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The Origin of Old-Earth Geology and Its Ramifications for Life in the 21st Century

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Submitted By browneyegirl747
Words 819
Pages 4
Ashley
Dr. Travis Bradshaw
PHSC 210
April 7, 2014

Journal Article Review

Introduction
In this paper I will discuss and review Dr. Terry Mortenson’s article about The Origin of Old-Earth Geology and its Ramifications for Life in the 21st Century. I will discuss the many strengths of this article and also the weaknesses that are also involved in Dr. Terry Mortenson’s paper.
Brief Overview and Main Points
Dr. Mortenson’s paper discussed the many different scientific views of how the Earth was created from the point of view of many different scientists such as scriptural geologists, uniformitarians and catastrophists. Each have their own views on the history of the Earth and how it was created. Dr. Mortenson then goes into explaining how these scientific theories have impacted our society today. Towards the end of the paper, we learn the author’s view of how the Earth was created and how it impacts society today.
Article Strengths
I think Dr. Mortenson did very well writing this article in many different ways. Everything appeared to be stated in a professional and grammatically correct way, with little to no errors. Dr. Mortenson also does a great job in describing each scientist according to their different theories such as scriptural geologists by providing just enough detail. He didn’t go overboard by boring the reader with too many facts about each scientists, but clearly stated the facts needed and their scientific views without straying from the main topic. Dr. Mortenson also arranged each scientist in an organized manner by arranging them in chronological order according to the year they died. I also agree with Dr. Mortenson when he talks about how science is based on worldview. In paragraph 22 when Dr. Mortenson says, “Worldview had a far more significant influence on the origin of old-earth geology than has often been perceived or acknowledged.” I agree with Dr. Mortenson in this statement. As he is describing the different scientists and their scientific opinions about how the Earth was created I think that their opinion affects their view. For example, scientists such as Laplace who was an open atheist and didn’t believe in God definitely let their view on the world affect how they believed the Earth was made. If they didn’t believe in God, of course they weren’t going to believe in the Scriptural teachings of the Earth being created in six days, which led them to believe in the old-earth theory that the Earth is billions of years old.
Article Weaknesses
I believe that the author’s view of how the Earth was created is a bit confusing. Throughout most of the paper you tend to think the author believes in the old-earth theory according to his introduction saying, “Almost everyone living today takes for granted that the universe and earth are billions of years old.” When reading this first sentence and Dr. Mortenson’s introduction, you get the impression that Dr. Mortenson believes in the old-earth theory that the Earth is older than what the Bible says. It isn’t until the very end of the article where Dr. Mortenson says,
I would suggest that the last 170 years in the Western world has confirmed the scriptural geologists’ worst fears. The West is in rapid moral and social decline (e.g., drug abuse, sexual immorality, abortion, epidemic divorce, school violence, suicide, etc.). This seems particularly obvious in Britain and America, where Christianity has previously had such a great moral influence on culture. And the same negative effects are seen wherever the West’s influence is felt. What we believe about the past, especially the origin and history of the physical creation, affects significantly our purpose in life, our values, our moral behavior and our relationships to other people.
He also goes on to say, “The only hope for the halt and reversal of the increasing moral decadence and hopelessness in the West and in the East is the return of individuals to God and His Word, which gives us the true history of the world.” Especially in this last statement, it is clear to the reader that Dr. Mortenson values the Bible and it’s view of creation, and that our society should rely on its teachings to improve our lives and the future.
Conclusion
Overall I believe Dr. Mortenson did a good job on explaining the different views of how the Earth was created, from the old-earth view to the Scriptural view of the Earth being created in six days like it says in the Bible in Genesis. I do think Dr. Mortenson could have made his actual opinion on the creation of the Earth a little clearer starting in the very beginning of his paper.

Bibliography
Mortenson, T. (August 5, 2003) The Origin of Old-Earth Geology and its Ramifications for Life in the 21st Century - Answers in Genesis. Retrieved from http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/tj/v18/n1/old-earth-geology

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