The first actual size replica of the ark Noah built on God’s command
before the Great Flood is finally open to the public to give them the
hope of a new beginning as they visit this island in Hong Kong.
Part of an evangelical Christian theme park located on Ma Wan Island
and rising next to a huge suspension bridge and one of the world’s
busiest waterways, the Noah’s Ark can now have visitors, The Christian
Broadcasting Network reported Friday.
Christian organisations, funded by an evangelical Chinese businessman
and his two brothers, known as the Kwok brothers, built the ark as per
the dimensions given in the Book of Genesis, 300 cubits long, 50 cubits
wide and 30 cubits high. A partner in the project was the government of
Hong Kong, a special administrative division of the People’s Republic of
China.
The ark was envisioned by an 8-year-old girl.
“She drew a little
picture, her dad took it. The government officials loved it and from
there on the architects and the engineers developed the plan,” Mathew
Pine, the manager of the Noah’s Ark theme park, told CBN.
The girl, who was not identified by CBN, gave the idea when the
developers, Christian organisations and the government wanted to do
“something remarkable, something outstanding.”
It all started in the late 1990s when the city was not yet connected
with the Hong Kong’s new airport. Construction of a bridge was the
answer, but for that an island needed to be developed.
That’s when a
lawyer for the developers, Hugo Chan, told the government that his
clients could help construct the bridge if a theme park was built for
the community.
The ark, which contains exhibits with rare animals like a nautilus, a
toucan and exotic fish, also features a garden with around 70 pairs of
real-size replicas of animals. It also hosts animated films
demonstrating how the original ark could have been constructed and how
it might have been ventilated.
“The reason we chose that moment in the story is because this is the
message we want to bring to Hong Kong, to China, and to the world
today,” Pine said.
The Noah’s Ark is operated by several organisations, including
Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong, Angela Luk’s Education Foundation Ltd., St.
James’ Settlement, the Boys’ Brigade, Hong Kong, and the Media
Evangelism Ltd.
One of the main funders, an evangelical Christian, Thomas Kwok, says
he was inspired by his Christian faith.
The Kwoks are heirs to Hong
Kong’s largest real estate developer, Sun Hung Kai Properties, according
to The Wall Street Journal.
A similar project to build a life-sized Noah’s Ark, as part of a
biblical theme park by Ark Encounter in Kentucky, is also underway.
The Netherlands also built an ark, one-fifth the actual size, which
could float on water and contained real animals.
Greenpeace also built
one in 2007 on Turkey’s Mount Ararat as warning of an impending disaster
from climate change.