The historical content of the Bible confirmed again.

[old man emu]

12 hours ago, nomadpete said:

wifely pillars of salt.

That is an interesting myth that might have its roots in one of the heat products of the air burst of a meteor. During the interview there is a short comment that the heat of the air burst may have caused the formation of some artifact that a simple mind could have compared to salt. If so, the fact of that artifact could have been woven into a warning to the Hebrews to not disobey the command of their deity.

 

It is also an interesting fact that when Moses is said to have first seen this area, he described it as being just like Egypt, with lush fields on the banks of a river. The area was, and still is prime agricultural land. However, it is reported that after the incident, the farming was abandoned for quite some years. That might indicate severe contamination of the land, making it sterile for agriculture. Salt deposition is a well-known destroyer of cropping land.

[old man emu]

Here is the link to the scientific report of the excavation of Tall el_Hammam, which is the site whose level of destruction and time of occurrence could be the seed of the Sodom story in the Bible.

 

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-97778-3

 

In reading the report one should do so with the stated objectives of the archeological study. "The major objective of this contribution is determining the processes involved in the high-temperature, catastrophic destruction of Tall el-Hammam, a prosperous, powerful MB-II urban center."

 

Also note the disclaimer: "There is an ongoing debate as to whether Tall el-Hammam could be the biblical city of Sodom but this issue is beyond the scope of this investigation." " Nevertheless, we consider whether oral traditions about the destruction of this urban city by a cosmic object might be the source of the written version of Sodom in Genesis. We also consider whether the details recounted in Genesis are a reasonable match for the known details of a cosmic impact event."

[Old Koreelah]

The more we learn about the past, the more we should fear our future. Seems our planet cops a catastrophic cosmic event more often than we knew.

[old man emu]

What hasn't come up in reference to the destruction of this city is that the Jordan River occupies a rift valley marking the separation of  the north-western part of the Arabian plate from the African Plate. This is an active pull-apart with left-lateral motion. It is an earthquake prone area. However, the presence of the effects of extreme temperatures eliminates the theory that the destruction was as the result of an earthquake.

 

If you want another example of a witnessed natural disaster being used as the basis for a morality tale, go no further than the myth of Atlantis, the rich and powerful city that sank beneath the waves. I'll not retell that story, but The Tale of Atlantis was, first and foremost, an allegory conceived by Plato to warn his contemporaries of the dangers to democracy. 

 

Some think that the disaster in the story was the eruption of the volcanic island of Thera (modern-day Santorini) some time between 1611 and 1538 BCE. This event is well documented in Egyptian records due to the damage the tsunamis caused. This eruption destroyed the Minoan civilization. However, contemporary with Plato (425? – 348 BC) was the destruction of Helike. The city-state of Helike, located on the shores of northern Peloponnese, was a major regional naval power. In 373 BCE, Helike met its doom, mirroring the tragic fate of its legendary counterpart. Without warning, a massive earthquake struck Helike, sending the entire city to the depths of the sea. In one single night, Helike, one of ancient Greece’s major powers, disappeared from the face of the earth, along with most of its inhabitants. Centuries after the catastrophe, the submerged ruins of Helike could still be seen. During the Roman Empire, tourists frequently sailed over the site, admiring the ruins of the submerged city.

[Bruce Tuncks]

There are so many "cosmic events" in the OT that  cherry-picking one and suggesting the thing could really have happened makes one wonder about the other, plainly impossible , ones.

So...  if the sodom and gomorrah story is true, what about Jonah etc etc. If they cannot all be explained scientifically, what is the point of trying to prove one story?

[old man emu]

19 minutes ago, Bruce Tuncks said:

if the sodom and gomorrah story is true

Facts established by experts in a number of fields:

 

1. There was a major urban centre near the mouth of the Jordan River in a period we call the Middle Bronze Age.

2. The urban centre was provided with food from a particularly good agricultural area nearby.

3. The area lies over the boundary of two tectonic plates that are known to be in motion. There is no evidence that the destruction was caused by earthquake.

4. There is no evidence in the relevant demolition layer that the destruction was the result of military action.

5. Comparison of the condition of artifacts found at the site with those recovered from known high temperature natural events finds many similarities.

6. Application of modern knowledge about the results of the airburst of a meteor has produced data that not only can explain the condition of the artifacts, but also indicate the trajectory of a meteor, and the blast products.

 

That the occurrence of a natural phenomenon was used to form the background of a morality story, does that immediately negate the physical evidence of the phenomenon? I have provided a link to the opinion expressed by a group of people to what might have happened. Is the content of that paper the seed of a myth, too?

 

The point that is being argued by many here is not "Did the event happen?", but "Why did the event happen?".  Atheists will answer that it was pure chance. Theist will answer that it was be the will of an anthropomorphic deity. Report the incident to a Middle Bronze Age inhabitant of Britain, and I wonder what that response would be.

 

As for Jonah, do whales inhabit the Mediterranean Sea?

[nomadpete]

The good book explains that god was rather annoyed about the lifestyle choices of the happy inhabitants  of the town.

 

'Tis but a small leap of faith to say that God chucked a cosmic rock rather accurately at Sodom.

 

Sometimes this god likes a bit of theatrical vengeance.

[spacesailor]

The dead are not ' really ' dead ! .

Hearsay,  the doctors " said " ,  My,  death certificate was torn up after I came back to " life " .

If that was Not a lie , then I must have been " DEAD " .

ME  spacesailor

[Old Koreelah]

11 hours ago, nomadpete said:

The good book explains that god was rather annoyed about the lifestyle choices of the happy inhabitants  of the town.

Many claim that God destroyed these cities because of their homosexual lifestyle. Maybe not.