creation Archives

April 28, 2023April 28, 2023

Darwin’s Racism and Sexism

Evolutionists and critics of Christianity are fond of attacking the Christian faith as the source of every evil in our culture today. They pay little attention to the fact that Charles Darwin’s education and culture indoctrinated him with sexist and racist narratives. Darwin’s racism and sexism show up in his writings.

Darwin presented his erroneous views as scientific facts. Here are some of Darwin’s beliefs as clearly expressed in his 1871 book The Descent of Man:

* Men are evolutionarily superior to women.

* Europeans are evolutionarily superior to non-Europeans.

* Hierarchical civilizations are evolutionarily superior to small egalitarian societies.

* “The hideous ornaments and equally hideous music admired by most savages are not so highly developed as in certain animals, for instance, in birds.”

* The appearance of Africans is comparable to the New World monkey Pithecia satanas.

* The subjugation of the poor, non-Europeans, and women was the natural result of evolutionary progress.

It is not difficult to understand how Darwin justified racism from an evolutionary standpoint. Darwin received a state funeral in Westminister Abbey and was publicly commemorated as a symbol of “English success in conquering nature and civilizing the globe during Victoria’s long reign.” To this day, we have skeptics using Darwin’s work as a club against Christians and belief in God while attacking Christianity as the source of evil. Even as he described evolution by natural selection (which we have pointed out has been recently challenged by new research), Darwin’s racism and sexism remained part of his scientific writing.

In today’s world, educated people can be heavily influenced by their peers and culture. They can still be captive to cultural bias, as Darwin was. The Christian system is unique in opposing all distinctions of race, sex, and culture, loving all people, and treating everyone as created in God’s image. (See Matthew 5:43-48 and Galatians 3:27-28.)

Reference: “Racist and sexist depictions of human evolution still permeate science, education and popular culture today” by Dr. Rui Diogo in “The Conversation”

April 27, 2023April 24, 2023

Waste of Food and Resources

One of the great tragedies of American culture today is the incredible waste of food and resources. People in many places around the world are surviving on less than 1000 calories per day, and starvation is killing vast numbers. Over a third of the food produced in the United States is never eaten. On average, Americans throw away a pound of food per person daily. The Environmental Protection Agency says the water and energy wasted in the United States in a year would supply more than 50 million homes.

The problem is not just the waste of food and resources but also how we use the land to produce food. The University of Oxford and Global Change Data Lab tell us that 50% of the world’s habitable land and 70% of freshwater goes to growing food and raising livestock. So when we throw away food, we also waste land and water resources. Three-fourths of the global ocean and freshwater pollution comes from agriculture. Greenhouse gas emissions from one year of food waste in the United States alone are equivalent to the emissions from 42 coal-fired power plants.

God has provided us with all the resources we need to feed the world’s population, but corporate greed, selfishness, ignorance, and a lack of concern for others cause the problem of world hunger. In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus described judgment based on how we conduct ourselves in meeting the needs of others. The first thing Jesus mentions is that providing food for others is a responsibility of His followers (verses 35 and 42). One way we can do that is by avoiding the waste of food and resources God has given us and becoming leaders in the war against hunger. By living in obedience to Christ, we witness the reality of God to the world.

Reference: The Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter for February 2023 has several tips for reducing food waste, including “the truth about date stamps” on food that cause people to throw away food that could be eaten.

April 21, 2023April 19, 2023

What Are the Chances?

Advocates of unguided naturalistic evolution say that evolution could have gone in many directions, and we are lucky to be here. But what are the chances of evolution producing you and me as we are today? Evolutionists would say the changes are 100% since we are already here. But, if we go back to the cosmic creation event, or “big bang,” the chances that we would have evolved are nil. On the other hand, if God planned and guided the creation because He had us in mind, the chances are 100%.

The DNA that makes us who we are physically is a highly complex strand of information. What are the chances that it could have written itself by chance? First of all, information comes from intelligence, not chance. Calculating the likelihood of something after it has happened is a statistical fallacy. After all, DNA is here, and so are we, so the chances are 100%. But what are the chances if we go back before the fact? What are the chances that non-living chemicals could come together in a just-right way to form the first living cell? Then what is the statistical evidence for that first cell multiplying and modifying by random chance mutations and natural selection to create humans?

One imagined scenario involves a billion chimpanzees typing on a billion keyboards for a billion years, accidentally typing one line of Shakespeare. What are the chances of that? Well, the short answer is that it will never happen. Computer keyboards have various numbers of keys, but the old-fashioned typewriters had 58, so let’s go with that number.

