The Church of the Brethren affirms that God created the heavens and the earth as taught in Genesis 1:1-2. The Brethren understand this passage as expressing the fundamental theological truth that God is Creator and all creation is ultimately from God's hand.

Characteristically, the Brethren are willing to hold this theological conviction alongside scholarly questions about the literary form, dating, and authorship of Genesis. The Brethren affirm the theological truth of creation while remaining open to scientific and historical-critical inquiry into how creation occurred and how the Genesis narrative came to be written. The passage establishes God as Creator, but the details of natural history and biblical composition are open to ongoing study and interpretation.