Radio Host Hank Hanegraaff Supports Evolutionary, Old Earth Proponent

Dr. William Dembski is research professor in philosophy at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas (the president of the seminary is Dr. Paige Patterson), and a senior fellow with the Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture in Seattle.  Just to remind you, I have featured him in a previous blog post in which I indicated what Dr. Dembski has stated in his book The End of Christianity. Here are just a couple of outlandish statements from his book:

For the theodicy I am proposing to be compatible with evolution, God must not merely introduce existing human-like beings from outside the Garden. In addition, when they enter the Garden, God must transform their consciousness so that they become rational moral agents made in God’s image . . . (The End of Christianity, p. 159)

Any evils humans experience outside the Garden before God breathes into them the breath of life would be experienced as natural evils in the same way that other animals experience them. The pain would be real, but it would not be experienced as divine justice in response to willful rebellion. Moreover, once God breathes the breath of life into them, we may assume that the first humans experienced an amnesia of their former animal life: Operating on a higher plane of consciousness once infused with the breath of life, they would transcend the lower plane of animal consciousness on which they had previously operated—though, after the Fall, they might be tempted to resort to that lower consciousness. (The End of Christianity, p. 154–155)

In this book, Dr. Dembski states that Noah’s Flood was a local event, not worldwide. (Now, some people have claimed Dr. Dembski has changed on this point, but I have seen nothing documenting this.)

At our Apologetics Mega Conference this week, I showed video excerpts of Dr. Dembski and quotes from his books and other writings. I gave the conference attendees numerous examples of Christian academics who compromise God’s Word in Genesis; these Christian academics are sadly influencing the next generation of Christians with their teaching that undermines biblical authority.

Now, radio host Hank Hanegraaff asked Dr. Dembski to be a guest on his Bible Answer Man broadcast every Tuesday for the month of July. He is giving away free copies of Dr. Dembski’s The End of Christianity to anyone who requests it (with a donation of any amount) for the month of July as well. Dr. Dembski’s article “Old Earth Creationism and the Fall” will be featured soon in Hanegraaff’s Christian Research Journal; Hanegraaff is also giving away copies of the article. Hanegraaff endorsed the book when it was published, and he says during the radio show that he “believes in this book.”

A researcher and professor at a prominent Southern Baptist seminary, Dr. Dembski argues that there are two types of time in the Greek New Testament: chronos (chronological) and kairos (“God’s time”). He places Genesis 1 in the kairos category, meaning that God didn’t use a chronological time pattern for creation. He also argues that there was death and natural evil in the world before the Fall, but that the Garden of Eden was a segregated place of protection for Adam and Eve—until they sinned and were released into the world full of natural evil. Dr. Dembski also admits to being an old earth creationist and claims the universe is billions of years old.

Here are summaries of what was said on two of the radio programs so far:

“The End of Christianity - Part 1”

At 5:38, after announcing that Dr. Dembski’s The End of Christianity will be the show’s “thank you” gift for the month, Hanegraaff says he “believes in this book,” and explains that the book helps to reconcile Christianity and science. Hanegraaff gave an endorsement of The End of Christianity, along with well-known writers J.P. Moreland and Chuck Colson. At 11:15, Hanegraaff asks Dr. Dembski what he believes regarding the fall of man. Dr. Dembski admits to being an old earth creationist and claims that there was death in the world before the Fall, though he believes Adam and Eve were real people. At 29:36, Dembski explains the doctrine of “divine anticipation,” and argues that God created a world with natural evil in anticipation of Adam and Eve’s sin.

“The End of Christianity - Part 2”

At 1:40, Hanegraaff calls the young-earth creationist belief that evil and death resulted from the Fall a “false assumption.” At 10:12, Dr. Dembski says a view that the universe is only 6,000 years old makes our universe “deceptive” because dating says it is old. At 13:18, Dr. Dembski makes the argument that the Garden of Eden was an area segregated from natural evil, and that when Adam and Eve were ejected from the Garden, they were thrust into a world of natural evil. He says that the young-earth perspective makes a segregated area like the Garden of Eden meaningless. At 49:46, Dr. Dembski explains the idea of chronos time versus kairos time. The latter, he argues, is “God’s time,” and that it doesn’t follow any chronological time order. Dr. Dembski groups Genesis 1 into the kairos time category, and essentially explains away the six literal days of creation.

It is so sad that such compromise with evolution and millions of years—and such an outlandish idea that God took animals and made them into Adam and Eve and gave them amnesia so they would not remember all the death and suffering in the world they once lived in—is being promoted by such a well-known radio personality. While I appreciate that Hank Hanegraaff had me on his radio program many years ago, I need to point out now that such outright compromise is undermining the authority of God’s Word.

I urge people to voice their opposition to Hank Hanegraaff and his promotion of this shocking compromise of the Bible, as he has pushed man’s religion of millions of years and evolution and has reinterpreted the clear teaching of Scripture in Genesis. Now, Hanegraaff has previously published a book against biological evolution, so it is perplexing to see him now promoting a man like Dr. Dembski who accepts many evolutionary ideas (Dr. Dembski is really promoting a type of “theistic evolution”)—and Hanegraaff is also accepting of death and millions of years of history before the Fall.

Even though there are many Southern Baptist leaders who are standing up for biblical authority (including a literal Genesis) in their seminaries, how disappointing it is that Dr. Dembski holds a position at one of the premier Southern Baptist seminaries in the country.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken