Today’s blog post is a little off script in that it does not directly relate to the book review The Watchers: Lost Secrets of Ascension, Resurrection and Perfection. Rather, in the process of writing my last blog post regarding the story of the flood and how it relates to the story of the Watchers, I was reminded again about the monumental hurdle facing anyone who grew up in the church to even seriously CONSIDER any other position than the one they have already accepted as truth. I can sympathize, because I used to be just like this. Because I once already accepted, from childhood, that the Bible was written by God himself and therefore any other version of a story other than the one presented in the bible MUST be a lie. Certainly GOD didn’t get the story wrong!
Of course the fallacy of this position is that as a child, I wasn’t prepared to think critically. No one had taught me how to question, how to verify or validate, how to examine the evidence critically, or how to study. I simply and quickly accepted the premise that the Bible was literally written by God with a childlike innocence, internalized that belief system, and then that belief became a part of who I am. “I am a Christian. I believe that the Bible is the divine word of God. Therefore you cannot shake my faith in that!” I stood proud of my unshakable faith in something I was too young to have fully understood when I made the commitment in the first place. If I’d only known then what I know now.
Take for example, the story of the Flood which we reviewed in part in my last post. When I was growing up as a Christian I had no idea how many different versions of the flood story there were out there. I had no idea how many of those version were written LONG before the Bible was written. As an adult however, I discovered that the story of the Biblical flood is a story that is VERY old and predates the version written by the Hebrew people (the one that is translated into English in our modern Bible) by THOUSANDS of years. When I learned this information in my midlife, it was only after I had already concluded that the story in the Bible was a true historical fact and that any other version that might be out there was simply a “myth” or a twist on the truth.
When I was researching my last article I stumbled upon a paper written by a Christian who was comparing the biblical flood story to the Babylonian flood account, “The Epic of Gilgamesh”. I couldn’t resist taking a moment to show how this author’s arrogance demonstrates the reason it’s so hard for me to discuss this topic with those indoctrinated into the teachings of the church. All through the author’s paper I saw the same blind arrogance and faulty logic of my youth. Namely that because we ALREADY accepted the Bible as true, all other versions MUST therefore be false. Or, as the author put it:
To those who believe in the inspiration and infallibility of the Bible, it should not be a surprise that God would preserve the true account of the Flood in the traditions of His people. The Genesis account was kept pure and accurate throughout the centuries by the providence of God until it was finally compiled, edited, and written down by Moses. The Epic of Gilgamesh, then, contains the corrupted account as preserved and embellished by peoples who did not follow the God of the Hebrews.
The Flood of Noah and the Flood of Gilgamesh, by Frank Lorey, M.A., the Institute for Creation Research
And so, according to this author, even though we know the Epic of Gilgamesh was written LONG before the Hebrew account, we also know that God preserved the PURE and true version of the story until it was “finally” compiled, edited and written down by Moses and that the Epic of Gilgamesh (which is much older) simply corrupted the TRUE account and embellished the story.
I remember, as a former Christian, how a statement like this would give me pride in the fact that I was resting on sound logic. However, the author uses no such sound logic. He simply states that if you ALREADY believe the bible is inspired and infallible than all other versions MUST be a lie. That is correct. If you have already made up your mind which version is true then you must also conclude that all others are incorrect. That does not however, make it true just because you CHOOSE to pick one version over another.
The same author also states, after admitting the Epic of Gilgamesh predates the Bible by thousands of years, that this has no significance for the modern Christian. He further adds:
A popular theory, proposed by liberal “scholars,” said that the Hebrews “borrowed” from the Babylonians, but no conclusive proof has ever been offered
The Flood of Noah and the Flood of Gilgamesh, by Frank Lorey, M.A., the Institute for Creation Research
There you have it. We have no “proof” the Hebrews borrowed the story, therefore they did not. Never mind that the Epic of Gilgamesh was written LONG before the Hebrew version. Never mind that it’s a Babylonian flood story and that the Hebrew people are recorded as having spent time in captivity to Babylon and thus would have heard these same stories. Bottom line is, there is no “proof” they “borrowed” the story so therefore it didn’t happen that way. Ironically, I COULD argue the “proof” that the Hebrews borrowed the Sumerian/Babylonian version lies in the sheer number of similarities between the two stories but that’s an argument I’m not going to try and make.
