Evolution and creation

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The theory of evolution and the two main doctrines of Creationism address three major aspects of the origins debate. About 15% of American adults are evolutionists, 40% are Old Earth creationists, and 45% are Young Earth creationists.

The fossil record

Evolutionists see the rock layers containing the fossil record as a sequence that was laid down over vast periods of time.

Therefore, evolutionists regard fossils as indicating the place and time period during which various species of life existed, so the first appearance equates to when they came into being, and the last appearance indicates when they went extinct. Naturalistic geologists and biologists conclude from this that forms of life came into being over a period of hundreds of millions of years.

Old Earth creationists agree with evolutionists that the fossil record indicates the appearance and disappearance of living things over time.

Young Earth creationists see the vast majority of the rock layers as a sequence that was laid down during the Genesis Flood. They argue on biblical grounds that the earth is less than 10,000 years old (usually arguing for around 6,000 years old), and that the fossils in flood-laid sediments must also be around 4,300 years old.

Why new forms of life appeared

Evolutionists say that physical causes (such as mutation) can alter the genetic material in the member of a species. These changes are passed on to the member's descendants, unless they are detrimental (see natural selection). If enough of these changes accumulate, completely new species come into being. Every species of life descended from other species, all the way back to one-celled organisms. Natural causes alone are sufficient to account for the emergence of all forms of life.

Old Earth creationists agree with evolutionists about mutations being caused by physical phenomena such as cosmic rays; and about genetic change being passed on to descendants (see microevolution). Not all accept common descent, especially in regards to people. They also disagree about the sufficiency of natural causes: God must have intervened to make all major changes (see macroevolution, missing link).

Young Earth creationists agree only about genetic changes within a species, such as the breeds of horses or dogs or cats, which they call "microevolution". They reject common descent. They believe that all species were created by God less than 10,000 years ago.