Evolution vs. Creation
By Laurel Head
How many times have you walked into a classroom, museum, or read that such and such “happened millions of years ago”? That has occurred many times for me. In fact, when I switched to public school, I knew that I was probably going to hear that many times. Have you ever stopped and pondered if the universe actually popped into existence or if something or someone made it? I am going to explain what each concept is and prove using facts which one is true. You may have a different view on each but carefully consider the facts presented and what is proven at the end of this article.
Evolution is the theory that the universe came from particles that slowly evolved into galaxies and planets. Those particles, on planet earth, then formed animals, plants, humans, and everything else on earth. This process, according to evolution, took many billions of years. This process also formed many different kinds of animals and plants that very slowly change over time into more complex organisms. The fundamental pillars of Cosmic Evolution are as follows: the universe popped into existence or is eternal; Abiogenesis (spontaneous generation of life from non-life) occurred at some time in the past; Macroevolution (inter-kind evolution, starting from simple, single-celled organisms and ending with complex life forms) accounts for the existence of all present kinds of life forms; Natural Selection (survival of the fittest) provides the mechanism for macroevolution; humans and apes have a common ancestor; Uniformitarianism (the same natural laws and processes that operate in our present-day scientific observations have always operated in the universe in the past apply everywhere in the universe) is the appropriate approach to interpreting geologic phenomena; and the universe and life are very old. In order for cosmic evolution to be true, each of these pillars must be true. If any one of these statements can be shown to be unreasonable in light the evidence, the entire model collapses.
Creation is the belief that the universe and everything in it was created by God in a literal six days. The animals were first created as different families and then through interbreeding different kinds of animals were created; different species were also created because only animals in the same species can interbreed. This is evident through the different kinds or breeds of dogs, cats, and horses. The fundamental pillars of biblical creation are as follows: the universe was created suddenly by a non-physical (spiritual) entity (God), outside of the boundaries of the physical universe; life was also created suddenly by that entity; since Microevolution diversification accounts for small-scale changes within very limited parameters, all present “kinds” have remained constant since creation; Natural Selection is not sufficient to account for the emergence of present-day kinds from a simple primordial organism, therefore, a creative power is necessary; humans and apes have a separate ancestry, being different “kinds” of life; Catastrophism is the appropriate approach to interpreting geologic phenomena; and the universe and life are relatively young. In order for biblical Creation to be true, each of these pillars must be true. If any one of these statements can be shown to be unreasonable in light of the evidence, the entire model collapses.
Did the universe pop into existence or was created by God? Evolution says that in the closed system of space, which has nothing in it, there was a large burst of energy which suddenly exploded to form the universe. After the explosion, the universe cooled itself down and lost the sudden burst of energy. The First Law of Thermodynamics states that in a closed system, the amount of energy present in that system will remain constant, though it transforms into other forms of energy. Therefore, for energy to suddenly be created from a lack of energy, and for that same energy to just disappear, the basic First Law of Thermodynamics is violated. Creation says that in the open system of space (it was an open system because God could cross the natural boundary and put matter into the system) God created the universe and everything in it. Therefore, Creation is the more logical explanation of the beginning of the universe.
Was life created from non-life or was life created by God? Evolution says that life slowly (over billions of years) evolved from non-life matter. Several experiments have been performed to see if life could come from non-living matter. Through these experiments it has been found that sunlight, which was present when organisms were formed, is actually destructive to cells forming from non-living matter; although very few amino acids have been formed in “simulated environment,” there are actually about fifty small organic compounds that are called “building blocks;” last, evolutionists have determined that Earth’s atmosphere contained oxygen when “building blocks” were being formed, actually, oxygen prevents the formation because it would quickly damage DNA and proteins that are a major component of humans. Creation says that God created the man first and from the man God created women. Life creates life. God created humans who in turn have children. Creation is the more logical explanation of the beginning of life.
