Noah's Ark found?

[Gusterfell]

for a lot of people it means a lot. Some people cope better with having something to lean on, for some its faith, others its marriage, everyone has there own thing to lean on when they need someone or something there. Why is that such a bad thing?

[krazeeboi]

Regardless of all that, religious dogma only becomes a problem when it becomes an influence on an otherwise modern society's policy, as has happened in the US. Look at the debate on stem cell research. Remove the religious objection and you have a field of medical technology that has the potential to extend the lives and ease the suffering of millions.

[runawayjim]

So aside from religious convictions, no one would have any good reason to be opposed to embryonic stem cell research?

[monsoon]

.....

Regardless of all that, religious dogma only becomes a problem when it becomes an influence on an otherwise modern society's policy, as has happened in the US. Look at the debate on stem cell research. Remove the religious objection and you have a field of medical technology that has the potential to extend the lives and ease the suffering of millions. Or look at the crowds of children going to the new Creation museum. They are being raised to reject scientific knowledge and rely instead on a collection of ancient documents. THe prevelence of this type of thought in the US is a major reason we are so far behind the rest of the world in so many areas.

[michaelskis]

This was well put. I think most Americans would be shocked at how much better life is for the average person in Europe and much of Asia where religion is left as a private matter and not a focus of a presidential campaign.

[Gusterfell]

So aside from religious convictions, no one would have any good reason to be opposed to embryonic stem cell research?

[dgreco]

This was well put. I think most Americans would be shocked at how much better life is for the average person in Europe and much of Asia where religion is left as a private matter and not a focus of a presidential campaign.

[Cadeho]

Well that all depends on wether or not you believe the words of Moses was delivered directly to him from God. Then it becomes a question of wether you believe God exist or not. One of the ings they found out about these fossils in the mountians was that they came from about 12,000 to 13,000 years ago whaich is also the same time frame that it is believe the great flood happened. I dont know if plate techtonics can change the quick withing 13,000 years.

[runawayjim]

I understanding keeping it seperate makes the "world function more smoothly", but I don't understand why this topic is a criticism of religion so much. Who cares what people believe? I am sure we are all adults to understand believes are merely beliefs and we don't have to agree with what everyone says. Instead of insulting the idea that it could be Noah's Ark, how about just looking at it as a 5,000 year old ship instead and how cool is to see an artifact like that.

[Pillsbury]

My Christian faith is neither confirmed nor denied by the proof (or lack therof) of a Bible story. Most Christian denominations allow their followers to make up their own minds when it comes to stories from the Bible, especially those from the Old Testament. Obvioulsy there are some things one is expected to believe in order to be Christian, but those are usually summed up in the major creeds, none of which mention Adam and Eve, the Ark, et al.

Though I do agree that fundamentalism of any kind slows progress, I do not think most Americans really care one way or the other about religion. Most do not go to Church except for on holidays, and most have no idea what their faiths really teach. Which, if you think about, reflects the way Americans think about everything, which is the real plague killing our society: apathy. In 20 years the churches will be empty.

Edited because I'm a bad writer.

[rnc]

I thought this thing was shown to be a natural lava formation a long time ago. In fact, there are numerous similarly shaped objects on the mountain that were formed by the same natural processes. Convienently, the "researchers" chose the one that most closely fit the dimensions of Noah's Ark.

[dgreco]

i've heard about and read about evidence that it's not actually a ship at all.

[runawayjim]

ok, well if it was a ship... you love to denounce everything everyone says by "i've read" and "i've heard" take what I said for what it is and lets talk about that, not if it is actually a ship or not.

[krazeeboi]

Not necessarily, but I've never heard any argument against it that was based on something other than religious views on the beginning of life.

[Justadude]

On a practical, common-sense basis, it is almost certain that even if there WAS an ark, and even if the story about it IS totally true, it would not exist anymore. Noah would have had to be the dumbest person on earth not to disassemble the ark as soon as he disembarked, and then re-form it into homes for his family. I seriously doubt he would have stood on the barren, wasted earth of a ravaged planet with no living beings in sight, and not use the wood from the ark to make basic shelter.

