“Did you know that our universe likely began with 10 space-time dimensions? Yet we can only access four—length, width, height, and time. The Creator of all these dimensions must exist in the equivalent of 11 or more. So, what’s impossible in 4 dimensions—like listening to billions of prayers at once—is no problem for God.”   Hugh Ross

 

 Hugh Ross

 

As the scientific evidence for an old earth becomes incontrovertible, many Christians, questioning the young earth platform, feel somewhat rudderless. It is a shock to have to reconsider the creation paradigm. Many are uncomfortable with jumping all the way to the theistic evolution model. I believe that progressive creationism makes for a good starting point for those who are seeking alternatives.
 

Hugh Ross is the leader of a movement called progressive creationism, which is defined in Wikipedia as “the religious belief that God created new forms of life gradually, over a period of hundreds of millions of years. As a form of Old Earth creationism, it accepts mainstream geological and cosmological estimates for the age of the Earth, but posits that the new "kinds" of plants and animals that have appeared successively over the planet's history represent instances of God directly intervening to create those new types by means outside the realm of science. Progressive creationists generally reject macroevolution because they believe it to be biologically untenable and not supported by the fossil record, and they generally reject the concept of universal descent from a last universal ancestor."
 

I have long been impressed with the demeanor and thoughtfulness of Hugh Ross. He has maintained his cool under accusations from Ken Ham and his followers who throw innuendos that he is bordering on heresy. Of course, it appears to me that just about everyone who disagrees with Ham is accused of heresy so Ross is in good company. In fact, I guess that makes me a heretic as well. Is there such a thing as a Christian Heretics Anonymous group? Hmmm… we could have some really fun meetings.
 

But the most impressive aspect of Hugh’s ministry has to do with his compassion for scientists who are outside of the Christian faith. Ross’s experience within academia led him to understand that scientists do not seek Christianity because young earth types have tied salvation to a belief in young earth creationism. So, honest scientists, who know that the earth is old, believe that they cannot be Christians. In fact, a church I know hid the fact during new members classes that they only taught the young earth perspective. After a little brouhaha ensued in a certain group meeting, we were told that they didn’t want people to get turned off to the church before they were members. I guess they wanted to pull a bait and switch on them after they were members and hope they wouldn’t walk out of the church. Many walked anyway. Ross formed “Reasons to Believe" and it has been very successful in reaching non-Christian scientists, including some Nobel Laureates. 

 

I had the chance to hear Ross speak during a lunchtime meeting at the Latimer House of The Fixed Point Foundation in Birmingham in May.
 

Although I arrived very early for the event, there was standing room only. The attendees obviously held Ross in high esteem, which was gratifying. Having recently left a situation in which a YE crowd behaved boorishly, I feared that they might arrive in similar fashion at this venue. However, the meeting progressed without incident and no bouncers needed to be employed.

 

Before I give a synopsis of this fascinating and challenging lecture, here is a biography of Hugh Ross taken directly from his website, Reasons to Believe. 

 

“At age seventeen he became the youngest person ever to serve as director of observations for Vancouver's Royal Astronomical Society. With the help of a provincial scholarship and a National Research Council of Canada fellowship, he completed his undergraduate degree in physics at the University of British Columbia and graduate degrees in astronomy at the University of Toronto. The NRC also sent him to the United States for postdoctoral studies. At Caltech he researched quasi-stellar objects, or "quasars," some of the most distant and ancient objects in the universe.

Not all of Hugh's discoveries involved astrophysics. Prompted by curiosity, he studied the world's religions and "holy books" and found only one book that proved scientifically and historically accurate: the Bible. Hugh started at religious "ground zero" and through scientific and historical reality-testing became convinced that the Bible is truly the Word of God! When he went on to describe for others his journey to faith in Jesus Christ, he was surprised to discover how many people believed or disbelieved without checking evidence.

Hugh's unshakable confidence that God's revelations in Scripture and nature do not, will not, and cannot contradict became his unique message. Wholeheartedly encouraged by family and friends, communicating that message as broadly and clearly as possible became his mission. Thus, in 1986, he founded science-faith think tank Reasons To Believe (RTB). He and his colleagues at RTB keep tabs on the frontiers of research to share with scientists and nonscientists alike the thrilling news of what's being discovered and how it connects with biblical theology. In this realm, he has written many books, including: The Fingerprint of God, The Creator and the Cosmos, Beyond the Cosmos, The Genesis Question, A Matter of Days, Creation As Science, Why the Universe Is the Way It Is, and More Than a Theory.”

 

It is important to note the postdoctoral experience of Hugh Ross. Many people are unaware that a simple PhD is merely the beginning step for a serious scientist. A scientist worth his salt will conduct postdoctoral studies and publish papers in reputable journals. Hugh Ross followed this course and is considered a bona fide astrophysicist unlike Jason Lisle of Answers in Genesis who received his PhD and bolted the field to work for Ken Ham.

 

Here are some  of Ross’s views which comes from his website.

 

“Creation

We believe that the physical universe, the realm of nature, is the visible creation of God. It declares God's existence and gives a trustworthy revelation of God's character and purpose. In Scripture, God declares that through His creation all humanity recognizes His existence, power, glory, and wisdom. An honest study of nature — its physical, biological, and social aspects — can prove useful in a person's search for truth. Properly understood, God's Word (Scripture) and God's world (nature), as two revelations (one verbal, one physical) from the same God, will never contradict each other.”

