Did Moses part the Red Sea or was it all down to "Fluid Dynamics"?

[KreepyKoo]

http://uk.news.yahoo....s-redsea-011ccfa.html

[sandyRoe]

It says in the bible that God did it. It must be true.

[KreepyKoo]

I can recall a programme where they "Explained" all of Moses's Miracles, can anyone remember it?

[bibblebub]

there are also many errors and contradictions in that book so your supposed deity must have had Alzheimer's

[sandyRoe]

Oh ye of little faith...

[bibblebub]

yep no faith at all just reality

[KreepyKoo]

A friend of mine was telling me that he thinks Moses etc... were just magicians of their times, but I've still never seen a magician part the sea, river or even the canal.

[bibblebub]

I've seen David Copperfield make the Statue of Liberty disappear

[KreepyKoo]

David copperfield used a giant turning stage for that, something which wasn't around in those days or wouldn't have helped part the sea even if it was!

[naomi24]

I remember that programme Kreepykoo. It explained the plagues sent upon the Egyptians. I'm not sure if it was the same series, but one programme also explained the parting of the Red Sea as being due to high winds. I remember wondering how the Israelites managed to walk across the seabed in such a gale.

[KreepyKoo]

Yers that was the programme, I only seen a little bit of it when the water attracted bilions of flys. Good point about the gale naomi.

[naomi24]

Off topic just slightly, I've always wondered why it took God 40 years to lead the Israelites to the promised land too. Maybe he didn't have SatNav. :o)

[KreepyKoo]

It seems that the more time passes the more science explains religion, does this mean that in the far future religion will become obselete? It doesn't look that way as religion seems to be growing especially islam, so might this happen the other way around with religion engulfing science like it did in the early days when it was first formed?

[Ankou]

noami, the high wind is mentioned in the bible so your programme was hardly original then.

possibly the same programme you mention kreepykoo, but my recollection was that they established the crossing was not at the red sea but some other lake full of reeds that clogged the cartwheels of the egyptians.

so neither moses or god parted the red sea, the tribe legged it over some lakey marshland to escape, although to be fair the parting of the red sea is perhaps more dramatic for a good yarn.

[dzug2]

I once had it explained to me (by a clergyman) as the 'reed' see, not the red sea. A mis spelling/translation. Reed beds are easily parted by the wind.

[KreepyKoo]

dzug2 Are the words Reed and red were similar words in Hebrew and Arabic?

[naomi24]

Not 'my' programme Ankou. Just the programme that Kreepykoo mentioned that I happen to remember - and if I recall the crossing was believed to have taken place somewhere in the Gulf of Suez - the narrow bit at the northern end of the Red Sea.

I'm doubtful about the legging it over lakey marshland explanation simply because I have to wonder why the Egyptians who were in hot pursuit didn't also leg it over the lakey marshland.

Dzug, I've head the Reed Sea explanation too, but again I wonder why if it was so easy, the Egyptians were obliged to give up the chase.

[naomi24]

I haven't read all this but it might help.

http://en.wikipedia.o.../Crossing_the_Red_Sea

[KreepyKoo]

Ok so the Pharaoh's henchmens wheels got stuck in the reeds and this threw them into blind panic, ok so why not just simply step off the now stuck chariots and continue their mission?

[Ankou]

they'd get their feet wet

[Ankou]

kreepykoo, perhaps their 'mission' was just to chase the plague ridden smiting israelites out of their land. they didn't need to carry on