To ask a stupid question? Noah's Ark

[Besttimelftheyear]

So I am not religious, but I would say I was brought up Christian. I would say my parents were non practicing Christians, but I was taught bible stories as truth and facts. The logical adult in me now says that most of the events can be explained quite simply.

Onto the question. Noah's Ark, is there any evidence of a global flood? Noah was supposed to have taken two of each animals onto the boat while the earth was flooded and wiped out everything else.

Surely this was simply a regular flood like we see today?

What are peoples beliefs or knowledge on this?

I’m sure there were floods but remember that long ago there would have been no concept of how huge the whole world is. When there are no cars, planes, space rockets etc a large flood in your area could feel like it was the whole world.

I think Bible stories have truth in them but have been exaggerated and also the same stories cross over into other religions/myths etc

Seriously ?

There is a photo of a fossilised boat shape on or near Mt Aratat. I know the dimensions of Noah's ark are given in the Bible (in cubits, which is the length of elbow to fingertips) and i wouldnt be at all surprised to find that they match. I can't post the photo but it'll be Googleable.

It’s not a fossilised boat.

Some rocks exist

Sincerely, if you truly seek God and seek to know Him you will. Just as God warns the people in Noah's day he does today. He has given you free will.

If I didn't know Him and know this to be true, I would not be spending the time writing this.

So God gives you free will then drowns everyone in a worldwide flood for using that free will ? Including all the children, babies and people who lived in areas that hadn’t heard of your God ?
Do you not realise how silly that sounds ?
And you don’t ‘know’, you believe

If we did have science, surely we'd have all believed that God sent Covid, and thousands more would have died than did.

Same more modern day floods and extreme weather events.

Any big event that we didn't understand - blame it on God.

This is a really great watch which might help make up your mind. Some scientific minds put their heads together and created this recent film/documentary.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1sUaQAmMA8U&t=3056s&pp=ygUZdGhlIGFyayBhbmQgdGhlIGRhcmtuZXNzIA%3D%3D

Has God specifically told you that the story of Noah's ark is literally true?

Wood? Good thing it was only 40 days plus the amount of time to subside (

Most of these stories are probably based on an element of truth.

When you start getting into long timescales the amount of disasters that can occur is impressive. Meteorite impacts. Tsunamies. Huge volcanic eruptions and volcanic winters. Hurricanes and tornados. Earthquakes. Plagues.

Even significant changes in climate can happen naturally over the timescale of a few hundred years. When you start looking at the 1000s of year timescales that these stories may have had to evolve its not surprising that plenty of stuff happened and plenty of opportunities for it to be sold to the public as the "wrath of god".

Even today people are always looking for explanations as to why things happen. Why they happen to them. It's not so hard to believe that a fortuitous natural event might be seized upon by leaders to give the faithful a kick up the arse and re establish the power of god.

It would actually be more surprising if religious texts didn't contain these types of stories. Because part of the purpose of religion is to be able to explain the inexplicable, and if you can mix a good dose of fear in as well into the bargain you are onto a winner.

Well global? They would have to know there was a 'global' to start with or even just a world (round or square or flat or star shaped or whatever they thought back then)

So the people around the ark would have had to know about all the countries everywhere that there is now for it to be global?

They did explore but everywhere?

I cannot get my head round how anyone with a modicum of intelligence can possibly believe any of this utter shite!

Noah and the flood is also in the Quran

It must be true then.

Let’s call it bilge, more nautical

Well there is another thread that thinks everyone is listening in so nothing really surprises me anymore

The story doesn't really stand up to much scrutiny does it.

1. It took my uncle 3 years to refurb a narrow boat. There is no way one man could build an arc big enough to hold two of every animal in a sensible time period.

2. It took the national history museum decades to get one stuffed version of quite a lot of stuffed animals from lots of different collectors. How could one man gather up two of each.

3. We are still finding new insects etc - how did Noah know about those? Why did he then hide them again?

4. What did the animals eat? Did he take extra sheep to feed to the lions so that he ended up with just two sheep at the end?

5. What is one of the animals got sick - was that species doomed - is that what happened to unicorns?

6. After all that work how did he and more importantly Mrs Noah have the energy to repopulate the earth?

Hence why I said I don’t know about David. Are there historical sources outside of the bible and other religious literature that confirm his existence?

are there Christian scholars who think Moses was real? Or do you mean believers? From my recollection and I can’t be certain but the presenters didn’t seem to be convinced of his historicity either likewise for Abraham. But like I said im not a theologian, I do find it fascinating though.

Noah was supposed to have been 600 years old.

Wood is simply not a strong enough material to build a sea-going ship of that size. The only full-sized replica ark that can float does so on steel barges.

Even if we entertain the absurdity of, say, giant pandas travelling to Israel to board the ark, we'd also have to believe that they brought with them sufficient bamboo to have kept themselves fed during that journey, plus for the best part of a year at sea, and then some spare for the journey back to China. We'd also have to believe there was storage room for all that bamboo and that it wouldn't rot on the voyage. Multiply that by however many different "kinds" of animals, birds, insects, invertebrates etc that would need to be carried.

Sufficient rain to cover the tops of the highest mountains to 15 cubits deep would desalinate the oceans and so kill the vast majority of sea life.

There'd be geological evidence of a global flood. There isn't.

Well, yes, it would be. The Qur'an is loosely based on the Torah.

You can google/read a referencee books to discover whether or not floods occured around that time.
However, the bible, as other 'religious' texts, is a novel

Noah didn't take 2 of each kind of animal. He took 7 pairs of each 'clean' animal and 1 pair of each 'unclean' animal. I'm surprised an avid Bible reader like @Calmomiletea doesn't know this 'fact'.

Even if we entertain the absurdity of, say, giant pandas travelling to Israel to board the ark, we'd also have to believe that they brought with them sufficient bamboo to have kept themselves fed during that journey, plus for the best part of a year at sea, and then some spare for the journey back to China. We'd also have to believe there was storage room for all that bamboo and that it wouldn't rot on the voyage. Multiply that by however many different "kinds" of animals, birds, insects, invertebrates etc that would need to be carried.

Pandas can eat meat and do. Maybe they ate the smaller mammals who bred quickly.

I've decided to make some cash spouting quasi-scientific religious stuff. I'm good at sounding like I know what I'm talking about and linking enough actual fact to sound erudite and believable. I'll make bank!

With respect, I think you do not understand what happened. Yes, God destroyed the wicked. And yes, the Omniscient, Creator God destroyed babies. I am guessing, being Omniscient, He knew that those babies and children would grow up to also rebel against His law. Again, Noah preached for 120 years warning people. 120 years...

Yes, I believed and now I know, because when you are born again, it's a supernatural work. If I said I 'believed' but didn't 'know' I would actually be lying. I cannot deny what I know is true.