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The problem is not with science but with the notion of scriptural inerrancy. God created the universe. God created the mechanisms of how the universe developed over unimaginably long periods of time. If one sees the story of Adam and Eve as a figurative explanation of how mankind distanced itself from God, then there is no conflict between science and faith.
However, if we read the story of Adam and Eve as literal, all kinds of problems arise. Cain kills Abel, then skedaddles into the land of Nod where he meets his wife and they build a city. Where did she come from? Obviously, Cain's wife is not his sister or he would have known her as part of his family. And if they built a city, where did all its inhabitants come from? Not from the loins of Eve.
But if the creation story of Genesis is figurative, then there's no conflict between science and faith. Viewed through that lens, the creation narrative works pretty well, beginning with "Let there be light," describing the Big Bang, the formation of the earth, the sea, the growth of vegetation, and animals, culminating in the advent of man.
In short, DNA is scientific fact and it doesn't diminish God's glory one bit.
But you're touching on the chief problem with the belief in an inerrant Bible. Literalism requires that every single verse be precisely true. That's not faith. It's the precise opposite of faith. Instead, it's the requirement of proof.
This is why literalists must defend every syllable of the Bible, even the creation story, tooth and nail. Because if you pull a single thread out of the tapestry, their entire system of belief falls apart. Meanwhile, those who can read Genesis in context can see science as a verification of God's miraculous creation, not a threat to it.
This is precisely the way I see it. I do not have to discard my faith in God to believe in scientific facts, nor do I have any need to believe that the bible is the infallible (or even the only) words of God.
John 21:25 25 Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.
I've been a Christian since a young child and was baptized at 31 and I believe in the bible and the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
My brother recently has questioned creation of Adam and eve and he thinks they came from a group of neandrathals that have DNA that is supposedly 99% related to human DNA.
What say you?
It takes faith to believe in either scenario.
I know those in the neanderthal wing poo-poo that sentiment because they throw a bunch of numbers and human wisdom at the issue - but no one was there. No one saw it occur. No one has seen a neanderthal turn into a human.
In the end - there is no first hand human testimony - except Adam who isn't here. You have to believe the testimony or science of someone else.
There’s no way to harmonize science with conservative Christianity.
Conservative Christianity says that there was no death until about 6,000 to 10,000 years ago. The fossil record shows otherwise: death has been around as long as life has been around (about 2 billion years).
Sensible, intelligent, educated Christians understand that Genesis is allegorical and that evolution explains how we came to be members of the hominid family.
I know those in the neanderthal wing poo-poo that sentiment because they throw a bunch of numbers and human wisdom at the issue - but no one was there. No one saw it occur. No one has seen a neanderthal turn into a human.
In the end - there is no first hand human testimony - except Adam who isn't here. You have to believe the testimony or science of someone else.
Neanderthals WERE human. They are a branch of humanity that died out, although some obviously interbred with modern humans, because the DNA shows up in some.
How on earth do you think they weren't human? They hunted, they cooked, they made pottery and drums, they painted the walls of their caves, for God's sake.
Ever send flowers when someone died? The first people to bury their dead with flowers were Neanderthals, probably to send medicine with the dead to the next world.
Not sure how an adult living in this day and age doesn't know this.
I've been a Christian since a young child and was baptized at 31 and I believe in the bible and the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
My brother recently has questioned creation of Adam and eve and he thinks they came from a group of neandrathals that have DNA that is supposedly 99% related to human DNA.
Neanderthals WERE human. They are a branch of humanity that died out, although some obviously interbred with modern humans, because the DNA shows up in some.
How on earth do you think they weren't human? They hunted, they cooked, they made pottery and drums, they painted the walls of their caves, for God's sake.
Ever send flowers when someone died? The first people to bury their dead with flowers were Neanderthals, probably to send medicine with the dead to the next world.
Not sure how an adult living in this day and age doesn't know this.
Sadly, fundamentalists are not interested in what is true.
Sadly, fundamentalists are not interested in what is true.
Ironically, they too will die out.
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This is precisely the way I see it. I do not have to discard my faith in God to believe in scientific facts, nor do I have any need to believe that the bible is the infallible (or even the only) words of God. 
