How old is the Earth

[DougP]

So I was wondering... how old is the earth? Not from a scientific stand point but from a religious one. I figure the Bible.. or at least The Old Testament can be looked at as a historical reference that dates events to the beginning of time and humanity. So I was wondering if there might be any real reference in the Bible or religious teachings that point to when the Earth was formed?

Also on another note I was wondering if followers of the Christian faith consider the Bible to be an accurate source when pointing out/ figuring out how long we've been here? I know that the Bible is often viewed as an unquestionable source as to how things came into existence so I was wondering if this source also points to when it all happened.

[Isaak Brodsky]

Great questions.

The answers aren't very easy though.

Hard to condense a proper response in a page like this.

I found something on the web that contrasts both views: not suggesting, here, that I agree with either the creationist position or the evolutionary position, but the number of points contrasted as well as the points made are interesting, at least food for thought.

http://www.angelfire.com/mi/dinosaurs/earthage.html

[Mad Hatter]

Half the diameter of Oprah's ass times DK's words per min CUBED = the age of Earth!!!

The only reason that I break in like that is because this thread is meant to stir up alot of Christian thought... so before everything gets way to serious... I wanted to throw my two cents in there

[Isaak Brodsky]

Half the diameter of Oprah's ass times DK's words per min CUBED = the age of Earth!!!

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice. lol

[DougP]

Yeah I didn't want this to get too serious but then again who am I kidding. This kind of discussion has the potential to get ugly real fast. Hopefully it wont.

[kombu_kid]

Half the diameter of Oprah's ass times DK's words per min CUBED = the age of Earth!!!

Sure that's not the size of the universe? They always say it's an ever-expanding universe... that goes to infinity.

(But seriously folks....I just flew in from Vegas and boy my arms are tired) do they even try to address the point at which the earth was created, time-wise?

[ja_Patriot]

Everyone's 2 cents is just about as accurate as the width of Oprah's a$$ (discounted by dk's typing speed).

Only time will tell when we actually have the knowledge.

The Bible, especially the first books, i.e. Genesis, Exodus, originally written by men with limited and primitive resources would be a poor source for the scientific evaluation of the age of the planet Earth, much less the religious speculation, IMO.

[Asshat]

MEDIA ADVISORY, Aug. 14 /Christian Newswire/ -- ChristiaNet.com, the world's largest Christian portal with twelve million monthly page loads, conducted a recent poll asking, "Is the Earth billions of years old?"

Out of 797 polled, 43% believed the Earth is less than billions of years old. The vast majority of this group felt the Earth is between 6,000 and 12,000 years old. Using the Bible as their reference, many Believers cited the genealogies listed in the Old Testament as evidence.

Also some interesting theory here: http://www.answersincreation.org/old.htm

[cohen avshalom]

the time is not straight line-so what is the old of somethink-is not realy one answer question.

cohen avshalom charly
israel/haifa

[P_chan]

You confuse the hell out of me.

Personally, I think time flows like a river, and history repeats itself.

[Asshat]

The earth is 4 billion years old to non-Christians, and about half the Christians.

[Isaak Brodsky]

Personally, I think time flows like a river, and history repeats itself.

Actually, time flows like a river on earth where our physical laws are constant, but gravity and mass of celestial bodies can distort our conceptions of time. Einstein's general theory of relativity has been shown to bear this out.

Time behaves differently outside the three physical dimensions we interact in.

I heard a really fascinating lecture a couple years ago from one of my colleagues - a physicist specializing in quantum mechanics.

He took two hours to illustrate in graphic and simple detail the veracity of Einstein's most famous theory and how it proves that alien life from another solar system - even if it existed - could not possibly come into contact with Earth.

It was the most devastating critique of alien life forms that I had ever heard.

[P_chan]

Actually, time flows like a river on earth where our physical laws are constant, but gravity and mass of celestial bodies can distort our conceptions of time. Einstein's general theory of relativity has been shown to bear this out.

Time behaves differently outside the three physical dimensions we interact in.

I heard a really fascinating lecture a couple years ago from one of my colleagues - a physicist specializing in quantum mechanics.

He took two hours to illustrate in graphic and simple detail the veracity of Einstein's most famous theory and how it proves that alien life from another solar system - even if it existed - could not possibly come into contact with Earth.

It was the most devastating critique of alien life forms that I had ever heard.

Very interesting. But I don't plan on spending any part of my life in the far reaches of outer space. So to me, time flows like a river:D

[TheLastDon]

The Earth is as old as dirt.

[Isaak Brodsky]

So to me, time flows like a river:D

Yeah, ya know, me too.

[Isaak Brodsky]

The Earth is as old as dirt.

Yea, true dat

[OkiMike]

Two things:

1) It's insane that we even have to ask this question in the year 2007. Hell, even in 1907, it was pretty common knowledge to anyone who'd considered themselves literate that the earth was very, very old. Precisely how old was constantly being refined as the methods of measuring were being improved.

2) The majority of Christians who should be responding to the question are, unfortunately, busy on other sites that further reinforce what their Bibles already tell them is true. As such, they are unlikely to respond with an answer, coherent or not.

[Isaak Brodsky]

Two things:

1) It's insane that we even have to ask this question in the year 2007.

Me thinks DougP was just being funny when he posed this question.