Did microevolution or macroevolution occur? Also, if macroevolution occurred could it, along with natural selection, create new species? Evolution says that macroevolution occurred. Macroevolution says that different kinds of animals were created from additions to DNA in a species over along period of time. This theory relies on transitional or intermediate fossils. One problem with this theory is the sudden explosion of complex organism in the beginning of the fossil record. One example of a complex organism is the Trilobite. It had better vision than a human. Another problem with this theory is that because there are so few transitional fossils which would show the change to different kinds of animals, transitional fossils are virtually impossible. The last example which would disprove macroevolution is the sudden extinction of large amounts of Earth’s species. Evolutionists are very puzzled these period of millions of years that wiped out between 60-95 percent of Earth’s species at varying times. Creationists say that since the Flood accelerated the nuclear decay rates, the Flood corresponds to the time periods that wiped out most of Earth’s species. Macroevolution and natural selection did not create new species because it would just make mutations of species which would eventually die off because of sterile offspring or a mutation so severe that it could not survive for long in the wild. Creation says the microevolution occurred. Microevolution is the change within a species or small group of organisms, especially over a short period. This can be proven because DNA can be rearranged to create small changes within a species. DNA cannot, however, be added deleted to make a different kind of animal. When God created the first animals, He put DNA that had a lot of information; this would allow for microevolution to occur. Therefore, Creation and Microevolution are the more logical explanations for the changes within a species. Evolution cannot explain the creation of a new species. Only God and Creation can.
Do humans and apes come from a common ancestor or are they different kinds? Evolution says that humans and apes come from a common ancestor. One “solution” to this theory is that somewhere in the past, a single human who had the same DNA as apes suddenly evolved its DNA to the same DNA as modern humans and transmitted it to its offspring and eventually transmitted it to the world. The problem with this theory is that it is so rare that it is pretty much an impossible theory. Another problem is that DNA evolution in chromosomes is one cause of infertility; therefore it could not be transmitted all the way to modern humans. Creation says that humans and apes are different kinds. This can be explained by showing that God created mankind with the DNA of modern humans. No evidence or any line of rational thought can explain how a single human underwent a change in DNA and passed that alteration to all of mankind— except that he was created by God at the beginning, along with woman, with that DNA. Therefore, Creation is the more logical explanation for explaining that humans and apes are different kinds.
Is Uniformitarianism or Catastrophism true? Also, is the the Earth old or young? Since the age of the Earth is directly tied to the speed of events on Earth, I am going to answer both questions in a somewhat short paragraph that I hope will cover both questions thoroughly for the reader. Uniformitarianism would support an old Earth. Creation would support a young Earth. I am going to show how the age of the Earth disproves either Uniformitarianism or Catastrophism. The methods that evolutionists say prove an old Earth can be sped up in the case of a worldwide disaster such as the Flood. If the Flood did occur, then Creation would support a young earth. I am going to use the human population to prove that the Flood did occur, and therefore the Earth is relatively young. If evolutionists says that humans have been on the Earth for around two to three million years, that would mean that accounting for factors such as war, disease, and famine, and assuming humans have been on the planet for only one million, rather than two to three million years, we find that there should be 102,000 people on the planet on the planet today. If calculations are adjusted based on the predictions of the Creationist model, roughly 4,350 years ago, a Flood ensued that wiped out man from the face of the Earth. If the planet then began to be repopulated by six people, statistics show that there should be roughly 6.7 to 8.1 billion people on the planet today. As of today, the U.S. Census Bureau documents that the world’s population is 7.5 billion people. Therefore, the Earth is relatively young, the Flood did occur, and Catastrophism is the more logical explanation.
In conclusion, I hope that the reader understands that I did use a variety of articles to show both views. One was Science vs. Evolution-Jeff Miller. Another was Apologetics Press. I hope the reader understands that even though science may not hold to evolution because “it is popular” or that “it can be proven” evolution cannot be proven. Creation is the only solution for the origin of the universe and the origin of life because of science and fact.