Interview with Duane T. Gish, PhD*

1. You have earned your spurs in the trenches, as a distinguished scientist, debating the controversy surrounding explanations for life on earth.  Describe your academic credentials.

B.S. (Chemistry), U.C.L.A., 1949. Ph.D. (Biochemistry), University of California, Berkeley, 1953.

Research Assistant, 1953-1955; Assistant Professor, 1955-1956; Cornell University Medical College, New York City.

Research Associate, 1956-1960, Virus Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley.

Research Biochemist, 1960-1971, The Upjohn Company, Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Associate Director and Vice-President, the Institute for Creation Research, 1971-present.

Author or co-author of about 35 papers published in scientific journals. Author of about ten books (five in print) and numerous articles on creation verses evolution. Lectures in 49 of 50 states and in about 40 foreign countries.

2. And you are also a believing and practicing Christian? And you believe in the miracle of creation by God as described in Genesis?

I accepted Christ as Savior and Lord at age ten and have always accepted the Biblical account of creation described in the Book of Genesis.

3. Is there any reason that religion and science should not complement one another rather than be mutually exclusive?  How about the suggestion that a Creator God implicitly is the author of all science?

When the Bible is correctly interpreted and the facts of science are correctly interpreted, there are no contradictions between them. What we see of the universe and what we discover in biology and all other fields of science reveal the products of our Creator God. 

4. What moment in your life marked the beginning of your commitment to the Christian faith?  What single event solidified that faith?

My commitment to the Christian faith began when I accepted Christ as Savior. Everything I learned in my studies and research strengthened my confidence that all of life had to have been created by an omnipotent Creator. There has never been any doubt in my mind that the origin of life and of each basic kind of plant and animal demands a supernatural Creator external to and independent of the natural universe.

5. What do you consider the single most persuasive evidence that convinced you that God created the heavens and the earth by His command?

In my scientific studies several things are most impressive in the evidence they give of God’s creation. Concerning the origin of the universe, the Second Law of Thermodynamics establishes the fact of creation. This law says that an isolated system of any kind cannot begin in a state of chaos and disorder and transform itself into a more highly ordered, more highly complex system. The universe could not have created itself. The fossil record reveals gaps so complete and of such immensity that biological evolution can absolutely be excluded, but the evidence is just as predicted based on creation. Finally, the evidence for design and purpose that is so pervasive throughout the universe could not have been created by an evolutionary process with no goal, no purpose, no intelligence, guided solely by blind processes.         

6. What do you see as the single weakest link in the evolutionary hypothesis, from the perspective of a scientist?

The weakest link in the evolutionary process as most widely accepted, the neo-Darwinian mechanism, is its total inability to explain the origin of totally new and complex system. Even a growing number of evolutionists are losing faith in Darwinism. For example, the Swedish biologist and evolutionist, Dr. Soren Lovtrup, has stated that he believes “someday the Darwinian myth will be ranked the greatest deceit in the history of science”. Unfortunately for Dr. Lovtrup, his suggested mechanism is every bit as bad.

7. Recently I read that you were honored for participating in at least 300 creation/evolution debates and were affectionately nicknamed “bulldog” by some of your admirers.   Is it feasible to attack an opponent’s intellectual view while showing Christian respect and regard for the person?

In debates with evolutionists it is very important to show respect to your opponent and maintain a cordial exchange of views, even when, on rare occasions, your opponent is rude and attacks you personally. To do otherwise would weaken your case.

8. How many different individuals have you debated?  Win, lose or draw, do you have any kind of batting average assessing the results of these presentations?

I have debated more than 200 individuals. I have never claimed to have won a debate, but evolutionists themselves have stated in books and articles in scientific journals that they believe creationists have won almost every debate.

9. Within your knowledge, did you ever change the mind of a debating evolutionist or an observing evolutionist in the audience?

The evolutionists that are willing to get on a public platform and debate an informed creationist are almost always so philosophically set in their minds materialistically that no matter how persuasive the evidence presented by the creationist may be, they refuse to consider this as evidence for creation since they believe that no creator exists, therefore, there can be no evidence for creation. No doubt, however, some with more open minds have been impressed by the evidence for creation, although not willing to give up their faith in evolution. We have had many testimonies by those who came to debates as unbelievers, even atheists, and were persuaded and became creationists and many of whom consequently became Christians.

10. What do you remember to be the most difficult moment in all your debates?  Your most positive or rewarding moment?

One of the worst debates I have had was with Ian Plimer, a geologist, at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. He was so bad, people in the audience began to jump up and shout at him. He presented no evidence for evolution whatsoever, but resorted to personal attacks against me. No doubt he won no one to his position. The most rewarding times have been the hundreds of occasions when one or several people in the audience have personally thanked me for either contributing to events that led to their salvation or provided a major turning point in their lives.

11. When all is said and done, as a champion of scientific truth and the miracle of Creation, if you could relive your distinguished career, what, if anything, would you choose to do different?  Would you still articulate these issues in the debate format?

I would not choose to do anything differently. I am convinced God directed me into scientific studies and research to prepare me for the ministry of a creation scientist, and that He eventually directed me to join the staff of the Institute for Creation Research where that training and experience could be most profitably utilized. I would still use every available debate as one means of fulfilling the purpose God had for me.

12. Given your unique experience and perspective, what words would you leave with those 300 audiences if they were all gathered together to hear your counsel?

I would emphasize again the powerful positive evidence for creation and the vital truth this establishes that, just as described in the Bible, God is our Creator, Lord and Master and Father of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

* Dr. Duane T. Gish, distinguished scientist, and champion of the Christian faith, speaks from a half-century of front-line experience exposing evolutionism’s shortfall. A Fellow with the American Institute of Chemists, author of eight books, and champion of the truth about God’s creation miracle, Dr. Gish has earned the respect of those touched by his words.