Did Chazal (the Sages of the Talmud) have supernatural knowledge of the natural world? Do their statements prove Torah MiSinai? One alleged "proof" to this effect is regarding the length of the lunar month. The argument goes as follows: In the Gemara, Rabban Gamliel says that the average length of the lunar month is 29.530594 days. NASA, with years of research using satellites, telescopes, laser beams and supercomputers, calculated the mean length of the lunar month as 29.530588 days. The difference between this figure and that used by the Sages is only 0.000006! How could Chazal have calculated it to such accuracy? They must have had supernatural sources of knowledge.
Chazal and NASA
Chazal and NASA
Chazal and NASA
Did Chazal (the Sages of the Talmud) have supernatural knowledge of the natural world? Do their statements prove Torah MiSinai? One alleged "proof" to this effect is regarding the length of the lunar month. The argument goes as follows: In the Gemara, Rabban Gamliel says that the average length of the lunar month is 29.530594 days. NASA, with years of research using satellites, telescopes, laser beams and supercomputers, calculated the mean length of the lunar month as 29.530588 days. The difference between this figure and that used by the Sages is only 0.000006! How could Chazal have calculated it to such accuracy? They must have had supernatural sources of knowledge.