Creationism
On November 9, 1972, the California State Board of Education held hearings to examine creation science. Leonard Brand, along with Loma Linda University colleague Ariel Roth, made presentations. Brand contended that creationist views are misunderstood in that creationists also believe in evolution of species within the major groups of plants and animals. The evidence for this is very good, he said. They "have no argument with experimental evidence." In conclusion, he stated that students in California schools should be allowed to hear both theories and to make up their own minds.
Leonard Brand has authored two books on the creation-evolution controversy, Faith, Reason and Earth History (1997, 2nd Ed. 2009) and Beginnings (2007). Both are published in English as well as in Spanish, and the former is also published in Portuguese.
Ichnologist Martin Lockley wrote a scathing review of FREH, accusing Brand of unscrupulousness and ignorance. He said the book "shows us, on the one hand, a very curious mix of what appear to be a few genuine attempts, by creationists, to do good science, or at least better science than they have done in the past, and, on the other hand, what appear to be quite ridiculous and extraordinarily naive interpretations of classic geological localities such as the Grand Canyon."
Young Earth Creationists include Leonard Brand among their leaders. They often cite his field and lab research as evidence for the biblical flood. Marcus R. Ross of Liberty University includes Brand's Faith, Reason and Earth's History in a short list of "well-researched YEC writings on geology." These "excellent sources" include Steven Austin, Kurt Wise, Leonard Brand and Andrew A. Snelling. In August, 2008, Brand gave the keynote address at the Seventh Creation Biology Study Groups Conference entitled “Origins Research: A Better Worldview Yields Better Research Questions.”
Brand participates in the creation–evolution controversy less confrontationally than many creationists. Young and Stearley, two Christian geologists who disagree with Brand's young earth views, state that he, along with Ariel Roth and some other recent flood geology advocates "have a much more irenic and moderate tone that provides a welcome contrast to the sarcastic, sometimes disrespectful tone and unwarrantedly dogmatic pronouncements of earlier creationists." In a forward to Brand's book, Faith Reason and Earth History, Kurt Wise applauds the book for breaking free from the "science-bashing spirit" prevalent in creationist literature. Lockley suggests that Brand is "writing for people of faith" and that his more sympathetic approach may have a greater impact in "educat creationists to a scientific way of thinking" than the more confrontational approach of many anti-creationists.
Brand argues for integrity in creationist arguments, against using material that is full of errors and writing "without having the scientific training to match their zeal."
In his PhD dissertation, Thomas McIvor reports that:
Zoologist Leonard Brand used live reptiles and amphibians in his lab to see how footprints were formed in different conditions: dry, damp, and wet sand, and when the animals were walking on sand underwater. The underwater tracks, he concludes, resembles most closely fossil tracks such as found in the Grand Canyon’s Coconino Sandstone. This contradicts the evolutionist assumption of the desert origin of the sandstone, and supports the Flood model. Brand has published these experiments both in GRI’s journal Origins (1978) as well as a standard scientific journal (1979).
Brand distinguishes between scientific data and presuppositions:
The difference between a creationist and an evolutionist isn't a difference in the scientific data, but a difference in philosophy – a difference in the presuppositions...
Brand teaches that his biblical views help him propose questions for research. On page 8 of his book, Beginnings, he states,
In my approach, I retain the scientific method of observation and experimentation, but I also allow study of Scripture to open my eyes to things that I might otherwise overlook and to suggest new hypotheses to test. This approach is not just a theory; some of us have been using it for years with success.
Read more about this topic: Leonard R. Brand