I have inquired of geologist friends to identify such a foundations text. In effect asking where is a good Geology 401 text. Many books have been suggested but upon examination they simply assume the orthodox party line rather than present a defense of it.

You've missed the point (again).

Of course all scientific theories remain open to challenge and question.

The point is that textbooks do not generally 'defend' the science they teach, they describe it. The point about General Relativity is true but not at all relevant to the discussion.

Bravus
The point is that it is unsurprising that geology textbooks do not 'defend' the age of the earth, just describe it and the relevant evidence. What would be suprising is if they *did* defend it.

I was with you on the GRI tour of Colorado geology. There, for example, it was suggested that such a foundations text would be "The Geology of Stratigraphic Sequences" by Andrew Miall. Yet again, I dutifully examined this book and found that it also simply assumed that the geologic record is the result of action over deep time. Miall, to his credit is quite candid about the deficiencies of the views he promotes. Actually, I found "Principles of Sequence Stratigraphy" by Octavian Catuneanu to be more informative, yet it too simply assumed deep time. Another book that has been suggested is "The Nature of the Stratigraphical Record" by Derek Ager, with the same result. It simply assumes the deep time scenario. "The Age of the Earth" by Brent Dalrymple although not about stratigraphic correlations, does much better by addressing such questions as whether radioactive decay rates have always been constant. Still his approach is one of unquestioning strict naturalism, of course. "The meaning of Fossils" by Martin Rudwick and "The Map that Changed the World" by Simon Winchester have also been suggested. They are of a somewhat different nature in that they take what I think of as the historical copout. They diligently trace the historical development of geological theories but fail to address a defense of the theories themselves. I have spent long hours perusing a large fraction of the geologic texts in the Colorado School of Mines Library without finding a good Geology 401. I have also read several books on the application of statistical techniques to stratigraphical correlation but have found none that come anywhere close to a reconsideration of the underlying deep time assumption.

It is this repeated situation of finding that the underlying assumptions are considered from only one possible point of view in the conventional literature that leaves some of us less convinced than you are about how overwhelming the evidence really is.