I'm Catholic.. because you can believe in evolution and you can believe the flood is a myth

[forGod1]

I don't trust anyone that denies evolution anymore. I also know that Noah's Ark didn't happen, and I can prove it.

-How many insects were maintained by the pair by that many people?
-All of the fossils found today were alive at once, 6000 years ago, and fit on the ark?
-How did they build the habitats for polar bears, frogs, etc.?
-Why isn't there one fossil collaborating the flood?
-How did they survive there and back?
-How did they get there and back? How isn't there a fossil outside their respective habitats?
-How many people did all this?
-What did carnivores even eat? Certainly not the other animals on their journys back? And they were back what did carnivores eat once their food sources reproduced to sustainable levels? lol
-Light wouldn't have reached deep enough to reach the vegetation. Once the ark rested, how would the animals/insects whatever survived waiting for seeds to spring forth everything?
-Dinosaurs were just forgotten?
-Why are all fossils buried according to evolution? Why isn't there a layer of fossils collaborating the flood?
-And salt water/fresh water mixing - ever notice that sea creatures are actually not all extinct?
-How did they store the meat for food? How did the vegetation not rot up?
-There wouldn't have been enough room on the ark for two giraffes to eat for that long.

Edited February 6, 2017 by forGod1

[Omegaman 3.0]

-How many insects were maintained by the pair by that many people?

Maybe a few hundred!

-All of the fossils found today were alive at once, 6000 years ago, and fit on the ark?

6000 years ago? That number does not come from the Bible, and who says that animals were not already going extinct?

-How did they build the habitats for polar bears, frogs, etc.?

Polar Bears do not need special habitats, they do not need ice etc., and maybe there was only one species of bear then, who knows what the Bible means by “kinds”

-Why isn't there one fossil collaborating the flood?

 I think it is possible, that most fossils collaborate the flood. The vast deposits of oil and coal (which are fossils), would take a lot of biomass to form in a non catastrophic scenario.

-How did they survive there and back?

There and back wear? The only needed to go up and down, and survive like all life does. Not to mention that with a powerful God, one can bend the normal rules a little.

-How did they get there and back? How isn't there a fossil outside their respective habitats?

You have mentioned there and back several times, for some unknown reason. No idea what you are even talking about there. Tthere are fossil sea shells on high mountains, I have hundreds of fossils. There are horse fossils here in the states, but that is not the habitat here in modern times, until Europeans introduced them. Things come and go all the time. I have fossil shark teeth from hills hundreds of miles inland, so it seems like the Earth was different than it is now.

-How many people did all this?

Eight!

-What did carnivores even eat?

Maybe beef jerky, or maybe they did not need meat, (I feed my cats cereal) or maybe God provided for them supernaturally, or made them hibernate. Thing is, there are only a couple of chapters about the flood in the Bible, how many questions would you think that should be able to answer? Genesis is not a science text book!

Certainly not the other animals on their journeys back?

Again, there was no journey, the Ark floated, it was not propelled.

And they were back what did carnivores eat once their food sources reproduced to sustainable levels?

Same thing they ate on the ark!

-Light wouldn't have reached deep enough to reach the vegetation.

Light for what, reaching into where? There were windows in the ark!

Once the ark rested, how would the animals/insects whatever survived waiting for seeds to spring forth everything?

 If they can make it on the ark, they can make it on the earth.

Dinosaurs were just forgotten?

Maybe already extinct.

Why are all fossils buried according to evolution?

Not sure what you are asking there, Entire civilizations are buried, why wouldn’t life forms also be?

Why isn't there a layer of fossils collaborating the flood?

There is!

-And salt water/fresh water mixing - ever notice that sea creatures are actually not all extinct?

and some are, what is your point? Why would you suppose that oceans go away? There was not enough freshwater to dilute sea water. And maybe it was not as salty yet anyway. Even today, sea water is only about 1.025 times the specific gravity of fresh water.

How did they store the meat for food?

They probably didn’t, A ship the size of a freighter (like a Liberty Ship) has a lot of room, The Ark had many levels. You do not need every variety of horse to begin a population. Look at dogs for example, they all come from the wolf, accoding to DNA studies, yet if Chihuahas and St. Bernards existed in the wild, surely we would have called them different species, instead of Canis familiaris

How did the vegetation not rot up?

Things like hay and grain, store a long time.

There wouldn't have been enough room on the ark for two giraffes to eat for that long.

