From September 4–6 over 1,300 delegates gathered in Birmingham for the Answers in Genesis (AiG) UK Creation Mega Conference. The focus was on the creation story found in Genesis 1–3 and its importance to the present day. Music for the event was provided by Buddy Davis.

Relevance of Genesis

Ken Ham, founder of AiG-US, spoke on the relevance of the Genesis story to the modern world. Touching on his debate with actor Bill Nye, he spoke on how AiG is trying to break down the misconceptions associated with a young earth creationist view and its relationship with observable science.

Ken also spoke at length on the acceptance of an evolutionary world view inside the modern church and the impact this has on current Christianity by undermining the Bible. He pointed out the strange situation where some church leaders reject Genesis for its supernatural nature but fight for acceptance of the resurrection. This rejection of biblical authority inside the mainstream church led him to call for a modern reformation to bring the church back to biblical authority.

Fossil record

John Mckay spoke on how the fossil record relates to young earth creation. His background in creation research allows him to unearth many fossils around the world, while giving the opportunity to lead field trips giving ordinary people the chance to see the evidence. His primary point was how the facts always back up the Bible and he showed this through a myriad of fossils. Some of these displayed changes through time, like snakes losing their legs showing devolution, not evolution, and many more displaying their swift watery demise in the Flood.

Ray Comfort, of Living Waters Publications, passionately preached on evangelism and reaching those who don’t know Jesus, demonstrating how to use the whole Bible to explain to sinners the requirement for a saviour. From the creation account and the Fall through to the giving of the Law and the coming of Jesus, the biblical timeline clearly shows the foundations for faith.

Specialist areas

Six other speakers gave hour-long talks on specialist areas of science and theology.

Dr Steve Lloyd covered Flood Theology, looking in depth at the impact of removing a worldwide biblical flood from theology. Steve Ham spoke on the place of man as made in the image of God, a conclusion only found in creation and essential for consideration in issues such as abortion and the value of human life.

Brian Edwards, former director of FIEC, explored the exegesis of the first chapter of Genesis in order to understand the genre of the passage (historical) and the meaning behind the account given.

Design and genius

Prof. Andy McIntosh considered design in the created world and showed how we can learn from the genius of God. Paul Garner spoke about the Coconino Sandstone, presenting persuasive evidence disproving the myths which some opponents have used in an attempt to discredit a young earth creationist view.

Finally, Prof. Stuart Burgess of Bristol University showed compelling scientific evidence for the uniqueness of man above all animals in our design.

This conference was run to allow Christians to take the Bible at its word and therefore to evangelise with full confidence in the Bible. In only three days it was barely possible to scratch the surface of the ever-developing knowledge base of theological and scientific evidence underpinning creationism; however the conference encouraged participants to learn more about the subject, and to hold fast to biblical truth.