TySixtus

I've never battled it out with a YEC before, but I might be doing so shortly, on another board. Do you guys know off hand the tactics they use to explain away dinosaurs, and skeletal remains that are over 6,000 years old? (Kennewick man, for example.)
I'm pretty sure the stock response is 'Carbon dating isn't accurate' or 'Satan put them there to fool the unfaithful.' But, does anyone know of any biblical verses that could be creatively twisted to come up with an explanation?
Or, is this something they just shut-up about, cause they know they don't have a leg to stand on?

Thanks!

Ty

Kingreaper

they generally say that Behemoth was a dinosaur and so they must be alive recently

SEF

For behemoth see Job 40:15. The leviathan appears in the next chapter.

Most reputable scholars (and bibles) regard behemoth as a transliteration of the Egyptian for hippopotamus "ehe mau". The description of food and habits also match well. Similarly the leviathan is regarded as a crocodile. You won't be dealing with reputable or scholarly people though.

Some of them believe the paluxy footprints weren't a fraud.

Some of them believe dinosaurs were killed in the flood.

Some of them believe dinosaurs were saved by Noah (possibly as juveniles or eggs if they think about it at all) only to be killed later.

The YECs don't have a consistent story because the biblical writers never even knew about dinosaurs so they didn't really say anything about them. So each YEC makes up their own version if challenged on the issue without first being prompted on what to say by another YEC. Oddly enough though, you are sort of doing the same thing by asking us here! I think you should wait and see what they say for themselves and insist on references (to bible or real research) and always check those out since they have a tendency to parrot other people/sources inaccurately and even deliberately dishonestly quote mine (take one or more pieces out of context to pretend they say something else).

TySixtus

You're right about the whole 'asking for attack patterns' thing. I was just wondering if there was a fall back line that they always used- kind of like using verses to prove god hates homos, or the verse in the Gen 11 that talks about the tower of babel, and using it to answer why we all speak differently. Or, any number of those verses used to condone the trinity. But thanks for your input!

But, perhaps it's better that there isn't a standard line of reasoning they use (the Leviathain and Behemoth lines are good, I didn't think of those), thereby making them think critically for themselves. And, as you know, a fundy that thinks for themself is an oxymoron.

Ty

Al Fresco

For more on the Behemoth/dinosaur connection, see here.

secular buddhist

When I was young and in junior high school, the pastor of our church claimed that dinosaur fossils were the bones of the Giants mentioned in Genesis.

My, how creation science continues to advance!

skepticalbip

tysixtus,
If you are going to enter that fray, I would suggest you only do it for the fun of it... You are not going to get any rational argument and they will counter any "evidence" from either science or biblical contridictions with nonsenseical rationalizations and justifications. You will convince no one with rational argument.

Look at it is a safari into the deep dark minds of those that reject enlightenment and it can be an enjoyable journey. It does get tiresome though.

ten to the eleventh

Peruse talkorigins for most rebuttals. Also, remember that Carbon-14 dating is not used on dinosaur bones (see talkorigins, again). Take the previous advice: do not plan to make any progress or change any minds, just do it for the entertainment/educational value of it.