The tree of life; a creationist Christmas card

A brief meditation on trees.

- Trees have been an important symbol for human beings as long as far back as history can tell us. It seems that all worldviews try to usurp the image for themselves, and to use it in a way that conforms to their own beliefs. [1.]

- In our day the evolutionary tree of life has become a major worldview symbol; as it supposedly represents a snapshot of the history of the planet. The idea of the evolutionary tree has come under a lot of criticism in recent years by evolutionists themselves, and would appear to be on the way out. (One hears of new models that use the imagery of shrubs and the like.)

- The biblical idea is that all of life is related by the person of God and by the reality of His creation. While the materialist presents us with evolution (M2M) as what relates all of life, with Christianity it's the person and action of God. What connects all things is the fact the world was created by God; that all things were created; that in the beginning all things bore the imprint of their creator. (After the Fall this imprint is still there, but has been corrupted to some extent.)

- Darwin took the idea of a tree of life from the bible, and twisted it around to suit his own purposes. In my opinion it's time we reclaimed it. The only reason we find an abundance of living organisms on earth is because the Creator planted them here. (Man too being a creature planted here by God.) At the root of all living things is God, and His work of creation. (The 'flowering' of the original creation has its foundation in that creation as well; i.e. was inherent within the original design.)

- Life can only come from an intelligent source. Life isn't rooted in matter, plus time plus chance; but in the person of the triune God. At the bottom of all things isn't mindless matter, but the infinite mind of God. Darwin had it wrong; just as all the evolutionists from Democritus to Dawkins have had it wrong. The life forms we see all around us don't give us an idea of what matter is like, but of what God is like. It's a mistake to abstract life and turn it into an entity on its own, but 'life' can be seen as a symbol for God. (Just one of many that we find in the bible.)

Notes;
1. Tree of life;
'The concept of a tree of life as a many-branched tree illustrating the idea that all life on earth is related has been used in science, religion, philosophy, mythology, and other areas. A tree of life is variously,
a. a motif in various world theologies, mythologies, and philosophies;
b. a mystical concept alluding to the interconnectedness of all life on our planet;
c. a metaphor for common descent in the evolutionary sense. - Wiki
2. If the flood of Genesis was truly a worldwide event (as I believe it was) then we might expect most or all of the trees that stood before the Flood were swept away in the cataclysm. This being the case we can understand how people in the post-flood era might have been supremely impressed by the newly growing forests they saw springing up around them. (I suppose we can even understand how some of them might have come to worship these trees; that were reknitting and restitching the world together again.)