The Specialness of the Old Earth Doctrine

 When is a diamond not a diamond?

I’ve blogged many times about the differences in the two creation stories in Genesis one and two. You can read about them here and here. I’m married to a geologist. My coursework for my BA degrees included Geology courses, so of course Hubby and I are old earth Christians, which has caused gasps of shock from friends who think we are slipping away from Jesus. I’ve written about creation from the standpoint of the actual possible scribal authors, and yes, my postgraduate education made all the difference in my outlook. Before those studies, I asked the right questions, but afterward I confidently acquired the answers.

 A quick rehash:

Gen. 1 has a different style. Poetic, repetitive, orderly. Gen. 2 is more conversational and lacks a linear timeline.

In Gen. 1, God’s title is Elohim. In Gen. 2, He is called Yahweh-Elohim.

In Gen. 1, God “creates” by His word, out of nothing. Things poof into existence. In Gen. 2, God forms mankind and all the creatures out of mud. The verb “create” is not used for the process of creation.

In Gen. 1, male and female are created together on the 6^th day. Everything is blessed as “good.” In Gen. 2, Eve is created almost as an afterthought, out of Adam’s rib rather than out of mud. The author is probably trying to show the solidarity between male and female, as well as hindering the inevitable exaltation of Eve to goddess stature.

Of course, although I’ve always believed in the scientific claims about the formation of the universe, it took me decades to acquire the knowledge and confidence to write about it theologically as I’m doing here. I can also understand the shock when I admit to a good fundamentalist friend (hey, I’ve been there) that I believe the earth is not 6,000 years old.

Do I believe that God can speak a word and create something? Of course! I’ve been around Pentecost since 1965. I’ve heard of every kind of miracle you can imagine, here on Earth, in my lifetime. Biblically speaking, if Jesus can calm the storm with a wave of his hand, turn water into wine, resurrect a four day old dead corpse and call it out of a tomb, give someone a new eyes, new ears, a new heart or lung, sit down for breakfast with His disciples after arranging for them to have a boat full of fish, yes, He can speak and create fresh, new life.

Then why not poof the universe into existence? I rang up heaven to see if the Almighty had any comment, but I haven’t heard back. Here are some speculations. I’d like to think they are inspired, but opinionated people always think their ideas are divinely ordained.

A] God is billions of years old in our linear thinking. So, He sat around and did nothing for all those eternal eons, and then 6,000 years ago by our reckoning, He decides He’s bored so he poofs an entire universe into existence? And we think He’s going to end it all soon?

Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
Or ever You had formed the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. (Psalm 90:1-2)

B] So, He not only suddenly created all we see, He made it look like a record of billions of years, perhaps to test our faith?

C] Can we not grab a clue from the differences in Gen. 1 and 2 that Genesis is about theology and not science? IMHO, the authors of Gen. 1-11 are in heaven gnashing their teeth at our attempts to interpret them correctly.

There’s one more argument that I would put forth that isn’t in the Bible or the science of geology. If I could afford any diamond for a ring, I would definitely go for the one that was made over a long period of time in the bowels of the Earth rather than one that was manufactured. Any jeweler can tell the difference in a minute. They are the same visually and chemically, but one took a very long time under great pressure to form and the other took weeks in a lab. One had to be mined at great effort and expense. The other is a reflection of our modern day invention and entrepreneurial enterprises.

Did you know that some magi types who are deep into occult or paranormal phenomena can call up a gem stone in their hand? At least I’ve read that they can. Of course, Jesus could have done that, too. But it makes the earth and universe more special to me when I think of the long process of volcanic fire, glacial ice, continental shakings, collisions, seasons, and evolutions that formed this absolutely breathtaking place we call Earth.

And there’s a lesson in that. In Gen. 1, God poofed two perfect, immortal human beings into existence, but in Gen. 2 that perfection didn’t last in a material world with sentient humans who have free will but limited knowledge. God didn’t create any of us perfect, either in body or in psyche. The pressures of life, the fire and ice we all walk through, form us and make us who we are. We ideally should shine brighter as we age, and so many do, but the ultimate glow comes when we put the coal of our life into the hands of the Master Potter. You know you do not come forth a diamond immediately. He carves, forms, pressures, and blows on us with the wind of the Holy Spirit. We fall, we rise, we suffer, and we kill each other thinking we are doing God’s will. Meanwhile, as we stumble and bumble along on this material journey, if He sees His reflection in us, we are loved and treasured all along the path of that spiritual transformation.

This essay can also be seen at https://theologylighthouse.substack.com/p/the-specialness-of-the-old-earth and at https://medium.com/@janetkatherineapplebysmith/the-specialness-of-the-old-earth-doctrine-e5479f9c984f