Homily: Tuesday, 34th Week in Ordinary Time - Year 1

Readings: Dn 2:31-45; Dn 3:57-61; Lk 21:5-11

If you were in Manhattan, standing down near Wall Street, at Christmas in the year 2000, and someone said to you:

“Do you see those twin towers? A year from now both those buildings will be gone. There will not be a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down."

You’d probably think he was crazy, or perhaps that he’d just made a terrorist threat. So, you can imagine what the people of Jerusalem thought of Jesus’ comments about the Temple. After all, even then it was one of the wonders of the known world.

This magnificent, glorious building had been under construction for 40 years, since the days of Herod the Great. The great buildings of the ancients tended to last for centuries, so the Temple wasn’t going anywhere.

Of course they were wrong, and 40 years later, Titus, a Roman general, not only destroyed the Temple but went on to destroy much of the city, killing thousands, and enslaving many others.

As you’d expect the locals asked Jesus when it would happen, but He answered not by describing the end of the Temple, but the end of the world. Nations and kingdoms at war, utter destruction, along with earthquakes, plagues, and famines. Sounds pretty bad, and I expect it will be.

In our reading from Daniel, God had already used the prophet to interpret the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel describes a series of world empires, from the kingdoms of his time all the way to the end times. This dream confirms that God’s kingdom will endure and never be destroyed.

T. S. Eliot, who’s probably my favorite poet, once wrote, “In my end is my beginning.” It’s a statement I’ve been known to include in cemetery committal services, especially when a grieving family is so overwhelmed by the end of a loved one’s life.

I’ve always liked that statement because it so concisely reflects an important truth of our Christian faith. Yes, indeed, the end of this life is only the beginning of an eternal life. A lot of people, including many Christians, seem to forget this and get all wrapped up in fear as they worry about the approach of the end of the world. 

As for me, I learned long ago that I have absolutely no impact on the end of all things. Believe it or not, God did not delegate that power to me, or to anyone else. Not only that, I also haven’t a clue as to when it will all happen.

And yet, like the people of Jerusalem, or ancient kings like Nebuchadnezzar, so many want to know about the end that God has revealed is coming. Yes, so many, focused on the end, should rather be looking toward the beginning,

Now I’m no prophet, but given the demographics of our parish, I suspect very few of us will see the end of the world. But every one of us will see the end of his or her world and experience the beginning of the next.

If you think about it, Jesus Christ was all about beginnings for He brought the world something wonderfully new. Perhaps St. Paul said it best. Tucked away in his 2^nd Letter to the Corinthians, he wrote:

“If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Yes, brothers and sisters, because we are in Christ, we are new creations, always on a continual journey of conversion to new beginnings.  

Next Sunday, with Advent, we begin a new liturgical year. So, let’s look forward to that, and yes, as we spend these last few days aware of our mortality, we can also celebrate the truth that God is totally in charge of every aspect of His Creation. There’s no reason to fear.

Indeed, God has given us work to do: to bring others to Jesus Christ and His Church. And believe me, these days they are brought to the Church by seeing Christians loving their enemies, seeing us joyful in suffering, patient in adversity, forgiving of injuries, and showing comfort and compassion to the hopeless and the helpless. This, brothers and sisters, is our calling.

And if we’re not doing it, let’s begin.

Homily: Feast of St. Bernard - Monday, 20th Week in Ordinary Time

Today's homily includes some of the comments I made in an earlier blog posting. But I felt called by the Spirit to address the current news about the Church in a homily. 
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Readings: Ez 24:15-23 • Dt 32:18-21 • Mt 19:16-22
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In recent days more than a few parishioners have come to me, looking for direction and hope in the face of the headlines and all they see happening in the Church. Why they came to me, I can't imagine, for I am the least qualified, the least able...How often do I find myself praying those words of St. Peter:

"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man" [Lk 5:8]. 

"Depart from me, Lord..."

And then God humbles me, and I realize it's not me, the man, people come to; it's the deacon, God's servant. Calling on the Holy Spirit, I respond as best I can. Sometimes it takes a while to hear the Spirit, and it was actually through today's readings that I gradually came to realize the fulness of what He was telling me.

