I am fascinated by pseudoscience, creationism and all sorts of other leger de brain that people engage in. Occasionally I end run accross websites that don’t really deserve Quote of the Day status, so I’ve created a new Quack of the Day to take its place.
I was inspired today by Anchor Stone International. There are lots of sites which claim to have evidence that Noah’s Ark has been found, but few with as many mind boggling claims as this one.
From their own Ark of the Covenant FAQ, we find such gems as:
Now that the Ark has been found, how is it being protected? Is there any danger of it falling into the wrong hands?
The Ark has been in its present location for about 2600 years and has been perfectly safe for that time. There is no reason to believe that it is in any danger now.
From time to time we get reports such as the following: ?the area (where the ark is located) is surrounded by a high fence and is being guarded by military troops.? This is absolutely not true. The Ark is located in a cave just outside the north wall of the old city of Jerusalem. It is protected in the same way God has always protected it …………. by His angels. There is no need for anything beyond this.
Yeah. Right. They go on to say that the Ark will be revealed to the world (like putting up a website saying it has been found isn’t revealing it to the world?) when Ron Wyatt, the head of this endeavor sees the right signs.
Unfortunately, Ron joined the choir invisible in 1999, so I guess we are stuck.
It’s quite a piece of work. But they do run tour groups!
While I will agree that this site is a quack, they are not being as far-fetched as they sound. The Ark of the Covenant is NOT Noah’s ark (Ever see “Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark?”). The Ark of the Covenant was a box about 36 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches tall constructed of wood covered in gold (Exodus 25:10). It was placed in the innermost sanctuary of the Jewish temple (the Holy of Holies). Once a year, on the “Day of Atonement,” the high priest would offer a sacrifice for the nation and sprinkle the blood on the Ark. Other than for this ceremony, the Ark was to be undisturbed. So after the temple in Jerusalem is built, the Ark stays there until the Bablyonians invade. The Bablyonians loot the temple and burn it to the ground. Somehow the Ark is lost in all the confusion. The controversy now is basically where did it go? We know that some of the temple furnishings made it to Bablyon (Belshazzar was drinking out of temple vessels when he saw the original “writing on the wall,” Daniel 5), but it has not turned up there. There are many claims that it was hidden somewhere near where the temple used to stand in Jerusalem (like this website claims), but nothing has been confirmed. Also, the church in Ethiopia claims that they have it. I don’t think anyone has yet claimed that Noah’s ark is anywhere but on Mt. Arrat.