Ken Ham
| Kenneth Ham | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 20 1951  |
| Residence |  |
| Occupation | Evangelist, broadcaster |
| Religious stance | Baptist, Young Earth creationist |
| Spouse | Mally Ham |
Kenneth Alfred Ham (born October 20, 1951) is the president of Answers in Genesis USA and Joint CEO of Answers in Genesis International. A vocal advocate for a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis, his cross-country speaking tours and many books make him one of the better known young-Earth creationists.
Biography
Ham was born in Queensland, Australia but moved to the United States of America in 1987. He has a bachelor's degree in applied science (with an emphasis on environmental biology) from the Queensland Institute of Technology and also holds a Diploma of Education from the University of Queensland.[1] He is married to Marilyn ("Mally"), whom he describes as a "very, very submissive, supportive wife" who has "always supported me five million percent." The couple have five children.[2] Two are married, and two live with them in Cincinnati. Ham has four grandchildren.
In 1979, Ham co-founded what was to be later known as the Creation Science Foundation (CSF) in Queensland, Australia with John Mackay.[3] [4] Controversy arose when Mackay "was excommunicated in the 1980s after making allegations of witchcraft and necrophilia against a fellow member of the ministry."[5]
Between 1987 and 1993, Ham worked for the Institute for Creation Research (ICR)[6], one of the oldest[7] American Creationist organizations, and a leading young-Earth organisation[8]. In 1994, with the assistance of what is now Creation Ministries International (Australia) he set up Answers in Genesis, a Christian ministry which specialises in Young Earth Creationism, and is primarily devoted to convincing people that the initial chapters in Genesis should be taken as literally true and historically accurate.
He hosts an internet and radio program called Answers…with Ken Ham. It is broadcast daily on over one thousand radio stations worldwide.[9] Each ninety second broadcast features commentary by Ham and presents pro-creationist opinions expressed on the Answers in Genesis website.
In 2006, Ham received $178,991 from AiG.[10]
Beliefs
As a young Earth creationist, Ham believes that the entire universe was created about 6,000 years ago and that Noah's flood occurred about 4,500 years ago. Although rejecting Darwin's Theory of Evolution and its modern variations, Ham does accept that natural selection can give rise to a number of species from an original population, provided that all of these species are of the same kind (a term borrowed from the English translation of Genesis 1:11 and elsewhere). He believes this explains how a small number of animals carried on Noah's ark could produce the biological diversity. Ham also believes that dinosaurs co-existed with modern humans and that a 6,000 year old Earth is confirmed by his interpretation of a cave painting that resembles a brachiosaur.[11]
AiG believes that evolution is the “source” of many kinds of evil, and that rejection of God’s Word as absolute authority and acceptance of evolutionary ideas will affect the way people think and act—and fuel social ills. [12]
Controversy and criticism
His arguments have not gained acceptance with most scientific organizations. In particular, No Answers in Genesis lists specific criticisms of Ham's teachings on science[13].
Advocates of creationism, such as Ham, have been criticized for presenting children with a false dichotomy between God and evolution. This was a prominent statement in the 2005 opinion in Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District.[14]
Since 1989 Ham has frequently made the comment, "Were you there?" regarding the origins of life and evolution.[15] The implication being that knowledge of unwitnessed events is inferential and not observational. Responses to this have been made by scientific database Talk.origins, which responds that the evidence for evolution "was there".[16]
Ham's beliefs and tactics have also been criticized by other Christians. Answers in Creation, an Old Earth creationist website, has called Ham willfully ignorant of evidence for an old earth and said he "deliberately misleads" his audiences on matters of both science and theology.[17] Astronomer Hugh Ross, a progressive creationist, has publicly debated Ham on the age of the Earth and the compatibility of an old Earth with the Bible,[18] as well as other Answers In Genesis staff.[19]
These and other criticisms are often addressed in articles posted on the Answers website.[20]
In June 2007 Creation Ministries International filed a lawsuit in Queensland's Supreme Court against Ham and Answers in Genesis seeking damages and accusing him of deceptive conduct in his dealings with the Australian organisation. Members of the ministry were "concern[ed] over Mr Ham's domination of the ministries, the amount of money being spent on his fellow executives and a shift away from delivering the creationist message to raising donations."[5]
Creation Museum
On May 28, 2007, Answers in Genesis opened its 60,000 square foot Creation Museum in Petersburg, KY. The museum features sophisticated animatronic dinosaurs alongside humans and depicts young earth creationist ideas.[21]
Education
- Bachelors of Science in Applied Science from Queensland Institute of Technology in Australia[1]
- Diploma of education from the University of Queensland in Australia[1]
Honorary degrees
- Doctor of Literature, (Honorary degree) 1993, from Liberty University.