Turning first to Ezekiel, we find the prophet faced with a personal loss, the sudden, unexpected death of his wife, whom God lovingly refers to as "the delight of your eyes" [Ez 24:16]. Aren't those beautiful words? - "the delight of your eyes" - words that offer a glimpse into the love that must have bound these two. 

I suspect Ezekiel ultimately came to accept his wife's death as a blessing that would spare her from the calamities about to befall God's People. For God tells Ezekiel not to mourn her death openly, that much more sadness is coming, and he must be the example:

"You shall be a sign to them, and they shall know that I am the Lord" [Ez 24:27].

Babylon's long siege of Jerusalem will end, the enemy will overrun its walls, God's sanctuary, the Temple, will be desecrated and destroyed, and many of God's children will be slaughtered, the rest carried off into exile.

Jerusalem and the Temple Destroyed

God gave Ezekiel the task of leading the people as they faced these tragedies. "What does this mean for us?" they ask him.

They're reminded that sin has entered the Temple, just as today sin has desecrated the Church from within. Innocents have suffered and shepherds have turned away. In Ezekiel's Jerusalem priests and kings had turned from God, had forgotten His Law, just as today far too many in God's Church have done the same.

Blessed Pope Paul VI

In 1972, Blessed Pope Paul VI stated prophetically that, "Through some fissure, the smoke of Satan entered into the Temple of God." With this we're reminded of Moses' words in our responsorial.

"You have forgotten God who gave you birth" [Dt 32:18].

Yes, too many have forgotten God; and we are overwhelmed with sadness and moved by righteous anger. It must always be a righteous, not a vengeful, anger. It must be the kind of righteous anger that cleansed the Temple in Jerusalem. And so we, too, turn to our God and ask, "What does this mean for us? What shall we do?"

We must do what the faithful have always done, which is really little different from what Ezekiel told God's People: Continue to turn prayerfully to our merciful God and ask for the strength to begin over again. That's right! We must begin again as the Church has many times over two millennia.

Francis, Repair My House...

St. Bernard, whose memorial we celebrate today, was called to heal the Church in a time of disunity and schism almost 1,000 years ago. Yes, it was a time to begin again.

Our Lord later commanded St. Francis: "Go and repair my house which, as you see, is falling into ruin." It too was a time to begin again.

Yes, the Church has faced ruin before, but Jesus promised: 

"I am with you always, until the end of the age" [Mt 28:20].

Today we are led by another Francis, a man who must carry on with the task of rebirth. We must pray that God gives him and his bishops the will and the strength to cleanse the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.

Sadly, some in the Church will not accept this. They will turn from Christ's Church, forgetting that the Church remains holy despite the sinfulness of its members. In their sadness and their anger, they will turn away even from the Eucharist - "the source and summit of the Christian life" - and reach after so much that offers so very little. Like the rich young man who came to Jesus in our passage from Matthew, they will turn away in sadness, unable to accept the Gospel without compromise.

50 years ago, when Pope Benedict XVI was a young Father Joseph Ratzinger, he too made some prophetic comments in a radio broadcast:

"From the crisis of today the Church of tomorrow will emerge - a Church that has lost much. She will become small and will have to start afresh more or less from the beginning.

"But in all of the changes at which one might guess, the Church will find her essence afresh and with full conviction in that which was always at her center: faith in the triune God, in Jesus Christ, the Son of God made man, in the presence of the Spirit until the end of the world.

"The Church will be a more spiritual Church... It will make her poor and cause her to become the Church of the meek."

Fr. Ratzinger Speaking About the Church's Future

 [Note: To read the entirety of then Fr. Ratzinger's broadcast, get a copy of his book, Faith and the Future. His remarks on the future of the Church can be found in the last chapter.]

Brothers and sisters, we must become the Church of the meek, a Church of the humble that approaches God in repentance. This is what we are called to do. We, the faithful, are called to "start afresh...from the beginning," and do so in faith, in humility, and in love. We must not, we cannot, accept sin by calling it by another name, and yet we must also forgive the sinner and embrace and console the innocents.

