1.8 Interpreting the Genesis creation stories Flashcards
What does the Catholic Church teach about creation stories?
The Catholic Church teaches that the creation stories are myths(they are stories that convey deep or complex spiritual truths and aren’t meant to be taken literally). They aren’t meant to be scientific explanations of how creation happened and creation didn’t occur in six days, for Catholics ‘day’ is a longer period of time. The stories come from different times and reflect the attitudes of the originated societies(Genesis 1 from 450BCE, Genesis 2 from 950 BCE).
Seen in Dei Verbum 12:”Since God speaks in Sacred Scripture through men in human fashion, the interpreter of Sacred Scripture.. should carefully investigate what meaning the sacred writers really intended.” Catholics can accept both the creation stories and theory of evolution since the Bible isn’t interpreted literally, Pope Francis supports this view.
Messages of creation stories for Catholics
1)God made everything.
2)Everything God made was good.
3)Humans are the high point of God’s creation.
Fundamentalists
Christians who interpret the Bible more literally as a factual record
Fundamentalist beliefs
The universe and all life in it was literally created in six days, with no theory of evolution(believing humans were made separately rather than evolving from other species) because:
The Bible is the word of God so must always be accurate.
God loves humans so wouldn’t mislead them with incorrect information.
Humans have no right to prefer their own interpretations to the actual words of God.
God informs humanity of his truth.
Sacred Scripture
The holy writings of a religion believed to be inspired by God
Literalists
Fundamentalists believing every word in the Bible is accurate
Contrasting fundamentalist beliefs
Some believe the world is only a few thousand years old.
Many fundamentalists believe the world is younger than scientists claim.
Other fundamentalists accept the world is as old as scientists suggest, accepting the order of creation in Genesis, but also the word “day” doesn’t refer to a 24-hour period.