- Doctor of Divinity, (Honorary degree) 1997, from Temple Baptist College
- Doctor of Letters, (Honorary degree) 2004, from Liberty University[22]
Bibliography
- A is for Adam (1995, ISBN 0-89051-207-8) (Children's book)
- Creation Evangelism for the New Millennium, retitled Why Won't They Listen, ISBN 0-89051-378-3 (Online chapters)
- Did Adam Have a Belly Button?
- Did Eve Really Have an Extra Rib?
- D is for Dinosaur (1991, ISBN 0-89051-193-4) (Children's book)
- Dinosaurs of Eden (2000, ISBN 0-89051-340-6) (Children's book)
- The Great Dinosaur Mystery Solved! A Biblical View of These Amazing Creatures
- One Blood—the Biblical Answer to Racism (with Don Batten and Carl Wieland, 1999, ISBN 0-89051-276-0)
- Refuting Evolution by Jonathan Sarfati (Ham wrote the foreword) (1999, ISBN 0-89051-258-2)
- The Lie: Evolution Master Books. (July 1987) (ISBN 0-89051-158-6)
- The Pilgrim's Progress (Foreword)
- The Revised & Expanded Answers Book (ed. Don Batten; co-authors Jonathan Sarfati and Carl Wieland)[23]
- Walking through Shadows—Finding Hope in a World of Pain (with Carl Wieland, 2002, ISBN 0-89051-381-3)
- Welcome to Life Welcome to Life After Eden (2003) (Foreword)
- What Really Happened to the Dinosaurs? (with John Morris)
References
- ^ a b c http://www.answersingenesis.org/home/area/about/ham.asp
- ^ Interview with Ken Ham by Ron Cooper[1]
- ^ "Ken was to eventually call the “Creation Science Foundation” (cofounded by John Mackay)." [2]
- ^ "... where schoolteachers Ken Ham and John Mackay had started ministering to churches... under the name Creation Science Educational Media Services... which became Creation Science Foundation Ltd (CSF) in 1980..." [3]
- ^ a b McKenna, Michael. "Biblical battle of creation groups", The Australian, June 04, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-07-17.
- ^ Ham, Kenneth. Choosing A Christian College. Institute for Creation Research.
- ^ http://www.asa3.org/ASA/resources/CMBergman.html
- ^ http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/organizations/#creation
- ^ Radio listing from Answers in Genesis[4]
- ^ Charity Navigator Rating. Charity Navigator. Retrieved on 2007-09-01.
- ^ Stephanie Simon, Their Own Version of a Big Bang LA Times February 11, 2006 [5]
- ^ (See The evolution connection.)
- ^ http://home.austarnet.com.au/stear/answers_in_genesis2.htm
- ^ Kitzmiller v. Dover decision[6]
- ^ Kenneth Ham, Were You There?[7]
- ^ "Claim CA221: Were you there?", talk.origins, May 2004. Retrieved on 2007-07-17.
- ^ Greg Neyman. Ham Can't Tell the Simple Truth!. Answers in Creation. Sept. 12, 2005
- ^ Ham and Lisle vs. Ross and Kaiser [8]
- ^ Lisle vs. Ross debate [9]
- ^ Answers in Genesis "Get Answers" section [10]
- ^ [11]
- ^ [12]
- ^ [13]
External links
Official and Pro-Ham
- Answers in Genesis– Official site
- Answers With Ken Ham - Daily radio program and archives of past shows Answers Archive
- Ken Ham– Personal blog
- Creation Museum website
Critical of Ham
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