Forget Shakespeare. Look for the line “I love you more.” without quotation marks. That is a total of 16 letters, spaces, and a period. With 58 keys and 16 letters, what are the chances of accidentally typing that line? To compute that, you would have to multiply 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58 X 58. That is a total of 16 times. If you want to try it, go ahead, but it will probably exceed the capacity of your calculator. The answer would be 16.4 trillion quadrillion typing attempts.

Typing continuously at a speed equivalent to 45 words per minute, it would take 2,100 trillion years to have a 50/50 chance that one of those chimps would type that phrase. Absolutely nobody thinks that the Earth is anywhere close to 2,100 trillion years old. Nobody even suggests that the universe is that old. For this thought experiment, we are only looking for one short line of text, “I love you more.” That is nothing compared to the complex system of life on this planet.

The bottom line is that we can’t explain life or the fine-tuned physical constants of the universe by chance alone. But we can explain those things if God planned and guided the creation because He had us in mind. With God, our chances of being here were 100% from the beginning. (See Genesis 1:1.)

Reference: “Chances are…” by Bob Berman on Astronomy.com

For more on this topic see “Arranging Books on a Shelf“

April 20, 2023April 20, 2023

Spring Green Testifies of God

I have been admiring the beautiful colors of the blossoms on our fruit trees and the flowering dogwoods. Spring brings new life to the natural world. Everything changes daily as the bulb plants wake up and emerge from the ground. Yet, even with all the beautiful colors, I enjoy spring green.

Green is a very relaxing color. The new leaves on the trees transform them from ghost-like stalks to luxurious, living umbrellas ready to provide shade from the summer heat. But, have you ever noticed that the green of tree leaves seems more vibrant in the spring than in summertime? There is a reason for that. It isn’t just your imagination.

Leaves are green because of the chlorophyll they contain. That amazing chemical makes it possible for plants to take energy from the Sun, moisture from the ground, and carbon dioxide from the air to make sugars that power their growth. We call that extremely complex process photosynthesis, and we have discussed that before on this website. The chlorophyll is contained in chloroplasts in the leaves. The chloroplasts absorb light, but they use more of the higher energy blue and red wavelengths and reflect much of the green. When we see spring green leaves, they contain fewer chloroplasts, so they absorb less light, making the green leaves appear bright and vibrant.

Chloroplasts multiply as the season wears on, so the leaves absorb more light. Also, the cuticles, or outer layer of the leaves, and the cell walls in the leaves become thicker. Those factors, which are part of the leaf’s maturing process, cause it to appear darker. I wonder if we also become less conscious of the green after we have seen it for a few weeks. When the dark tree trunks of winter become hidden by beautiful green leaves, we take notice. Our attention changes when we have seen the spring green and become overwhelmed by the summer.

In autumn, when the chloroplasts fade, the vibrant colors of other chemicals in the leaves catch our attention. Spring green and autumn gold and red can jar us into realizing the beauty of the world. However, we should not need sudden changes to make us conscious of the beauty of God’s wonders all around us. Evidence for God is there if we are willing to look. “For his invisible attributes, that is, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what he has made. As a result, people are without excuse” (Romans 1:20 CSB).

April 19, 2023April 18, 2023

Elephants Show Design and Purpose

Skeptics have maintained that our planet cannot support animals as big and requiring as much food and water as elephants. Such comments are a product of ignorance and the desire to show that a wise Creator could not have designed life on Earth. However, the more we learn about them, the more we see that elephants show design and purpose.

Elephants eat 200 to 300 pounds of food and drink up to 40 gallons of water every day. They can spend 75% of their day eating, and that fact has fueled the skeptical view. What needs to be better understood is that almost 50% of the plant material they eat leaves their body undigested. This makes the elephant the gardener of the rainforest, providing seeds and water in places that would otherwise be barren.

An elephant’s trunk is an incredibly sophisticated piece of equipment with 40,000 muscles that can bend in nearly any direction. An adult elephant’s trunk can pick up a 700-pound weight, but it is sensitive enough to pick up a flower. Elephants can suck up and expel water but do not drink through their trunk – it is not a straw. An elephant’s sense of smell is twice as keen as a dog’s and can detect the scent of food or water 10 miles away.

Elephants use infrasonic sounds to communicate with one another. These are frequencies lower than 20 cycles per second, the lower limit of human hearing. Using low frequencies allows the sounds to be transmitted over very long distances. Studies have shown that elephants can communicate with one another over a span of six miles. Elephant hearing does not just involve its ears. They also hear through nerves in their feet, and their hearing is sensitive enough to distinguish between human voices.

Elephants have the largest brain of any land animal, and the memory section is larger and denser than that of humans. The adage of having a memory like an elephant recognizes this ability, which has shown to be useful in situations such as remembering where water holes were 12 years ago. The design of elephants is so complex that attributing it to blind chance does not seem to be the best explanation. Seeing that elephants show design and purpose, we recognize that life is the product of an intelligent Creator.

