and if I've understood it wrong, well, that is because I prefer the arts over the sciences. Its my understanding that the latest research has indicated that before the Big Bang, there was no matter, it was only energy gathered up into a very small point. The energy exploded from the point, and then everything was uniform and fluid, and by everything, I mean ionized protons and loose electrons flying around. This huge fluid mass is very bright because of the ionization, and as it continues to expand, it cools, which allows the protons and electrons to join together through gravity and magnetism instead of being separated by the thermal energy. This makes pockets of areas that are lighter than others, so some pockets are dark, and some are light.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
² Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
³ And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. ⁴ God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. ⁵God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.

As more and more protons and electrons join together, gravitation pulls them into nebulae, stars, planets, and galaxies. On earth, there was a boiling mass of liquid under a tumultuous sky (ok, I told you I like the creative arts over the sciences, right? I HAVE to make this into some interesting literature).

⁶ And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." ⁷⁸ God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day. So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so.

As the earth cooled, the crust of the earth was able to form and hydrogen dioxide (water) was formed. Now that water exists, plants can survive. As stated before, this does not have to happen in a 24-hour period as we know it. It could have been a 24-hour period as it was back then, or not at all, depending on what the original language states.

⁹ And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. ¹⁰ God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good.

¹¹ Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. ¹² The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. ¹³ And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

Now, I don't know where this fits into the whole secular theory on the formation of the universe, but I do know if our sun just suddenly blinked off, we would not know it for 8 minutes. Likewise, if a distant star goes out, as some have been known to do, it may take years for it to disappear from our night sky. So, is it possible that the formation of the celestial bodies was not evident on earth until the Bible's fourth day? And is it possible that on the fourth day, earth was pulled into the sun's orbit in such a way that makes it possible to distinguish seasons and days and years?

¹⁴ And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, ¹⁵ and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. ¹⁶ God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. ¹⁷ God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, ¹⁸ to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. ¹⁹ And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.

Now we move away from the Big Bang Theory and into the realm of evolution, which states that life first appeared in the water, which is not contradicted by the Bible's account.

²⁰ And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." ²¹ So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. ²² God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." ²³

And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.

Then came the larger animals, mammals, land creatures. Followed by the late-comers, humans, who in a very short time would dominate and transform the entire planet to suit their own needs.

²⁴ And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so. ²⁵ God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.²⁶Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

²⁷ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." ²⁹ Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. ³⁰ And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food." And it was so. ³¹ God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

It is interesting to note that geneticists, through mapping human DNA, have been able to identify a genetic Adam and genetic Eve- that we humans are all descended from two people. Whether they were THE Adam and Eve, no one knows, but who cares? Their names aren't important, only that we all share their genes.

Lastly, what's really been turning over in my head recently, is this: someone asked me, "Do you believe that God works instantaneously, or through a process?" Based on the context of our conversation, I believe the person was asking in relation to miraculous healings and things of that nature. But, after thinking it through, I have to say that both are in evidence around us. The process is evident in our hearts and minds. We don't just change our minds about things all of a sudden. There are little tiny daily occurrences that work on us until one day we do have that instantaneous realization that we have changed. In the same way, I think miraculous healings are just the instantaneous realization of something that has been changing in minute ways all along. And if that is the case, why can it not be that humans evolved in minute ways and in one instantaneous moment, said "Hey, we're humans! I'm Adam, you're Eve!" Is evolution any less of a miracle than God speaking a person into existence in an instant?