Creationism is the belief that the universe and living organisms originate from specific acts of divine creation, such as in a literal reading of Genesis, rather than by natural processes such as evolution.[2] As science developed during the 18th century and forward, various views aimed at reconciling the Abrahamic and Genesis creation narratives with science developed in Western societies.[3] Those holding that species had been created separately (such as Philip Gosse in 1857) were generally called "advocates of creation" but were also called "creationists", as in private correspondence between Charles Darwin and his friends. As the creation–evolution controversy developed over time, the term "anti-evolutionists" became common. In 1929 in the United States, the term "creationism" first became associated with Christian fundamentalists, specifically with their rejection of human evolution and belief in a young Earth—although this usage was contested by other groups, such as old Earth creationists and evolutionary creationists, who hold different concepts of creation.[4][5][6]
Today, the American Scientific Affiliation, a prominent religious organisation in the United States, recognizes that there are different opinions among creationists on the method of creation, while acknowledging unity on the Abrahamic belief that God "created the universe."[7][8] Since the 1920s, literalist creationism in America has contested scientific theories, such as that of evolution,[9][10][11] which derive from natural observations of the universe and life. Literalist creationists[12] believe that evolution cannot adequately account for the history, diversity, and complexity of life on Earth.[13] Fundamentalist creationists of the Christian faith usually base