Reference: National Geographic animation “Discover the secret superpowers of elephants..”

April 18, 2023April 15, 2023

The Complex Design of Insect Brains

We may see insects as very simple organisms, but scientists see the complex design of insect brains. The human brain has over 80 billion nerve cells, each with about 10,000 connections. To understand the wiring in the human brain, you have to start small. For that reason, scientists mapped the 548,000 connections in the brain of a fruit fly larva. The goal is to learn how to treat disorders in the human brain.

The scientists had to slice the tiny brain into thousands of very thin sections and then use an electron microscope to capture an image of each slice. They could only accomplish the analysis by using powerful computers and specialized analytical tools. Even though they are small, fruitfly brains have regions for decision-making, learning, and navigation. In addition, they have left and right sides, like human brains.

Scientists call the complete brain wiring connections the “connectome,” and this work has practical applications. If we could understand the human brain’s connectome, we might be able to treat learning disorders, schizophrenia, and behavioral issues. Although researchers have been able to map the brain of the fruit fly larva, they are still far from mapping the brain of an adult fruit fly. Mapping the human brain will be even more challenging.

As we read data about the complex design of insect brains, we see how incredible the design of life is. The brain is a vital part of our existence and is far more complex than any computer humans might develop. To think that this complexity could be the product of blind chance processes requires faith beyond the thinking of any reasonable person.

The complex design of insect brains tells us that the “Wisdom” spoken of in Proverbs 8:12 and 22 demonstrates God’s incredible engineering and design. “I wisdom dwell with prudence and find out knowledge of witty inventions … the Lord possessed me in the beginning of His work.”

References: The journal Science, and “The first wiring map of an insect’s brain hints at incredible complexity” on NPR.org

April 17, 2023April 15, 2023

Tectonic Plates and Continental Drift

One of the interesting designs of planet Earth is the fluid nature of the crust and interior of the planet. Looking at a global map suggests that North and South America must have been connected to Europe and Africa in the past. As technology has improved, we have been able to see the connections and identify and measure the slowly moving tectonic plates and continental drift. This movement gives rise to surface features that affect human life and bring resources to supply the needs of all living things.

In 2005, geologists tracked 163 earthquakes as a 35-mile-long chasm opened in Ethiopia’s Afar Desert, where a volcanic eruption occurred. In 2018, a giant fissure 50 feet deep and 65 feet wide opened west of Nairobi, Kenya. These changes are surface expressions of movement in the mantle of magma inside the planet. The movement of tectonic plates happens very slowly, but even at a rate of less than an inch a year, scientists can measure it.

Tectonic plates and continental drift formed the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Along the edges of the various plates, material from the surface sinks back into Earth’s interior, while volcanos bring new materials to the surface, creating a colossal recycling system. Planet Earth is active, continuously producing new land with fresh minerals.

Because this process is so slow, its impact on human existence is minimal. However, people continue to build large cities along the fault lines. In California, we have the making of a colossal disaster as cities like Los Angeles straddle a geologically active region. The warnings are there, but they go unheeded.

Understanding the design of our planet with tectonic plates and continental drift should enable us to avoid geologic catastrophes and locate the mineral resources we need. Proverbs 8:22-26 finds “Wisdom” speaking about her presence at the beginning of God’s creation work. We see God’s wisdom and patience as we look at our planet’s design.

References: Wikipedia “Afar Triangle,” “Afar Triple Junction,” and “Great Rift Valley, Kenya”

April 13, 2023April 11, 2023

The Weight of Rain

How much does rain weigh? We just had a one-inch rainfall in a single thunderstorm. So let’s do some simple calculations to determine the weight of rain.

One acre of ground is 43,560 square feet. A one-inch rain is 1/12th of a foot, so the total volume of water that fell on every acre was 3,630 cubic feet. The density of water is 62.4 pounds per cubic foot. If you multiply 3,630 cubic feet by 62.4 pounds, you will see that 226,512 pounds of water (or 113.26 tons) fell on every acre of ground. There are 640 acres in a square mile, and most thunderstorms cover many square miles. So, each square mile of land received 72,486.4 tons of water in a one-inch rainfall. God’s power and energy are beyond our understanding, but we see a small piece of it in the weight of rain that falls on us.

There are many lessons involved in looking at these numbers. First, we should not underestimate the power of water to erode human structures and natural areas like the canyons we see and enjoy. We often overlook the use of water to generate electric power, and it is a renewable resource. Also, God designed water to be the basic substance of life.

