A theological evaluation of ten major creation theories
| dc.contributor.advisor | Verster, Pieter | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Riekert, Fanie | |
| dc.contributor.author | Arnold, Thomas Patrick | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2015-07-29T10:33:28Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2015-07-29T10:33:28Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2007-09 | |
| dc.description.abstract | English: What does the Bible say God did when He created the heavens and the earth? The study begins by investigating genres of creation texts and stating hermeneutical principles. The claims of ten creation theories are evaluated by Bible creation texts. The ten creation theories investigated are: pre-creation chaos, initial chaos, title or summary, young earth scientific creationism, theistic big bang, old earth day-age progressive creation, literary framework, creation revealed in six days, gap or ruin-restoration, and historical land (Eden/Promised Land) creationism. The most exegetically supported claims of the ten theories suggest a combined eleventh theory. Four diagnostic questions sort all eleven theories into groups. The questions are: Does the Genesis 1 text indicate the days were six daylight-evening-nighttime-morning-cycle days, or six long day-age geologic eras? Did God create orderly cosmos and unfinished earth during the beginning, or was there chaos God transformed into cosmos in the six days? Were the stated life kinds created once, or twice? Did God create the heavens and earth in the beginning, or in the six days? The eleven theories are evaluated by Bible creation texts related to the question, and theories with claims counter to the creation texts are progressively eliminated. Only the eleventh combined theory emerges. Finally the most exegetically supported claims of the ten theories are correlated into a fully described eleventh combined creation theory—two-stage Biblical creation (2SBC). Stage one: In the beginning time (rē'shît inherently means a time period) God created the heavens and the earth; but at the end of that time, earth was declared uninhabitable, uninhabited, and darkened. The perspective of the apparent Narrator of stage two was established. Stage two: By eight command units involving six day-night-cycle workdays God made planet earth lighted, habitable, and inhabited. (The Bible neither explicitly affirms nor explicitly denies time passage between the days, so caution is urged with Payne’s proposal.) The tôledôt (colophon?) in Genesis 2:4a ends the two-part narrative. Since the length of the beginning time is unstated by the Bible, two-stage Biblical creation claims a Biblically undated universe and earth creation (UEC). | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | Afrikaans: Wat het God gedoen toe Hy volgens die Bybel hemel en aarde geskape het? Die studie neem ‘n aanvang deur die genres van skeppingstekste te ondersoek en ook die hermeneutiese beginsels neer te lê. Die aansprake van tien skeppingstekste word in die lig van Skrifgegewens ontleed. Die tien teorieë wat ondersoek word is: die sogenaamde preskeppings chaos, aanvanklike chaos, titel of opsomming, jong aarde wetenskaplike kreasionisme, teïstiese groot ontploffingsteorie, ou aarde dag-ouderom progressiewe skepping, literêre raamwerk skepping geopenbaar in ses dae, gaping of ruïne herstel en historiese land (Eden/beloofde land kreasionisme). Volgens die kandidaat doen die aansprake wat eksegeties die beste ondersteun is ‘n gekombineerde elfde teorie aan die hand. Al elf teorieë is met behulp van vier diagnostiese vrae in groepe ingedeel. Die vrae is: verwys Genesis een na dae en nagte wat aangedui kan word as dag/nag/ oggend/aand siklusse of verwys dit na ses lang dag tydperke van geologiese tydperke? Het God ‘n ordelike kosmos daargestel en onvoltooide aarde aan die begin of het daar reeds chaos bestaan wat God gevorm het in die kosmos in die ses dae? Is die betaansoorte twee keer geskape of slegs een keer? Het God hemel en aarde in die begin geskape of in ses dae? Hierdie groepe is daarna met behulp van Bybelse skeppingstekste, wat met elke vraag verband hou, geëvalueer. Teorieë met aansprake wat met die skeppingstekste bots, is progressief geëlimineer. Die aansprake wat eksegeties die beste ondersteun is, is daarna in ‘n volledig beskryfde, gekombineerde elfde skeppingsteorie byeengebring – tweefase Bybelse skepping (2FBS). Fase een: In die begintyd (rē'shît beteken ‘n periode van tyd) het God hemel en aarde geskape, maar aan die einde van tyd het hy die aarde as onbewoonbaar, onbewoon en duister verklaar. Die perspektief van die implisiete verteller is vasgestel. Fase twee: Deur agt bevele wat ses dag/nag siklusse in werksdae veronderstel het God die aarde verlig en bewoonbaar en bewoon gemaak. (Die Bybel bevestig nie, maar ontken ook nie, tydspronge tussen die verskillende dae nie, daarom moet versigtig omgegaan word met Payne se voorstel.) Die tôledôt in Genesis 2:4a beëindig die tweeledige narratief. Aangesien die tydsduur aan die begin nie vasgestel is in die Bybel nie, veronderstel twee-fase Bybelse skepping ‘n ongedateerde Bybelse heelal en aardse skepping (OBS). | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11660/740 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Thesis (Ph.D. (Systematic Theology))--University of the Free State, 2007 | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Bible. O.T. Genesis -- Criticism, interpretation, etc. | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Creationism | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Creation | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Evolution | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Ross | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Morris | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Sailhamer | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Waltke | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Old earth | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Young-earth | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Day-age | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Yom | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Chaos | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Hermeneutics | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Bara | en_ZA |
| dc.title | A theological evaluation of ten major creation theories | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_ZA |