4.1 - The origins of the universe Flashcards
How many lightyears in diameter is our galaxy?
Approximately 100,000 lightyears in diameter. (A lightyear is how far light travels in a year, at trillions of miles per hour)
How long would it take to travel to the next galaxy?
Roughly 2.5 million years, if travelling at the speed of light.
How big is the observable universe?
93 Billion lightyears in dimeter containing over 100 Billion galaxies.
What do Christians believe are the origins of the universe?
They believe God designed and created the universe from nothing.
What’s the Latin term many people use to describe the way God created all things?
‘ex nihilo’
This means ‘out of nothing’
How many days did it take God to create the universe?
It took Him 6 days + 1 day to rest
What happened on day one?
God said ‘let there be light’. He called the light day and the darkness night.
What did God make on day 2?
The sky
What did God make on day 3?
The seas and the land. He covered the land with vegetation and plants.
What did God create on day 4?
The sun, moon and stars.
What did God construct on day 5?
He made the fish and sea animals. He also made the birds of the sky.
What did God make on day 6?
He created all the animals on the land. He also made humans. He made the humans in His own image.
What happened on day 7?
God rested and made that day Holy. He was pleased with His creation because ‘it was good’
Genesis 1:1
‘In the beginning, God created the heaven and the Earth’
Some Christians believe the creation story describes the events how?
Exactly how they were and exactly how the universe was created. They believe every word in the Bible is inspired by God and therefore correct.
However, other Christians interpret it differently. They believe God didn’t create the world in 6 days, but…
6 ‘ages’.
This is because the Hebrew word used, ‘yom’, could mean either ‘day’ or ‘age’ so it is up to interpretation. Most people say ‘day’ but ‘age’ makes more sense.
What are these Christians called?
Fundamentalists.
Which Christians see the accoutns in the Bible as parables and symbolic accounts where the main message is that God brought the universe into being and thats what matters?
Liberalists.
What is the big bang theory?
The theory that the universe started with a small, hot dense singularity which expanded over billions of years.
How does the nig bang theory tie into Christianity?
Some Christians believe God created the singularity which became the universe and every day of creation is level of expansion.
others would say God was the singularity which explains His omnipresence.
