Creation Superconference!

Sometimes I wonder what the mailman thinks of me. One day he's delivering the new issue of Free Inquiry, the next he's leaving something from Creation Ministries International.

The latest missive from CMI contains a lengthy pamphlet advertising their forthcoming Creation Superconference. Of course, having been to the Creation Megaconference at Liberty University back in 2005 (as described in the first section of the BECB), a Creation Superconference doesn't seem so impressive. Still, just browsing through the pamphlet made me feel that old familiar itch. Is it worth a visit? After all, the front page says it's intended for both families and singles. If I went, maybe I would meet a nice Jewish girl.

The location is Ridgecrest, North Carolina. A minute with Google Maps tells me that;s roughly 340 miles from my digs in Virginia, meaning it would just be my third longest drive to a creationist gathering. They have managed to stretch it out the conference to five days, from August 1 -- August 5 (Wednesday through Sunday), though the first and last are just half days. While this is most definitely a YEC conference, it is not run by Answers in Genesis. Creation Ministries International is a different outfit altogether.

It's hard to avoid the feeling this little show is being put on by the creationist B-Team. Whereas the Megaconference (also five days) featured 41 talks from 30 speakers (not counting devotionals), the Superconference features a mere 19 talks from 13 speakers. Hardly worth getting out of bed.

How about the talks themselves? Anything new? Here are the first day's talks:

• Mythbusting: Revisiting the icons of evolution shows 'it's not about sceince!' (single quotes in original).
• The Christian Roots of Science: How modern science flourished under a Christian only worldview.
• Radioactive Dating and a Young Earth: How nuclear physics supports the Bible.
• Biblical Geology 101: Reconciling geological observations with Scripture.

It would seem the answer to my question is no.

But what's this? On the second day we have “Understanding the Law of Decay: Helping to bulletproof the longstanding entropy argument.” Ye olde thermodynamics argument! Gosh, maybe they have some really new twist on the argument, but somehow I doubt it. Still, I suspect it will still be more impressive than Granville Sewell's argument.

There are a couple of geology excursions on the agenda. And plenty of musical concerts. Looks like Team Xtreme will be on hand. They break things for Jesus.

And then there's the big chess challenge. Seriously! Prolific YEC author Jonathan Sarfati is the former chess champion of New Zealand. Granted, New Zealand is hardly a chess powerhouse, but no small feat nonetheless. Apparently he will be playing ten people blindfolded.

Sounds like a good time all around, but somehow I think I will manage to stay home. Having written the book, I feel like the period of my life where I would go to a lot of trouble for a creationist conference has past.