Open Letter to Ken Ham

Dear Mr. Ham,

Thank you very much for your interest in my book, Paradise Lust: Searching for the Garden of Eden, which was reviewed this weekend in the Wall Street Journal. It is a singular honor to be mentioned by America’s leading young-earth creationist and the founder of the Creation Museum. My book explores many ideas about the search for Eden, including that of the Creation Museum, which as you note, does not posit a geographical location for the biblical Garden. On this we all agree. But you argue that the Wall Street Journal reviewer is remiss in not mentioning why the Creation Museum does not believe the Garden can be found on earth: because it was destroyed, with the rest of the world, in Noah’s Flood. Because of this, you state that the “author didn’t do her homework.” As the author, I would like to clarify: in the book, I certainly did do my research. I have read and referenced all the articles you mention in your blog post, as well as others, and visited the Creation Museum myself to get a better understanding of your ideas. It is not the job of the Wall Street Journal to do so. They have written an accurate and kind assessment of my book, which discusses many different theologians and seekers—all of them, I might add, believe as you do that “that the Bible’s account of history in Genesis is true!” And many people throughout history have agreed with you that Eden was destroyed in the flood. If the review were to give a full explanation of each of the ideas in my book, it would also be 304 pages long. Should you be interested in reading my book, I would welcome further discussion with you on this topic. Meanwhile, I invite your response.

Sincerely,
Brook Wilensky-Lanford