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 Pat Robertson: "There was a time when these giant reptiles were on the Earth, and it was before the time of the Bible."
November 29th, 2012
04:04 PM ET
Pat Robertson challenges creationismBy Dan Merica, CNN Washington (CNN) – Televangelist Pat Robertson challenged the idea that Earth is 6,000 years old this week, saying the man who many credit with conceiving the idea, former Archbishop of Ireland James Ussher, “wasn’t inspired by the Lord when he said that it all took 6,000 years.” The statement was in response to a question Robertson fielded Tuesday from a viewer on his Christian Broadcasting Network show "The 700 Club.” In a submitted question, the viewer wrote that one of her biggest fears was that her children and husband would not go to heaven “because they question why the Bible could not explain the existence of dinosaurs.” “You go back in time, you've got radiocarbon dating. You got all these things, and you've got the carcasses of dinosaurs frozen in time out in the Dakotas,” Robertson said. “They're out there. So, there was a time when these giant reptiles were on the Earth, and it was before the time of the Bible. So, don't try and cover it up and make like everything was 6,000 years. That's not the Bible.” Before answering the question, Robertson acknowledged the statement was controversial by saying, “I know that people will probably try to lynch me when I say this.” “If you fight science, you are going to lose your children, and I believe in telling them the way it was,” Robertson concluded. Forty-six percent of Americans believe that God created humans in their present form at one point within the past 10,000 years, according to a survey released by Gallup in June. That number has remained unchanged for the past 30 years, since 1982, when Gallup first asked the question on creationism versus evolution. The Gallup poll has not specifically asked about views on the age of the Earth. Ussher’s work, from the mid-1600s, is widely cited by creationists as evidence that Earth is only a few thousand years old. Answer in Genesis, the famed Christian creationist ministry behind the Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky, cites Ussher as proof of Earth’s age. They describe the archbishop as “a brilliant scholar who had very good reasons for his conclusions concerning the date of creation.” For Christians who read the creation account in Genesis literally, the six days in the account are strictly 24-hour periods and leave no room for evolution. Young Earth creationists use this construct and biblical genealogies to determine the age of the Earth, and typically come up with 6,000 to 10,000 years. Most scientists, however, agree that the Earth is 4.5 billion years old and the universe is 14.5 billion years old. The idea of creationism has been scorned by the mainstream scientific community since shortly after Charles Darwin introduced "The Origin of Species" in 1859. By 1880, The American Naturalists, a science journal, reported nearly every major university in America was teaching evolution. The question about Earth’s age has been in the news recently. Earlier this month, Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida attempted to walk the line between science and faith-based creationism in remarks that that provoked the ire of liberal blogs and left the door open to creationism. “I'm not a scientist, man,” Rubio told GQ’s Micheal Hainey. “I can tell you what recorded history says, I can tell you what the Bible says, but I think that's a dispute amongst theologians and I think it has nothing to do with the gross domestic product or economic growth of the United States.” - CNN’s Eric Marrapodi contributed to this report. soundoff (4,408 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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God could have used any method through Jesus to create the universe. I have no trouble with that.
charlesenancywmiller,
Pat Robertson is the dim bulb that blamed disasters on gays and historical events from hundreds of years ago. Enough said about his character.
Since I became a born again Christian many years ago, I knew that the Bible was the Word of God and, therefore, true. However, I couldn't fit the dinosaurs logically into the picture. God reveals everything in time. In the book of Genesis, He tells Adam and Eve to replenish the earth. This means to fill it up again. The earth of Genesis is a transformation of the original earth.
The original earth contained the dinosaurs, which were docile creatures. When Lucifer was kicked out of heaven, he came to earth and brought violence with him, passing it on to the dinosaurs. Then God created the ice age to destroy creation. The melted ice covered the earth with water, as told in Genesis, and a transformation began, possibly millions of years later. Then man was created as well as new types of animals, birds and other living creatures. There were no dinosaurs to include on Noah's ark. The Bible is true.
Thanks for clearing that up. LOL
I believe that the Holy Trinity could have used any method to create our wonderful universe. He could have used evolutionary creation, Old Earth Creationism, or Young Earth Creationism without any problem. God the Father spoke and Christ the Son created by some means. I like reading texts from BioLogos and Old Earth Creationist. The Old Earthers do not accept common ancestry or macr-evolution. Evolutionary Creationist such as BioLogos accept God's Word and common ancestry in creation. Both are possible.
Charles,
Please explain why you feel it necessary to brag about your education, as if you are the only educated person on here?
You must be jealous. I have a right to use my education if I wish.
Observer,
Why do you think one is bragging simply because he admits his education? What did I ever do to hurt you? In any case, may God bless you.
charlesenancywmiller
You don't seem to understand the difference between having an education and just bragging.
Why won't you answer my statements above?
charlesenancywmiller,
EVERYONE on here has a different educational background. It gets pretty pointless to start bragging about degrees since they are all relevant. What if someone has a masters in nuclear engineering but someone else got a theology degree? What if both have the same degrees, but one went to a better university? What about differences in GPA?
If you feel it necessary to tell everyone that you are intelligent because you have a degree, then maybe they couldn't figure it out otherwise.
Why not let your statements show your intelligence without having to brag to make yourself look smarter?
See. Not all religious people are creationists.
Never thought I would agree with Pat Robertson, but my new book shows Modern Creationism is not a correct interpretation of Genesis, there is no conflict between Genesis and scientific theories like Evolution, the Big Bang.
https://www.createspace.com/4331898 Book
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1WsYB2Ggtk&feature=youtu.be Video