Question for the Jews/Christians

Post Reply New Topic

There were two of each kind of non-sacrificial animal, so it could have been a representative two of each species or two of each subtype. It depends on how you want to see it as there is no specificity given in scripture. You could also take it from the context of theistic evolution or micro-evolution and allow for later adaptation within a specific type of animal to best suit it's environment. This would not be a total belief in evolution but rather in the inherent variability in which traits survive in a particular environment. Thus, it would not be, say a rat evolving into a bat, but more black sheep surviving in certain locations versus more white ones in others. (Yes, I know the analogy might not hold scientific water, but the point is obvious.) It would also allow for things like Darwin's Finches, where certain beaks were more prevalent on certain islands versus the beaks prevalent on others. The genetic ability for the other kind of beak may still exist within the genome, but the survival rate would be low due to the lack of that specific adaptation.

Another way to see it is in terms of humans. While Christians and Jews see all of the human race as originating from Adam and Eve, there are different races of humans that are adapted to their respective original environments. They are still all human though and we see them as descended from a common ancestry. The division would have happened after the flood, much like the migration of Noah's sons who then formed the beginnings of certain races. Shem begat the Semitic peoples and Ham and Japheth begat their respective groups as well. However, all were sons of Noah. You can also trace it through the Tower of Babel too, but I'm not up to it right now.

How many pairs of beetles did they bring on the ark?

Two.

Either they were not evolved enough to be considered a different species, or God didn't notice the difference. I hate to think how boring life would be if God were drained of what individuality he likely has. No such thing as perfect, even for a God.

The ten thousand species of beetle that we know about (there are probably many more) could not have evolved by variation in the 5000 years since the Flood.

The Flood is a myth. There never was a world wide flood 5000 years ago, although 600,000,000 years ago the entire earth might have been covered with ice.

ruveyn

Pretty much every culture has a story of somebody who survives a global flood by building an ark or climbing a mountain.

Growing up, we had a Jehovah's Witness family living next door to us, and the mother had taken it upon herself to try converting me. One time, she had wanted to demonstrate to me how there had been a Biblical flood, but not an ice age. Taking an ice cube, she went over to sand box, and slid the ice along the sand, explaining how ice would only smooth out the earth beneath. Then, taking a hose, she sprayed water on the sand, her point being that torrents of water would tear up the earth, leaving canyons and mountains.
Yes, she was insane.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

isn't t really a story about God getting pissed that people were living like asshats, and threatening to wipe everything and start agin? this is a commone theme in the torah. And there's always one righteous dude willing to stand up. Noah tries to warm everyone, but no one listens...so God brings his wrath, Noah survives, and a people are born who will continue this cylce of turning away from God, him getting pissed, and one righteous dude willing to stand up for his beliefs. It's a cool series of stories with awesome lessons and interesting exchanges between God and man.

Taking aside all the plot issues which make suspension of belief difficult.

Any Christian worth his salt will tell you that God's disfavour obviously extended to the mammoths. So, he had to drown them all, together with the dinosaurs. The people who lived by hunting the mammoths had to go, too. They were a sinful bunch.

Aren't you glad at least that God told Noah not to bring any Tyrannosaurus Rexes with him? Most of them were not as cute as Barney.

Too bad Noah had to bring mosquitoes with him. I wonder which member of Noah's family was stuck with taking care of the tapeworms?

! !! !

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

! !! !

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer[/quote]

Noah assigned the tasks aboard the arc. To Shem he said: Shem, those animals that part the hoof and chew their cud, you take care of those:
To Japeth he said: Japeth, of all the other four footed animals you have charge.
To Ham: Ham, of all the snakes, slithering animals and bugs, you have charge.

No wonder Ham castrated his dad.

ruveyn

Noah assigned the tasks aboard the arc. To Shem he said: Shem, those animals that part the hoof and chew their cud, you take care of those:
To Japeth he said: Japeth, of all the other four footed animals you have charge.
To Ham: Ham, of all the snakes, slithering animals and bugs, you have charge.

No wonder Ham castrated his dad.

ruveyn[/quote]

Castrated? I thought he just buggard the old man.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

It looks like the mammoths actually died out 4,000 years ago

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammoth

If the flood happened before that time, then, of course, Noah had to bring a pair of each species of mammoth with him, and then drop them off in the correct environments (North American mammoths in North America, Siberian mammoths in Siberia, etc.). That was really a big job.

All of the mastodons would have drowned, together with the dinosaurs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastodon

Heard about that- The Egyptian pyramids were a 1000 years old when the last pigmy mammoths (talk about oxymorons!) roamed that island off Siberia.

But why did so many FISH drown in the flood?
And why did aquatic creatures like trilobites also drown in the flood?

No.. wait.

I know...

The excess water that created the flood was all FRESH water.

The oceans got diluted, and the salinity got reduced. And all of the salt water sea life got killed off by toxic shock.

Never mind.

Tapeworms are hermaphrodites having both male and female reproductive systems. Though self reproduction is rare. So with the hermaphrodite animals did Noah only have to collect one since it is both male and female?


Also there are over 1000 species of tapeworms.

I am trying to figure out whether Ham had one tapeworm, 1000 tapeworms or 2000 tapeworms. That might be a lot of tapeworms in one man's body.

I think we can assume that all of the hermaphrodite animals ( like earthworms) were represented by one speciman each to save space in the ark. In an emergancy, which the flood certainly was, those critters would be willing to bleep themselves for posterity.



But yes- what about the parasites?

All of the hook worms, and leeches, and whatnot. How do you provide for them?

Yeah, that's what I always thought...if I'm remembering this correctly, the passage says that Ham "knew his father's nakedness"...for reference, when Adam "knew" Eve, Cain and Abel happened.

On top of that, I do remember the Bible saying that Noah's line was the only "pure" one, and that this was the reason why Noah's family was spared. If Noah's family was the only "pure" one, then his sons couldn't have married outside of the family, because other people would have been "impure". So, on top of Ham having relations with his father, Noah's sons would have needed to do the nasty with their mom and/or sisters. What kind of a "pure" family is this?!