As to the age of
the Earth issue, I suggest that you read
Dalrymple, G. Brent 1991 The Age of the Earth
Stanford University Press
After 15 years, there is little that needs to be updated in
his book. There are several articles on the TO website that could
relieve your anxiety and/or ignorance. Resources you have
overlooked for example include a contribution from Dr.
Dalrymple. I might even be said to have added a small voice
to the choir, opposing
the creationist abuse of reality.
As far as reading the Bible, the TalkOrigins crew are a
diverse group with diverse approaches to faith. I personally read
the Bible, particularly the Old Testament, regularly (some days I
go fishing). I have found during the 50 years that I have been
able to read the Bible, that dogmatic clarity has receded while
understand has advanced. For example, young Earth postulants
assert that the loosely summed "ages" found in Genesis and
elsewhere are the age of the Earth and the Universe. Not only is
this absurd in light of geology and chemistry, this is discordant
with the overwhelming Christian scholarship, let alone that of
Jewish biblical scholars. Some suggested readings are;
Blenkinsopp, Joseph 1992 The Pentateuch: An
Introduction to the First Five Books of the Bible The
Anchor Bible Reference Library New York: ABRL/Doubleday
Cross, Frank Moore 1973 Canaanite Myth and Hebrew
Epic: Essays in the History of the Religion of Israel.
Boston: Harvard University Press
Dahood, Mitchell 1965 Psalms I, 1-50: Introduction,
Translation and Notes New York: Anchor Bible-
Doubleday
Dalley, Stephanie 2000 Myths from Mesopotamia:
Creation, The Flood, Gilgamesh, and Others Revised
Oxford: Oxford University Press
Friedman, Richard Elliott 1987 Who Wrote the
Bible New York:Harper and Row (Paperback Edition)
Jewish Publication Society 2004 The Jewish Study
Bible, Tanakh Translation Oxford University Press
and for extra credit, read;
Generally speaking, there is no more biblical support for a
young Earth than scientific. Tomas Aquinas wrote, "In
discussing questions of this kind two rules are to be observed,
as Augustine teaches. The first is, to hold to the truth of
Scripture without wavering. The second is that since Holy
Scripture can be explained in a multiplicity of senses, one
should adhere to a particular explanation only in such measure as
to be ready to abandon it if it be proved with certainty to be
false, lest Holy Scripture be exposed to the ridicule of
unbelievers, and obstacles be placed to their believing."
- Thomas Aquinas, c.a. 1225 - 1274, Summa Theologica (1273).
Aquinas refers to the Christian father, Augustine of Hippo
(A.D. 354-430) who advised Christians trying to interpret
Scripture in the light of scientific knowledge in his work The
Literal Meaning of Genesis (De Genesi ad litteram libri
duodecim). The following translation is by J. H. Taylor in
Ancient Christian Writers, Newman Press, 1982, volume 41.
Usually, even a non-Christian knows something about the
earth, the heavens, and the other elements of this world, about
the motion and orbit of the stars and even their size and
relative positions, about the predictable eclipses of the sun and
moon, the cycles of the years and the seasons, about the kinds of
animals, shrubs, stones, and so forth, and this knowledge he hold
to as being certain from reason and experience. Now, it is a
disgraceful and dangerous thing for an infidel to hear a
Christian, presumably giving the meaning of Holy Scripture,
talking nonsense on these topics; and we should take all means to
prevent such an embarrassing situation, in which people show up
vast ignorance in a Christian and laugh it to scorn. The shame is
not so much that an ignorant individual is derided, but that
people outside the household of faith think our sacred writers
held such opinions, and, to the great loss of those for whose
salvation we toil, the writers of our Scripture are criticized
and rejected as unlearned men. If they find a Christian mistaken
in a field which they themselves know well and hear him
maintaining his foolish opinions about our books, how are they
going to believe those books in matters concerning the
resurrection of the dead, the hope of eternal life, and the
kingdom of heaven, when they think their pages are full of
falsehoods and on facts which they themselves have learnt from
experience and the light of reason? Reckless and incompetent
expounders of Holy Scripture bring untold trouble and sorrow on
their wiser brethren when they are caught in one of their
mischievous false opinions and are taken to task by those who are
not bound by the authority of our sacred books. For then, to
defend their utterly foolish and obviously untrue statements,
they will try to call upon Holy Scripture for proof and even
recite from memory many passages which they think support their
position, although they understand neither what they say
nor the things about which they make assertion.
{Augustine here has refered to 1 Timothy 1.7}
