Debunking the Old Testament

Tomorrow night, a two hour Nova program on PBS takes a look at the Old Testament, examining decades of archaeological studies that contradict what is found in the Bible. 

Barry Garron, a Reuters/Hollywood Reporter reviewer writing for Yahoo News has this to say about the program.

"Bill Maher, on HBO's "Real Time With Bill Maher, "frequently refers to the Old Testament of the Bible  as the Book of Jewish Fairy Tales. The description might anger the pious and the fundamentalists, but guess what?  Maher's close to the truth."

"A visually stunning two-hour special edition of "Nova" examines decades of archaeological studies that contradict much of what is in the Bible. The entire Exodus story is debunked, as is the idea that the Israelites were monotheistic following the contract made between God and Abraham."

Here's another argument.  Archaeology is a relatively new science, maybe 125 years old.  As technology becomes more sophisticated and is put to use in this field, more and more items are surfacing which actually give credence to much of the Old and New Testaments.  And more than that, no other religions on earth have as much secular or archaeological evidence to back up what is written in the Bible. 

"The special, narrated by Liev Schreiber, is not likely to sit well with those who believe that the Bible, despite its internal inconsistencies, should be interpreted literally. Then again, science and religion have had a long history of conflict until, ultimately, the former prevails."

Try as many might, it just won't be possible to turn the Old Testament, or the New, into fairy tales.  If someone looks at science as the be all and end all for determining truth, then that person will not be able to wave off things that are discovered which do line up with the Biblical record.  The new science, combined with a study of secular historians of the time who had no interest in promoting religion, must be taken into account by those who want to debunk the Jewish and Christian religions.