TCBI #25 - The Bones of Creationism - Ian Juby

Ian Juby is a prolific hobbyist whose interests range from driving trains to amateur archeology to UFO theorizing to creation science. Ian's name has come up frequently in my house over the past several years whenever the topic of "evolution" was brought up. Many/most evangelical Christians (especially those of the generation before mine) hold very tightly to a model of creation and existence that is consistent with a literal interpretation of Genesis--that is, 6 day creation. Other key Biblical stories are considered deeply historical as well, such as the idea of a universal flood (Noah's Ark) or the Israelite crossing of the Red Sea. While most Christian Evangelicals take the literal historicity of these stories at face value, Ian has spent the last 15 years of his life actively teaching and researching more technical arguments concerning the age of the earth, the fossil record, and other key components to unpacking this theory of origins scientifically. Growing up I noticed a common pattern of dismissal of this conversation from those on either side. Most practicing Christians I knew brushed off evolution and claims about an old earth as simple propaganda by those seeking to destroy the church, whereas those outside of the church that I talked to about these concepts brushed off those who believed them as simpletons who didn't know anything about science. When Ian agreed to chat with me for this project, I was excited. Ian is a pretty smart guy, and has bothered to spend a good chunk of his time trying to deeply get to know the science behind this conversation. I on the other hand find the evolutionary model compelling, yet still find the Christian faith meaningful and worth engaging with. I was hoping that between the two of us we might be able to manage having the conversation that I hadn't seen happen very well growing up and attempt to engage and discuss these two positions honestly and in good faith without premature dismissal. It was a difficult task, and I don't know if we managed it perfectly, but I'm excited about the forward motion of this conversation in my home community, and I'm hoping this conversation can be a small contribution to this greater conversation within Evangelical Christiandom.