Not sure what that even means, and no one said, in any case, that all animals were full grown.

This sort of questions are not significant in  the grand scheme of things, you lack faith, but so what. The only faith you need, is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who takes away your sins, to insure that you are not separated from God in eternity. There will be evolutionists and flood deniers in Heaven, I think.

[Guest shiloh357]

1 hour ago, forGod1 said:

I don't trust anyone that denies evolution anymore. I also know that Noah's Ark didn't happen, and I can prove it.

-How many insects were maintained by the pair by that many people?
-All of the fossils found today were alive at once, 6000 years ago, and fit on the ark?
-How did they build the habitats for polar bears, frogs, etc.?
 

There were no insects taken on the ark.    What the Bible says is that Noah took two of every family of animal.  He didn't take two of every species.   For example.  Noah didn't take two of every species of dogs.   He took two dogs.   He didn't take two of every kind of bear.  He took two bears.  Many people misunderstand what the Bible says about that.  In addition, it is not likely that any amphibians were included.

So how did amphibians survive the flood?  That is not my problem to solve.  God was able to preserve all of the life forms He wanted to preserve.

Quote

Why isn't there one fossil collaborating the flood?

Actually, there is fossil evidence.   There are tons of fossils that show immediate death as they were literally frozen in time when they were buried by immense amounts of sediment that was deposited quickly, which is consistent with a massive flood.  Fish are found with soft tissue preserved as they are preparing to devour another fish.  Both are preserved. 
 

Quote

-How did they survive there and back?
-How did they get there and back? How isn't there a fossil outside their respective habitats?

There are all kinds of fossils of animals outside of their natural habitats.  Fossils of bears and other animals found on mountain peaks that don't support that kind of life, at that level of elevation and other things like that give evidence of the flood.  It is as if their dead bodies were depsosited randomly as the waters receded.

Quote

-How many people did all this?
-What did carnivores even eat? Certainly not the other animals on their journys back? And they were back what did carnivores eat once their food sources reproduced to sustainable levels? lol

It is most likely the case that the animals would have been placed in a state of hibernation for the duration of the time they were on the ark.  God brought the animals to Noah and God could have easily placed some of them in that state at least for part of the time so that it would not be the case that there would have been plenty of food.  It is not hard to consider reasonable scenarios wherein enough food could be provided and it is important to understand, as well, that there is also a supernatural element involved in all of this.   The stuff that Noah could not do, God is taking care of.  God is the one sustaining them.

-

Quote

Light wouldn't have reached deep enough to reach the vegetation. Once the ark rested, how would the animals/insects whatever survived waiting for seeds to spring forth everything?

Well, it is important to note what the Bible says.   Noah sent out a dove who returned with an olive branch, so while they were waiting on the ark, vegetation was growing and present.  

 

Quote

-Dinosaurs were just forgotten?

Likely not, but probably would have been in a juvenile state of development for that time period
 

Quote

-Why are all fossils buried according to evolution? Why isn't there a layer of fossils collaborating the flood?

Evolution is assumed, not proven.   People look at the fossils assume evolution and all of the evidence for the flood is simply filtered through the evolution assumption. 
 

Quote

-And salt water/fresh water mixing - ever notice that sea creatures are actually not all extinct?

Well, you're operating from the assumption that salt water was as salty then, as it is today.   You are making assumptions about the conditions of the earth at the time of the flood that are likely unwarranted.   But most fish didn't survive.   Have you ever noticed that over 90% of the fossils are marine fossils?   They number the millions, and are far more common.  And most of them died due to massive sediment/ mud dumps and stuff that buried them quickly.  That matches the Bible's description of a flood that happened rapidly as the massive water stores under the earth broke forth.
 

Quote

-How did they store the meat for food? How did the vegetation not rot up?
-There wouldn't have been enough room on the ark for two giraffes to eat for that long.

You make a lot of assumptions based on a deficit of any real facts.   You assume conditions that you simply have no factual basis to assume.   You have no idea what like was like on the ark and what was or was not possible.  You seem to decided what YOU think is possible and then impose that on to the events in question

[Ezra]

3 hours ago, forGod1 said:

I don't trust anyone that denies evolution anymore. I also know that Noah's Ark didn't happen, and I can prove it.

Now that you've got that out of the way, what else don't you believe?  Which leaves you with the question "What exactly do I believe?" 

BTW the Catechism of the Catholic Church also denies evolution and accepts the historicity of Noah's ark.  So how come you are still a Catholic?  You'd be more comfortable with theological liberals.

NOAH'S ARK

105 God is the author of Sacred Scripture. "The divinely revealed realities, which are contained and presented in the text of Sacred Scripture, have been written down under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit."⁶⁹ (CCC).

CREATION NOT EVOLUTION

289 Among all the Scriptural texts about creation, the first three chapters of Genesis occupy a unique place. From a literary standpoint these texts may have had diverse sources. the inspired authors have placed them at the beginning of Scripture to express in their solemn language the truths of creation - its origin and its end in God, its order and goodness, the vocation of man, and finally the drama of sin and the hope of salvation. Read in the light of Christ, within the unity of Sacred Scripture and in the living Tradition of the Church, these texts remain the principal source for catechesis on the mysteries of the "beginning": creation, fall, and promise of salvation (CCC).

[Guest]

Through GOD all things are possible! You said in your OP that you could "prove it" - that the Ark didn't exist. Well, where is your "proof." Not just questions or conjecture, but the proof. You don't have it because your negative proof doesn't exist. Are you Born Again? Or just a Catholic?

[Jayne]

13 hours ago, forGod1 said:

I don't trust anyone that denies evolution anymore. I also know that Noah's Ark didn't happen, and I can prove it.

-How many insects were maintained by the pair by that many people?
-All of the fossils found today were alive at once, 6000 years ago, and fit on the ark?
-How did they build the habitats for polar bears, frogs, etc.?
-Why isn't there one fossil collaborating the flood?
-How did they survive there and back?
-How did they get there and back? How isn't there a fossil outside their respective habitats?
-How many people did all this?
-What did carnivores even eat? Certainly not the other animals on their journys back? And they were back what did carnivores eat once their food sources reproduced to sustainable levels? lol
-Light wouldn't have reached deep enough to reach the vegetation. Once the ark rested, how would the animals/insects whatever survived waiting for seeds to spring forth everything?
-Dinosaurs were just forgotten?
-Why are all fossils buried according to evolution? Why isn't there a layer of fossils collaborating the flood?
-And salt water/fresh water mixing - ever notice that sea creatures are actually not all extinct?
-How did they store the meat for food? How did the vegetation not rot up?
-There wouldn't have been enough room on the ark for two giraffes to eat for that long.

[1]  How many insects were maintained by the pair by that many people?  Well, as a former science teacher, I can tell you that there were no insects "maintained" by the 8 people on the ark.  Insects don't have to be maintained.  Because insect larva and even some insects can survive in water, many of them were like the fish, whales, and other marine life - they weren't on the ark.  Ones that thrive on living blood, like ticks, could have hitched a ride on a camel.  The dead bodies and dead plants floating around in the water probably made great homes and food for many insects.  The Bible says in Genesis 7:15-22 that only the land animals that had the breath of life went on the ark - and then two by two.  Only those that breathed through their nostrils died out.  Insects don't breath through noses and don't have two by two mates.  They either swarm like social insects or live solitary lives like most spiders. Personally, I highly doubt, based on science and the Bible's description of what animals went on the ark, that insects were even on it at all.

 

 Do you really want me to answer all these other questions?  I can.  I have many times at other places and in person in classes.  If you don't really want an answer, but were here just to challenge Christians - please tell me.  I don't want to waste anyone's time - mine or yours.

[Retrobyter]

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

I don't trust anyone that denies evolution anymore. I also know that Noah's Ark didn't happen, and I can prove it.

Shalom, forGod1.

Actually, you can't prove it. And, one CAN trust one who denies evolution, because evolution is an UNPROVEN HYPOTHESIS. It's called a "theory," but a "theory" is defined as "a supposition or a system of ideas intended to explain something, especially one based on general principles independent of the thing to be explained: Darwin's theory of evolution." However, it's not possible for the "theory" of evolution to be "based on general principles independent of the thing to be explained" since the principles are NOT independent of the thing (evolution) to be explained. A "hypothesis" is defined as "a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation:professional astronomers attacked him for popularizing an unconfirmed hypothesis."

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-How many insects were maintained by the pair by that many people?

The "creeping things" did not have to be "maintained." They maintained themselves based on the food supply for that year. Also, as with all the animals aboard the ark, only the basic genus had to be included; the individual species that could mate among themselves are simply VARIATIONS of the genus. Their DNA would supply the genetic structure to produce the great variety of the species that would appear later.

