In a recent video, Answers in Genesis founder Ken Ham addressed the growing number of Christians embracing flat earth theories, calling on believers to handle Scripture responsibly and embrace observational science.
“There seems to be an upsurge in the number of people claiming that the earth is flat,” Ham said. “Now, there are even some Christians that claim the earth is flat and they try to use scripture to justify that.”
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Ham warned against twisting biblical text out of context. “You could use scripture to justify anything if you take it out of context and interpret it the wrong way,” he said. “Various cults use scripture all the time to try to justify their false teaching.”
One of the most common passages cited by flat earth advocates involves the “four corners of the earth.” But Ham explained, “Actually, when you understand what it’s saying there, it’s talking about the four quarters of the earth…north, south, east, west. That’s not saying it’s a flat earth. It’s a rectangle or square or something like that.”
Referencing Isaiah 40:22, Ham noted, “He sits on the circle of the earth. Well, that certainly seems to imply that the earth is a circle or it’s round, but it’s not ultimate proof.”
Turning to science, Ham distinguished between “historical science,” which deals with the past, and “observational science,” which relies on present-day, repeatable evidence. “Can we somehow prove that the earth is round? Well, there is a way,” he said. “I personally know three Christian astronauts.”
Ham identified the astronauts as Butch Wilmore, Charlie Duke and Jeff Williams. “I have asked each of those three astronauts, when you look back at the earth, is it round or flat? And they all say it’s round,” he said. “Just like the moon is round, just like the other planets are all round. The earth is no different.”
According to Ham, these men have seen it firsthand. “I have seen video taken from the space station by Barry Wilmore. You can see the earth spinning around and you can see that it is round. It is a sphere.”
Still, some flat earthers remain unconvinced. “Sometimes I’ve had them say to me, ‘Well, they lied.’ Well, okay, then there’s nothing I can do for you,” Ham said. “Others have said, ‘Oh, they were indoctrinated or brainwashed by NASA.’”
He called such accusations “false” and “a refusal to accept what they’re saying.”
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For those who persist in flat earth beliefs, Ham pointed them to the work of Dr. Danny Faulkner, an astronomer at Answers in Genesis who “has written even a large book dealing with the flat earth and talking about the scientific issues as well as the biblical issues.”
Ham concluded by drawing a parallel between flat earth belief and the rejection of biblical creation. “We see examples all around us of people denying reality and they do it with the creation account too,” he said. “Just as plainly as we can see that the earth is not flat, we can also see that God created the world in six literal days.”
James Lasher is staff writer for Charisma Media.
