Catastrophism

Catastrophism is a doctrine originally proposed by French zoologist Georges Cuvier (1769–1832) in 1810 to explain large geological and biological changes in the earth's history. The discovery of extinct animal and plant species under a coarse superficial deposit (diluvium) lead English geologist William Buckland (1784–1856) and others to suggest that this was caused by the biblical flood, which was then followed by the divine recreation of the animal and plant species living today (creationism). Scottish geologist Charles Lyell (1797–1875) rejected catastrophism and suggested that the same geological forces apparent today had always been at work on the earth, gradually changing the earth's surface and its biological species (gradualism). Today diluvium is attributed to glacial drift.

See also CREATIONISM; GRADUALISM

ARN O. GYLDENHOLM