About 20 years ago, as a fairly new deacon, I was asked to speak to a group of seminarians. During the course of my remarks, I told them: 

"The holiest people you will ever encounter are not seated in the sanctuary; they are in the pews of your parish church. They will look to you for truth, for direction, and example, but if you don't provide it, they will rightly turn to God. They will find Him in prayer, in the Sacraments, in Sacred Scripture, and in Sacred Tradition. They will find Him in each other, in the Church, and it is through them that God will keep the Church holy."

That's right, brothers and sisters; through you, God will keep the Church holy.

“Be holy, for I, the LORD your God, am holy” [Lv 19:2].

Pray for our faithful priests and bishops.

Homily: Memorial of the Immacuate Heart of Mary

Readings: 2 Tim 4:1-8; Ps 71; Luke 2:41-51

A long time ago, way back in the year 431, the Council of Ephesus gave Mary the title: Theotokos, a Greek word meaning "God Bearer" or "one who gives birth to God" or as we say today, "the Mother of God". By giving her that title, the council didn't mean that Mary was the Mother of God from eternity. But because Jesus Christ is true God and true man, and Mary gave birth to Him, she is, therefore, the Mother of God in time.

Icon: Theotokos

It's the misunderstanding of the Church's long-held teaching on this relationship between Mary and Jesus that has led some Christians to think that we Catholics worship Mary as some sort of goddess. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. But from the reality of this relationship, we can fulfill Mary's prophecy in the Magnificat and can call her the "Blessed Mother" [Lk 1:48].

As many of you know, motherhood is no easy vocation. Both my mother and my wife had to put up with a lot and sacrifice even more during those years when their time was focused so intently on raising their children.

But can you imagine how it must have been for Mary...to be the Mother of God...and be fully aware of it? After all, Gabriel didn't hide anything from her:

"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end" [Lk 1:31-33].

And so Mary knew from the first that this child of hers was the "Son of the Most High."

"He will be...the Son of the Most High"

It must have been a remarkable family life; she and Joseph raising Jesus who is fully human, all the while aware of His divine origin.

Luke, and to a lesser extent, Matthew give us a glimpse or two of life in the Holy Family. It's as if the Holy Spirit is telling us, "You don't need to know the details of daily life in this holiest of families, but I will share a few incidents with you, so you will know who Jesus, Mary and Joseph really are."
Just consider all that Mary encountered:

The long arduous trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem, and the unexpected need to give birth in a cave, a stable fit only for animals.

The Presentation in the Temple, the prophecy of the pain she would suffer, the sorrow she would experience.

The life-saving flight to Egypt, refugees in a foreign land where they would await the death of a brutal king.

The quiet years in Nazareth, when she must have wondered how this Son of hers, this Son of the Most High, would fulfill all that had been prophesied.

And that one event Luke shares with us in today's passage: the Passover pilgrimage to Jerusalem, when the 12-year-old Jesus is lost in the crowd of pilgrims. The panic she and Joseph experience, the frantic search, the joy of finding him, and their bewilderment when after three days He wonders at their parental concern.

"I must be in my Father's house."

In each instance Mary found herself in the dark -- just as later she wouldn't fully understand her Son at Cana, or when He asks the crowd, "Who is my mother?" [Mt 12:48] or when she cradles her Son's lifeless body in her arms at the foot of the Cross on Calvary.

But in every instance, Mary ponders these things in her heart. She need not fully understand these things; and, anyway, how could she understand? How could any mother fully understand the crucifixion of her Son?

And so she ponders. She steps away from the crowd, seeks the quiet of contemplation, and savors all that has been revealed to her. In doing so teaches us how to pray, how to accept God's will, how to abandon oneself to God's love.

Mary ponders, she returns to the source, to that day when the angel declared her, "full of grace," when her heart overflowed. Yes, that pondering heart of Mary is immaculate, perfectly pure in its intent, because it focuses solely on Jesus.

Mary is single-hearted. She trusts in God, just as she trusted when Gabriel asked for her response. But now, that same trusting, pondering, immaculate heart is focused on you and me, interceding for our salvation.

This is the immaculate heart, the heart of Theotokos, the Mother of God that we honor today.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph, pray for us.

