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Omphalos Hypothesis

Eddi

Eddi

Agnostic
Premium Member
What do People think of the Omphalos Hypothesis?

Wikipedia: Omphalos hypothesis

On one hand I think it's absurd...

...but on the other I think there may be something to it

So I feel conflicted about it :D
 
D

darkskies

Active Member
I'm not a creationist but nonetheless the best way I can think of to reconcile the two would be by interpreting the scriptures differently; as in maybe positing a different meaning to God's "day" and "year".
Edit: Idea stolen from Islam and Hinduism.
 
Estro Felino

Estro Felino

Believer in free will
Premium Member
It is rather interesting how you feel about this theory...
The first time I heard of thw word Creationism was in English.
In my native language such word does exist but it is rarely used. I was brought up to believe that the Bible Genesis is nothing but mythology. And Creation is an allegory...so it is fascinating to see how valuable those tales are for many people .:)
 
Last edited:
Jainarayan

Jainarayan

ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय
Staff member
Premium Member
Here’s a genuinely shocking hypothesis the scientific community will never take seriously... the Bible, like many religious writings that describe history (Hindu included) is metaphorical and allegorical.

Why is the Bible any more truthful than any other creation story or theory? Where’s the evidence for the biblical creation story being true? Because God said so? Oh ok, I’m sold.
 
Polymath257

Polymath257

Think & Care
Staff member
Premium Member
The Omphalos position is equivalent in my mind to Last Thursdayism.

That's the position that everything was created Last Thursday, complete with all of our memories and an appearance of age. Everything you remember about anything prior to Last Thursday is simply in your memory: it has nothing to do with reality.

Most people reject Last Thursdayism . Omphalos should be rejected for exactly the same reason.
 
Polymath257

Polymath257

Think & Care
Staff member
Premium Member
Eddi said:
Why do you reject it?
Click to expand...

Ultimately because it is untestable. In a sense, I *define* the past by the properties of the present that record the past. So, in a Last Thursday system, the memories and appearance of age determine that the memories and appearance of age *are* of the past.

A very similar thought-position is that of solipsism: that everything is an illusion. Alternatively, the famous brains-in-a-vat scenarios. ALL are ultimately untestable and thereby meaningless.
 
37818

37818

Active Member
Eddi said:
What do People think of the Omphalos Hypothesis?

Wikipedia: Omphalos hypothesis

On one hand I think it's absurd...

...but on the other I think there may be something to it

So I feel conflicted about it :D
Click to expand...
. . . the necessary introducing false evidence . . .
Not necessary for a literal 7 day week in Genesis 1:3-2:3 and the visible universe being actually billions of years old.
 
Muffled

Muffled

Jesus in me
Eddi said:
What do People think of the Omphalos Hypothesis?

Wikipedia: Omphalos hypothesis

On one hand I think it's absurd...

...but on the other I think there may be something to it

So I feel conflicted about it :D
Click to expand...

I believe discounting scientific evidence based on a misinterpretation of the Bible is irrational. I do believe however that time is circular so we may be doing the same 100,000 years over and over.
 
Muffled

Muffled

Jesus in me
aketo said:
I'm not a creationist but nonetheless the best way I can think of to reconcile the two would be by interpreting the scriptures differently; as in maybe positing a different meaning to God's "day" and "year".
Edit: Idea stolen from Islam and Hinduism.
Click to expand...

I do not believe that works.
 
1

1213

Well-Known Member
Eddi said:
What do People think of the Omphalos Hypothesis?

Wikipedia: Omphalos hypothesis

On one hand I think it's absurd...
Click to expand...

I think it is not very wise, because science is constantly changing and its history is full of errors. If I would lock my world view to what scientists now say, it probably would be wrong.
 
Subduction Zone

Subduction Zone

Veteran Member
1213 said:
I think it is not very wise, because science is constantly changing and its history is full of errors. If I would lock my world view to what scientists now say, it probably would be wrong.
Click to expand...
Yes, science has a history of errors. But like most literalists you ignore the fact that the errors keep getting smaller. That is because science has a self correcting mechanism as part of it. The Bible is filled with errors and there is no self correction method for it.
 
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