Re: Noah's ark
George Murphy (gmurphy@raex.com)
Wed, 19 Nov 1997 17:23:46 -0500Ted Davis wrote:
>
> Stories that never die do include ones like the Ararat/ark item. For
> myself, the best attitude is that of St Thomas, whose name was put forth
> once as putative patron saint for the Royal Society. I'm from Missouri on
> this one, neither confirming nor denying till I see it. Can't number the
> times that "arkeologists" have claimed to get within one day/one mile/one
> political event of "finding" the "ark."
>
> Of course, I'd love for it to turn out true: not for theological reasons
> (though my theology would undergo some modifications), but for cultural
> reasons: it would send all sorts of demons into the world of biblical
> scholarship, unless I miss my mark, and it would be gobs of fun to watch the
> dust settle.
I'm a bit more cynical: If there's no evidence of an Ark on
Ararat, fundamentalists can keep up their spirits by propagating rumors
that there is. I don't think this is a matter of bearing false witness
but of self-delusion. Indeed, maybe there is really something there -
but is it a surprise if a big mountain has an odd bump?
George Murphy