Just what we need
Editorial
Often when speaking at a church, where you would expect people to know the Bible, I will ask for a show of hands: “What came first, the sun or the land plants?” Almost always people will vote for the sun.
I respond, “Yes, that is what secular scientists say, but remember they did not see it happen.”
Then, I’ll show pictures of the six days of creation from Genesis chapter 1 and ask when the Bible says the sun first appeared.
“Day four”, they will say.
“Correct. And the land plants?”
“Day 3”, they respond.
“Yes! So the land plants were first. It’s the opposite of what we see on TV and learn at school.”
It is not surprising that people automatically look at the world through the lens of evolution over millions of years. It’s the way everything is presented in our culture. To suggest that the Bible’s account of creation is true can raise so many questions that seem unanswerable. “What about apemen?” “Don’t the fossils prove evolution?” “Hasn’t carbon dating shown the earth is millions of years old?” “Don’t dinosaurs disprove the Bible?”
When people encounter the creation issue they can feel overwhelmed, thinking it is beyond them, especially if they don’t have scientific training. What is needed is something geared for ordinary people. It needs to be attractive, easy to read, and reliable. And the information needs to be in bite-size pieces so they can get on top of the issue without it taking over their lives.
That is exactly where Creation magazine comes in. It provides attractive, easy-to-understand information on all the key issues.
So, is there any evidence for creation? Yes, indeed. There is design in living things, such as the feathers of the silent owl (p. 56). Its feathers are being studied and copied by engineers to improve the performance of machinery. And the human appendix, contrary to long-held evolutionary ideas, provides compelling evidence that our digestive system is robustly designed (p. 17).
Creation magazine also clears up many wrong ideas people assume are evidence for evolution. One such misunderstanding is that natural selection proves evolution. But the article on liligers (p. 12) shows that natural selection goes the wrong way. That is, it does not add anything new, but subtracts from what already exists. It is a process that works on the original created kinds, allowing them to adapt to different environments. This clears up another misconception. Biblical creationists do NOT believe in ‘fixity of species’, but in variation within a kind.
Surprisingly, perhaps, Creation magazine has stimulated an interest in geology in many people. And geological excursions (p. 20), as well as being fun, have totally changed the way many people look at the world.
One amazing development in modern times relates to the growing databases of human DNA information. When genetic scientists refer to ‘Adam’ (or more commonly ‘Eve’) this is generally only intended to be metaphorical (and sometimes whimsical as well). But it is actually appropriate, because the patterns discovered indeed make sense when explained using biblical history, beginning with the first woman (p. 44).
So we’re pleased to have this latest issue of Creation magazine come into your life—colourful, informative, engrossing, and life-changing. If you are a busy person, leave it where you usually relax. You can read an article or two and, before you know it, creation will make sense and the world will look different.
And when you’re finished you can pass Creation on to a friend.
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