“Darwinian Evolution

Hugh Ross, has been on the frontiers of making biblical and scientific the case against Darwinism for more than 2 decades. RTB scholars believe that God miraculously intervened throughout the history of the universe in various ways millions, possibly even billions, of times to create each and every new species of life on Earth.”

“God’s Revelation

I take literally the Bible’s explicit claim that God has spoken to humanity through both the words of the Bible and the world of nature. If God, by his nature, does not lie, deceive, or contradict, then the record of biology, for example, will not contradict the record of physics, nor will the message in Genesis contradict that in Romans. Neither do I see any possibility for contradiction between what God reveals in the Bible and what he reveals in nature’s record.”

 

Hugh Ross’s views are supported by a number of Christians. Charles Colson, Walt Kaiser (Professor Emeritus of Gordon Conwell), Jerry White (President Emeritus of Navigators), and Richard Smalley (Nobel Laureate, Chemistry) are a few.
 

During the lecture, I was gratified to learn that Hugh Ross and Francis Collins are holding meetings to discuss how to iron out their differences and how they might collaborate on some joint projects. Both of these men are humble servants of our Lord and understand Christ’s call for unity. I wish the young earth types would be similarly disposed.
 

Hugh Ross is considered a concordist. From the blog of Randy Isaacs of the American Scientific Affiliation we learn the following.

 

“When many people think of the integration of science and Christian faith, their first impression is concordism. That's a fancy term for identifying a scientific fact or theory with a particular phrase or passage in the Bible.

The main point I want to emphasize here is the difference between concordism and integration of science and faith. The former seeks to equate the interpretation of Biblical passages with scientific observations. The latter seeks to understand the meaning and seeks to understand the meaning and purpose of nature and science through the eyes of faith on the basis of the revelation of our incarnate, crucified, resurrected Savior. purpose of nature and science through the eyes of faith on the basis of the revelation of our incarnate, crucified, resurrected Savior. “
 

Here are some take away points that I learned at Ross’ lecture. Please understand that I am no scientist but attempt to understand science as an outsider.
 

Ross made the point that books from other faiths often treat space and time as a constant, meaning they have always existed. The Bible is the only Holy book that mentions a start to the heavens and earth.
 

He quoted Dyson saying, “The universe knew we were coming.” Ross claims we live in a “just right” galaxy because every planet in our solar system contributes to the existence of life on our planet. Ross says that all life seems to exist to support life for man. For example, even the simplest bacteria are vital to our survival (think E Coli in the gut). It is a deviation of that life that causes harm. (E coli in a wound can cause infection).
 

Ross states that there are more believers in the field of astronomy and astrophysics than in any other science. Why? Because astronomers can see the past. The light from the stars that we see has travelled to us from the past so we get to observe events in the stars  that happened long ago.. In fact, the light confirms the Big Bang. For those who fear this is an atheist explanation, I urge caution. Think about what the Bible says. God spoke and the universe leapt into existence. If that isn’t a big bang, I don’t know what is.
 

He said there have been a number of astronomers in Japan who have come to the faith merely by observing the heavens. This, of course, gives credence to Romans 1:20: 
 

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. (NIV)
 

Finally, Ross launched into a discussion of dimensions. Much of the science eluded this right- brained woman but the science types were nodding along. He explained that there are 9 dimensions with time, perhaps, being another one. He speculates that God, the causal agent or the Uncaused First Cause, dwells in a different dimension, perhaps even a 12th, with his angels. He hastens to add that this is merely speculative. However, I am a fan of the television show, “Fringe” which takes place in two parallel dimensions and that is about all I will be able to fully understand. Of course this gives rise to the thought that heaven exists outside of our space/time continuum which is rather intriguing (especially for us Star Trek fans).
 

I was able to ask a question of Ross. I wanted to know how his view of progressive creation is accepted within the Christian community. He stated that his view is the minority opinion between Young Earth and Theistic evolution. Of course, there are many who would disagree with Ross’s perspective. He is routinely slammed by Ken Ham and he has more genial disagreements with the theistic evolutionists. However, both he and the theistic evolutionists believe in an old earth which makes the possibility of some alliances easier.
 

He ended his talk by saying the following. “Atheists won’t make peace with God until we make peace with one another.” He made a moving appeal for unity in spite of our differences in the nonessentials. My question is this. Are there actually people in the Young Earth camp who are willing to work to find some common ground with the panoply of those in the Old Earth arena? I must admit I am skeptical but hope springs eternal.
 

Finally, I would like to make an appeal to those who read this who might claim that there is a conspiracy to suppress scientific evidence related to a young earth. I am the wife of one who was in the scientific arena. I attend church with many scientists who are affiliated with the major universities in our area.
 

When these critics state that scientists will not let the truth be published, they are talking about many of their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. They are denigrating their honesty and integrity. They also make allusions that such scientists are wimps and hide their beliefs because they want to make money and tenure.
 

I know the following is difficult for many in the young earth camp to accept. The reason there is nothing published in the peer-reviewed journals is because there is no science that is compelling in the young earth arena. Most Christians scientists do not believe that the young earth science holds any water. There is nothing mean or conspiratorial about it.To claim that all scientists are involved in a  dishonest conspiracy is just plain silly. Do they really believe that men like Hugh Ross or Francis Collins are hiding information. These sorts of claims make us look foolish. Just remember, there are jerks in science and jerks in Christianity. But there are also decent and brave people in both.

 

Lydia's Corner: I am sorry for forgetting to include this in my last two posts. New habits take 28 days to be a routine and I am not doing such a good job. Start from this point.

Genesis 18:16-19:38 Matthew 6:25-7:14 Psalm 8:1-9 Proverbs 2:6-15