Thursday, December 12, 2013

Exodus Decoded: separating myth and reality

I watched "The Exodus Decoded" the other night, produced and narrated by Simcha Jacobovici.  It had lots of fascinating facts and conjectures, but it was overproduced with complicated sets and some overreach.  It is fascinating to consider how some unusual natural phenomena are attributed to divine intervention.

In this case, it was the explosion of the mega-volcano Santorini or Thera in 1628 or according to some as late as 1500.

"Santorini" from Wikipedia gives some interesting information and further references on both the Exodus and Atlantis connections.

"The Exodus Decoded" has been disputed by many but others corroborate his general outline.  One is Barbara J. Siversen's "The Parting of the Sea: How Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Plagues Shaped the Exodus Story.  Another is "Thera and the Exodus" by Riian Booysen.

One of my own conjectures is that the Thera eruption may also be the basis of the Biblical flood story.

So many books and so little time!!