Journal: Christian Apologetics Journal
Volume: CAJ 12:2 (Fall 2014)
Article: In Light Of Genetics…Adam, Eve, And The Creation/Fall
Author: John C. Sanford

---

JBMW 20:1 (Spring 2015) p. 51

In Light Of Genetics…Adam, Eve, And The Creation/Fall

John C. Sanford

Robert Carter

John C. Sanford, Ph.D., is President of Feed My Sheep Foundation, President of Logos Research Associates, Inc., and is a Courtesy Associate Professor at Cornell University, in the Department of Horticulture.

Robert Carter, Ph.D., is a Research Associate with Feed My Sheep Foundation, is a Research Associate with Logos Research Associates, and is a Senior Scientist at Creation Ministries International.

There are two mutually exclusive truth claims regarding the origin of mankind. Either man evolved via natural process or man was created. We are all familiar with the evolutionary perspective, which claims that mankind gradually emerged from an ape–like creature via the Darwinian mutation/selection process. Likewise, most people have at least heard of the biblical account of Adam and Eve. These two competing perspectives have been characterized, incorrectly, as a conflict between science and faith.

Most people hear the beating of the evolutionary drum from childhood to the grave. This drumbeat has resounded throughout all the thought–forming institutions of Western society for over 100 years. This constant drumbeat is also heard in most Christian seminaries. Yet, few people are aware that there are major scientific problems with

JBMW 20:1 (Spring 2015) p. 52

the evolutionary model and that many scholars hold the evolutionary view in spite of the evidence (i.e., by faith). Likewise, very few people are aware that there are scientific evidences that support the reality of a literal Adam and Eve. In fact, science strongly supports the biblical perspective in many ways. Thus, it is incorrect to cast this as a conflict between science and faith. There is faith on both sides, and there is science on both sides. Science, specifically the science of genetics, has enormous bearing on this controversy. Yet forensic evidence is never conclusive, and so scientific claims about the distant past must always contain an element of belief. We should all be honest and confess an element of faith in our belief system in regards to ultimate origins. A significant aspect of what we believe about human origins involves a choice not of what, but of whom, we choose to believe.

Sadly, many Christian scholars have accepted the false “science versus faith” dichotomy. Worse, some have even taken the “science over faith” position, although they would still say they are people of faith. Thus, many have decided that evolutionary theory trumps Scripture, and they seek to “harmonize” the Bible with evolutionary theory. Tragically, mos...

visitor : : uid: ()