Faith and Science Meet in Origins Tokyo 2025

The Education Department of the Northern Asia-Pacific Division (NSD) and the Geoscience Research Institute (GRI) hosted Origins Tokyo on May 30 and 31 at the Tokyo Central Seventh-day Adventist Church. The event brought together a select group of international scholars, church leaders, and Adventist educators for an intense weekend of dialogue on creationism, science, and faith. During the two-day conference approximately 375 participants—295 in person and 80 online—engaged in the conference, reflecting a high level of interest and participation.

The 2025 edition of the conference continued its mission to explore the relationship between the biblical account of creation and modern scientific inquiry, this time with broader international participation than ever before.

Lisa Beardsley-Hardy, director of the General Conference Education Department, opened the conference by emphasizing the central role of creationism in Adventist education. “Maintaining academic and spiritual integrity in our accredited institutions requires keeping the biblical account of creation at the core of our curriculum,” she stated.

The event began on Friday evening with a keynote lecture and continued on Sabbath with sessions featuring expert presentations, Q&A segments, and a panel discussion. Organizers provided simultaneous Japanese interpretation and livestreamed the conference via Zoom, combining academic depth with wide accessibility through a hybrid format.

“This was not just a scientific conference or a theological seminar—it was a gathering of believers engaging together with profound questions,” said Guenji Imayuki from the Tokyo International Seventh-day Adventist Church, who coorganized the event.

Throughout the weekend influential voices in faith-based science delivered compelling presentations. Ronny Nalin, director of the GRI, addressed the intellectual dilemmas faced by many young Christians and presented geological evidence supporting the creationist worldview. “We must provide answers that resonate both spiritually and intellectually,” he said.

Lance Pompe, associate research scientist at GRI, introduced methods for interpreting earth-science data through a lens of faith. He emphasized that “scientific investigation and belief in Creation are not mutually exclusive,” reinforcing the theme of harmony between faith and research.

Masazumi Sugi, president of Saniku Gakuin College in Chiba, Japan, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east of the center of Tokyo, shared a deeply personal reflection, stressing the responsibility of Adventist educational institutions to present the Genesis creation account clearly to their students.

Lee Wonbae, director of GRI-NSD, underscored the importance of teaching creationism not merely as a theological stance but as a credible and intellectually engaging worldview.

Edgard Luz, NSD Education director and a lead organizer of the conference, expressed his deep satisfaction with the participation and quality of dialogue. “This year’s increased international participation brought invaluable perspectives. And the post-conference study group shows our work is far from finished,” he said.

The original version of this story was posted on the Northern Asia-Pacific Division news site.