of helio-marine cures are reflected by the sick people who, sometimes, come to the
sea, leaning on crutches or using other means of transportation that facilitate their
movements and, afterwards, they return home walking on their own feet, blessing
and thanking God. All these make us name the sea “the cradle of divine creation”,
source of miraculous healing in this great natural “sanatorium”. Thousands of
people, guided and advised by those dressed in the white robes of righteousness –
i.e. doctors – enjoy again the gifts that the divinity granted to the human being.
A question dealt with by the mankind for several millennia, also approached by
scientists, philosophers and theologues, either from a materialistic or from a
creationist perspective, is the one to which we seek to answer today calling on
different arguments. How were the universe, the Earth and the sea created? Where
did the germs of life appear? How did the human being appear and how did we
evolve on Earth? For this purpose, we will refer briefly to some concepts developed
throughout the distant history of mankind, which are also found in the mythology of
many peoples (Mircea Eliade 2000).
1.2 The Sea: From Mythological to Biblical Significations
The rich mythology speaks of the primordial god of the aquatic chaos (Jean
Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant 2009; Henry Halley 1924).
2 In its turn, one of
the oldest Chinese encyclopedias (Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant 2009;
Henry Halley 1924) known today mentions the book of mountains and seas,
which also makes refererence to the flood, which lasted hundreds of years by the
condensation of clouds. Moreover, the Iranian mythology speaks of two deities of
water that are considered creators of the mankind, i.e. goddess Anahita (the
patronness of fertility) and god Apamnapat (the guard of waters). It is interesting
that, in the ancient Greek mythology (Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant 2009;
Henry Halley 1924), other characters related to the creation of the world also
appeared. From the Chaos (representing the primordial state) the following characters were born: Gaia – the land; Erebor – the darkness; Nyx – the night; Hemera –
the terrestrial light (the day) and Aither – the astral light; Uranos – the astral sky –
and Pantos – the sea.
Influenced by the Greek mythology (Athens was the cultural center of the
ancient world), the Roman mythology (Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant
2009; Henry Halley 1924) speaks of 12 deities, components of the divine council,
including Venus and Neptunus. The latter corresponded, in the Greek mythology, to
Aphrodite (the goddess of beauty, love and fertility, who was born of the hot and
blue sea foam of Hellas) and to Poseidon (the god of the seas and oceans).
2 Since 1924, Henry Halley’s The Bible Handbook has known a continuous development: in 1924 it
was a brochure of only 24 pages while the edition published in 1983, translated in Romanian by
Doru Motz, has 850 pages.
6
C. Jurca ˘ and A. Buzarna-Tihenea (Ga ˘lbeaza ˘)
sea, leaning on crutches or using other means of transportation that facilitate their
movements and, afterwards, they return home walking on their own feet, blessing
and thanking God. All these make us name the sea “the cradle of divine creation”,
source of miraculous healing in this great natural “sanatorium”. Thousands of
people, guided and advised by those dressed in the white robes of righteousness –
i.e. doctors – enjoy again the gifts that the divinity granted to the human being.
A question dealt with by the mankind for several millennia, also approached by
scientists, philosophers and theologues, either from a materialistic or from a
creationist perspective, is the one to which we seek to answer today calling on
different arguments. How were the universe, the Earth and the sea created? Where
did the germs of life appear? How did the human being appear and how did we
evolve on Earth? For this purpose, we will refer briefly to some concepts developed
throughout the distant history of mankind, which are also found in the mythology of
many peoples (Mircea Eliade 2000).
1.2 The Sea: From Mythological to Biblical Significations
The rich mythology speaks of the primordial god of the aquatic chaos (Jean
Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant 2009; Henry Halley 1924).
2 In its turn, one of
the oldest Chinese encyclopedias (Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant 2009;
Henry Halley 1924) known today mentions the book of mountains and seas,
which also makes refererence to the flood, which lasted hundreds of years by the
condensation of clouds. Moreover, the Iranian mythology speaks of two deities of
water that are considered creators of the mankind, i.e. goddess Anahita (the
patronness of fertility) and god Apamnapat (the guard of waters). It is interesting
that, in the ancient Greek mythology (Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant 2009;
Henry Halley 1924), other characters related to the creation of the world also
appeared. From the Chaos (representing the primordial state) the following characters were born: Gaia – the land; Erebor – the darkness; Nyx – the night; Hemera –
the terrestrial light (the day) and Aither – the astral light; Uranos – the astral sky –
and Pantos – the sea.
Influenced by the Greek mythology (Athens was the cultural center of the
ancient world), the Roman mythology (Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant
2009; Henry Halley 1924) speaks of 12 deities, components of the divine council,
including Venus and Neptunus. The latter corresponded, in the Greek mythology, to
Aphrodite (the goddess of beauty, love and fertility, who was born of the hot and
blue sea foam of Hellas) and to Poseidon (the god of the seas and oceans).
2 Since 1924, Henry Halley’s The Bible Handbook has known a continuous development: in 1924 it
was a brochure of only 24 pages while the edition published in 1983, translated in Romanian by
Doru Motz, has 850 pages.
6
C. Jurca ˘ and A. Buzarna-Tihenea (Ga ˘lbeaza ˘)