A Little About: GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER

George Washington Carver was born into slavery  about 1864 on a plantation in Missouri. When he was still a baby, he was kidnapped by confederates who raised him as their own.

In those days, black children were not allowed to school.  But George became the first ever black student, and he excelled in art, music and science, especially biology.  George loved God’s creation, and he spent his free time collecting rocks and plants.

When George Washington Carver grew up, he became the first ever black teacher.  But this was not even nearly all he accomplished.  He spent his life using his skills to help farmers, and he became very well known for his amazing discoveries and inventions-- he even found 300 uses for peanuts, including paper, flour and even face cream!

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“When I was young, I said to God, "God, tell me the mystery of the universe." But God answered, "That knowledge is reserved for me alone." So I said, "God, tell me the mystery of the peanut." Then God said, "Well George, that's more nearly your size." And he told me.”

- George Washington Carver

Amenhotep IV: The Pharaoh with Only One God

Following the death of Amenhotep the III, Amenhotep the IV took the throne.  This was the beginning of one of the  strangest periods in the history of Ancient Egypt.

Amenhotep IV

 Prince Amenhotep IV had been sickly from birth, with a disease that caused a bloated stomach, large hips and a rather feminine figure.  Today’s historians think it could have been a disease called Marfan’s syndrome, though they cannot be sure as his body has never been verified.  We know how he looked from the carvings and sculptures of him.  But this in itself is rather strange- before the time of Amenhotep, Pharaohs were always drawn with a perfect body, no matter how fat or ugly they really were.  But Amenhotep did something that no pharaoh had ever done before-  he asked his artists to depict him as he was.  And instead of having himself drawn as a god-like figure defeating enemies, he asked to be shown doing things he actually did, like cuddling his children or eating lunch.  To do this, Amenhotep must have had a very original and artistic mind,  and just perhaps he knew that he wasn’t a god, and therefore should not be drawn as one.  

This was not all that was strange about Amenhotep.  He was also monotheistic, which is extraordinary indeed for someone who had been brought up his whole life believing in many gods.  Egyptians in particular have a great deal of them, from great gods such as Ra to the minor gods such as Ament, Greeter of the Dead, and Mafdet, goddess of Scorpions and Snakes!

There are a few theories as to why Amenhotep neglected the beliefs of his forefathers. One is that when Amenhotep IV was young, there was conflict between his father, Pharaoh Amenhotep III,  and some of his priests.  It is thought that as a result, Pharaoh created a new god, Aton (which is the literal disk of the sun- the Egyptian’s main god, Ra, was thought to ride across the sky using the Aton as his chariot).

A carving of Akhenaten, showing his bloated hips and unusual figure.

Anyway, whether his father devised it or not, Amenhotep started to grow more and more devoted to Aton. He even changed his name to Akhenaten, which means, roughly, “devoted to Aton.”  Akhenaten ordered all temples to other gods destroyed, and had temples to Aten put up in their stead. The people of Egypt, especially the priests, were utterly furious.  How dare this pharaoh decide who they were allowed to worship? The people, most likely fearing the wrath of the gods, worshipped their old idols in secret.  Also, because of Akhenaten's new style of art, people found it hard to take him seriously- pharaohs were supposed to be godlike beings who crushed enemies, not normal people like themselves.  Then, to top it all off, Akhenaten decided to have a new city built for himself, away from his hometown, Thebes.  He named it the “Horizon of Aten,” and he lived there for the rest of his life.
 
What could cause this sudden turning-upside down of everything egyptians had always believed?  Akhenaten had been raised to believe in many gods.  Surely he could not have just thrown them all away, with no inspiration whatsoever!

 I think it is possible (and I’m not alone in this) that that Akhenaten was inspired by the One True God. The Jews often had dealings with egypt, and it is highly likely that Akhenaten met one.  It is even thought by some that he could have been Joseph’s pharaoh! Of course, Akhenaten may not have been a true follower of God-- he may have been only inspired by the idea of one god.

Of course, historians don’t believe in the One True God- they say that Akhenaten was simply unique, and even suggest that it was he that inspired Moses.  But, as I said in my last article, archaeology has its limits, and different people have different interpretation.  In fact, during my research of Akhenaten, it was hard to know who to believe, as each person who wrote about Akhenaten had a slightly different story to tell.  

