The First Creation Story; Genesis 1:1 to 2:3: Historical Christianity taught that the entire Pentateuch -- the five books from Genesis to Deuteronomy -- was written by Moses. Most fundamentalist and other Evangelical Christians continue to follow this belief. Most liberal and mainline theologians and religious skeptics accept the Documentary Hypothesis: that the Pentateuch was written by a number of authors (or groups of authors). They followed four different traditions, and imported some material from nearby Pagan sources. The Hypothesis asserts that the author of the creation story seen in the first verses of the Bible was an anonymous 6th Century BCE writer or group of writers of the priestly tradition (often referred to as "P").
Creation is described in Genesis 1:1 to 2:3 as occurring in six "days": Day 1: God commanded the presence of light and its separation from darkness.
Day 2: God separated the sky and oceans.
Day 3: God separated land from the oceans; spreading of plants and grass and trees across the land.
Day 4: God caused the sun, moon, and stars to be attached to the underside of the firmament -- a dome that covered the earth.
Day 5: God ordered the sea to "teem with living creatures" and birds to fly in the air.
Day 6: God ordered the land to produce land animals. God created humans, "someone like ourselves" (Living Bible).
Day 7: God rested. Followers of the Documentary Hypothesis believe this to have been a later addition, 4 placed there to give theological justification for the Sabbath (Saturday as a day of rest) for humans.
