What About Carl Baugh?
A Commentary by Answers in Genesis
Note: This web page was originally authored by Dr. Don Batten
of Answers in Genesis (AIG), a sister group of the Creation Science
Foundation. The purpose was to answer often-asked questions regarding
the teachings of Carl Baugh, a strict creationist who is perhaps
best known for his Paluxy "man track" claims. AIG and CSF
had installed this page as part of their own web site, but was
asked to remove it by Eden Films, another creationist group with
whom they share web space. AIG and CSF feel it is important to
continue making this site available to the public. Therefore,
they have gratiously allowed me to include this page as part of my
Paluxy web site, and to update portions of the text to reflect
information made available since the original AIG page was created.
I do not share the young-earth position of AIG and CSF, but applaud
their courage and forthrightness in dealing frankly and publicly
with the serious problems in Carl Baugh's work and claims. The main
AIG web site still available at
http://www.christiananswers.net/aig/aighome.html
Readers are invited to contact me or Carl Kerby, administrator of the AIG web site, with any questions of comments. Thank you.
Recently Carl Baugh has been given considerable television
exposure by American tele-evangelist Kenneth Copeland, and also
appeared on a widely viewed NBC TV program entitled
"Mysterious Origins
of Man." The Creation Science Foundation (CSF) has had
many calls from people who have seen the shows and suspect that
some things are not quite right about Baugh's teaching.
It is with heavy heart that we criticise others who are presenting
themselves as spokesman for creationism, but who are doing damage to the
cause of Christ through ill-founded claims.
Some of Carl Baugh's more outlandish claims, contained in his videotape Panorama of Creation, are as follows:
Baugh confuses many things. He confuses the pre-Flood and pre-Fall
worlds in saying that there was no violence among animals 'before the
Flood'. He confuses micro- and macro-evolution, getting them completely
reversed.
Baugh exaggerates. For example, in discussing the Setterfield
theory on slowing light, he says that it was calculated on 'the largest
computer in Australia' (not true) and that scientists 'haven't been
able to refute it'.
The latter claim ignores the voluminous criticisms from creationist
scientists alone against Setterfield's idea. Few, if any, creationist
scientists with proper research degrees in science would now support
the theory, and many never supported the idea. In similar vein, Baugh
promotes the 'canopy theory' as 'the creation model' when many
creationist scientists have now abandoned the idea. Baugh makes a lot
of use of words such as 'academically' to back up statements. For
example, he says that 'parents are superior to children - this can be
academically proved' (this is a no nsensical statement).
CSF, as one of the major creationist organisations world-wide, wrote
to Mr. Baugh two years ago asking for documentation regarding such
astonishing claims as chlorophyll being found on a T. rex tooth, alleged
tapes of Neil Armstrong, a NASA experiment showing that eggs do not hatch
outs ide of a magnetic field, and a tomato plant that grew to 30 feet
tall and produced 5,000 tomatoes when grown under light supposedly
simulating pre-Flood conditions. The only reply we received had enclosed
'documentation' which was nothing of the sort.
Baugh is perhaps best known for his claims about "man tracks" and other "out-of-order" fossils from the Paluxy Riverbed of Glen Rose, Texas. Such claims have not stood up to close scientific scrutiny, and in recent years have been largely abandoned even by most creationists. Baugh's Paluxy claims have been among the least credible and most problematic, involving many ambigous and doctored markings promoted as clear human prints. He also has actively promoted several loose carvings as genuine prints, including The Burdick Print , which was featured in the recent NBC TV show. Detailed articles on the Paluxy controversy are found at:
Perhaps the most troublesome of Baugh's claims concerns his credentials. Baugh claims to have earned a Ph.D's in theology as well as advanvced degrees in several fields of science, yet there is no evidence that Baugh has any earned degrees whatsoever. For detailed discussion on this matter, please see the article A Matter of Degree. Although is is possible to do good work without advanced degrees, misrepresenting one's credentials is a serious matter which bears directly on one's basic honesty and integrity.
CSF is committed to the biblical account of Creation, the Fall and
the Flood. We publish Creation magazine, Creation Ex Nihilo Technical
Journal, books and videos, and are involved in running seminars and
speaking around the world to promote the biblical world-view. We
are positive about biblical creation, but we are negative about the
spreading of misinformation in the name of Christ.
CSF is in fellowship with many creationist groups around the world.
We are part of a world-wide network of qualified scientists who are work
ing to understand the evidence in the light of the biblical account. All
the creationist scientists that we have spoken to regard Mr. Baugh's
teaching as a serious embarrassment.
Carl Baugh is a 'loner'. He does not interact with others in the
mainstream creationist movement and so is not getting his ideas challenged
and corrected.
It is sad that Carl Baugh will 'muddy the water' for many Christians
and non-Christians. Some Christians will try to use Baugh's 'evidences'
in witnessing and get 'shot down' by someone who is scientifically
literate. The ones witnessed to will thereafter be wary of all creation
evidences and even more inclined to dismiss Christians as nut cases not
worth listening to.
Also, the Christian is likely to be less apt to witness, even perhaps
tempted to doubt their own faith (wondering what other misinformation they
have gullibly believed from Christian teachers). CSF ministers to strengthen
the faith of Christians and equip them for the work of evangelism and, sadly,
the long term effect of Carl Baugh's efforts will be detrimental to both.
We would much rather be spending all our time positively encouraging
and equipping rather than countering the well-intentioned but misguided
efforts of some like Carl Baugh, but we cannot stand idly by knowing
people are being misled. Truth sets people free, not error!
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