The Bible refers to water many times. Proverbs 8:24-29 speaks of water as a product of wisdom and design. Psalms 23:2 refers to the peace of water and the benefits it brings. Revelation 22:1-2 repeats that, and verse 17 refers to the “water of life.” Song of Solomon 8:7 tells us that love is the only thing water cannot quench. And we need to remember that God used water to cleanse a corrupt Earth in the flood of Noah (Genesis 6:5-8).

As we learn more about other planets and moons, we see how blessed we are to be on a planet with abundant water. This is no accident. Scientists have only recently discovered the process required to make water, and we cannot overemphasize the importance of taking care of the water God gave us. Water continues to shape our planet, and we must not restrict it from what it was designed for by wasting or polluting it. How much does rain weigh? The weight of rain is great, but its value is much greater.

April 12, 2023April 11, 2023

Water Stewardship Past and Present

One of the major issues facing us today is how we get enough water to the right places to meet human needs. Between climate change and the growing human population, water availability is a huge concern in countries worldwide. We either have too much water resulting in floods or droughts that threaten food shortages. The fact is that God has equipped planet Earth with plenty of water. The problem is human water stewardship is not what it should be.

In the year 330, Roman Emperor Constantine took an ancient Greek city known as Byzantium and renamed it New Rome to become the new center of the Roman Empire. As the city grew, it became known as Constantine’s City or Constantinople. Three decades later, a court orator named Themistius wrote that “the city thirsts.” The city was surrounded by the sea on three sides, but it needed fresh water for its growing population. So, in 340, Constantius II began a major aqueduct construction project completed under Roman Emperor Valens In 373. The enormous project required an amount of stone equivalent to the Great Pyramid of Giza and enough mortar to fill 500 Olympic-size swimming pools. With the aqueducts, reservoirs, and a system of cisterns, Constantinople could truly become the new Rome in the fourth and fifth centuries.

Many areas today face a shortage of water. Six states, including 40 million people in the American West, receive water from the Colorado River. The states are Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, and California. In 1922, the states made a compact giving California the largest share of the water. Unfortunately, the Colorado River has been shrinking in recent years while the human population has grown. The pact made in 1922 is not working well, especially for Arizona, and the situation requires better water stewardship.

Could we build a water system today analogous to what the Romans did almost 1,700 years ago? Can you imagine the benefit to all Americans if we had such a water distribution system in the western US? Droughts and flooding occur, but the effect is made worse by poor stewardship of the water resources God has given us. People in Africa, and other areas, need wells to provide safe water, and Christian organizations are working to meet that need. We can and must do more, and Christians should be the first to realize the importance of water stewardship because we honor the Giver of every good and perfect gift. (See James 1:17 and Mark 9:41.)

References: “The City Thirsts” by James Crow in Current World Archaeology magazine # 117 for February/March 2023, and “The Colorado River war and the growing problem of less water” on TheWeek.com.

April 6, 2023April 2, 2023

The Mystery of Oumuamua

An interesting space mystery circulating since 2017 has been the story of an outer space object named Oumuamua. This object is shaped like a cigar, is dark in color, and has an unusual orbit. Astronomers in Hawaii first discovered it and gave it the name “Oumuamua,” which means “scout” or “messenger” in Hawaiian. Part of the mystery of Oumuamua is deciding what it is – perhaps an asteroid or a comet. Oumuamua is smaller than most comets at 300 to 3000 feet (100 to 1,000 meters) long. It has no visible tail, as most comets do. A surprising thing about Oumuamua is that as it orbited the Sun, it sped up and accelerated away from it.

The media jumped on the scientific announcement of Oumuamua. Tabloids predicted it was an alien spaceship that picked up hydrogen from the Sun, and that’s why it accelerated. We have repeatedly pointed out that nothing in the Bible tells us whether or not there is life in outer space.

Like most tabloid stories, there is no reported scientific explanation of what Oumuamua is and why it behaves as it does, apparently tumbling through space. Comets have a great many volatile materials frozen inside them. When the Sun heats them, those materials vaporize, creating a small force, but usually not enough to alter the comet’s path.

We can learn some lessons from the mystery of Oumuamua. One is to be very careful about what you read in the media or hear on TV news broadcasts. A more important message is that there is a lot of material left over from the creation process that is traveling through space. Space is not a pure vacuum, and capturing and analyzing some of that material could answer many questions about the science involved in the creation.

The most important message is that the universe is carefully designed, and we see signatures of that design everywhere we look. Oumuamua tells us a little more about the mysteries of space and the even bigger wonder of the intelligence that created it all. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the skies proclaim the work of His hands” (Psalms 19:1).

References: USA Today 3/26/23 and Wikipedia