“The flood is seen symbolically as a baptism of the earth; where the same things symbolically happen in baptism; the old person dies and comes out of the water reborn anew, in the same way the old carnal world is cleansed and begins a new life..Baptisms happen, but you’re not really dying so it would be symbolic in the same sense“.
I have been going on a John Hamer – Centre Place binge for at least a month. I cannot recommend his presentations more highly to anyone fascinated with the history of the Bible and ancient history. Hamer gives regular lectures at Centre Place (the Toronto congregation of Community of Christ) on the topics of history, theology, and philosophy. Over 100 of his lectures are available on the Centre Place YouTube channel. Today’s presentation is one such topic on the Flood Myth.
Noah’s Ark is one of the best known stories of the Bible and many other cultures have flood stories that predate Genesis by centuries and millennia. While some people still read the story literally and imagine it is history, others look for a kernel of historic truth around which these legends grew. John Hamer of Toronto Centre Place will examine some of these theories and the likelihood that the idea of a universal Flood is entirely mythic.
Lecture topics include:
Deluge End of the World
Divine Punishment
Comparative Mythology
Book of Genesis: The flood myth in Ancient Israel
Epic of Gilgamesh: The flood myth in Ancient Mesopotamia
Popol Vuh: The flood myth in Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica
“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand
Observation Blogger 
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