O r i o n C e n t e r
The Ozarks Not-For-Profit Organization
The Nature Of The Universe
What we actually observe about the universe is really much less than we would think. The universe is big, it's in motion, and it's based on information. The other "facts" some people would include are really the result of a theoretical belief system. For example, a big bang cosmologist would assert that there must be dark matter because the universe needs more mass than we observe in order to fit big bang models. They would say that dark matter is therefore “observed” because it has to be there to support their theory. It's their belief.
The Standard Cosmology
The Big Bang is the standard cosmological model of the universe. The standard theory suggests that all the matter and energy of the universe was once concentrated in one tiny point which cosmologists call a singularity. Some would even say that point was so concentrated that all the matter and energy came from nothing at all, which leads some critics of the Big Bang to mock the theory by pointing out the absurdity of everything coming from nothing all by itself. The theory goes on to say that the singularity suddenly expanded or inflated and that matter, energy, and time itself began during that initial inflation. Initially, all the universe’s matter was composed of light elements like hydrogen and helium and the heavier elements were generated later. The red shift we see in stars represents the continuing expansion of all of space along with the objects contained in space.
Biblical Cosmology
Exodus 20:11 reads, “For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” The verse effectively refutes any intellectual wavering in our understanding of Genesis because there is no room left for gaps or long evolutionary processes or distinctions between the time God took to make the universe separate from the creation of Adam and Eve. God comes back to this thought in Exodus 31:16-17 saying that the Sabbath is a perpetual sign between Him and the sons of Israel in remembrance of God’s rest after a week of creation. He seems to be wrapping up the six day creation with commandments for people to continually recognize and remember it. It is stated so strongly that believers in God should take it to heart. The universe is young.
Creationist Ideas About Cosmology
A Big Bang variant developed by Dr. Russel Humphreys demonstrates how the predictions of the Bible, the observations of scientists, and the application of modern physics theory can be combined to produce a viable explanation of how God created the universe while also accounting for the apparent billions of years of age in the cosmos. The strength of Humphreys' idea is that it is only a subtle adjustment of the standard cosmology which therefore has all the same scientific credibility. Even more intriguing are creationist theories that question the assumptions of modern physics such as Barry Setterfield's Plasma Theory and the variable speed of light equations developed by James Clerk Maxwell.
