Noah's Ark

[Atheist]

Are there any ABers who believe in the literal truth of the ark story?

[Baldric]

I just feel sad for the Unicorns ;o(

[Mamyalynne]

I was going to say, be prepared for comedy central - but was a touch too late.


Literal? No.

[webbo3]

no

[webbo3]

the thing is there were lots of other civilisations around at the time who kept records and theres no mention of anything.

[ImLostAgain]

Where did they keep the woodworms?

[Baldric]

A sad song so it is,

https://www.songfacts.com/lyrics/the-irish-rovers/the-unicorn

[woofgang]

no but I believe that is based in some fact.

[Mamyalynne]

Agreed.

[Old_Geezer]

There may have been local floods that triggered the story. Did read somewhere that flood tales were in existence before the bible writers got hold of the story. Natural disasters are known, and story telling gets exaggerated over generations especially when unwritten.

[EDDIE51]

No! It was a Bible story just intended to show 'Belivers' how God saved the world ,for 'his chosen people' !
Just think how many species of animal there are in 'The World'! Itwould need to be bl""dy Big !

[fiveleaves]

Yes I do. There is plenty of information online if you want to do some research. You can view satellite photos of an ark like structure on Mt Ararat. I've heard of an story of an Armenian family who used to act as a guide to take tourists to see the remains of the ark in the early 20th century

[Rationalist]

There was a theory that the Black sea used to be a fresh water lake separated from the Aegean sea by a land barrier in the Bosphorus.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Sea_deluge_hypothesis

The water level in the Black Sea was 80m or so below the sea level. Around 9000 years ago, the Bosphorus barrier was breached, and salt waters from the Aegean flowed into the Black Sea, leading to a huge inundation and rise in sea levels of many tens of metres in the Black Sea area.

There is good evidence for some kind of inundation (rapid rise of water levels; water scouring; destruction of dwellings etc)

The historical fact (if that is what it is) gave rise to a myth of a god-inspired flood.

However, recent (2009) evidence from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI) (one of the top oceanagraphic research institutes in the world) suggests that the difference in sea levels was 'only' around 40m, so the inundation was less severe than previously thought.

https://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/feature/noahs-not-so-big-flood/

As for Noah bulding an artk to rescue unicorns, dragons and elephants... no. Just ... No.

[Rationalist]

Incidentally, to Webbo @18.14, the Sumerians also have a flood myth, recorded in the epic of Gilgamesh

https://www.historywiz.com/flood.htm

[vulcan42]

No, also, according to the Bible, God created every living thing. If so Noah had to collect all the different species of which there are millions. The insect species is estimated at 5.5 million alone.

[alavahalf]

The Old Testament was aimed at a simple people who on the whole were illiterate. It was written in a manner that some might understand.
Actualy when you stop and think about it .. it is no different from the Sun today !

[Jackdaw33]

I would have hated to be the ****-shoveller on that boatt!

[jourdain2]

I've read that the story of the Ark and the Flood are based on the time when the narrow land-bridge which includes Gibraltar collapsed and flooded the low-lying lands which are now covered by the Mediterranean Sea.. It must have been cataclysmic and been passed down through the generations. I am, therefore, quite happy to accept the Biblical interpretation (I know that it is skewed to reflect a p.o.v.) and remains of a boat have been found on Mt. Ararat - as I think an earlier poster mentioned.

[naomi24]

The earth, from all four corners, is 'awash' with flood myths.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_flood_myths

...but that aside, what a waste of time the flood was. Intended (allegedly) as God's solution to the error he made - and lo and behold, human beings still turned out to be pretty rotten.

[jim360]

Instead of sending a flood to wipe out humanity God should have tried to make a deal with them.

[-SharonA-]

Ha ha ha!! What the story of a 600 yr old man building a ship!!!! Ha ha ha!!