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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Answers Research Journal | 1/2 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Answers_Research_Journal | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T09:14:47.237841+00:00 | kb-cron |
Answers Research Journal (ARJ) is an open-access creation science journal published by Answers in Genesis (AiG), a fundamentalist, Christian apologetics organization. Founded in 2008, the online journal devotes itself to research on "recent Creation and the global Flood within a biblical framework". ARJ's research is not scientifically sound and encourages readers to doubt mainstream scientific evidence. The journal, in its embrace of young Earth creationism (YEC), supports the unscientific idea of a 6,000-year-old Earth, among other claims. The journal refuses to publish research contradicting its belief system. While ARJ undergoes a peer-review process, the journal's reviewers are selected from a pool of people who only support the stances of the journal. Therefore, members of the scientific community are excluded from the review process. Most of the journal's articles are written by a small group of authors, many without academic credentials, and authors are able to publish pseudonymously. ARJ's editorial board is not disclosed. The journal has been met with negative reception by various geologists, biologists, and scientific skeptics. Andrew Snelling, a YEC geologist, serves as the journal's editor-in-chief and as the director of research at AiG.
== History and overview ==
=== Background and beliefs === Answers in Genesis (AiG) is the largest young Earth creationist (YEC) organization in the world. Publications aimed at YEC scholars have existed since the mid-1960s, though these publications typically relied upon organizational membership and fee-based subscriptions. The launch of ARJ in 2008 marked the first free, open-access YEC peer-reviewed journal. ARJ was created because creationists argued biology journals would not publish their research because such journals were biased "against God in favor of Darwin". Most of the journal's articles are written by a small group of authors, many without academic credentials. In 2012, Callie Joubert (credentials unknown) contributed to almost half of the journal's articles that year. Editor-in-chief Snelling, Joubert, and Danny Faulkner (a "young universe astronomer") contributed to 45 percent of the articles in the 2014 volume. ARJ visually resembles real scientific open-access journals such as PLOS Genetics. AiG founder Ken Ham foresees both Christians and non-Christians to read the journal. YEC geologist Andrew Snelling serves as the journal's editor-in-chief and as the director of research at AiG. According to Snelling, the journal strives to "publish the best research possible from a creationist perspective in the sciences, humanities and theology." The journal's objective is not scientific inquiry. Rather, it aims to align their scholars' findings with a literal reading of the Bible. AiG biologist Georgia Purdom contends the journal starts with the viewpoint that the Bible is true whereas other journals will "start with human reasoning as the basis for truth". The journal devotes itself to research on "recent Creation and the global Flood within a biblical framework". Such research is not scientifically sound. ARJ espouses a YEC and literalist interpretation of the Bible, which includes beliefs such as age of the Earth is approximately 6,000 years, the Genesis flood narrative, and the rejection of macroevolution. These notions contradict the findings of the scientific community. Using radioactive dating, scientists have learned the earth is around 4.5 billion years old. ARJ attempts to disprove radioactive dating or demonstrate the entirety of the rock record was the result of the biblical flood. ARJ frequently uses scientific language in an attempt to discredit scientific studies. Primarily, the journal exists to encourage readers to doubt mainstream scientific evidence.
=== Editorial policies === ARJ's editorial board is not disclosed and authors are not identified in the table of contents. Authors are also able to publish under a pseudonym. In order to be published in the journal, one's views must be aligned with the publisher's literalist interpretation of the Book of Genesis. Additionally, anyone working with AiG must sign a statement of faith, including a declaration reading: "No apparent, perceived or claimed evidence in any field, including history and chronology, can be valid if it contradicts the Scriptural record." As such, ARJ refuses to publish scientific works that contradict ideas within fundamentalist Christianity, and the editor-in-chief may reject a paper for any reason (including for violations of AiG’s "statement of faith"). While the journal undergoes a peer-review process, it is subject to extreme publication bias since the journal's reviewers are selected from a pool of individuals who "support the positions taken by the journal". As a result, members of the scientific community are excluded from the review process. The concept of "faith-checking" is also included in the review process. In the words of skeptic Steven Novella, the journal's peer-review process is "worthless" as it "serves only to give a false imprimatur of scientific legitimacy to a religious anti-scientific ideology."