The word contained in the Holy Scriptures is an unfailing decree over time, and no one will ever be able to change it. Starting from this conviction the doctrine of all the Abrahamic Religions is rooted, and this is not only the thought of the most orthodox, as it is also a fundamental element of the Good Tidings teachings. In the Gospel according to Matthew Jesus states:
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the Law, or the Prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
18 For verilyI say unto you, Till Heaven and Earth pass, one jot or one dash shall in no wise pass from the Law, till all be fulfilled.
(Matthew 5, 17-18)
Pope Francis stated, “A great flood, perhaps because of a rise in temperature and the melting of glaciers: what will happen now if we continue on the same path.” But a new flood is absolutely inconceivable according to the Holy ScripturesIn the Gospel story therefore Jesus speaking before his disciples declares that his message, however new and revolutionary it might seem for those times, does not intend at all to depart from the Law (“Torah” in Hebrew) and from what is said in all the Prophetic Books (“Nevi’im” or “Prophets”). So if even Jesus confirmed for every Christian believer that not even one iota (ἰῶτα the smallest letter of the Greek alphabet) or a minimum hyphen of the alphabetical characters will “pass” (or be overcome) before everything is accomplished, then how can we explain what Pope Francis said recently? The pontiff on the occasion of the presentation of his new book due out March 2, 2021 by the name “Of Vices and Virtues” (published by Rizzoli) has released perticular anticipations stating:
The flood is a historical account because they found evidence of a flood in their excavations. A great flood, perhaps due to a rise in temperature and melting glaciers: what will happen now if we continue on the same path.
But in these words anyone who studies the Holy Scriptures notices a total discordance with what the first Book in the Bible states:
11 I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.
(Genesis 9, 11)
If just after the flood ended, the CREATOR, in establishing His New Covenant with Noah and his descendants states that no “flesh”, i.e. no living thing, will ever again be affected by the waters of the flood (the same is found in Gen 8, 21-22), how could anyone assume otherwise? But even if Pope Francis may have spoken inaccurately, how is it possible that no one from his wide entourage of advisors in the Vatican corrected the head of the Church? These questions are in no way meant to be accusatory, but simply meant to understand the position of the Church as an institution on such an important issue. As believers we can doubt whatever men say, but never could we question even a single word contained in the Bible, otherwise the entire doctrine would be in danger of faltering.
The climate change challenge
Climate change, ocean acidification and all the stess to which the earth is being subjected is, and remains, the most imminent problem for today’s society. Protecting our home that is inevitably going into destruction must remain an absolute priority, both for governments and for every single inhabitant, but the dissemination of a message (albeit proactive) must never get in the way of what for every true believer is even more reliable than any other science, the Word of GOD. A new flood cannot be feared by any believer, because faith is not founded on fear, but on hope and knowledge. As a matter of fact, continuing to read the next verses of Genesis Chapter 9 we found these words of hope:
12 And GOD said, “This is the sign of the Covenant I am making between Me and you and every living creature with you, a Covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the Covenant between Me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember My Covenant between Me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between GOD and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”
17 So GOD said to Noah, “This is the sign of the Covenant I have established between Me and all life on the earth.”
(Gn 9, 12-17)
In that we believers have the certainty, in the sky and in the rainbow, in this sign that GOD continues to send us as a reminder that this Covenant is not at all “passed away”, as well as the Scriptures are not. But this hope of the Divine Promise must not make us lazy in our works, but rather it must make us remain reassured in the conviction that if we cooperate together the tragic future of the Earth that science has been warning us about can still be changed.
As believers we expect a necessary clarification on what the Supreme Pontiff said, and we are waiting to read his new book maybe to reconsider what the newspapers said, but for now we can sleep peacefully. Although we are aware that there is a great amount of work ahead of us, no flood will ever threaten mankind again, this is the Word of the LORD.
Even though the sky is becoming intimidating and dark on the horizon, the Light that will come once the storm is over will show that what the Scriptures had stated was the Truth, and that the only thing still imperfect remains the understanding of humankind.
References
Corriere della Sera – Pope Francis, the book: “A new Flood will come if we do not change course on climate and glaciers”
www.vaticannews.va – Pope Francis: ‘A faith without doubts cannot advance’