Old Earth creationism is an umbrella term that includes views such as gap creationism, progressive creationism, and evolutionary creationism. It is more compatible with mainstream scientific views on physics, chemistry, geology, and the age of the Earth than young Earth creationism. Radiometric dating shows that the Earth is approximately 4.54 billion years old, and the oldest terrestrial and lunar samples are consistent with this age. Progressive creationism holds that God guides natural processes like evolution and mutation over time. Theistic evolution asserts that religious teachings about God creating the universe are compatible with evolution occurring as a natural process within that creation.
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Old earth creationism
1. Old Earth creationism (OEC) is an umbrella term for a number of types of creationism, includinggap
creationism, progressive creationism, and evolutionary creationism.[1]
The worldview is typically more
compatible with mainstream scientific thought on the issues of physics,chemistry, geology and the age of
the Earth, in comparison to young Earth creationism.
The age of the Earth is 4.54 ± 0.05 billion years (4.54 × 109
years ± 1%).[1][2][3]
This age is based on
evidence from radiometric age dating of meteorite material and is consistent with the ages of the oldest-
known terrestrial and lunar samples. Following the scientific revolution and the development of
radiometric age dating, measurements of lead in uranium-rich minerals showed that some were in
excess of a billion years old.
Gap creationism states that life was immediately and recently created on a pre-existing old Earth.
Progressive creationism is the religious belief that God allows certain natural process (such as gene
mutation and natural selection) to affect the development of life, but has also directly intervened at key
moments in life’s history to guide those processes or, in some views, create new species altogether
(often to replenish the earth).
Theistic evolution or evolutionary creation is a concept that asserts that classical religious
teachings about God are compatible with the modern scientific understanding about biological evolution.
In short, theistic evolutionists believe that there is a God, that God isthe creator of the material universe
and (by consequence) all life within, and that biological evolution is simply a natural process within that
creation. Evolution, according to this view, is simply a tool that God employed to develop human life.
According to the American Scientific Affiliation: