The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1893-08-18
LEIGHTON THEDELUGE
THE FLOOD OF NOAH COVERED ONLY
A PART OF THE EARTH.
Reasons From Noted Scholar That Show
why the Great foundation Need Not and
without Many Miracles Could Not Have
Extended Over tho Globe.

why the Great lnunuAtioh Nceu MOI ana
without Many Miracles Could Not Have
Extended Over tho Globe.
DR.. Zahm's lecture at the Catholic sum-
ner school at Plattsburg, N. Y. on
'Noah's Delugen was a startling one to
he audience. He denied. the universally
# the food, and presented many argu-
tients In proof of his assertions. The fol-
living are extracts from his lecture:
Barring the creation Of the world and OF
nan, IL may be questioned IL any event re-
,orded In the Testament has given rise to
more commentaries and provoked more
discussion than the terrible cataclysm re-
forded with such minuteness and detail in
he seventh chapter OF Genesis. The fathers,
n their interpretations of the inspired vol
lme, and the schoolmen in their ponderous
:omes, devoted entire treatises to the con-
liberation of the subject. The exegetists
Sho succeeded tho schoolmen found the
question of the deluge no less interesting,
md Judging from the space they gave to
he subject they considered its calculation
# prime Importance.
With scarcely dissenting voice the IA
hers, the schoolmen and the exegetists,
Who Immediately followed them, were at
nee regarding the universally of the Gu
astrophe. The words Of the Bible were
aiken literally, and the almost general con-
census of opinion among theologians and
commentators was that the deluge was
universal, not only In relation to mankind,
nut also in reference to the earth's surface.
9ne of the first to seriously controvert the
heory Of the geographical universally oil
he deluRe was Isaac Voss in his "Dissertatio
lie Vero Mundi Etate." He maintained that
rot more than one-hundredth part of the
arth was submerged by the flood.
The distinguished Benedictine, Don Ma
pillon, having at the request Of the congre
sation of the index examined the work Of
yoss regarding the nonuniversality Of the
leluge, gave 1t as his opinion that his teach
ng was neither against faith nor morals
ind could therefore be tolerated. In the
irst place, no one could any longer seriously
maintain that the fossils found in the vari
gus strata Of the earth's crust were depos
ted there by the deluge Of Noah. Such I
view was now regarded as simply unten
able, il not absurd.
Again, owing to the active researches O.
naturalists the world over, 1t was discov
cred that the number of species Of animal
was in excess of what had previously beei
imagined by far, and then q new difficult.
presented itself that could not be ignored
Contrary to what Lindens had taught. Gu
yier and others pointed out the fact tina
there were several distinct foci or center
Of animal life; that certain species am
classes of animals nre found in one part o
! the world, while other species have thei
habitaticn in another. 1t seems unreason
able, therefore, to suppose, even il the ar
had been large enough, that representative
of the different species OF animals of tn
various distant countries of the world cam
or were brought to the ark, and how wer
the representatives of the various fauna C
distant countries and far Off isles of tn
ocean returned to the places whence the
camep
| In the light of science, therefore-espt
cially in the light of geology, zoology an
physical geography-the theory of a un
4 versal deluge is untenable. On any groun
It is untenable without assuming the e,
listence OF such number of miracles tina
the theory perforce falls by its own weight
i But it will be asked, What explanation
Ito be given of the universal terms employee
in the biblical account of the delugef 1t
"all' men and every" living creature tha
arc to be destroyed. 1t is the whole" cart
that lie to be submerged. The words ''all
and every" are absolute and exclude notl
ing, and IL is these words, we are told, ths
must be satisfactorily explained before W
are at liberty to accept any other theor
than that which proclaims that the delup
was universal.
In speaking Of the famine which pr
vailed at the time of Jacob Moses declar'
that the famine prevailed in the who
world that the famine increased daily
: all the land, and that the provinces can
into Egypt to buy food and to seek son
relief for their wants. None OF these pa
Isages, however, are to be taken LITERAL
Notwithstanding the use of the absolu
terms "all' and "whole," Moses refers on
, TO the countries and people known to ii
Hebrews. And SO it is in many other i
: stances that might be adduced. The who
earth sometimes applies only to the prom
, Used land; sometimes it embraces onl
Egypt; at others it is made only to refer I
r the kingdom of David or Of Solomon, an
at others again to stretch of countr
bounded by the invisible horizon. The de
! uge was not, as We may believe, universe
: to the earth's surface, nor ms to all forms
animal life was it. excluding those thu
were in the ark.
Z Neither the church, nor the fathers M
ri the schools defined or showed that the IN
versal destruction of mankind by the flou
excepting Of course those in the ark, WI
!, of faith. The first serious objections to
/. universal destruction of our race can
r from science, and singularly enough whe
the results of scientific discoveries pr
4 claimed the necessity of revising the int
+, probation that had been in vogue regar
!, ing the destruction Of the race by the dc
uge, it was found that there was nothiT
: in the sacred text that forbade such +
vision. What the extent of the food WI
cannot be determined, but it seems to
almost certain that 1t was very Unite
both as to the amount Of territory su
=. merged and to the number of the humt
race destroyed.
To find fault with the fathers of Il
church for having 900 or 1000 years ago
less extensive knowledge of the natur
sciences and physical sciences than we on
selves possess would be simply prepostt
y Gus. We must judge them as we ourselv
under similar circumstances would wi
i to be judged. We may not indeed wit
out new and weighty reasons reject +
teachings of such venerable authorities
questions like the one now under discr
sion, but when sufficiently grave reaso
are forthcoming we may safely, witho
mourning the note of rashness, modify o
\ opinions SO rs to make them harmoni
with the certain data and consensus
1 science.
A Cyelist Catches a Train.
/, ave have all seen men run for trair
said traveller. 1.-The other day saw