Barbour Conflict Model

Modern creationism, or young-earth creationism, holds the belief that The Book of Genesis is a literal account of the Bible, rather than a metaphorical narrative (Barbour, p. 386). Unlike progressive creationists, strict creationists take the seven 24-hour days of creation in Genesis 1 as literally seven days (Numbers, p.301). To believe that such is true based off eyewitness accounts written in Genesis completely veers off the path paved by the scientific method for the formulation of a theory, and therefore, can be seen as conflict between the two fields. However, not all topics in science and religion are at odds, such as evolution and creationism. Since scientific theories and religious beliefs are not always in conflict, the conflict model proposed by Barbour is not an accurate description of the relationship of the two fields. Strict creationists, according to Numbers, interpret the days of Genesis literally, rather than over a long period of time. Barbour notes that by treating Genesis as if it was a book of science, we overlook the meaning/experiences within Genesis (p.394). In addition, creation is not a specific event in time, as believed by strict creationists, but rather a timeless act (p.392). This idea was even supported by Augustine, who was willing to accept Genesis as

For instance, evolution and creationism, which are different approaches to understand the origin of living organisms, but the two can co-exist. The reason being is that evolution is the natural process accounting for the change of organisms over time, however, creationism is the initial act of God that life originated from. In addition, creationism gives life a purpose, and underlying meaning, while evolution is just the process. Similarly, Barbour states that God is constantly creating through natural processes (p.393), so it is very reasonable to believe in creationism and