Of course, this all assumes that the story is true as the Bible tells it. That is quite unlikely in and of itself.

[runawayjim]

On a practical, common-sense basis, it is almost certain that even if there WAS an ark, and even if the story about it IS totally true, it would not exist anymore. Noah would have had to be the dumbest person on earth not to disassemble the ark as soon as he disembarked, and then re-form it into homes for his family. I seriously doubt he would have stood on the barren, wasted earth of a ravaged planet with no living beings in sight, and not use the wood from the ark to make basic shelter.

Of course, this all assumes that the story is true as the Bible tells it. That is quite unlikely in and of itself.

[dgreco]

^i agree, that is a good critical way to actually look at the story... but I think we will find the answer right here...

[runawayjim]

as promised here's another link... Is this Noah's Ark?

in addition to that, i found a few links about a search in iran for the ark.

this article is a bit harsh, but it discusses ways in which the original story of noah's ark could have never happened. the main reason being that it just isn't feasible to have 2 of every animal on the boat and have it float... nevermind the food and water for all of them (including noah and his family) for 40 days. the author of the article got some info from a zoo on how much food they require on a daily basis.

[linclink]

Just joining the conversation here... but... there are certain things that have not been said. First of all, the story of Noah's Ark is a story of the Judeo-Christian faith, and anyone not of that faith is not obligated to believe it. As a Christian, (Seventh-day Adventist) I do believe in the story of Noah's Ark. Ron Wyatt, who was also a Seventh-day Adventist, was not an archeologist, but a layman. He claims to have found the Ark, as well as other Biblical artifacts. Do I believe him? I don't know. It may be, and it may not be. At this point there is not enough conclusive evidence to prove it one way or the other. However, we now come to the crux of the matter for every Christian. Does it have to be the Ark? No. Even if they never found any hint of evidence to prove any of the Bible stories, I would still believe. I have seen the hand of God in my life personally enough times to know that it is real. I would never expect a non-believer to understand that.

Now, does that mean that I will believe anything? That I believe in those crying statues of mary' or that I believe that piece of toast that looks like Jesus is holy? No. Do I agree that politicians should be elected based on their fundamentalist beliefs? No. I am not a republican, can't stand the religious right (even created a bumper sticker, "Religious Right, Disciples or Pharisee's?" Does being a Christian negate one from using their brains and investigating, again no!! God himself states in the book of Isaiah, "Come, let us reason together" God is a God of reason. He expects us to use our minds, as well as our faith.

Now as for the Bible story. People have claimed here that the Bible says that it rained for 40 days and that that was enough to flood the earth. First of all, the Bible states that it not only rained, but that the foundations of the earth were opened, and that water poured out of them. This means that you were having rain as well as water coming out of the ground (much like the scientists describe happened in pre-historic times, where water jetted out, (a small example of that today would be the geisers, only this happened at a much larger scale). Many Christians believe that the flood happened at the same time that the continents seperated. Looked at in this light, you would see a 40 day period of, not just rain, but rain, shifting of continents, water pouring in from various directions, as well as from underground. This has been floated around as one of the reasons why the dinosaurs went extinct, but when it is applied to Noah's Ark some people have a hard time believing it. Well, you might say, we believe the stuff with the dinosaurs happened millions of years ago, you believe this happened thousands of years ago. Does it speed up the time frame? Yes it does. But the reality is that Carbon Dating is not accurate. There have been cases of animals that died 5 years ago being carbon dated and getting a an age of 55 million years!! And this is proven fact. Do a google search and you will find it. Also, in regards to the animals of the Ark. There is no reason to believe that EVERY animal alive today was in the ark. The Bible states that there were 2 of every animal alive at the time of the Ark. In the years since then you could have had natural adaptation of animals. Not evolution, but adaptation. But in the end, is this belief a matter of faith? Yes it is.

