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Question
My 10-year-old son is very knowledgeable about history, which is his favorite subject. He asked me the other day how the Genesis story of Adam and Eve can be interpreted in alignment with the archaeological evidence of prehistoric man. We are home schoolers and have always taught that God is the creator, no matter how He chose to do it (young earth vs. old earth, 24-hour day versus thousands of years – things we will not know for certain until we can ask God directly – if we still care at that point). But we have not shielded him from reading books with opposing viewpoints, always reminding him to ask us the questions that arise in his mind. This is one I'm not sure how to approach. Any ideas?

Answer
Great question!

There are many well-informed views on this subject, so we Christians must be careful of oversimplifying or casting our discussions in black and white terms. I think it’s also important to note that, when we are dealing with so many scientific and theological issues, things can get quite complicated. Therefore, we should tread softly.

Three general approaches to the creation accounts in Genesis have been developed, with people I respect on all sides of these issues. Here is a very brief summary:

Young earth creationism The earth is only a few thousand years old and the Genesis account is to be taken in a highly literal way with the instantaneous creation of mankind.
Old earth creationism The earth is billions of years old and plant and animal life has evolved over time. However, mankind was specially created apart from evolutionary processes.
Theistic evolution This approach seeks to synthesize biological evolution with the Bible. Although mankind was part of the world’s overall evolutionary process, mankind is the only creature with a soul and consciousness. Therefore, man is still made in the image of God, but the process is quite different than in young or old earth creationism.

Of course there are diverse schools of thought within each of these proposals.

I reject an atheistic view that man is merely a product of unguided evolutionary processes and that man is simply a "naked ape."

I respect and am open to theistic views that uphold the biblical view of man made in the image of God. Yet, at this point, my understanding is with the special creation view of mankind (this would put me in option 1 or 2). God created man in His image from the very beginning. The theory of man and apes originating a common ancestor is constantly being revised, so we are still awaiting a verdict.

Regardless of what we learn, mankind is much more than a collection of molecules and matter. Both men and women are uniquely created by God in His image. Watch out for anything that denies this essential theological truth.

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