Science on the other hand talks about the big bang. This was one small atom which exploded, picking up particles of dust and clouds and eventually after thousands of chemical reactions through out space forming millions of stars and galaxies. One of those stars had particles of dust orbiting it. These were attracted to each other and eventually got together to form planets. One of these planets by chance had chemicals and volcanoes and was just the right distance from the sun to obtain life. There was no oxygen but there were pools of water. DNA was formed and reproduced into the first bacteria which multiplied, giving off oxygen as a waste product forming the ozone layer and the atmosphere.
These bacteria multiplied and evolved into many different creatures including us, plants, fish, birds, dinosaurs, etc. Evolution is a reproduction process where the new born obtains certain features that can help it to survive easier, such as a sense of sight or hearing or an improved sense of smell. This evolution process happens only because of accidents when the DNA multiplies.
There are three ways that people interpret Genesis:
1) Word for word fact (the words of God)
2) Guide lines and full of riddles and meaning but not completely fact.
3) Complete nonsense!
People who believe that it is all completely true are called Fundamentalists. These people strongly believe that everything in the book of Genesis is word for word true and that God made the world in one week exactly. They also believe that all creatures and humans were put on the earth at the same time exactly as they are now. Evolution to them is rubbish. Some serious Fundamentalists believe that dinosaurs and fossils were placed around the earth by the devil to stop people believing the bible and believing in God.
People who think they are just guide lines are called progressive believers. They believe that the big bang and everything that science says is true but God is the actual cause of it all. They think that evolution was all part of Gods master plan. Progressive Christians believe that science is the explanation of how and when everything happened but religion is the explanation for why it all happened. The Bible says that God made the universe in seven days but some times ‘day’ can be another term for an ‘age’, for instance when people say ‘back in my day’. So it could have taken God seven ages to make the universe. They also believe that all creatures have souls and that humans run on instinct as well because we can be quite brutal creatures if we need or want something bad enough.
People who believe it is complete nonsense are either a completely different religion or they don’t have a religion. They generally believe it’s just a myth. These completely different religions may still believe in God but perhaps not the same one. People who believe in God are called Theists and people who don’t believe in God are called Atheists these come from Greek words ‘Theos’ meaning God and ‘A’ meaning No. All Atheists disbelieve in Genesis.
People argue that the chance of the world and universe suiting us so perfectly is so small so therefore there must be a God, but what if we just evolved to suit the way the universe is made like a puddle in a depression on a street. The road depression wasn’t designed for the puddle the puddle poured away and shifted shape to fit into the depression, and perhaps life is the same.
Therefore Christian views on the origins of humanity is split between Fundamental and Progressive Christians, but both of these groups agree on one thing, that God was the cause of humanity and other creatures. All Christians agree that the miracle of life alone is sufficient to believe the there is a god.