The intellectual decline of creationists in the last hundred and fifty years is highlighted by the reception of Gosse's book when it was published. In those pre- Origin of Species days, the response of the religious world was almost as horrified as that later given to Darwin. The omphalos theory proclaims God as a liar, tempting his people into sin, a concept theologically impossible then. For the modern young- Earth fundamentalist, any tool or trick from misrepresentation of evidence, through ad- hominem attacks, to the lie direct is acceptable if it can gain a tactical advantage; there is no concept of honour or morality.

The theory itself is of course rubbish (despite its author's good intentions- and he was an important scientist) as it could be used to support any arbitrary assertion. If God can lie in one matter, why not others?