What Is the Truth About Continental Drift?

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Levi F. (age 11) asked,

“What is the truth about continental drift?”

Great question, Levi!

First, let’s define continental drift. It is “the gradual movement of the continents across the earth’s surface.”1 It’s true—the continents are drifting even today, though very slowly. Has it always been this way?

If you look at the eastern coast of South America and the Western Coast of Africa, you might notice that they kind of look like they fit together like puzzle pieces. Actually, if you look at the coasts of the different continents, they all look like they might fit together!

In 1859, a creation geologist named Antonio Snider-Pellegrini suggested that the continents once all fit together but then broke apart. He noticed that Genesis 1:9–10 says that God gathered all the waters into one place, suggesting a single landmass originally. This original supercontinent is called Rodinia.

Makhkugeo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Antonio also proposed that the original supercontinent, Rodinia, broke apart during the global flood of Noah’s day when the fountains of the great deep burst forth (Genesis 7:11). After they broke up, they smashed together again, forming another supercontinent. This one is called Pangaea.

Massimo Pietrobon, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The earth’s plates continued to move and collide during the great flood, then settled into the continents we have today. Antonio didn’t believe the continents slowly drifted to their current locations—he argued they sprinted there during a global catastrophe!

Shadowxfox, based on map by (B1mbo), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Then, 53 years after Antonio’s proposal, Alfred Wegener, a German meteorologist, also argued that the earth’s continents had moved. He stated that all continents had previously been a single supercontinent that then gradually drifted apart. But he offered no direct process for this, so, just like Antonio, he was criticized and ignored. But the idea began to be accepted with the increase in exploration of the ocean floor (because of scuba diving gear, submarines, and even underwater drones!). By the late 1960s, plate tectonics was well supported and accepted by almost all geologists.

Most geologists believe that the movement of the earth’s plates has been slow and gradual over billions of years. Today, the earth’s plates drift only six inches or less per year. But creation geologists think that during the flood, the earth’s plates moved many feet, even meters, every second.2

When you believe the Bible’s account of the global flood, billions of years aren’t necessary. In fact, we see evidence today that supports the idea that the continents moved apart very quickly during the flood—not slowly like evolutionists think.3 The evidence we see in geology is consistent with God’s Word!

Do you have a question about the Bible? Ask your parents to help you submit your question today. We’d love to hear from you!

Footnotes

1. “Continental Drift,” Oxford Languages, accessed September 23, 2025, https://www.google.com/search?q=define+continental+drift.
2. Dr. Steve Austin, Dr. John Baumgardner, Dr. Russell Humphreys, Dr. Andrew A. Snelling, Dr. Larry Vardiman, and Kurt P. Wise, “Catastrophic Plate Tectonics: A Global Flood Model of Earth History,” Answers in Depth 5 (2010), https://answersingenesis.org/geology/plate-tectonics/catastrophic-plate-tectonics-global-flood-model-of-earth-history/.
3. For a deeper dive, check this out: Andrew A. Snelling, “A Catastrophic Breakup,” Answers Magazine 2, no. 3 (2007): 44–48, https://answersingenesis.org/geology/plate-tectonics/a-catastrophic-breakup/.