do you belive that noah's ark LITERALLY occured?

Question

the bible says in genesis that the ark (converted from cubits to feet) was approximately fifty feet tall, eighty feet wide, and five hundred feet long. Also, if seven of some animals (such as cattle or foul) were brought onto the ark, and only two of others, how do we account for the theory that dinosaurs were also on the ark? How did they all fit? How did Noah get foreign animals to "come to him" as it says in the bible (if they came, how did they cross oceans)... such as pandas, kangaroos, possums, etc. ALso, what about the inbreeding? THe animals (AND the humans) would be massively retarded and their genetic chains would weaken considerably. How can we go from eight humans to 5.7 BILLION people in less than 6,000 years?

did any of you actually READ the facts we laid out? we're interested in answers not in declarations of faith.

We ourselves believe that the bible is a story to be interpreted metaphorically and symbolically, not literally-- we're interested in understanding the creationist mindset.

We ourselves believe that the bible is a story to be interpreted metaphorically and symbolically, not literally-- we're interested in understanding the creationist mindset.

We ourselves believe that the bible is a story to be interpreted metaphorically and symbolically, not literally-- we're interested in understanding the creationist mindset.

One more thing I forgot to mention-- yes, there is massive amounts of sedimentary and carbon evidence of teh great flood, not to mention mythological accounts that also have a grain of truth to them (greek, norse, and many other myths mention a great flood). That still does not prove the existence of the ark. Further, Pangaea could not have existed at that particular time (around 4,000 years ago). Mount Everest, due to the movements of the tectonic plates, "Grows" a quarter of an inch every year. Thus, India was believed to once have been a different part of the continent. however, if we judge by this rate of movement, it is not possible for pangaea to have existed at the time of the ark (though it may very well have existed). Also, consider the millions of species that exist TODAY on this planet-- and remember that there were many more species 4,000 years ago and before-- so how could they all have fit?

Answer 1

I believe that Noah's Ark (as well as anything else in the Bible that looks impossible) is merely a metaphoric representation of something possible, but equally astonishing.

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Answer 2

I have no problem believing that God could make this all work in a very literal way. However there is some evidence to support that it really did happen. There is a huge "ship" buried in the ice in Tibet that appears to match the dimensions of the ark described in the Bible. It is possible that the animals had not yet scattered to different parts of the earth, and if they had, would it be a problem for God to bring them together? Maybe the dinosaurs were babies.

Genetics actually proves the opposite of what you are saying. I learned in college, (from a non-believing instructor) that the further back you trace a genetic line, the simpler it becomes, and that it is quite possible that two original lines could mate and have children and that their children could mate with each other and that this could continue for several generations before the genetic lines would become so complex that mutations and defects would occur. Incidentally, the time line matches up pretty well with the Biblical record of when "incest" became forbidden.

There are actually many very respected scientists who have no problems being also believers. Some even came to believe after studying for many years. Consider the astrophysicist who wrote "The Fingerprints of God."

Answer 3

My theory is that there was a large boat and 'tall tales' of what happened and it was recorded in writing after the story had already been distorted.. There's another version involving Gilgamesh and if the people after the event didn't even know the earth was a globe-not a two dimensional circle-of course a big flood would come down in the goat herder tales as the whole world. I've also read that the Noah's Ark story in the Bible could be read as two different versions: one using the term 'lord' and one using the term 'God'; hence, the fact that one verse says there were 7 animals and another says 2.

Answer 4

You have to remember that the land was very different back then and everyone was probably on the same contitnet. Dinosaurs were probably killed during the flood, and besides the reptiles that are around right now are just little dinosaurs. Interbreeding was the only way for humans to give birth back then, so the genetic coding was probably screwed up a couple of times, probably why we have so many genetic problems today. Also six thousand years is not a small number, thousands of children can be born within a year, so it was actually very possible for this to occur.

Answer 5

Dinosaurs were most likely extinct by the time of Noah's ark. Some scientists propose that the earth was one continent (pangaea) and seperated after the ark, so 'foreign' animals were all right there. There is evidence for this. Inbreeding was not as much as a problem then, because humans and animals were more genetically pure.

Got more qs about this? I've got answers.

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Answer 6

Noahs ark did exist, i am not sure about the dinosaur theory, since they pre-dated man.

Also, there was a program on the discovery channel that tracked the planets weather and sediment in the sea level, it concluded that around the date given in the bible a huge flooding occured that could account for the story of Noah, now if science proves there was a flooding, then something must have saved the animals and humans, that was Prophet Noah

Answer 7

Your question about how can we go from eight humans to 5.7 billion isn't really hard to believe. Earth's population multiplies exponentially every century or so, so it wouldn't be really suprising if we jumped in numbers that quickly. As for my interpretation of the Bible, I regard myself as an allegorist, or whatever they call anyone who don't interpret the Bible literally. I read and focus more on the lesson and teaching, rather than the actual event. For me, the story of Noah's Ark could more or less be a fictitional story but the message doesn't change.

Answer 8

Who said they were retarded? Any man who can build a ship the way God told him to was certainly not retarded. And you assume that Noah took fullgorwn animals... Have you consider that he may have taken babies...less room, can live longer, etc... And at the time of Noah...things weren't as they are now...the world was rather small... It was the flood and the actions God created that made the continents what they are now...

And back when things started over again...no birth control..and lots of babies. It was normal for large families..rather than the one or two kids like today.

Use a little common sense and quit buying into that evolutionary junk. You'll find out soon enough God knew what He was talking about in the bible.

Answer 9

The Biblical telling of Noah's Ark is actually the co-opted story of Utnapishtim from the Epic of Gilgamesh, a written poly-theistic religion that predates Judaism's oral traditions by about a thousand years. I'll include a link to the story below. Read it, you'll be amazed at how much the early Judaic leaders lifted from this story.

http://www.piney-2.com/Gilgamesh.html

Answer 10

I heard there are about 500 tales all around the world about a flood. It seems people all over the world had built an ark or a boat.
In older pre-biblical tales of Utnapishtim and tales of Ziusudra, there were not only his wife and sons but others who helped build the ark and even a navigator.

Answer 11

A lot of the things in the Bible are myths/legends. People wrote them to explain God's role in things (like Adam and Eve - that's a myth). I'm a Christian, so I believe God did create everything, but not the way it says in the Bible. I think he created the Earth and then let it or helped it evolve.