Why do people refer to evolution and creationism as two opposing beliefs?

Question

Creationism comes from the Bible, a holy text to guide people in their faith. Evolution comes from hard, cold science. Wouldn't evolution then be considered knowledge instead of merely a belief?

For those who think I am claiming that creationism and evolution are the same, finish reading the question. I'm arguing that two concepts cannot be juxtaposed as beliefs when one is a belief and the other is science.

Answer 1

Well, I don't stay up nights over this but people do commonly use the word "belief" with respect to things that can be proven but have not actually been backed up with convincing proof. I believe a city called Santiago Chile exists. I've never talked to anybody from there but...I feel it must be true what I read in the paper that it exists and things happen there.

Of course, then some people read the word believe in these two sentences:

I believe in the Flying Spaghetti Monster
I believe Santiago Chile exists

and presume that the two beliefs have the same origin and same probability of being true. Clearly, they are two different senses of the word.

Answer 2

Evolution is what was discovered after carefully examining the world around us. Creationism is an old hypothesis from when such methods of examination weren't available.

Unfortunately, there are those who still cling to the old ways... They insist that Evolution is an attempt to destroy their beliefs. Evolution is only incompatible with the fundamentalists, those that think the bible is true in every aspect. Science has shown that many points in the bible can't be taken literally, therefore, the fundamentalists think it's an attack against them.

Evolution is not a, "belief," it's a continuing occurence... Some people have the mental acuity to realize that evolution is happening, others don't.

Answer 3

Because sometimes they are.

"Young earth" creationists hold a position which in no way allows time for evolution to have taken place.

A rapprochement between the two concepts is only possible even in theory with an earth billions of years old.
But this is allowed by several branches of Biblical interpretation.

As a separate issue, whether "theistic evolution" is a consistent point of view must be up for debate. It is widely held, but the general randomness and nastiness of evolution I personally see as implying the non-existence of an involved, loving deity. I'm not sure a lot of people who happily declare evolution and theism reconciled really understand what the former involves.

Answer 4

I wondered this too after studying 7th form biology. There definitely is some good evidence for the evolution theory, but then when you really look into it, there is just as must evidence for creation. I still don't know the answer to this question but I don't see why they couldn't both be right, God could have been in control of the evolution process and created everything using that process.

Answer 5

Yes. Currently, its harder to guess what happened billions of years ago than it is to predict what will happen in the future. I currently don't think either is 100% correct, but I lean towards evolution. Our current technology is still in its infant stages, so I doubt it'll be proven within my lifetime.

The Theory of Evolution, the Theory of Creationism, the Theory of Abiogenesis, etc. they're all just that, theories, they're unproven and should not be seen as anything else.

Only a fool would believe a unproven THEORY is the "absolute truth" or "undeniably correct", but you'd also have to a fool to say any of them are "a lie".

Don't get Evolution and Creationism confused, Evolution is the theory that organisms change over extended periods of time, Creationism is the theory that the universe was intelligently created by someone. They are not the same kind of belief. Apples and oranges.

Answer 6

They are both viewpoints of where we came from and have implications in defining our purpose for existence, and ultimate fate - and so have much weight in defining our concepts of morality, responsibility, and behavior toward those around us.

The Religion of Evolution is a series of theories developed to explain each other. Although they use some science in the process of developing theories and searching for 'evidence' to sustain them, Evolutionists still do not have any hard science to back up any of their conclusions, and much to disprove them. Evolution is based on the efforts of people who refuse to accept a higher authority trying to explain away God. Evolution Theory is basically a set of rubber measures which are stretched and squeezed and mixed with scientific jargon to fit the most recent talking points.

Creationism is based on historical documentation of eyewitnesses and God's Word to mankind. While there is much said by Evolutionists that Creationists have no scientific foundations for their claims that is simply not true. Geology, Paleontology, Archaeology, and many other scientific disciplines (all legitimate ones, really) provide glimpses that sustain many of the observations made in historical religious writings about our origin. In the end count, historical religious writings on which Creationist ideas are based have many more verifiable facts than the ideas of Evolutionists.

The reason the two world views are considered opposing 'beliefs' is because there is no proof for Evolution, and most people don't have enough knowledge of God's Word to really have anything more than a superstitious hope that it is real. They are determined to 'believe' in it out of fear of rejecting it. Although as an excuse, in order to keep from admitting the truth, they will say, "Well, no one was there to see it happen, so no one can really know."

In much the same way the Evolutionist 'believes' desperately in his religion, only his fear is that he knows deep down inside he will one day have to account for his behavior, but is hoping for all he is worth that he won't. Instead of admitting his truth however, he will hide behind the smokescreen of real science which is good stuff, but doesn't have anything really to do with what he is saying.

All those two types of people have is a belief system - there is no knowledge in them.

Knowledge is so much better. God is a wonderful father, such a good friend, and a magnificent teacher and comforter. Trust in God, let Him carry you through life much the same way as a bridge carries you across a river - and you will gain experiential knowledge of Him that will end the debate in your heart forever.

Answer 7

They are both beliefs through obeservations only. Nobody can give first hand experience by saying I was there when the Big Bang happened, or I was there when God created everything in the beginning. So of course they are to opposing beliefs, because one says there is a God who created everything, while the other say, No there is no God, everything happened by itself by chance of survival of the fittest.

My only puzzle is: Why were all the babies or all animals from the simplest to the next highest, can survive without their mothers, but human babies are the most helpless of all and would certainly die without the parents or guardians to take care of them in the first few years of their lives? It doesn't sound like survival of the fittest at all, but survival of the weakest.

Could it be that since man is the most intelligent of all animals, that God, oops sorry, they don't believe in God, could it be that chance or nature decided since man is the most intelligent, it is only fair to let us invent some medicine or some method so that we can produce babies which can survive right after they are born into the world just like any other animals' offsprings?

Answer 8

you're right, one is belief and the other is evidence. The problem is, in my eyes, that people are unable to see evolution as something that happened somewhere after creationism and that we do not know what happened when. I think both are right....but you're right one is evidence and the other one is "just" belief.

Answer 9

Evolution Vs. Creationism.

This would make a kick *** science fair project.

Answer 10

You are correct, but many people do not yet understand that evolution is a proven fact, not just a belief.