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-All of the fossils found today were alive at once, 6000 years ago, and fit on the ark?

Yes, of course! They did not have to be in their greatest sizes or numbers; a mere two of each genus would be enough. Even the "dinosaurs" were large reptiles that only had to be large enough to mate after the single year of the Flood.

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-How did they build the habitats for polar bears, frogs, etc.?

They didn't have to build the habitats. They merely had to house these creatures for a single year. Also, many of the individual species have developed a need for a particular habitat after being isolated to a particular climate and DEVELOPING a need for such a habitat. And, as mentioned above, some could have been dormant or hibernating, using less energy and thereby consuming less food, and some could have understood the predicament they were in.

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-Why isn't there one fossil collaborating the flood?

There are actually MILLIONS UPON MILLIONS of fossils that support a global Flood! Indeed, the very ACT of fossilization requires catastrophism, not uniformitarianism. Whether a cast fossil or a petrified fossil, SUDDEN, INSTANTANEOUS encasement of the body of the creature had to be realized for a cast to be made or a body to be surrounded by material where lithification of bones and shells could be performed away from the air and the microbes that could decay the bodies before the lithification and petrification could occur. There are whole strata all around the globe that contain MILLIONS of sea-going creatures, even at the tops of mountains!

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-How did they survive there and back?

Again, you're ASSUMING that they required a particular habitat at the time of the Flood. They did not. They all SHARED a similar environment, and their specializations didn't occur until later in human history as they experienced isolation in pockets of the new earth following the Flood.

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-How did they get there and back? How isn't there a fossil outside their respective habitats?

Who has told you this erroneous information? There are MILLIONS of fossils "outside their respective habitats!" Consider the following (and ignore the assumed ages for a moment):

Palm trees found in Antarctica. (http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2012/08/02/antarctica-once-covered-in-palm-trees-scientists-discover.html)
Researchers in Morocco found fossils of Anomalocaris—a unique and until now characteristically "Cambrian" creature—in Ordovician rocks. (http://www.icr.org/article/out-place-marine-fossil-disrupts-evolutionary)
And, what about this article? (http://www.icr.org/article/cambrian-fossils-found-wrong-place/)
These are just samples of the MANY fossils found where they aren't expected to be!

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-How many people did all this?

As was said above, eight people were responsible for the animals aboard the ark.

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-What did carnivores even eat? Certainly not the other animals on their journeys back? And they were back what did carnivores eat once their food sources reproduced to sustainable levels? lol

There were no carnivores before the Flood. They were ALL herbivorous.

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-Light wouldn't have reached deep enough to reach the vegetation. Once the ark rested, how would the animals/insects whatever survived waiting for seeds to spring forth everything?

A year after the Flood began, the Flood waters abated to the point that the animals and people could leave the ark. The seeds were already sprouting and thriving while the waters were receding around the ark. Remember the dove coming back with an olive branch in her mouth?

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-Dinosaurs were just forgotten?

No, these creatures were aboard the ark, as well. Later, when some developed carnivore tendancies, they were hunted to extinction by men like Nimrod, "a mighty hunter before the LORD." Where do you think the legends of men hunting dragons came from?

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-Why are all fossils buried according to evolution? Why isn't there a layer of fossils collaborating the flood?

Wow. Someone has really done a number on you! Actually, the fossils are NOT all buried according to the "index fossils" in the "geologic column." To the contrary there are whole deposits of limestone that are completely FLIPPED UPSIDE DOWN, according to the "geologic column," like the St. Petersburg Sandstone found in Montana! It covers HALF of the state! The jumble of fossils in the layers of rock DO support a global Flood! You're just never told about that fact in the classes on evolution ... conveniently!

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-And salt water/fresh water mixing - ever notice that sea creatures are actually not all extinct?

Well, let's consider this for a moment: Above the land, where did the waters come from during the Flood? They mostly came from the rains during those 40 days and nights. This is a fresh water supply that lasted in pockets all over the submerged continents. The rain above the oceans did not so readily mix with the salt waters below the rain, although they did mix eventually. Besides, when the "fountains of the great deep broke free," they released natural salt domes, allowing for more salt water to be produced. The Flood was said to destroy all life that BREATHED AIR ON THE LAND! The Scriptures do NOT say that the sea creatures were included in that total destruction!