   

 Akhenaten with his wife, Nefertiti, and three of their children.

|| “Be thou incapable of change in that which is right, and men will rely upon thee. Establish unto thyself principles of action; and see that thou ever act according to them. First know that thy principles are just, and then be thou.” - Akhénaton* ||
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*"Thy Quotes-Brainy Quote"

The Limitations of Archaeology

From gunpowder to brushes

Archaeology is undeniably wonderful - without it, we would know very little of the past deeds and customs of this world. We wouldn’t have a clue what ancient people used for tools, why Egyptian people bothered to mummify the dead, how cave-people survived, or what the Romans ate.  The past would be a misty memory, of which only a few books could, to some extent, elucidate.

It seems that archaeology has been around forever, but in fact it is a fairly new science.

When Pompeii was discovered in the 1700’s, archaeology was still in its infancy.   Though, of course, most of the archaeologists loved history, they hadn’t learnt how to care for ancient artifacts.  They sometimes used methods such as gunpowder to excavate, and often sold artifacts to use as decorations.  Because of this, a good many artifacts were lost or accidentally destroyed.
I read a story once of a farmer who found a huge collection of Ancient Egyptian mummified cats in his field.  Some were sold by children for pennies, but most were burnt down to use as fertilizer.  You can imagine the distress of today’s archaeologists at such a loss!

These days, great care is taken when excavating.  Instead of gunpowder, tools like brushes and small spades are used.  The site of the dig is carefully made into a grid with string, and dirt is sifted through a sieve-like instrument to make sure nothing is missed.  And except for   research purposes, artifacts are left in their original location.

Through archaeology, many things have been found to prove the truth of biblical records.  For instance, it is known that many ancient tribes have a worldwide flood story, and also that many word-of-mouth bloodlines go back to three forefathers, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, though sometimes they have different names.  And when I read Tales of Ancient Egypt by Roger Lancelyn Green, I was surprised as to how similar the Egyptian tale of creation was to the biblical account.  Though warped, the story of Creation, handed down through generations, was still there.  The Egyptians also believed that their god Osiris would one day come back from the Land of the Dead and rule on earth, which is very similar to God’s promise!

The word “proof” is used too often

Archaeology shows us what it was like to live thousands of years ago.  But many things can never be proved, so to speak, by archaeology.   Conclusions can be come to, but in many cases, what these conclusions will be depends on the personal interpretation of the archaeologist.

For example, the city of Troy.  Most have heard the tale of the Trojan horse, which is based on Homer’s epic poem, the Iliad.   Back in the 19th century, most scholars thought Troy was merely a myth.  Then along came a man called Heinrich Schliemann, who was passionate believer in Homer’s poem.  Heinrich gave up his flourishing business to search for Troy, and, using clues in the poem, discovered it. The scholarly world was amazed.  Because Heinrich was biased, he was able to find something that was considered a myth.

Years later, further excavations were done on Troy by someone else.  He declared that he had “proof” that the city wasn’t Troy at all.  So once again there is disagreement over its existence.

Facts are interpreted in the view of the particular archaeologist.  One might find a dish and say it was specially made for a king, another might say it was stolen by a pirate. In the end, one must realize that most things cannot really be proved unless it has been seen.

Some archaeologists have tried to prove -or contradict- biblical events with archaeology.  It was apparently proved that the city of Jericho was nonexistent, until further research led to the belief that it did.  It seems that facts change about every 50 years, when someone else comes along with different interpretation and better technology.

What with all this controversy, it’s hard to know what to believe.  In the end, what the Bible says is the real truth, and it can be trusted no matter what anyone else says.  One writer put it this way:  “a faith that provides truth is much to be preferred over a research program that does not.”  And I think he’s hit the nail right on the head.

(my picture)

Animals on the Ark

Everyone, at least, nearly everyone, knows what Noah’s ark is. However, most would think of it as a childish, cute little boat with the heads of animals sticking out of the windows.

In reality, the boat would have been a monster of a thing, and there was certainly no cuteness about it.

(Image from Creation.com)

For one thing, can you imagine the noise of thousands of animals put together?  Just imagine the sound of feeding time at the zoo, and then multiply it by a thousand. Think of that ringing in your ears, all day long!  Not to mention the smell…and most likely, Noah and the other inhabitants of the boat would have got dreadfully seasick – and with all that work to do!

Pooper-scooper

As an animal lover and owner, I know that they make a lot of mess.  Of course, the thousands of animals on the ark would have made much, much more, and there were only eight people to look after them. It sounds rather daunting, but probably wasn’t to bad - after all, apart from work, there wasn’t much else to do!

It is thought that Noah could have made sloped floors on the pens, so that waste could slide down into a “gutter.” Then they could easily have flushed it away, or decomposed it.*

Erm, dinosaurs are huge.  How did THEY get on there, eh?

There’s a rather simple answer to this question.  The dinosaurs didn’t have to be fully-grown - they would only have had to take babies, or “teenagers” (juveniles).

The same goes for many animals, for instance, a young elephant would be a lot easier to look after that a fully-grown one, and it would eat a lot less!

(copyright Minden Pictures)

What about exercise?

Exercise isn’t really a problem – most animals don’t need any more exercise than their pen/cage would have allowed, and for those that did (such as horses) they could have had an exercise chamber to walk them up and down or some such thing.

I know the ark was huge, but there where SO many animals…how did they fit ‘em all?

Back then, there would be a lot less variety in the animals “kinds” (basically, animals that can interbreed).  For instance, in the equine family, there wouldn’t have been Arabians, Thoroughbreds, Clydesdales, Friesians etc., but only one horse kind.  Possibly donkeys and zebras came from their family as well.

A Przewalski's horse…the original created horse would have looked much like this.
(photo by http://morho.devianart.com)

Likewise, they didn’t have to take Yorkshire terriers, basset hounds, golden retrievers, beagles, sausage dogs and poodles – they would probably only had to take one dog kind, from which came dingoes, wolves, coyotes…you get the picture!

Foxes, Pomeranians and wolves- all dog kinds!
(wolf photo by http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/wolf/)


This quote puts the size of the ark into perspective: “[it] was the equivalent volume of 522 standard railroad stock cars, each of which can hold 240 sheep…the 16,000 animals would only occupy 1200 m3 (42,000 cubic feet) or 14.4 stock cars. …[All] the insect species would occupy a total volume of only 1000 m3, or another 12 cars.”**


Well, how did they feed them all?

As all the animals, including insects, would have only taken up 26.4 out of 522 railroad stock cars, there would have been plenty of room left over to store food! 

There have been questions as to how they fed carnivorous animals, such as tigers. Well, carnivorous animals can quite happily live on a vegetarian diet today, and back then it was a lot closer to creation.  A certain lioness was fed on pasta till she was several years old, and she was perfectly healthy. And many people all across the world feed their dogs on rice and vegetables.  As a matter of fact, I used to have a dog that I would often feed porridge. His coat shone with health.

What about air-breathing marine animals?

Marine animals such a whales and dolphins certainly couldn’t have come on the ark!  So how did they survive?

Most of them probably didn’t survive.  The turbulence of the water, upheavals of mud and such would have caused most of them to die.  But only two had to survive to carry on the species (a male and a female!), and I’m sure God took care of that.

*The Answers Book (Ham, K., Sarfati, J., Wieland, C., Triune Press: 1999) page 173 -174 

** ibid, page 172.

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pictures from Google images

Book Reviews (2)

The Journey of the Eldest Son

Written by J.G Fyson

A sequel to Three Brothers of Ur, The Journey of the Eldest Son follows the story of fourteen-year-old Shamashazir, who leaves his home in the city of Ur to travel with his cousin Serag.  Weighing heavily on Shamashazir’s conscience is the fact that his brother Haran had broken the sacred image of the family teraphim, and had then stuck it back together with porridge.  Shamashazir wondered what woes would befall his family.

But despite his troubles, Shamashazir is enjoying the journey, and all is going well.  Then one morning, disaster strikes when Shamashazir takes an early walk high in the cliffs by himself and disappears...

Thinking that his cousin is dead, Serag and his company continue on alone, Serag with a heart that is heavy not only for his cousin, but also because he does not know what Shamashazir’s father will do to him when he hears that his son is dead.  

But Shamashazir is not dead.  He was found by the tribe of Enoch, which had once been great, until most of them were killed in battle.  They taught him about the Great Spirit, who is more wonderful and more powerful than any other god.  Shamashazir soon became friends with these suspicious yet kind people, especially the animal-loving Sam, the hunter Eb and the Ishak* of the tribe, Enoch. However, he didn’t find it so easy to befriend the Ishak’s proud son, also named Enoch.  Enoch son of Enoch thought of Shamashazir as a heathen, and an enemy to the Great Spirit.  

But Shamashazir and the tribe of Enoch journey together, they begin to see more of the heart of the Great Spirit - his love and forgiveness, even towards the cursed tribe of Cain, the first murderer.   

My Thoughts:

The Journey of the Eldest Son was a very interesting and thought-provoking book.  Fyson has a gift for making history come alive - though the story was set around 4,000 years ago; somehow it feels like it could have happened yesterday.  A note at the end says that Shamashazir is actually the author’s name for Abraham.  The book is not based on real events, and some of it is a little sketchy as to biblical soundness, but overall I felt that Fyson has respect for God.

I give it four stars.

(google image)

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*Chief

Monkeys or Men?

“I myself am convinced that the theory of evolution, especially the extent to which it’s been applied, will be one of the great jokes in the history books of the future. Posterity will marvel that so very flimsy and dubious an hypothesis could be accepted with the incredible credulity that it has.”

– Malcolm Muggeridge, well-known British journalist and philosopher—Pascal Lectures, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. From the Revised Quote Book, containing 130 quotable quotes on creation/evolution by leading authorities. Published by Creation Science Foundation, Australia (no longer in print).

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(google image)

The question of whether human beings evolved or were created by God is perhaps one of the most debated topics in the western world today.

Most would treat it as a matter of very little importance.  Yet, it is really the most important question of all.  There are some who believe that God instigated evolution, but this is inconceivable for a great many reasons.1

Yet history shows that the effects of evolutionary thinking are both damaging and detrimental to the actions of human beings.

People from History

When Darwin founded his theory of evolution, bad things started to happen.  People believed that African people (and other dark-skinned races) were the closest related to “ape-men” and treated them accordingly.  Also, people who were deformed were often used as circus “freaks,” and labeled as “the missing link between Africans and brute animals.”

Adolf Hitler, the Fuhrer of Germany during WWII and the murderer of thousands of innocent Jewish people, and also many people with deformities and disabilities (such as Down’s Syndrome), was an evolutionist.  He used the excuse that his victims were not human, and believed that the “Aryans” were the purest race, and therefore the only ones who deserved to live.  An intelligent and determined man, he brainwashed his whole nation into believing him.

Joseph Stalin, a communist and also the murderer of thousands upon thousands of people, was also an evolutionist.  He decided to try to create a mindless killing machine that was half human and half ape.  He employed scientist Ilya Ivanov to carry out his plans.  Ivanov’s attempts at artificially inseminating apes did not succeed, and Stalin had him jailed and then exiled.  

Evolution has also been the cause of many of the great evils of today.  For some reason, babies are allowed to be killed five minutes before they’re born, but not five minutes after.  Life, we’ve decided, only begins after you leave the womb.  Another thing looming on the horizon is euthanasia. If we can put animals down, why not people?  I say it is because God is the only one who should decide when the precious life of a human comes to an end.  

Ooparts

The apparent “evidence” for evolution is full of holes.  When and archaeologist finds something that doesn’t make sense with the evolutionary theory, it’s called an “Oopart."2  Because it is believed that early man was ignorant and witless, when something is found that shows intelligence and ingenuity, it causes great perplexity.  

For instance, in 1902, a ship was found sunk off the Greek island Antikythera.  It contained an analog computing device that is believed to have been made between the years of 105BC and 100BC.  Other things, such as an electrical device (thought to be a spark plug!) and a battery considered to be 2,000 years old, have been found.

The importance of Christianity

The laws of our country are very important.  Without them, people would do whatever they wanted.  Imagine how terrible it would be, is if stealing and murder weren’t illegal!  Yet because we have laws, doing something wrong is risky.  We have policemen to keep everything under control. These laws have been critically important in the development of our thinking. But what are our laws based upon?  Animals have no law-systems or rules that govern how they behave.  The only rules in the animal world come by instinct.   

Well, if you go right back, you’ll find that the laws that have shaped the western world are based on the Ten Commandments.  Also, most would agree that things such as swearing, coveting, bad manners, rudeness and so forth are indecent.  What else, except for a conscience designed by God, could bring about such knowledge?  Everything that is good about our world: generosity, kindness, faithfulness, helping others and selflessness- all of them are based on Biblical truths.  

Conclusion.

Most people these days do not realize the importance of people’s beliefs.  But what you believe shapes who you are.

Spend some time thinking about what would happen if the laws of your country were neglected.  Imagine what life would be like!

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“The probability of life originating from accident is comparable to the probability of the Oxford English dictionary resulting from an explosion in a printing shop.”

- Look What We Found, p. 103

Footnotes:   

 1. For instance, if Genesis is not meant literally, that puts the whole Bible into doubt.  Also, that would mean that we were not “made in God’s image,” but “intelligent” animals!

 2. Out of Place Artifact