Editing Book of Genesis (section)

== Cultural impact ==
{{More footnotes needed|section|date=May 2024}}

By totaling the spans of time in the genealogies of Genesis, religious authorities have calculated what they consider to be the age of the world since creation. This ''[[Anno Mundi]]'' system of counting years is the basis of the [[Hebrew calendar]] and [[Byzantine calendar]]. Counts differ somewhat, but they generally place the age of the Earth at about six thousand years.

During the [[Protestant Reformation]], rivalry between Catholic and Protestant Christians led to a closer study of the Bible and a competition to take its words more seriously. Thus, scholars in Europe from the 16th to the 19th century treated the book of Genesis as factual. As evidence in the fields of [[paleontology]], [[geology]] and other sciences was uncovered, scholars tried to fit these discoveries into the Genesis creation account.{{Sfn|Gohau|1990|pp=47–51}} For example, [[Johann Jakob Scheuchzer]] in the 18th century believed that [[fossils]] were the remains of creatures killed during the flood. This literal understanding of Genesis fell out of favor with scholars during the [[Victorian era|Victorian]] crisis of faith as evidence mounted that the [[Age of Earth|Earth was far older]] than six thousand years.