Apparent of Age verses the Dasha Hypothesis

The theory of Young Earth Creationism (YEC) posits that the Earth and the universe were created by God in a literal six-day period, approximately 6,000 years ago. One of the central challenges to this view is the vast amount of scientific evidence that points to an old Earth, including geological formations, stellar distances, and the fossil record. To reconcile this discrepancy, YEC proponents often employ the concept of "creation with apparent age." This idea suggests that God created the universe not as a "blank slate," but with a built-in appearance of age and history. For instance, Adam was created as a full-grown man, not as an infant; fruit trees were created already bearing fruit, not as seeds. Similarly, stars were created with their light already in transit to Earth, and geological strata were created in a way that mimicked billions of years of formation.

A variation on this theme, but one that shares a fundamental similarity, is what has been dubbed the "Dasha theory," or "Created with Apparent Age" theory, which has been popularized by Dr. Danny Faulkner, a creationist astronomer. The Hebrew word dasha (דָּשָׁא) is a verb that means "to sprout," "to shoot," or "to grow green." and is used by Faulkner to signify the "appearance of age." Faulkner, while a YEC proponent himself, has critiqued some of the more simplistic applications of the "apparent age" argument, particularly when it comes to cosmological observations. He argues that the apparent age of the universe is not simply a matter of God creating things to look old, but a consequence of the very act of creation itself.

The core of Faulkner's argument is that the laws of physics and the natural processes we observe today only began to apply after the creation week. Therefore, trying to use those processes to extrapolate back in time beyond creation is a flawed methodology. For example, he suggests that during the creation week, God was actively involved in a "supernatural" process that is not analogous to the "natural" processes we see today. Once the creation week ended, God "stepped back," and the natural laws took over. This perspective explains why we see evidence of an old universe: the universe was created in a state that, when viewed through the lens of our current scientific understanding, appears to have aged. A star that was created on day four of creation, for example, would have a mass and brightness that would lead an astronomer today to calculate an age of millions of years. Faulkner claims this is not because God is trying to deceive us, but because the star was created "fully functional" and the processes that we use to determine its age only began to operate after its creation.

The fundamental similarity between the general "created with apparent age" theory and Faulkner's "Dasha" theory lies in their shared premise: the scientific evidence for an old Earth and universe is not a refutation of a young Earth, but a consequence of God's creative act. Both theories argue that the universe was not created in a raw or primordial state, but in a "mature" state, and that the scientific measurements we make today are simply reflecting this maturity. They both propose that the "age" we measure is an artifact of the initial conditions of the universe, not a true reflection of the time that has passed since its creation.

Where they diverge is in their nuance and explanation. The traditional "apparent age" argument can sometimes be presented as a simple, almost ad hoc explanation for any and all contradictory evidence. Faulkner’s approach, while still a form of "apparent age," is more sophisticated and attempts to engage with the scientific data in a more direct way. He tries to provide a more reasoned, albeit still creationist, explanation for specific phenomena, such as stellar distances and the transit of starlight. He is, in essence, providing a more detailed and astronomically focused version of the "apparent age" argument.

Both the general Young Earth Creationism theory of "created with apparent age" and Danny Faulkner's "Dasha theory" are fundamentally the same in their core premise. They are both apologetic frameworks designed to reconcile a literal interpretation of the biblical account of creation with the overwhelming scientific evidence for a much older universe. They both achieve this reconciliation by positing that the universe was created in a mature, "fully functional" state, and that the "age" we measure is a consequence of this initial condition, not a measure of actual elapsed time. Faulkner's contribution is to provide a more detailed and scientifically informed version of this core concept, particularly in the realm of astronomy.

Danny Faulkner, a creationist astronomer, proposed the "dasha" theory as a solution to the distant starlight problem, which questions how light from distant stars could reach Earth in a young universe. He suggests the Hebrew word dasha (דָּשָׁא), often translated "to sprout," can be applied to light "sprouting" forth from celestial bodies and instantly reaching Earth. Faulkner argues this was a miraculous act by God, not a natural process, to make the stars' light immediately visible.

Genesis 2:9 presents a challenge to the Dasha theory. The verse uses the same Hebrew word dasha to describe God causing trees to "grow" or "sprout" out of the ground in the Garden of Eden. The context here is clearly one of natural growth. The trees didn't instantly appear as fully mature entities, but "grew" from the ground. This suggests that dasha refers to a process of emerging or sprouting, not an instantaneous creation or transport, thereby undermining Faulkner's application of the word to instant starlight travel. The linguistic parallel suggests dasha consistently denotes a process of emergence rather than a miraculous instantaneous event.

Jeremiah 33:25-26 declares God's covenant with day and night, and the fixed ordinances of heaven and earth.  Danny Faulkner's "Dasha Theory" proposes that God miraculously altered astronomical orbits, including the Moon's, during the Flood to create the appearance of age, thus reconciling a young earth with observed astronomical phenomena. This theory, however, directly contradicts Jeremiah 33:25's assertion that the "ordinances of heaven and earth" are as fixed and reliable as God's covenant with David. The verse presents these celestial laws not as malleable constructs, but as foundational pillars of God's unchanging faithfulness, thereby challenging the premise that God would arbitrarily disrupt them.