I just don't get the controversy. God created the world, and none of us can say "how" He did it. It is just as hard to imagine why it would have taken 6 literal days as it is to understand why it would have taken billions of years, as opposed to a single instant of "let it be". It is not up to us to question, or even understand God's creation. The six literally days idea could be right for all I know, though the physical evidence of the material world suggests otherwise (and why would God make the evidence ambiguous then give us the brains to develop science). I just don't understand why believers fight over this issue, which is irrelevant ultimately to our relationship to the Eternal (meaning outside of time), and Infinite (beyond all possiblitity of our rational understanding) God.
"I just don't understand why believers fight over this issue, which is irrelevant ultimately to our relationship to the Eternal (meaning outside of time), and Infinite (beyond all possiblitity of our rational understanding) God."
Actually it is of the utmost importance - though that is not apparent at first glance. As I have posted elswhere recently...
"Every major doctrine of the Bible is based in the first few chapters of Genesis. If Genesis is non-historical then the doctrines are based on myth. You can work it out from there."