The Doctrine of Beginnings
The way we perceive God, the way we look at the world around us, and the way we understand our own selves all have their roots in the opening verse of Scripture: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."
The way we perceive God, the way we look at the world around us, and the way we understand our own selves all have their roots in the opening verse of Scripture: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."
Does the word "earth" refer a) to the physical material of the earth; b) to the planet earth as a part of our solar system; c) to our earth in the sense of the land upon which life can exist? We will address this question very briefly by reviewing four problems. Published in Origins v. 8, n. 1.
The Documentary hypothesis and the so-called Tatbericht-Wortbericht theory have been the two main starting points of any relevant scholarly study of this text. Recently, under the influence of contemporary literary studies, attention has been drawn to the validity of the synchronic approach, and more and more scholars have thus become aware of the importance of the literary structure of this text.
There is a distinct "name" theology involved in the distribution of the different names used for God in Genesis 1 and 2. The author who composed these two narratives as part of a larger whole wished to say something specific about God by using these names this way. Published in Origins v. 5, n. 1.
Portions of the DNA information are not present in mRNA transcribed from the DNA, in plants and animals, as opposed to bacteria. The DNA sequences that are missing in the m-RNA are called introns, and seem to be widespread. Published in Origins v. 5, n. 1.
The first three chapters of Genesis are of crucial importance for both the origins of our world and for determining relationships between man and woman. Without these chapters, any understanding of the mutuality between man and woman is impaired and one-sided.
A general theory of creation is proposed, consisting of ten postulates derived from divine revelation and informed by observations of the created world. Published in Origins v. 1, n. 1.