Dutch Christian floats idea of replica Noah's Ark - by Reed Stevenson
SCHAGEN, Netherlands (Reuters) - It seems appropriate that Johan Huibers is building a modern version of Noah's Ark in the Netherlands, where two-thirds of the land would be under water were it not for dikes and levees holding back the North Sea. The 47-year-old Christian is pouring his time and energy into recreating a ready-to-sail replica of the ship mentioned in the Bible. However, he is counting not on 40 days and 40 nights of rain, but on floods of children -- and their parents with cash in their wallets -- to visit the ship and learn about the Christian faith. Huibers, who said the idea of building the huge vessel came to him in a dream 30 years ago, lamented that children were no longer being taught the story of Noah's Ark.Huibers began building the ship, docked at a small harbor 50 km (31 miles) north of Amsterdam, three months ago with help from friends and his 17-year-old son and expects to spend 1 million euros ($1.2 million) on it, mainly from bank loans. Huiber's plan is to launch the ark in September and sail it through the canals and waterways that crisscross the Netherlands so that visitors can see it in their own towns.
Asked if he feared another biblical flood, Huibers said he expected more like the one that ravaged New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina but noted that in the Bible, God promised Noah never to send another flood to destroy mankind. "I want to tell people that there is a God and that he is there," Huibers said.
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