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-How did they store the meat for food? How did the vegetation not rot up?

They didn't need meat because neither man or animal aboard the ark ate meat. The vegetation did not rot because the fermentation process was about 12 times slower back before the Flood. It wasn't until AFTER the Flood that men and animals were allowed to eat meat. And, Noach didn't expect for the wine he pressed from the grapes he grew to ferment as quickly as they did. The speed at which he became intoxicated surprised him!

20 hours ago, forGod1 said:

-There wouldn't have been enough room on the ark for two giraffes to eat for that long.

Now, you're just stretching ... REACHING for an excuse not to believe God's Word.

Try accepting God's Word at face value. There's more truth than you realize and MUCH less truth in what evolutionists try to ram down you throat.

[Churchmouse]

I don't understand why so many here seem to think they can answer the questions about a thing that was initiated by God by someone who obviously doesn't acknowledge him.

Much of the answers here are reasoned by the same logic that he was produced by his own questions. God created all things and used man according to his traditional role as husbandman of all life here. God placed all animal under the subjection of man as far back as Adam and Eve how else would he continue that mentality if not to have a man build an arc in which to preserve much of the animal life and yet still have man fulfill the role of shepherding these same animals.

Let us not forget the reason behind the Flood and that was to destroy all human life from the planet instead of those who he chose to survive. It doesn't mean that there were other objects that floated right along with the arc as they would in any water.  Don't logs float? Don't rafts float? Don't ice float? Don't leaves float? I think far too many people see the arc as if it were a  rubber duck floating in a tub full of pristine water.  How many have seen a flood in modern times and how much debree have you seen floating everywhere. I don't see that much of the life that did not need dry land to survive and those who already survived from the bounty of the sea would be adversely effected at all and God would know this.

Mankind was among the only creatures that could not survive living on this debree and if it was God's plan he would not allow it. Remember that 40 days and fourty nights was only the period in which it rained.  In fact I would be willing to suggest that some of these free floating animals lived off the remains of those who died during the flood and that would account for the lack of stench that so many bloated and decaying bodies would most assuredly have been left after drowning in the flood.  I know that this might be unsavory to some, but in a survival situation where food is scarce how many times has this not been the case in the Animal kingdom?

Edited February 7, 2017 by Churchmouse

[Retrobyter]

19 hours ago, Churchmouse said:

I don't understand why so many here seem to think they can answer the questions about a thing that was initiated by God by someone who obviously doesn't acknowledge him.

Much of the answers here are reasoned by the same logic that he was produced by his own questions. God created all things and used man according to his traditional role as husbandman of all life here. God placed all animal under the subjection of man as far back as Adam and Eve how else would he continue that mentality if not to have a man build an arc in which to preserve much of the animal life and yet still have man fulfill the role of shepherding these same animals.

Let us not forget the reason behind the Flood and that was to destroy all human life from the planet instead of those who he chose to survive. It doesn't mean that there were other objects that floated right along with the arc as they would in any water.  Don't logs float? Don't rafts float? Don't ice float? Don't leaves float? I think far too many people see the arc as if it were a  rubber duck floating in a tub full of pristine water.  How many have seen a flood in modern times and how much debree have you seen floating everywhere. I don't see that much of the life that did not need dry land to survive and those who already survived from the bounty of the sea would be adversely effected at all and God would know this.

Mankind was among the only creatures that could not survive living on this debree and if it was God's plan he would not allow it. Remember that 40 days and fourty nights was only the period in which it rained.  In fact I would be willing to suggest that some of these free floating animals lived off the remains of those who died during the flood and that would account for the lack of stench that so many bloated and decaying bodies would most assuredly have been left after drowning in the flood.  I know that this might be unsavory to some, but in a survival situation where food is scarce how many times has this not been the case in the Animal kingdom?

Shalom, Churchmouse.

Flotsam and jetsam could not provide sanctuary in THIS Flood. This was NOT a "tranquil Flood!" These were 40 days and 40 nights of TORENTIAL DOWNPOURS! This was no light rain!

Genesis 1:6-8
6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide (Hebrew: maVdiyl [spelled "mem-vet-dalet-yod-lamed"] from baadal [spelled "bet-dalet-lamed"]) the waters from the waters.
7 And God made the firmament, and divided (Hebrew: vayaVdeel [spelled "vav-yod-vet-dalet-lamed"] from baadal [spelled "bet-dalet-lamed"]) the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
KJV

OT:914 baadal (baw-dal'); a primitive root; to divide (in variation senses literally or figuratively, separate, distinguish, differ, select, etc.):
KJV - (make, put) difference, divide (asunder), (make) separate (self, -ation), sever (out),  utterly.

