Creation Stories, Religious and Scientific

Question 1

What is God described as throughout the Bible?

Answer 1

‘The Creator’

Question 2

What are the opening lines of the Bible?

Answer 2

‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth’ (Genesis 1:1)

Question 3

What does the last Gospel state?

Answer 3

‘All things were made through him’ (John 1:3)

Question 4

What does Genesis explain about the creation of the earth?

Answer 4

God makes various aspects of creation in 6 days, and rested on the 7th

Question 5

What did God make on the 1st day?

Answer 5

Light and Darkness

Question 6

What did God make on the 2nd day?

Answer 6

The sky

Question 7

What did God make on the 3rd day?

Answer 7

Sea, dry land and vegetation

Question 8

What did God make on the 4th day?

Answer 8

The Sun and the Moon

Question 9

What did God make on the 5th day?

Answer 9

Sea creatures and birds

Question 10

What did God make on the 6th day?

Answer 10

Animals (to live on dry land)

Question 11

What did God do on the 7th day?

Answer 11

He rested

Question 12

What do Christians believe they must do?

Answer 12

> Daily commune in prayer
read the Bible
share this belief and encourage others
they are stewards over the earth and look after it for God

Question 13

What do Christians think about Sin?

Answer 13

That Sin has damaged the universe and their lives so Jesus will return to make things perfect

Question 14

Hindus think that the world is ….?…. of years old

Answer 14

Millions

Question 15

What do Hindus teach?

Answer 15

The high God Brahman is the source of all life

Question 16

What is polytheism and do Hindus follow this?

Answer 16

Polytheism means the belief in many Gods. Hindus believe in numerous gods and goddesses

Question 17

What do Hindus believe about the Universe and its existence?

Answer 17

They believe that this isn’t the first universe and that there will be more. They also believe that each one is governed by the laws of reincarnation

Question 18

All humans are a part of …?…

Answer 18

… a life cycle in which they will be be born, die and have rebirth and then their soul will be reborn into another living being

Question 19

Why is equality greatly emphasised in Hinduism?

Answer 19

Because everything has been created out of Brahman

Question 20

Name the three gods that are part of the ‘Trimurti’ who control the life cycle:

Answer 20

1. Brahman (The creator)
2. Vishnu (The preserver)
3. Shiva (The destroyer)

Question 21

How can Hindu’s relate to the universe?

Answer 21

> They believe that everything they do is connected to Brahman
They should live, practice and protect his dharma (religious
laws)
They believe in karma and consequences
They should not be selfish
They should give all their glory to Brahman
Every Hindu should live his life by the scriptures revealed to him

Question 22

Describe the beginnings of the ‘Big Bang’

Answer 22

> Universe was in a high density state and then expanded
Began with a hot big bang and then the universe exploded
out of heat and light

Question 23

When do scientists believe the ‘Big Bang’ happened?

Answer 23

Some say > between 10 and 12 billion years ago

Others say > 13.8 billion years ago

Question 24

What happened when the universe cooled after the ‘Big Bang?’

Answer 24

It allowed the formation of particles and atoms

Question 25

What is believed about the galaxies and planets?

Answer 25

That once they were all together, as one in singularity before the ‘Big Bang’

Question 26

What do scientists think will happen to the universe in the future?

Answer 26

That it will cool so much that it will begin to contract in on itself and lead to a ‘Big Crunch,’ causing the universe to end

Question 27

Who came up with the evolutionary theory and what century was this in?

Answer 27

Charles Darwin, in the 19th Century

Question 28

Where did Charles Darwin study theology?

Answer 28

Cambridge University, became interested in science and botany

Question 29

What years did he study wildlife in America?

Answer 29

From 1831 to 1836

Question 30

When did he write his book and what was it called?

Answer 30

‘Origin of Species,’ published in 1859

Question 31

How does he think living things came into existence?

Answer 31

Not through design, but through the struggle of every generation of species to compete, survive and reproduce

Question 32

What does the evolutionary theory describe?

Answer 32

A world where organisms adapt and change

Question 33

What is Darwin’s conclusion?

Answer 33

There is no need for a designer as evolution and natural selection explain the development of all living things

Question 34

How did Darwin come to theses conclusions?

Answer 34

By noticing the similarities between species

Question 35

What did he notice about the organisms that survive?

Answer 35

That they are the fittest, strongest and best suited to their environment

Question 36

What does Darwin think of humans?

Answer 36

He thinks that humans have also evolved from earlier animal species and that they haven’t existed for a long time, and are just a recent evolutionary process

Question 37

Who were the two people that went before Charles Darwin and when did they live?

Answer 37

> William Smith (1769 - 1839)

> Charles Lyell (1797 - 1875)

Question 38

What did William Smith and Charles Lyell both question?

Answer 38

Neither believed that the Earth is only 6000 years old and that God could not have created the earth in 6 days. They both thought that the earth is millions of years old

Question 39

How do Theists respond to the evolutionary theory?

Answer 39

Some Theists reject the evolutionary theory and think it’s illogical. They don’t think a ‘Big Bang’ or random chance is likely. The understand that things can mutate and adapt and change, but not from one living thing to another living thing

Question 40

What do Theists conclude from this?

Answer 40

Because all of the coincidences are so unlikely, that means that the universe was designed and therefore God exists

Question 41

What do other Christians think of the evolutionary theory?

Answer 41

Another opinion is that Genesis is just poetic or symbolic of God making all things. They think that their faith can be combined with parts if evolution. For example, a day in Genesis might not be a literal 24 hour day but symbolic of what God did over time. This allows these types of Christians to believe that the world was made over millions of years