PureInsight | January 3, 2001
Analysis and conclusions
There is, however, one problem that Creationism must contend with. But that problem at least may have a satisfactory answer. It involves the presence of foot and sandal prints - and, for that matter, the prints of extinct animals - found in the fossil record. Dr. John D. Morris of the Institute for Creation Research, in San Diego, noted that in the case of the mantracks and dinosaur tracks found on the Paluxy river, there is a layer of sedimentary rock 8,500 feet in thickness underlying these Cretaceous formations. Now according to the Creationist model, this must all have been deposited during the Flood. The problem is, as Morris put it, 'How could man and dinosaur witness such massive deposition at the beginning stages of the Flood and survive long enough to leave their prints so high up in the geologic column?'
The answer may lie in an uplift of pre-Cambrian rock located just to the southwest of Glen Rose. The uplift shows only small traces of the deposits which covered the Paluxy area, which means it could have served as a refuge for men and animals during the first part of the Flood. The waters appear to have retreated momentarily, and the men and dinosaurs climbed down from their summit, to cautiously walk across the mud-filled Paluxy region, probably in search of food. It is significant that all the Paluxy man prints are clear impressions of the whole foot, indicating that the stride of their makers had been slow and deliberate, and not running, as the impressions then would have been deep prints of the forefoot only. The tracks also go off in different directions, as if the survivors had split their company to search over more ground. But just moments after the impressions were made, the Flood waters must have returned, sweeping men and creatures away, and quickly burying their tracks by new deposits - deposits which aided in the perfect preservation of the prints to this day.
This particular scenario of waters retreating and returning may not only have applied to Paluxy, but to the making of the other fossil foot and shoe prints as well. Flood geologists note many examples in various sedimentary rocks of evidence for tidal water action. Some coal seams, for example, contain numerous layers of limestone alternating with carbonized vegetable matter (coal). These, the geologists say, were created by the 'rocking' motion of a large body of water, that carried the remains of marine organisms at one end and land life on the other, and dropped portions of its two different loads with each surge, as it moved back and forth. Sometimes in these layers, coal appears directly on coal, or limestone on limestone, without the alternate material between - indicating a complete retreat of the waters temporarily, and then their dramatic return and deposition. Noteworthy is the fact that in the book of Genesis, Noah described the Flood waters as 'prevailing upon the earth.' In the Hebrew, the word used for 'prevail' has the connotation, 'a movement to and fro.'
Summarizing now the various models we have discussed, we find that:
1. The Uniformitarian-evolution-linear model is totally inadequate to explain the presence of human remains in the geologic record, as these remains are in direct contradiction to the model's premise of slow, progressive development from simple, primitive beginnings.
2. The Extraterrestrialist model is dependent upon the unproven existence of aliens from outer space, and rests on the false assumption that man himself could not have produced the out-of-place artifacts - even though they are in fact accompanied by human skeletal remains and imprints.
3. The Catastrophic evolution model presupposes the existence of a highly improbable number of destroyed civilizations to explain the buried objects, and cannot answer the basic question of the origins of man by evolution, since his remains are found as far back as the earliest fossil layer.
4. The Creation-Flood model offers a workable solution to the mystery of out-of-place fossil relics, which is also consistent with observable geologic phenomena based on a catastrophic premise. The model also explains similarities and parallels between out-of-place finds in diverse layers, which no other model can do.
Based on these findings, then, we must conclude that the Creationist model is superior to all other models in supplying answers to the riddle of human remains and artifacts in the geologic record. These 'strange relics from the depths of the earth,' in fact, testify to the validity of the Creation-Flood model, and tend to prove wrong the major concepts of all other models so far proposed.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
Allen, E.A. 'Footmarks in Kentucky' American Antiquarian (1885) vol. 7.
American Antiquarian (1885) vol. 7, 364-365.
Bergier, Jacques Extraterrestrial Visitations From Prehistoric Times to the Present New York: New American Library, 1974.
Berlitz, Charles Mysteries From Forgotten Worlds New York: Dell Publishing, 1972.
Bible Science Newsletter July, 1970, p. 2.
Binder,Otto O. Unsolved Mysteries of the Past New York: Tower Publications, 1970.
Braidwood, Robert J. Prehistoric Man New York: William Morrow and Co., 1967.
Brandon, Jim Weird America: A Guide to Places of Mystery in the United States New York: E.P. Dutton, 1978.
Browne, J.B. 'Singular Impression in Marble' American Journal of Science vol. 1, no. 19, p. 361, 1831.
Chapman, Glen W. 'Archaeological Findings of Pre-Flood Cultures in America' Bible Science Newsletter August-September, 1969.
Chardin, Pierre Teilhard de The Appearance of Man New York: Harper and Row, 1965.
Charroux, Robert Forgotten Worlds New York: Walker and Co., 1973.
Charroux, Robert One Hundred Thousand Years of Man's Unknown History New York: Berkeley Publishing, 1971.
Corliss, William R. Ancient Man: A Handbook of Puzzling Artifacts Glen Arm, Md.: The Sourcebook Project, 1978.
Corliss, William R. Strange Artifacts, 2 vols. Glen Arm, Md.: The Sourcebook Project, 1976.
Donelly, Ignatius Ragnarok: The Age of Fire and Gravel, rev. ed. New York: Steiner Books, 1976.
Edwards, Frank Strange World Secauscus, N.J.: Lyle Sturat, 1974.
Fange, Erich A. Von 'Time Upside Down' Creation Research Quarterly June, 1974.
Flint, Earl 'Nicaragua Footprints' American Antiquarian (1889) vol. 11, 306-311.
Fort, Charles The Book of the Damned New York: Ace, 1941.
Itao, Jude Studies of the Stratigraphy and Dating of Geologic Anomalies in North America and Europe Unpublished, 1975.
Keel, John A. Our Haunted Planet New York: Fawcett Publications, 1971.
Kolosimo, Peter Not of This World New York: Bantam Books, 1973.
Landsburg, Alan and Sally In Search of Ancient Mysteries New York: Bantam Books, 1974.
Le Conte, Joseph 'Carson Footprints' Nature May 31, 1883, 101-102.
Marsh, O.E. 'On the Supposed Human Foot Prints Recently Found in Nevada' American Journal of Science (1883) vol. 3, no. 26, 139-140.
Mooney, Richard E. Colony Earth Greenwich, Conn.: Fawcett Publications, 1974.
Nelson, Byron C. The Deluge Story in Stone Minneapolis: Augsburg Press, 1962.
Noorbergen, Rene (researched for by J.B. Jochmans) Secrets of the Lost Races New York: Bobbs: Merrill, 1977.
Norman, Eric Gods, Demons and UFO's New York: Lancer Books, 1970.
Pauwels, Louis The Eternal Man New York: Avon Books, 1972.
Pauwels, Louis Impossible Possibilities New York: Stein and Day, 1971.
Pierce, Josiah American Antiquities and Discoveries in the West: 1835.
Rehwinkel, A.M. The Flood St. Louis: Concordia Publishing, 1957.
Sanderson, Ivan T. Investigating the Unexplained Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentise-Hall, 1972.
Silverberg, Robert Man Before Adam Philadelphia: Macrae Smith Co., 1964.
Steiger, Brad Mysteries of Time and Space Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentise-Hall, 1974.
Tomas, Andrew On the Stones of Endless Worlds New York: G.P. Putman's Sons, 1976.
Tomas, Andrew We Are Not the First New York: Bantam Books, 1973.
