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The Man of Scorn By Jeff Reich The Man of Scorn f I asked you where the world’s largest waterfall is located, how would you reply? Would it be Inga or Kisangani Falls, both located in the Congo, or Niagara Falls, or Imaybe Victoria Falls located on the Zambezi River in Zimbabwe? Well, those are some great answers. But would you believe it is located in central Washington State in America? “What?” you might exclaim. But it is true. The only problem is, this falls has not had water running over it for centuries; thus the reason for its name — Dry Falls. Here is what Wikipedia tells us: As stated, it is around 400 feet high which at one point was estimated to “Dry Falls is a 3.5 mile long scalloped and over 3 miles long, which makes it have been up to 1,000 feet deep! More precipice in central Washington on the almost fi ve times the width of Niagara than 2,000 square miles of central opposite side of the Upper Grand Cou- Falls and over twice as high. What must Washington State were scrubbed bare, lee from the Columbia River, and at the the falls have looked like with its full forming what is called “the scablands.” head of the Lower Grand Coulee. At fi ve volume of water thundering over it? It And nearly 1,000 square miles of the times the width of Niagara, Dry Falls would have shaken the ground for miles scablands contain gravel deposits from is thought to be the greatest known around. Evidence shows that its current the eroded basalt.1 But how could such waterfall that ever existed. According to hurdled boulders the size of houses a falls even exist, being located in the the current geological model, cata- over the precipice. arid dry lands of central Washington strophic fl ooding channeled water at 65 What is equally impressive is how State? Where did the water come from, miles per hour through the Upper Grand this massive fl ow of water affected the and where did it go? What is the history Coulee and over this 400-foot (120 landscape downstream. It is calculated dealing with the geological research of meter) rock face at the end of the last that 3,000 square miles were “swept” this area? And who is this mysterious ice age.” This was no normal waterfall. by the water roaring over Dry Falls, “man of scorn”? 4 Tax-deductible receipts are issued monthly • LAYMEN MINISTRIES Spring 2015 from the surrounding landscape with A Professor of Geology streamlined features as if they were His name was J. Harlen Bretz. He carved by massive torrents of water. Dry launched his career as a high school Falls, he reasoned, had no doubt once biology teacher in Seattle, Washington, been a gigantic waterfall, due to the where he began studying the glacial evidences of plunge pools, undercut- geology of the Puget Sound area. He ting, and cataract retreat at the base of continued his studies at the University the falls. of Chicago, earning his Ph.D. in geology The 2,000 square miles of Eastern in 1913. He then became an assistant Washington State that were scrubbed professor of geology, fi rst at the Univer- bare, forming the Channeled Scablands, sity of Washington and then at the Uni- could have only occurred by a massive versity of Chicago. So Washington State amount of rapidly moving water. Nearly was a place he was familiar with.2 1,000 square miles of the scablands In the summer of 1922, and then for contain gravel deposits from the eroded the next seven years, Bretz conducted basalt. Later calculations indicated that fi eld research of the Columbia River it all most likely happened within 30 Plateau with the help of a few advanced days.5 Quincy Basin, in the western part geology students.3 He was especially of the scablands, has huge amounts of interested in the barren areas of the gravel — the gravel covers 500 square central Washington area near the Grand miles, at a depth of at least 125 feet, Coulee. He saw that this whole area was all made from basalt rock. It has been channeled, meaning there were obvious estimated that at its peak, water from directional lines carved into the rock the catastrophic fl ood fl owed at a rate and desert which show that at one time greater than the combined fl ow of all a massive amount of water moved over the rivers of the world today. This vol- the whole area. In our day these are eas- ume of water is almost unimaginable. ily seen by satellite images. Bretz coined And for water to pulverize rock as hard the name “Channeled Scablands,” by as basalt, it had to reach speeds of over When Bretz made which they are known today. 60 miles per hour to create cavitation, In 1923 he wrote a paper that was the process by which small bubbles his findings public, presented to the Geological Society of created by the force of the water literally America that described what he saw on chisel away solid rock! he was openly and his various fi eld trips. He deliberately vigorously ridiculed took special care not to present any Met with Scorn sort of explanation or interpretation for As far as I know, Professor Bretz did for presenting his observations. He did note, however, not have a Creationist agenda, nor was that the observed channel erosion he trying to prove the Flood story of such an absurd required large non-specifi ed quantities the Bible. He simply was following the of water.4 As he continued to examine “scientifi c method” as a scientist, and notion that a super all the evidence, he became more and came to his conclusions which have more convinced that the Grand Coulee been validated today. When Bretz made flood created the and the scablands were carved out by a his fi ndings public, he was openly and scablands or carved gigantic, catastrophic fl ood. Bretz took vigorously ridiculed for presenting such note of the very steep sides of the chan- an absurd notion that a super fl ood the coulee and the nels and their relatively straight path- created the scablands or carved the ways as well as the presence of very coulee and the surrounding areas. The surrounding areas. large gravel bars deposited by water. thought of the day was that this region He saw huge islands of land protruding had obviously been carved out, as they LAYMEN MINISTRIES Summer 2015 • Tax-deductible receipts are issued monthly 5 extrapolated, over millions of years by This became known later as the infa- really approaching the evidence without uniformitarian processes. For them, if mous 1927 “scabland debate.”7 The a bias? When research is carried out, Bretz’s theory were true, it would under- next week Bretz wrote to a friend and are they looking through rose-colored mine the very foundation of Uniformi- said, “They were all loaded for me, and glasses? As the evidence is examined, tarianism. after letting me talk for two hours, they are they selectively choosing to pre- Charles Lyell, who is considered to opened fire.” serve and protect their worldview? I be the father of Uniformitarianism, pro- think the answer is obvious, and this moted the idea that the steady accumu- Scientific METHOD or WorldView? case with J. Harlen Bretz proves the lation of minute changes over enor- As mentioned earlier, Professor Bretz point very well. mously long spans of time created the used the “scientific method” to come to While our team was filming for the geological formations we see today. This his conclusions. As a scientist, he gath- Days of Noah Project I had the oppor- advances the idea that all strata was ered the evidence, evaluated it, and tunity to talk to several geologists. We formed over millions of years through a then came to a hypothesis. He had no also spent weeks in the Grand Canyon sedimentary process, and that erosion, agenda other than that of trying to find where I had the chance to read the as seen in canyons, was carved out by the truth. But we need to ask ourselves, propaganda plaques that explain the small localized floods also over very why were his colleagues so against his geological formations from an evolution- long periods of time. Uniformitarianism hypothesis? Why did so many of them ary worldview. What I found was that is the backbone of evolutionary thought ridicule and attack him? As scientists, behind the scenes all these leading and has been a powerful tool used to why were they not willing to look over geologists strongly disagree with each expunge God and the Biblical Flood the evidence to see if the hypothesis other over the formation of the Grand from scientific thought. was sound? The answer is obvious: Canyon as well as other geological Just as anticipated, the general they were predisposed to their opin- formations. Yet there is one thing they outcry against any hint of a catastrophic ions because they needed to preserve hold in common, and that is to make flood model was very loud. There was and protect their worldview. Any, and I sure that they preserve their worldview a determination to publicly discredit repeat, any hypothesis that even slightly and try to stop a Christian worldview and humiliate Bretz. He was asked to indicated that a catastrophic flood cre- that defends the universal Biblical Flood present his ideas in public forum to the ated these geologic formations could story or interjects God into anything to Geological Society of Washington.
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