Glass House Review

Glass House: Shattering the Myth of Evolution

General Editors: Ken Ham and Bodie Hodge

                Millions of years or thousands of years? Glass House discusses several topics that are often cited as proof that evolution happened. But do they actually prove evolution to be true or do they tell a different story when examined more closely?

                Evolution is a very common belief that has permeated scientific thought. The three branches of evolution are cosmological evolution, geological evolution, and biological evolution. Cosmological evolution deals with the formation of the universe while geological evolution focuses on the origins of our earth and solar system which is commonly called the nebular hypothesis. The majority of this book discusses biological evolution which attempts to explain the origin of humans. So, why the millions of years? It all started with James Hutton and Charles Lyell. They made a few assumptions about the earth and popularized the idea of uniformitarianism. This idea states that the rate of the geologic processes that we see today have always happened at the slow rate that we currently observe. By that logic, the earth requires millions of years to accumulate all the sediment buildup that we see today. The beliefs of these men heavily influenced Charles Darwin as he did his own research.

                Charles Darwin spent several years on a voyage studying animals and plants. He eventually returned home and examined his findings which led him to develop his idea that natural selection drives the process of evolution. At this time, there was very little knowledge of DNA and genetics, so Darwin was limited to what he had observed on his voyage. He stated that the environment selected for specific traits that allowed animals to survive better. When they reproduced, they would pass on that trait. Given enough time, those small changes would add up and eventually an ape could change into a human. There are a few problems with this view. First, if this were true we should find millions of fossilized transitional forms in the rock layers. There are currently no confirmed transitional forms. Second, we do see natural selection occurring in nature, but it never leads to one animal changing into another. In other words, there is no new genetic information coming into existence; there is actually a loss of genetic information.

                As stated, Darwin had little to no knowledge of genetics, but as this field became more popular, the theory of evolution had to adapt. Modern Synthesis is a variation of Darwinian Evolution which includes the affects of mutations in the human genome. Modern Synthesis states that mutations have accumulated over millions of years, slowly changing and adding new information to preexisting DNA. Those mutations are said to be the driving force behind evolution. Once again, there are inconsistencies with this belief. Mutations are at best neutral but they are more often harmful. In order for mutations to turn one animal into another, mutations would need to add new genetic information to that animal’s DNA. To this day, scientists have not observed a mutation that adds new genetic information. Some common claims of beneficial mutations include the sickle cell mutation and the gene that continues making enzymes in adult humans that allows them to drink milk. Further study shows that these are not true examples of beneficial mutations.

                Glass House also includes discussions about homologous structures, commonly cited examples of transitional forms, human chromosome 2, Haeckel’s embryos, vestigial organs, the Miller-Urey experiment, moral implications of evolution, and much more. Arguably the most important chapter is the conclusion which explains how Christians should respond to a world saturated with this false idea of evolution. The Bible is the ultimate authority, and no scientific discovery will ever contradict it. Attempting to blend evolution with the Bible also brings a host of problems that cannot be reconciled. It all boils down to a choice: do you believe the authority of God’s Word or do you believe the religion of evolution?

                God offers love, grace, forgiveness, and a purpose in life that evolution cannot offer. God uniquely designed you, and He loves you. He offers salvation and an eternal home with Him in heaven. All you have to do is confess to Him that you are a sinner and believe that He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for your sins (Romans 3:23, Romans 10:9). This is the most important decision you will ever make.

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