It does sound like myth

We all love myths. Mythology has always been a very important part of a culture or society. The stories we tell ourselves become the truths we live by. I believe in the power of myths.

But when we talk about the Bible, we uphold it as the Word of God. Being so, do we elevate its narratives above other socio-cultural myths? Is it historically factual? Scientific? Many stronger minds than mine like archaeologists and historians have proven the veracity of the Holy Bible. And yet…

When it comes to the story of the Great Flood, I go, hm… For one, it is not unique. Other cultures have myths about a worldwide cataclysmic flood that wiped out living things, except for a man and his family. Is the Hebrew version of this myth Noah?

See. I have no doubt that a Flood could occur. It’s the animals that got me into a confusion. A pair of every specie? There’s not one specie of snakes. There’s thousands! Same with spiders, and wild cats. And talk about dog breeds! How did Noah travel to the North Pole to save the polar bears, and then to the South Pole for the penguins? It is just too fantastical for me.

Let me apply my imagination. The ark is huge. But it has to have some limitation to the load it could carry. Could it be that after the Flood God let evolution happen, so that from a number of species (experts estimate 45,000 animals) that could fit a boat, we now have countless throughout the earth? Even now biologists are discovering new species of insects and mammals. Could they have been represented in the Ark, too?

And Noah! Why bring alone pesky rats, dirty cockroaches, and termites! You had that chance to keep the Bubonic plague from wiping out Europe…if you didn’t let Mr and Mrs Rat on the boat! And roaches! How I hate roaches!

Now, nothing is impossible with God. He could have caused the animals all over the world to converge and meet Noah where he was…a sort of fauna parade. Maybe He did allow the number of species to exponentially grow as the animals stepped off the ark to refill the earth. But then, there’s mention of a raven and a dove in the Ark. Does that mean these animals never evolved after thousands of years?

But one thing washes away all these doubts of mine until they recede to nothingness: Jesus’ attitude towards the Flood. He mentions the flood and Noah as actual an historical event and person. He should know. He was there. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh.

Jesus is an eyewitness to the Flood, and being Himself God and Creator, must’ve taken care of Noah, his family, and all the land animals and birds. Jesus could stop storms. He must be able to cause heavy rains and floods, too.

Sometimes the details of life flood us and overwhelm us. Years ago, an ex-landlady refused to give back our deposit to the apartment we once rented, not until she has spent it all on remodelling. She is greedy. I do not enjoy talking to her to ask for the money back and what’s fair.

But in a thousand years in eternity, will it matter that I got what’s fair in this? Or that I relied on my ever-Present Jesus in this situation and behaved as would please Him? I set my priorities straight now: I’d rather worship Jesus than fight tooth and nail for five thousand pesos.