New findings put Noah's epic story to the test

Newsday ^ | 3-5-03 | By Robert Cooke

[vannrox]

Scientists are seriously challenging a recent, fascinating proposal that Noah's epic story -- setting sail with an ark jam-full of animal couples -- was based on an actual catastrophic flood that suddenly filled the Black Sea 7,500 years ago, forcing people to flee. In a detailed look at the rocks, sediments, currents and seashells in and around the Black Sea, an international research team discounts the Noah flood idea, arguing that all the geologic, hydrologic and biologic signs are wrong.

[vannrox]

How can I comment on this? Noahs flood was a myth -- a fabricration like a modern day romance novel? Yea. As if the few trained scribes ...less than 1% of 1% of the population would have the time on their hands to compose such a story.

Let us not forget that the flood stories are GLOBAL and every religion has them (maybe one or two out of ten million don't..but that's another argument).

[HEY4QDEMS]

As the saying goes "For those who don't believe, no proof will do. For those who believe, no proof is needed."...or something like that

[thulldud]

Nothing to see here, folks. Let's move along....

[The Old Hoosier]

Another possibility is that it didn't happen exactly 7,500 years ago.

[RightWhale]

There is another story, almost identical. The boat ended up lodged in the Himilayas after getting an E-ticket ride from the coast, up the Indus River, and this also coincides with one of the major ice-dam floods at the end of the Ice Age.

[expatpat]

Geologists are very susceptible to herd-thinking. I recall years ago, when I told my geologist friends that I believed in Continental Drift, they derided be as a flat-earth-type idiot. Of course, 10 years later, even the geologists had to admit it was correct.

[Blueflag]

The author has not read Genesis. Noah took more than 2 of each kind. Go to the Bible to find the accurate rendition.

[gura]

Were the dinosaurs on the ark?

[The Old Hoosier]

I don't know of any reputable scientist who thinks that there were dinosaurs 7,000, 12,000 or even 100,000 years ago.

[Blueflag]

Genesis also says that God spoke. Does this mean air from lungs vibrated heavenly vocal chords? Of course not. Does this mean the Bible verse is false? No. Only that the word of God was presented to man in the way God wanted it to be.

Is there enough water ON the earth to cover the earth in a flood? No. Could there have been a flood that rose from the ground and fell from the sky? yes. Would it have covered the entire earth? No.

Let it go. You do not have to understand it all to believe it.

Besides, the Bible is about a relationship with God through faith, not evidence.

[The Old Hoosier]

Interestingly, though, the flood story transcends many, many cultures. Look up the Roman story of Deucalion, for example, and his wife, Pyrrha.

[RightWhale]

Were the dinosaurs on the ark?

Apparently most of them missed the boat.

[Blueflag]

They were spoken from generation to generation until society became sufficiently literate

[Lloyd227]

"Let us not forget that the flood stories are GLOBAL and every religion has them "

I was just thinking that as I read through the article....... and... I don't believe that the "7500 years ago" is necessarily fixed in time biblically. Been a while since I sifted through the research, but I seem to recall that 7500 years ago was just one of several ways to calculate the time period. The range as I recall could have been as long ago as the 12,000 year mark.

[MEGoody]

"the fact there is not a shred of evidence to support a global flood"

I'm curious - I know that scientists can look at the results of localized flooding and do comparisons to determine what they should look for next time, but how do they know what a global flood of the proportions mentioned in Genesis would do? Do they have anything to compare it to, or do they attempt to compare to what they know a localized flood would do?

[MEGoody]

"The epic greek storytellers,"

You do know there is a difference in job description between a professional storyteller and a professional scribe, right?

[RaceBannon]

Oh, good grief, once again, the flood of Noah was not limited to the Black Sea, it was over the entire world, that's why the sediments of the Black Sea wont agree.

The rate of deposition changed as the landscape changed after the flood. The sediments came downnot just from the flood, but as the waters receeded, and the Black Sea was formed itself, and since none of us was there at the time, we do ot know the order whch wall came down to fill the Sea in in the first place.

Either way, the Bible says Noah's flood covered the entire world, not just a local area, no matter how big the local area.

[RaceBannon]

yes.