Ancient News

If you're among the handful of regular readers of this blog -- my loyal and holy remnant -- you will know that I often write about certain archaeological discoveries that give us a glimpse into the distant past. It's really a life-long fascination with the work of archaeologists, one that began when, at the age of ten, I found a flint arrowhead amidst the gravel in our driveway in suburban New York. I still have that point, and I count it among my treasured possessions. But this early fascination with things archaeological was no more than an interest and I never considered becoming an archaeologist. I have absolutely no desire to dig in the dirt to uncover the lives of our ancient ancestors. Over the years, though, I've become acquainted with several professional archaeologists who enjoy doing just that. They have not only taught me many wonderful things but also whetted my appetite to learn more. This growing interest paralleled my interest in Sacred Scripture, especially since so much of what we know about the ancient world of the Bible has come to us through the work of archaeologists. More importantly, though, their work continues to confirm much of what the Bible tells us.

I haven't posted anything archaeological in quite some time, but in recent weeks the field has made the front pages on several occasions. And so I suppose it's time to share my thoughts on these and other news stories. Here are a few for your enjoyment, enlightenment or surprise:

UNESCO's Bias. Just in case you're not yet convinced that the United Nations is the most useless of all international organizations, here's some news that should change your mind. UNESCO -- the UN's so-called "Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization" -- has condemned Israel because it has conducted archaeological investigations at the Temple Mount and other locations in Jerusalem. UNESCO apparently believes Jerusalem is sacred only to Islam, something they insist all those pesky, imperialist Jews must also recognize. This, of course, ignores the fact that Jerusalem is the far more ancient center of the Jewish people. UNESCO also refers to Israel as the "occupying power" and condemns it for conducting any excavations in the old city of Jerusalem. UNESCO, it would seem, is staffed by Jew-haters who parrot the Islamist line that Israel is a rogue state that must be eliminated. Nothing more need be said.

Jerusalem Exists! As long as we're talking about Jerusalem, it has risen up once again and embarrassed some who consider themselves Scriptural scholars. Yes, believe it or not, many of these experts have long downplayed the biblical record that focuses on the importance of Jerusalem. Some have actually assumed that Jerusalem and Israel were never all that important because there is no contemporary record that mentions Jerusalem. No longer! Sci-News, a site that covers the latest scientific discoveries, describes the discovery of a papyrus fragment in which Jerusalem is mentioned prominently. This extra-Biblical reference to Jerusalem dates to the 7th century B.C., the time of the first temple.

The Jerusalem Papyrus

Discoveries that confirm the Biblical record have been going on for decades. Prior to the 20th century, the only place one encountered the Hittites was in the Bible. Naturally, most scholars, therefore, rejected the very idea that a Hittite empire had ever existed. Their general rule was: If it's in the Bible, it must be wrong.

Then, in 1906, the Hittite capital of Hattusha was discovered in modern-day Turkey. The discovery included a library containing over 10,000 tablets that confirmed the Biblical record and led to further discoveries. Yes, the Hittites were a powerful people with an extensive empire.

Toilet Desecration of Ba'al Temple. Once again, thanks to the work of  archaeologists, the Biblical text is proven correct. In 2 Kings 10 we find the following verses, describing Jehu's destruction of Ba'al temples in the northern Kingdom of Israel during the 8th century B.C.:

"Afterward they went into the inner shrine of the temple of Baal, and took out the pillars of the temple of Baal. They burned the shrine, tore down the pillar of Baal, tore down the temple of Baal, and turned it into a latrine, as it remains today" [2 Kgs 10:25-27].

Well, guess what? Archaeologists, digging at Lachish, in ancient Israel second in size only to Jerusalem, found a destroyed temple of Ba'al and right there in the middle of the inner temple they found a toilet where no toilet should be. Jehu had "turned it [the temple] into a latrine" because doing so was the ultimate desecration and made the temple unusable forever. Interestingly, the archaeologists, after conducting laboratory tests on the toilet, determined it had never been used. In other words, its placement was strictly symbolic, but would still desecrate the temple forever.