However, let us remember that your belief in science alone is also a matter of faith. The same scientists who 10 years ago were saying that soybeans were the best thing to eat to protect yourself from Breast Cancer, now say that it is the worst thing you can eat if you have a history of breast cancer in your family. That it causes cancer. The same scientists who said, a while back, that sweetners were better for you than sugar, and that there was no problem with consuming them, now tell you that they are bad for you and may even cause brain tumors. And this is with things that they can test in a laboratory. Now, they come with Evolution, and the Big Bang theory, none of which can be proven in a laboratory, and they want people to believe that they have it all down pat and that they are right? They don't even agree on whether or not Global Warming is real, and we're living through it!!!!!

So, don't tell me that your belief in science is based on Fact and that my belief in the God of the Bible is based on Faith, because the reality is that it takes just as much faith for you to believe that you came from a Primate, as it does for me to believe that I came out of the loving hands of my God.

Now back to the Noahs Ark thing. Do I hope that it is the Ark? Yes I do. Why? Because I think it would be an awesome thing to see!!! And I have a feeling that even those who don't believe in the Bible would also find it pretty cool!!!

[linclink]

On a practical, common-sense basis, it is almost certain that even if there WAS an ark, and even if the story about it IS totally true, it would not exist anymore. Noah would have had to be the dumbest person on earth not to disassemble the ark as soon as he disembarked, and then re-form it into homes for his family. I seriously doubt he would have stood on the barren, wasted earth of a ravaged planet with no living beings in sight, and not use the wood from the ark to make basic shelter

[runawayjim]

I don't mean to pick on you, but this is the silliest thing I have ever heard!!! If I came to a rest on a mountain, and there was no shelter anywhere, but I had a boat, that had I had pretty much lived in over the past 6 months, a boat that had sleeping quarters, food preperation area, etc.. etc... and I was already a relatively old man, why in the world would I disassemble this GARGANTUAN ship, in order to build a home? I would just live in the ship! Wow, theres an idea!! Could he have used some of the wood that maybe seperated some of the animal stalls inside the ship to build a fire, etc..?? Sure!! But to disassemble a whole ship in order to build a home really makes no sense. They had in essence, a hotel, or a high rise, where they could live, their kids could live, etc... So that idea really doesn't hold much water (sorry for the pun... hehehehehe)

[linclink]

noah was a very old man... according to the bible, he lived to be over 900 years old. there's reasons i don't believe word for word what the bible says, even though i grew up christian. i was taught in catholic school (yes, catholics are christians) that the bible was meant to be interpreted, not taken for fact.

[runawayjim]

In fact, today many in the scientific community, especially in the area of physics, believe in God, as well as, in quite a few a cases, a literal interpretation of the Bible. And for those who feel it is only the ignorant and uneducated masses who believe in God, let us not forget that Albert Einstein himself believed in God. In fact the last theory he worked on, prior to his death, was an attempt to use science as a means of proving the existence of God. If being ignorant and uneducated puts me in the same league as Einstein, than so be it!

[Justadude]

I don't mean to pick on you, but this is the silliest thing I have ever heard!!! If I came to a rest on a mountain, and there was no shelter anywhere, but I had a boat, that had I had pretty much lived in over the past 6 months, a boat that had sleeping quarters, food preperation area, etc.. etc... and I was already a relatively old man, why in the world would I disassemble this GARGANTUAN ship, in order to build a home? I would just live in the ship! Wow, theres an idea!! Could he have used some of the wood that maybe seperated some of the animal stalls inside the ship to build a fire, etc..?? Sure!! But to disassemble a whole ship in order to build a home really makes no sense. They had in essence, a hotel, or a high rise, where they could live, their kids could live, etc... So that idea really doesn't hold much water (sorry for the pun... hehehehehe)

[linclink]

Wouldn't disassembling the ark, and re-building it as homes take a lot more work than simply cleaning where the animals may have defecated??? I don't follow the logic of tearing down what, once removed from water, is essentially a 3 story building, in order to build homes!!

See, Noah was an Urban planner already No suburbs for him!!!!