ArticleslgStudy

science

History of creationism

History of creationism is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand History of creationism rather than just read about it. In short: The history of creationism relates to the history of thought based on the premise that the natural universe had a beginning, and came into being supernaturally. The term creationism in its broad sense covers a wide range of views and interpretations, and was not in common use before the late 19th century.

History of creationism — main illustration
History of creationism — illustration

Key takeaways

  • History of creationism belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect History of creationism to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of History of creationism from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The history of creationism relates to the history of thought based on the premise that the natural universe had a beginning, and came into being supernaturally. The term creationism in its broad sense covers a wide range of views and interpretations, and was not in common use before the late 19th century. Throughout recorded history, a number of people have viewed the universe as a created entity. Multiple ancient historical accounts from around the world refer to or imply a creation of the Earth and universe. Although specific historical understandings of creationism have used varying degrees of empirical, spiritual and/or philosophical investigations, they are all based on the view that the universe was created. The Genesis creation narrative has provided a basic framework for Jewish and Christian epistemological understandings of how the universe came into being – through the divine intervention of the god, Yahweh. Historically, literal interpretations of this narrative were more dominant than allegorical ones. From the 18th century on, various views aimed at reconciling the Abrahamic religions and Genesis with geology, biology and other sciences developed in Western culture. At this time, the word creationism referred to a doctrine of creation of the soul. Those holding that species had been created in a separate act, such as Philip Gosse in 1857, were generally called "advocates of creation", though they were also called "creationists" in private correspondence between Charles Darwin and his friends, dating from 1856. In the 20th century the word "creationism" became associated with the anti-evolution movement of the 1920s and young Earth creationism, but this usage was contested by other groups, such as old Earth creationists and evolutionary creationists, who hold different concepts of creation, such as the acceptance of the age of the Earth and biological evolution as understood by the scientific community. The Genesis Flood (1961) became the most successful young earth creationist publication after 1945. From the mid-1960s, creationists in the United States promoted the teaching of "scientific creationism" using "Flood geology" in public school science classes. After the legal judgment of the case Daniel v. Waters (1975) ruled that teaching creationism in public schools contravened the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, the content was stripped of overt biblical references and renamed creation science. When the court case Edwards v. Aguillard (1987) ruled that creation science similarly contravened the constitution, all references to "creation" in a draft school textbook were changed to refer to intelligent design, which was presented by creationists as a new scientific theory. The Kitzmiller v. Dover (2005) ruling concluded that intelligent design is not science and contravenes the constitutional restriction on teaching religion in public school science classes. In September 2012, Bill Nye ("The Science Guy") expressed his concern that creationist views threaten science education and innovations in the United States.

Creation and modern science

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

History of creationism: Creation of the Animals by Tintoretto, c. 1550. Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice
Creation of the Animals by Tintoretto, c. 1550. Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice
History of creationism: William Paley (1743–1805), proponent of the Watchmaker analogy, a variant of the teleological argument
William Paley (1743–1805), proponent of the Watchmaker analogy, a variant of the teleological argument
History of creationism: When Darwin appeared in public with a beard in 1866, cartoonists were quick to satirise his ideas about common descent with apes. In this 1872 cartoon Darwin is fascinated by the apparent steatopygia in the new fashion for bustles. The woman asks him to "leave my emotions alone," a reference to Darwin's new book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals.
When Darwin appeared in public with a beard in 1866, cartoonists were quick to satirise his ideas about common descent with apes. In this 1872 cartoon Darwin is fascinated by the apparent steatopygia in the new fashion for bustles. The woman asks him to "leave my emotions alone," a reference to Darwin's new book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals.
History of creationism: H. L. Mencken, whose nationally published coverage of the Scopes Trial referred to the town's creationist inhabitants as "yokels" and "morons", referred to assisting counsel for the prosecution as a "buffoon" and his speeches as "theologic bilge", while referring to the defense as "eloquent" and "magnificent"
H. L. Mencken, whose nationally published coverage of the Scopes Trial referred to the town's creationist inhabitants as "yokels" and "morons", referred to assisting counsel for the prosecution as a "buffoon" and his speeches as "theologic bilge", while referring to the defense as "eloquent" and "magnificent"

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with History of creationism

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what History of creationism claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to History of creationism before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about History of creationism ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of History of creationism

In research
History of creationism appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses History of creationism in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
History of creationism is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Creationism, History of religion, Intellectual history, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for History of creationism outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.
Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “History of creationism” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study History of creationism in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what History of creationism means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain History of creationism out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is History of creationism in simple terms?

The history of creationism relates to the history of thought based on the premise that the natural universe had a beginning, and came into being supernaturally. The term creationism in its broad sense covers a wide range of views and interpretations, and was not in common use before the late 19th c…

Why does History of creationism matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study History of creationism?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on History of creationism.

Tags

  • Creationism
  • History of religion
  • Intellectual history

Keep exploring