(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

If one would assume that God truly divided the waters above the firmament (the sky) from the waters below the firmament (the seas), the waters above the firmament (the sky) were approximately (if not actually) 1/2 of the total water on the planet. Then, the estimated total volume of water, 332,500,000 cubic miles, divided by 2 would be 166,250,000 cubic miles of water. If that all fell to earth, which has a total surface area of approximately 197,387,017.5 square miles, then we are talking about an average height of water of 4,447.1 feet EVERYWHERE on the surface of the earth! Over the 40-day period of 24 hours per day, we are talking about an AVERAGE rainfall of 55.6 inches per hour! And, we know that rain begins slowly and gradually increases to maximum rainfall and then tapers off at the end, following a bell curve on a graph. So, it is likely that there were periods in which even this amount was larger!

That amount of rainfall would INUNDATE the inhabitants of the earth so quickly as to be BUCKETS of water poured on them constantly!

No, there was no "clinging to floating things" to survive. Furthermore, we are talking about MASSIVE upheavals in the earth's crust as "all the fountains of the great deep were broken up!" This was no still water gradually rising! There was a huge amount of churning in the water! It would be like trying to survive in a huge washing machine!

Wind, too, would be involved as air pressures exchanged with the water pressure increase, the sun heating the surface of the waters and land still visible and the tops of the newly forming clouds. So, we are talking about gale or hurricane force winds all over the globe, further churning up the waters! This is truly a worst case scenario, never to be duplicated or outdone!

So, get this "tranquil Flood" theory out of your heads, people. This was a GOD-sized catatrophe!

[Churchmouse]

6 hours ago, Retrobyter said:

Shalom, Churchmouse.

Flotsam and jetsam could not provide sanctuary in THIS Flood. This was NOT a "tranquil Flood!" These were 40 days and 40 nights of TORENTIAL DOWNPOURS! This was no light rain!

Genesis 1:6-8
6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide (Hebrew: maVdiyl [spelled "mem-vet-dalet-yod-lamed"] from baadal [spelled "bet-dalet-lamed"]) the waters from the waters.
7 And God made the firmament, and divided (Hebrew: vayaVdeel [spelled "vav-yod-vet-dalet-lamed"] from baadal [spelled "bet-dalet-lamed"]) the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
KJV

OT:914 baadal (baw-dal'); a primitive root; to divide (in variation senses literally or figuratively, separate, distinguish, differ, select, etc.):
KJV - (make, put) difference, divide (asunder), (make) separate (self, -ation), sever (out),  utterly.

(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

If one would assume that God truly divided the waters above the firmament (the sky) from the waters below the firmament (the seas), the waters above the firmament (the sky) were approximately (if not actually) 1/2 of the total water on the planet. Then, the estimated total volume of water, 332,500,000 cubic miles, divided by 2 would be 166,250,000 cubic miles of water. If that all fell to earth, which has a total surface area of approximately 197,387,017.5 square miles, then we are talking about an average height of water of 4,447.1 feet EVERYWHERE on the surface of the earth! Over the 40-day period of 24 hours per day, we are talking about an AVERAGE rainfall of 55.6 inches per hour! And, we know that rain begins slowly and gradually increases to maximum rainfall and then tapers off at the end, following a bell curve on a graph. So, it is likely that there were periods in which even this amount was larger!

That amount of rainfall would INUNDATE the inhabitants of the earth so quickly as to be BUCKETS of water poured on them constantly!

No, there was no "clinging to floating things" to survive. Furthermore, we are talking about MASSIVE upheavals in the earth's crust as "all the fountains of the great deep were broken up!" This was no still water gradually rising! There was a huge amount of churning in the water! It would be like trying to survive in a huge washing machine!

Wind, too, would be involved as air pressures exchanged with the water pressure increase, the sun heating the surface of the waters and land still visible and the tops of the newly forming clouds. So, we are talking about gale or hurricane force winds all over the globe, further churning up the waters! This is truly a worst case scenario, never to be duplicated or outdone!

So, get this "tranquil Flood" theory out of your heads, people. This was a GOD-sized catatrophe!

I thank you for this and God Bless.