Departed from Scripture LOL
See that’s my problem. Everyone is out there pounding their fists about what Genesis SIMPLY MUST mean....and they are somehow magically endowed with the power to be infallible in this regard! And yet they all disagree with each other. Funny thing that.
Do I agree with Augustine in everything that is not de fide? No. I think some variant of the “day-age” hypothesis is much more attractive than his simultaneous creation.
But I’ll tell you what...I respect him immensely to the point that I’d be loathe to dismiss his interpretation. He had a brain on his shoulders and plenty of experience with Manichees and other heretics as well as with the general scientific knowledge of the 5th century.
Plus you can see how careful he was...he did NOT want to saddle Genesis with a bad interpretation if a better one could be found later. I only wish the rest of us would be so wise.
Neither day-age, nor Augustine’s simultaneous creation is to be found anywhere in the Bible. Genesis is very simple and straightforward, so that even a child can understand it. Creation lasted 6 days, and on the seventh day God rested. Notice, I don’t have to add anything to the Bible, nor take anything away to say that.