To the average “born again” or other Christian, if it’s in the bible its gospel. (No pun intended!) So when they read that some guy, (women are mostly invisible in the bible.) “ascended to heaven in a chariot and horses of fire” in their mind’s eye they picture a “Ben Hur” type Roman chariot that’s on fire flying up into the sky.
Now I and other earthlings of a similar viewpoint read this and we look at it from another perspective. We go: “Okay, this description was no doubt written after the event that could have gone something like this …”
It’s an afternoon in Israel and two friends Shep, a sheep herder and Cy, a scribe are having a barbeque. Their wives Rachel and Hannah in inside the single story tent warming barley bread and making an olive, cheese and watercress salad. Outside Shep and Cy are standing around the fire grilling half a sheep and drinking wine.
Cy: “Hey Shep, you remember the guy they called a prophet ... Elijah? The one they claimed heard god speak?
Shep: Yeah … I know him. He’s real friendly with those foreigners.
Cy: The same. Well he’s gone you know. Taken.
Shep: Who took him? The cops?
Cy: No them … the foreigners. Some say they’re gods you know.
Shep: So tell me, what happened?
Cy: I spoke to Josh at the market yesterday and he told me. You know him?
Shep: Yeah he’s married to fat Benji’s sister. Plays the ram’s horn at the club on Saturday night. Knows all the gossip. So what he say about Elijah then?
Cy: Well they took him away in that big plate shaped flying thingee … the silver one they came here with last year.
Shep: Awesome man! The noisy thing that spits fire and smoke. So where’d they take Eli then?
Cy: Away … up there into the sky.
Shep: Wow! Cool. Pour us some more wine before the women come outside.
The next day Cy the scribe decides to write an account of what Shep told him last
night. He had quite a bit of wine to drink but he thinks he can remember everything.
Cy goes: “And Shep said that Josh told him Elijah was taken up into heaven in a fiery chariot to live with the gods.
Personally I find this quite easy to believe, but then I just wrote it! Anyway, what we need to bear in mind is that the ancients knew little or nothing about our Universe. In fact the average pre-high school child today knows more about it than the wisest man who ever lived thousands of years ago did. So to anyone witnessing a space craft landing or taking off at that time, they would refer to it by the name of the only vehicle they knew … a chariot.
Unfortunately not many earthlings are able to accept this theory and so because “the bible says so … it is so.”
Now I and other earthlings of a similar viewpoint read this and we look at it from another perspective. We go: “Okay, this description was no doubt written after the event that could have gone something like this …”
It’s an afternoon in Israel and two friends Shep, a sheep herder and Cy, a scribe are having a barbeque. Their wives Rachel and Hannah in inside the single story tent warming barley bread and making an olive, cheese and watercress salad. Outside Shep and Cy are standing around the fire grilling half a sheep and drinking wine.
Cy: “Hey Shep, you remember the guy they called a prophet ... Elijah? The one they claimed heard god speak?
Shep: Yeah … I know him. He’s real friendly with those foreigners.
Cy: The same. Well he’s gone you know. Taken.
Shep: Who took him? The cops?
Cy: No them … the foreigners. Some say they’re gods you know.
Shep: So tell me, what happened?
Cy: I spoke to Josh at the market yesterday and he told me. You know him?
Shep: Yeah he’s married to fat Benji’s sister. Plays the ram’s horn at the club on Saturday night. Knows all the gossip. So what he say about Elijah then?
Cy: Well they took him away in that big plate shaped flying thingee … the silver one they came here with last year.
Shep: Awesome man! The noisy thing that spits fire and smoke. So where’d they take Eli then?
Cy: Away … up there into the sky.
Shep: Wow! Cool. Pour us some more wine before the women come outside.
The next day Cy the scribe decides to write an account of what Shep told him last
night. He had quite a bit of wine to drink but he thinks he can remember everything.
Cy goes: “And Shep said that Josh told him Elijah was taken up into heaven in a fiery chariot to live with the gods.
Personally I find this quite easy to believe, but then I just wrote it! Anyway, what we need to bear in mind is that the ancients knew little or nothing about our Universe. In fact the average pre-high school child today knows more about it than the wisest man who ever lived thousands of years ago did. So to anyone witnessing a space craft landing or taking off at that time, they would refer to it by the name of the only vehicle they knew … a chariot.
Unfortunately not many earthlings are able to accept this theory and so because “the bible says so … it is so.”
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