Also note how the author uses the phrase “liberal ‘scholars'” and puts the word scholars in quotes as if to mock those so called educated men who dedicate their lives to studying history. It’s only those dumb liberals who think they are “scholarly” that suggest the Hebrews “borrowed” the flood story.
But then, to further his own arrogance, the author offers up this tidbit:
Dating of the oldest fragments of the Gilgamesh account originally indicated that it was older than the assumed dating of Genesis. However, the probability exists that the Biblical account had been preserved either as an oral tradition, or in written form handed down from Noah, through the patriarchs and eventually to Moses, thereby making it actually older than the Sumerian accounts which were restatements (with alterations) to the original.
The Flood of Noah and the Flood of Gilgamesh, by Frank Lorey, M.A., the Institute for Creation Research
Just WOW! So according to the author we can’t “prove” the Hebrews copied the much older story of Gilgamesh and in fact (according to the author), “the probability exists that the Biblical account had been preserved… thereby making it actually older than the Sumerian accounts”. I laugh because this SAME thing was said to me when I was a child questioning things like this. And talk about having no proof! If the story was originally passed on by oral tradition by the Hebrews than by definition there is ZERO proof of this. We have no record of the “oral” tradition. He suggests the Hebrews could have written it down earlier than the version we have in the Bible but there is no historical evidence of that. However, what we DO have historical evidence of is that fragments of the Epic of Gilgamesh were found and dated to have been written LONG before the Hebrew version was ever written.
As you can see, this arrogance really boils my blood. How am I ever to “reason” with a Christian and share with them how I came to a different conclusion if this sort of logic is what I’m working against? I have to agree that if you have ALREADY concluded that the Bible is the infallible and inspired word of God then there is no reason to ever look at anything ever again. You will likely just mock any alternative ideas or understanding as one of those “liberal scholars” who thinks they’re so smart. If you have already determined that you have the truth then nothing you ever read or learn can shake you from that position. You can see now why I typically do not engage in discussions any longer about religion with anyone. Most people in a religion have already decided what they believe and that belief cannot be shaken. In fact, most are proud of their unwillingness to consider any other position. It’s no longer a dialogue but rather a “witness” of their personal faith.
I’m going to leave today’s rant with this parting thought and then a comparison table showing the similarities between the Epic of Gilgamesh and the story of the “biblical flood”. If 20 people witness a car crash or a horrific accident and witness statements are taken down, you can bet your ass that there will be quite different versions of the same event even when all witnesses saw it first hand. A detective or police officer writing the report will need to gather evidence, interview witnesses, compare the stories and try and determine what really happened. The officer does not say, “I already know Bob here and if Bob saw the accident that’s the only version of events that matter. I’m standing by Bob.Have a nice day!” Imagine even more so if we waited twenty years to do the investigation. How accurate do you imagine those eye witness accounts to be now?
| COMPARISON OF GENESIS AND GILGAMESH | ||
| GENESIS | GILGAMESH | |
| Extent of flood | Global | Global |
| Cause | Man’s wickedness | Man’s sins |
| Intended for whom? | All mankind | One city & all mankind |
| Sender | Yahweh | Assembly of “gods” |
| Name of hero | Noah | Utnapishtim |
| Hero’s character | Righteous | Righteous |
| Means of announcement | Direct from God | In a dream |
| Ordered to build boat? | Yes | Yes |
| Did hero complain? | Yes | Yes |
| Height of boat | Several stories (3) | Several stories (6) |
| Compartments inside? | Many | Many |
| Doors | One | One |
| Windows | At least one | At least one |
| Outside coating | Pitch | Pitch |
| Shape of boat | Rectangular | Square |
| Human passengers | Family members only | Family & few others |
| Other passengers | All species of animals | All species of animals |
| Means of flood | Ground water & heavy rain | Heavy rain |
| Duration of flood | Long (40 days & nights plus) | Short (6 days & nights) |
| Test to find land | Release of birds | Release of birds |
| Types of birds | Raven & three doves | Dove, swallow, raven |
| Ark landing spot | Mountain — Mt. Ararat | Mountain — Mt. Nisir |
| Sacrificed after flood? | Yes, by Noah | Yes, by Utnapishtim |
| Blessed after flood? | Yes | Yes |