Bible Accounts of Creation
Religious Studies A: AQA GCSE Religions, topic 2.1.5
Bible Accounts of Creation
The Bible accounts of creation in Genesis say that God declared the world he had created to be good. It also says that men and women were made in the likeness of God. Some Christians interpret the Bible accounts of creation literally, others interpret the accounts metaphorically.
Literal interpretation
- There are some Christians who believe that all biblical accounts should be accepted as literally true, including the account of creation.
- This means that they believe the world was created over a period of a week, and some (often called Young Earth creationists) believe that this took place between 6,000 to 10,000 years ago.
Metaphorical interpretation
- Other Christians believe that some Bible accounts are metaphors or stories designed to communicate a truth. In the case of creation, the truth is that God created the universe.
- They do not all believe that creation took six days, that it happened so recently, or that it took the exact form found in Genesis.
- The important beliefs for these Christians are that the process was initiated by God and men and women are made in God’s likeness.
Roman Catholics interpret metaphorically
- Roman Catholicism teaches that the accounts of creation do not conflict with a scientific understanding of the processes of creation, such as the Big Bang, or evolution.
Test yourself on Bible Accounts of Creation
Roman Catholicism teaches that the accounts of creation do not conflict with the scientific understanding of the processes of creation, such as the Big Bang or evolution. What type of biblical interpretation is this?
What are the beliefs of Young Earth creationists?
What is the name of the group of Christians who accept all biblical accounts of creation as true and believe that the world is between 6,000 to 10,000 years old?