Was Creation Perfect?

Tough Questions for Christians #29—The Fallen World
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AZ speaks on a common point of Christian theology, that God created the world without violence, including the animal world, and that all the wrongs in the world occurred after Adam’s fall. That, basically, humanity caused the downfall of animals as well as that of humans. AZ then points out that humanity can’t change the genetic structure of animals and never could. Perhaps we will in a little bit, but we haven’t. So how can anyone say that humanity caused carnivorous creatures or violence?

AZ makes a good point. Christian theology goes too far in their assumption of a peaceful creation. Creation worked, but it wasn’t perfect. There was a snake in the garden trying to kill humanity off, after all. The fossil records show that as far back as there were creatures there has been violence.

Rather, Scripture says in Genesis 1 that humanity was created violent in order to violently take over creation. God says “fill the earth and subdue it” in verse 28. The term “subdue” (in Hebrew, kabash) means “take by force” or “enslave”. It is an inherently violent word. If creation is peaceful, why should God command violence right at the beginning?

Because creation wasn’t perfect. Our future is not to take the earth back to it’s created glory. God created humanity to help the earth be BETTER than the creation. And the fact is, we have already done part of this.

Because AZ is wrong. Humans have been genetic manipulators for a long time. We have taken wild grass and turned it into wheat, corn and lawns. We have turned small lions into housecats and wolves into lap dogs. We have tamed and even eradicated diseases. This is genetic manipulation. We’ve been doing it for millennia. In this way we have been enslaving the earth, forcing the land to do what we want, turning mountains into valleys and valleys into mountains. We have been gods on the earth. And we have been doing it for our own benefit.

The real problem is not the manipulation of genetics, but how we’ve been doing it. We’ve been working for personal benefit and not for the benefit of humanity or the earth, as any just rulers would have done. The fact is, we SHOULD have eradicated violence. We could have. But we are so busy with our own violence that we can’t make the world a better place. We are so self-focused that we can’t see how we can use what knowledge we have to benefit all. As a unit, humanity is certainly god-like. If only we were as merciful and just as God, changing creation for the benefit of all.