Six Days: The Age of the Earth and the Decline of the Church

Six Days argues that some parts of Genesis 1-11 are to be read literally, which (according to Ham) implies young-earth creationism, a historical Adam, and flood universalism. It's roughly divided into three parts. Ham first argues for a Bible-based view of the world (chapters 1-4), then criticises views that seem inconsistent with this methodology: non-literal readings of """"day"""" (chapter 5), old-earth creationism (chapter 6), theistic evolutionism (chapter 7), local flood views (chapter 8), alternative views on Adam (chapter 9). The book concludes with a discussion of the pragmatic implications of the debates (chapters 10-11). Ham clarifies that, though these debates are not salvation issues, they are nevertheless gospel and authority issues (p. 29). Readers who buy into Ham's methodology will find a persuasive case for the importance of these debates. But readers who don't agree with the basic approach, even those who are already sympathetic to the suggested views, might find the book's argument inadequate. There is little engagement with the usual issues: fossil evidence, carbon dating, etc. While Ham himself is certainly knowledgeable on such issues (eg, The New Answers Book), he seems to have chosen to adopt an almost purely biblical approach in Six Days. So this book does not challenge readers who give little weight to the Bible, but it puts pressure on those who hold alternative views while confessing the authority of Scripture.