Upright Petrified Tree in the Burnham Badlands, New Mexico

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The Burnham Badlands, and the broader San Juan Basin area in New Mexico, are part of a region rich with fossils, including upright petrified trees, often referred to as "polystrate" fossils. The sedimentary rock layers in this area belong primarily to the Kirtland and Fruitland Formations (Late Cretaceous Period) and the Nacimiento Formation (Paleocene Epoch). This places the geological age of the surrounding sediments in the range of approximately 75 to 50 million years ago.

The upright petrified trees within these formations are preserved as fossils spanning multiple layers of rock strata. They represent ancient forests that grew in a swampy, coastal plain environment. The preservation of the trees in an upright position suggests periods of rapid burial by sediment (mud, sand, volcanic ash) interspersed with periods of minimal or slow deposition. Geologists hypothesize that these rapid burials were caused by local, catastrophic events like frequent flooding near river deltas, the rapid subsidence of the land, or volcanic activity, which quickly enveloped the trunks before they could decompose. This process of burial and subsequent replacement of the organic material with minerals (silica from volcanic ash is common in the region) is what turned the wood into stone petrified wood. The height of the fossilized trunks, often extending through several distinct rock layers, indicates that the trees were buried multiple times in quick succession relative to the tree's lifespan, yet the sequence of layers themselves represents vast geological ages.

Global Flood and Fossil Formation

The existence of upright, in-place (in-situ) petrified trees poses a significant challenge to the Young Earth Creationism (YEC) model of a single, global flood. A worldwide, catastrophic flood lasting one year would not be able to produce the geological evidence seen in polystrate fossils. Specifically:

  1. Decomposition: The time required for the layering of sediment necessary to cover an entire tall tree (spanning layers representing different ecosystems) would exceed the time the exposed upper portion of the tree could survive decomposition or be consumed, even if buried rapidly.

  2. Root Systems: Many upright trees retain their original, flared-out root systems (in-situ), indicating they were buried where they grew, not ripped up and deposited by massive flood currents. A global flood would be expected to tear up, transport, and deposit all logs horizontally, forming log mats, not preserving multiple forests in their growth positions across different strata.

  3. Sediment Layers: The rock layers themselves often show evidence of having been paleosols (ancient soils) with root structures, multiple distinct ecological horizons, and sometimes evidence of wind-blown deposits, which are inconsistent with continuous, rapid, underwater deposition by a single flood event.

YEC's interpretation of Genesis 7:11, "all the fountains of the great deep were broken up" as a mechanism for creating the entire geological column and fossil record is considered eisegesis (reading a meaning into the text) by most biblical scholars and geologists. The phrase refers to localized, immense subterranean water sources, not a mechanism for global-scale geological change that contradicts multiple, independent lines of scientific data.

Long Genesis Days and Upright Trees

Old Earth Creationists (OEC) accommodate upright petrified trees by interpreting the days of Genesis 1 as long, indefinite periods of time (the Day-Age Theory). This view allows for the vast stretches of time required for the trees to grow, be buried locally by successive catastrophic events (floods, volcanic deposits), petrify, and for the entire sequence of geologic strata to accumulate over millions of years.

Genesis seventh Day of creation Genesis 2:2-3 has no morning or evening. Hebrews 4:4-9 supports this, stating God's rest continues and a "Sabbath rest" remains for believers. This rest symbolizes entering God's completed work, not a literal 24-hour day, mirroring the extended creation days. If the long day seven is still ongoing days 1-6 would also have been long periods. This interpretation reconciles the seemingly indefinite timeframe of creation with the concept of a continuing Sabbath, inviting believers to participate in God's rest. 

Genesis 1:11-12

Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

Old Earth creationists interpret Genesis 1:11-12 to describe a process of  natural understood development, not an instantaneous, supernatural creation. The passage states, "And God said, 'Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.' And it was so. The land produced vegetation..." Old Earth creationists argue that the phrase "let the land produce" suggests that God initiated a process that the earth itself carried out, which aligns with the straight forward understanding of gradual biological development over long periods. 

This view contrasts with the Young Earth creationist interpretation, which sees the "And it was so" as evidence of a rapid, supernatural act. Old Earth creationists see this latter view as an example of eisegesis reading a pre-conceived idea (fast creation) into the text rather than deriving the meaning directly from the words themselves. They contend that the text simply doesn't specify the speed of the process and that a natural process is a more faithful exegetical reading. 

Old Earth Creationism and God's Glory

Old Earth Creationism relates to God's glory by affirming that God is glorified through the immense timescale and complexity of His creation, as revealed through both Scripture and natural revelation (science). Seeing the universe as billions of years old magnifies the Creator’s power, patience, and artistry. The grand scale of cosmic and geologic history reflects a God whose works are vast, intricate, and meticulously detailed over eons, showing His eternal power and divine nature (Romans 1:20).


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