I visited the Creation Museum last week as part of a daylong editorial research trip in Northern Kentucky. There’s a lot to think about in a museum that deals with such weighty subject matter as the origins of human existence and the search for absolute truth; at the end of the visit, though, two main thoughts filled my mind.
First, I was very pleasantly surprised by the scope and quality of this museum. Some museums that are closely tied to faith are also seen as haphazard or amateur, but the display design and educational content in this museum stand up to other major natural history museums in the U.S. And the museum planners didn’t skimp on their vision — this $27 million facility features a planetarium, a theater, two cafes and a number of impressive dioramas and animatronic exhibits. Throughout the exhibits, the museum makes a clear, cogent case for creationism, dealing with questions about evolution, the fossil record, Noah’s flood and dinosaurs, with displays that will please both casual visitors and those seeking scientific answers. The idea perpetuated by some critics that this museum is but a naive, superstitious Christian attraction is simply untrue.
The quality of the museum and its exhibits led to my second main thought as I left: If this facility were dinky, cheap, unscientific or poorly put together, it would be very easy to write it off and ignore the message of its content. But because the exhibits are thorough, compelling and well-presented, they engender a real dialogue about the origins of our universe. The Creation Museum has many enthusiastic fans — and also plenty of outspoken critics — but the fact that it is a controversial attraction doesn’t diminish the importantece of its subject matter. If nothing else, the greatest success of this place may be that it forces visitors to deal with very important questions about human life, God and the search for eternal meaning. A visit to this museum makes honest thinkers seriously consider what they believe, and why they believe it.
A room-sized exhbit depicts the construction of Noah’s ark.
This exhibit presents numerous natural phenomenon that seem to defy evolutionary theory.
The museum takes a firm (and controversial) stand about the source of truth and morality in the world.
