A Weblog Dedicated to the Discussion of the Christian Faith and 21st Century Life

A Weblog Dedicated to the Discussion of the Christian Faith and 21st Century Life
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I do not seek to understand that I may believe, but I believe in order to understand. For this also I believe, –that unless I believed, I should not understand.-- St. Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109)

Monday, December 08, 2014

How Did Moses Part the Red Sea?

I 'm not sure what to make of this, but it is an interesting read.
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There is a... natural explanation for how a temporary path across the Red Sea could have been revealed. It involves the tide, a natural phenomenon that would have fit nicely into a well-thought-out plan by Moses, because Moses would have been able to predict when it would happen.

In certain places in the world, the tide can leave the sea bottom dry for hours and then come roaring back. In fact, in 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte and a small group of soldiers on horseback were crossing the Gulf of Suez, the northern end of the Red Sea, roughly where Moses and the Israelites are said to have crossed. On a mile-long expanse of dry sea bottom exposed at low water, the tide suddenly rushed in, almost drowning them.
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The entire article written by Dr. Bruce Parker can be found here. He is the former chief scientist of NOAA's National Ocean Service and is currently a visiting professor at the Stevens Institute of Technology. He is the author of “The Power of the Sea: Tsunamis, Storm Surges, Rogue Waves, and Our Quest to Predict Disasters.”

2 comments:

John Partridge said...

Even if I were to temporarily set aside my skepticism, I still notice that they offer no explanation for why the Egyptians waited to follow them. So ordinary tides come with a pillar of fire?

Allan R. Bevere said...

John,

I think he does give the explanation-- the Egyptians, being Nile dwellers, would not have been familiar with the tides of the Red Sea. As far as the pillar of fire goes, he does not explain that. I suppose he would say that was an embellished detail.

My only interest in this story has to do with my interest in for many years in configuration miracles-- acts that have natural explanations, but the timing being miraculous.