"Foreword by Deborah Haarsma"--from cover. Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents:
The biology professor who doesn't believe in science -- Making science fit Genesis -- What is science? : the nature of science and EVO 101 -- Where are you camping: a look at beliefs -- There might be a time machine in your house -- It's raining, it's pouring, the canyon is forming: Noah's flood explains it all -- The flood and the fossil record -- Written in stone -- In search of the missing missing link -- It's all or nothing: intelligent design -- You can't make a monkey out of me: the touchy topic of human evolution -- Leaving creationism (without leaving God).
Summary:
A scientific look at creationism from a former creationist . A significant number of Americans, especially evangelical Christians, believe Earth and humankind were created in their present form sometime in the last 10,000 years or so--the rationale being that this is (presumably) the story told in the book of Genesis. Within that group, any threatening scientific evidence that suggests otherwise is rejected or, when possible, retrofitted into a creationist worldview. But can this uncomfortable blend of biblical literalism and pseudoscience hold up under scrutiny? Is it tenable to believe that the Grand Canyon was formed not millions of years ago by gradual erosion but merely thousands of years ago by the Great Flood? Were there really baby dinosaurs with Noah on his ark? Janet Kellogg Ray, a science educator who grew up a creationist, doesn't want other Christians to have to do the exhausting mental gymnastics she did earlier in her life. Working through the findings of a range of fields including geology, paleontology, and biology, she shows how a literal interpretation of the book of Genesis simply doesn't mesh with what we know to be reality. But as someone who remains a committed Christian, Ray also shows how an acceptance of the theory of evolution is not necessarily an acceptance of atheism, and how God can still be responsible for having created the world, even if it wasn't in a single, momentary, miraculous event.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.