The earth is older than 10000 years but how do you explain this to those who believe otherwise?

Answer 1

Simple Carbon Dating of rocks etc. can easily prove this.

The Earth is estimated to be about 4.5 Billion years old.

Answer 2

Conceal a bunch of bright LEDs in your hair, in your ears, and up your nose. Wear a bright red robe with a white collar and cuffs and a huge cross around your neck. A police siren up your sleeve adds a nice touch. Set off a couple of orange smoke bombs. Then you get in their face and turn on the lights and sound, and say "I am God, and you'd better listen to me!!!"

You'll impress them, believe me. If they are dumb enough to believe that the Biblical story is actual history, they are dumb enough to fall for that.

Then you can tell them the real story about the age of the earth and other things. Some of them will listen to you.

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Sorry. I hate to be sarcastic, but you know what I mean. Most of them are beyond hope, and you just can't afford to develop a stake in what they believe. The world at large believes the generally accepted view, and the religious crazies, even though they still make a splash in the media, are really a dwindling minority.

The truth will out. In the meantime, don't let them get under your skin. Ignore them. Find someone to love, and get together and listen to each other's stomachs gurgling. That is the path to true Peace.

Have fun.

Answer 3

Well if they don'tbelieve it in the face of hard evidence, then it's a personal issue and they probably won't unless and until they see it a different way. I think that people believe that if the Bible is proven false, then it automatically means there is no God. Which doesn't follow logically but some people feel they will lose God if they don't believe in their specific religious text inside and out. And fear and belief often stand strong in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. It's frustrating for me because I believe in science. I also believe in God. They're not mutually exclusive.

That being said, why do they have to see it in a different way? If they're not forcing their beliefs on me, I ought not to force my beliefs on them. If someone wants to think that the Earth is only 5000 years old and they're not hampering my own beliefs by thinking that, then let them. It's ok with me. I'm not threatened by someone's faith. I would want to be the person who helps them see science as something other than an enemy but I'd hate to be the person that destroys someone's faith in God. Whether I believe in him or not.

Of course, if you really want to explain it in a way that will make them think.. just tell them that it seems weak to pick and choose which sciences they believe in and which they don't. If you're so against scientific progress, why see a doctor when you're hurt? Why not wait for God to heal you, ask a priest or clergy or do it yourself? I find people who dispute scientific fact still go to get their blood pressure checked like everyone else.

Answer 4

I think you'd need hours, and hours (and possibly weeks of college-level classes) to be able to convince a creationist that the world is older than 10,000 years.

I think it's smarter to tackle the problem from another angle. "You believe God made strawberries, right? And they didn't evolve?" Then ask how the modern hybrids came about. Why didn't Noah have the Sarian berry on the ark? You can use almost any modern vegetable as an example of evolution -- we simply didn't have some of these veggies a 100 years ago, and now they exist. Natural evolution is a lot slower than human-directed evolution, and I believe it, even if other people don't.

Answer 5

First, realize that belief is stronger than fact. If they want to believe something badly enough, people will ignore facts.

Second, realize that the age of the earth *is* uncertain. All scientific dating techniques require making assumptions (for example, assuming that carbon isotope decay occurs at a steady rate and that at some time in the past there were no decayed carbon isotopes). Scientific techniques such as carbon dating are *very persuasive*, but they *are* uncertain and they *are* dependent on theories of how the earth was created and what state individual atoms were in upon creation.

In other words, you can't *really* prove this even to a scientist. There is significant (I would say overwhelming) evidence that the earth is older than 10,000 years, but *it cannot be proven beyond the shadow of a doubt*. Our history is full of far more *incorrect* scientific theories than *correct* scientific theories.

What this means is that *even scientists* have to take it "on faith" that the earth is more than 10,000 years old. Their faith is based not only on scientific evidence, but also on "sound" assumptions (things that *seem* certain but cannot be proven).

So, to answer your question: tell these people why *you* believe that the earth is older than 10,000 years. Show them your evidence, tell them why *you* believe and ask them to find fault with your evidence. *Perhaps* you will be able to persuade those who are unable to find reasonable doubt in your evidence.

Jim, http://www.jimpettis.com/wheel/

Answer 6

We get the year from when "Christ" was born. That's where B.C. and A.D. comes from. While the year is only 2007 the earth is actually millions of years old. There is scientific data (fossils and the like..) that proves this theory. Not to mention plate tectonics and continental drift. The world used to be just water and the continent Pangaea. So, you tell those non-believer that.
And if that doesn't work, walk away, your to intelligent to bother arguing with someone who won't accept your answer and admit they are wrong.

Answer 7

The most direct means for calculating the Earth's age is a Pb/Pb isochron age, derived from samples of the Earth and meteorites. This involves measurement of three isotopes of lead (Pb-206, Pb-207, and either Pb-208 or Pb-204). A plot is constructed of Pb-206/Pb-204 versus Pb-207/Pb-204.

Answer 8

How do they arrive at 10,000 years? Is that what the bible says specifically? Or is it someone's interpretation? Or more likely, someone heard it from someone that heard it from someone until it gets down to some monky in the 14th century while he was drunk on communion wine. You might ask them to quote where they got the 10,000 years and what measurement they are using.

For example, god created heave and earth in 6 days or something like that. Maybe back then, what god called a day, is what we now call 1000 years.

Answer 9

Basically you can't and it is not worth trying. By the way, carbon dating is only good for about 50,000 years or so, and is not generally used to date materials more than about that age. The oldest rocks are dated by uranium-lead, thorium-lead and a few other methods. Look up "isochron" for more information.

Answer 10

If you have your fact right, and believe in your fact; nothing has to be explain there. You only can explain to someone who wanted to listen to you. That is a fact.