The Waters of Contention: The Development of Flood Geology

Genesis 7:11..on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth..

Flood geology, often termed "diluvialism," is the attempt to interpret the Earth’s geological features through the lens of a global cataclysm, specifically the biblical account of Noah’s Flood. While the field reached its zenith of influence within evangelical circles in the 20th century, its roots stretch back to the dawn of natural philosophy, evolving from a standard scientific assumption into a controversial pillar of modern Young Earth Creationism (YEC).

The Early Diluvialists

In the 17th and 18th centuries, the idea that a universal deluge shaped the Earth was not a fringe belief but a mainstream scientific hypothesis. Early naturalists like Nicolaus Steno and William Whiston sought to reconcile the burgeoning study of strata and fossils with the Book of Genesis. Steno, often regarded as a father of stratigraphy, initially viewed fossils as remains of the Flood, though he recognized that the deposition of rock layers required systematic physical laws.

During this "Era of Diluvialism," thinkers proposed various mechanisms for the catastrophe. Some suggested the "bursting of the fountains of the great deep" involved subterranean water reservoirs, while others, like Thomas Burnet, imagined a pre-Flood Earth with a smooth crust that collapsed into a watery abyss. However, by the early 19th century, the evidence of the rocks began to pull away from these theories. Geologists like Adam Sedgwick, initially a proponent of the Flood, eventually conceded that the vast thicknesses of sedimentary rock and the distinct succession of fossil life required far more time than a single year-long event could provide.

The Rise of Modern Flood Geology: George McCready Price

For much of the 19th and early 20th centuries, flood geology languished as "Day-Age" and "Gap" theories (which allowed for long geological ages) became popular among Christians. Its modern revival is almost single-handedly credited to George McCready Price, a Seventh-day Adventist and self-taught geologist.

In the early 1900s, Price published works like The New Geology (1923), in which he fundamentally challenged the established "geologic column." Price argued that the order of fossils—usually seen as a timeline of evolution—was actually a result of "ecological zonation." He suggested that during the Flood, different ecosystems were buried in succession: bottom-dwelling sea creatures first, followed by coastal life, and finally highland mammals. Price’s work provided the "scientific" framework that would later define the modern movement.

The Genesis Flood and the YEC Revolution

The definitive turning point occurred in 1961 with the publication of The Genesis Flood by theologian John C. Whitcomb and engineer Henry M. Morris. This book synthesized Price’s earlier ideas with a more sophisticated (though still scientifically contested) technical vocabulary. Whitcomb and Morris argued that the Flood was a catastrophic event of such magnitude that it completely reshaped the planet’s topography, depositing the majority of the fossil record in a matter of months.

They introduced concepts such as "hydrodynamic sorting" (the idea that water currents sorted organisms by size, shape, and density) and "differential mobility" (the idea that smarter, faster animals fled to higher ground before drowning). This publication ignited the modern Young Earth Creationist movement, leading to the founding of the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) and later, Answers in Genesis.

Scientific Challenges and Modern Adaptations

Mainstream science has consistently rejected flood geology, citing several insurmountable physical hurdles:

• Heat Problems: The energy required to move tectonic plates rapidly or evaporate enough water to trigger the Flood would generate enough heat to boil the oceans.

• The Fossil Record: The precise, global ordering of fossils—where even small, slow-moving organisms are never found "out of place" in lower strata—cannot be explained by simple water sorting or fleeing animals.

• Sedimentary Features: Features like fossilized mud cracks, desert sand dunes, and salt deposits found between layers of "flood" sediment indicate periods of long-term dryness that could not occur during a global inundation.

Despite these critiques, proponents of flood geology continue to adapt. Modern models, such as Catastrophic Plate Tectonics (CPT), attempt to use the framework of plate tectonics to explain the rapid movement of continents during the Flood year. Today, flood geology remains a significant cultural and religious force, serving as the primary intellectual defense for those who maintain a literal, 24-hour-day interpretation of the Earth’s origins.