Temple Toilet - the "Jehu's Latrine"

ISIS Destruction of Antiquities. Driven by their fundamentalist Islamic faith, ISIS believes that all symbols of polytheism (and even those of non-Muslim monotheism) must be destroyed. After all, you never know when a bunch of Ba'al worshipers might rise up out of the sands of the Middle East and threaten Islam. They see idolatry as the greatest of sins, and any of its manifestations must be obliterated. History means absolutely nothing to these folks who consider only their version of Islam worth preserving. And so wherever these maniacal fanatics go, they leave infidel corpses and piles of rubble behind them. In the words of ISIS leadership, "These monuments should not be excavated and restored, but viewed with disgust and hatred...The sites were destroyed for disbelieving in Allah and His messengers.”

The Iraqi Army recently managed to push ISIS forces from the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud, and what they found was devastating. The city's history goes back over 3,000 years and has long been considered one of the treasures of the ancient world. No longer. Ali al-Bayati, a militia commander who visited the newly liberated site stated that “One hundred per cent has been destroyed.” This, of course, was expected since ISIS conveniently made videos of their destruction of Nimrud. I've included one below:

ISIS has repeated this destruction throughout the Middle east. In the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra ISIS troops went on a rampage of destruction. One temple of the Assyrian god Ba'al was completely flattened. The below photos show the temple pre-ISIS and its destruction.

When they entered Palmyra, the ISIS forces promised to leave the site untouched, but soon after staged a public execution of Khaled al-Assad, the archaeologist who for years had managed the excavations. They then began their systematic destruction of the ancient city.

ISIS continued their destruction wherever their forces went. They destroyed the Mar Elian Monastery in the Syrian town of al-Qayatain. They did the same in the museum in Mosul (see video below), and looted the ancient Roman city of Apamea, selling looted artifacts to fund ISIS military operations. The city of Dura-Europas with its ancient Christian church and synagogue was also systematically looted as was the Bronze-Age city of Mari. 

But the greatest atrocity committed by ISIS has been the equally systematic slaughter of thousands of Christians and others, including Muslims who don't share their demonic vision.

Christians About to be Killed by ISIS

We have been blessed by these martyrs who have kept the Faith in the face of certain death.

ISIS, al-Qaida, the Taliban, and their millions of followers represent Islam at its very worst and call to mind the early days of the 7th and 8th centuries when Muslim armies spread Islam by the sword. Unlike the early spread of Christianity, the spread of Islam was not a peaceful process.

There is much more, but it will have to wait. I am called to other work. 

Archaeology Update

If you're a long-time reader of this blog -- a member of a very select group -- you'll know that I have an interest in things archaeological. 

My interest in archaeology first arose from a book I read in 1962 while I was enjoying myself as a freshman at Georgetown's School of Foreign Service. I was in the office of a Jesuit, my New Testament professor, and spotted the book on his desk. In an effort to kiss up a bit and show that I was really interested in theology, I asked if it were an interesting book. He handed it to me and said, "Here, you can borrow it. Come back next week and let me know what you think." An oral book report wasn't the outcome I had planned, and I suspect the good Jesuit knew this. 

Anyway, he and the book he lent me had an impact. The Archaeology of Palestine: From the Stone Age to Christianity was written by William F. Albright in 1940 and then revised in 1960 to reflect the impact of later archaeological discoveries. It was this later edition that was forced on me that day. 

William Albright, an American evangelical and the son of Methodist missionaries, probably did more to advance the science of biblical archaeology than any other 20th-century archaeologist. During the latter part of his life (he died in 1971) and since his death, Albright has been strongly criticized by historical-critical scholars and others who believe his methods and conclusions were overly influenced by his Christian faith. Can you imagine? Actually approaching Sacred Scripture with faith...

For example, Albright believed that the Book of Genesis, in its depiction of such figures as Abraham, was "as a whole...historical, and there is no reason to doubt the general accuracy of the biographical details." As you might imagine, many modern scholars disagree. Indeed, too many even doubt the actual existence of a historical Abraham. But one does not have to be a literalist or a fundamentalist to agree with Albright. 

I think it's important for Catholics to realize that the teachings of the Catholic Church do not encourage scholars to doubt the historical accuracy of Sacred Scripture. Dei Verbum, the Second Vatican Council's Constitution on Divine Revelation, offers us a clear reflection of the Church's teaching on Sacred Scripture:

"Therefore, since everything asserted by the inspired authors or sacred writers must be held to be asserted by the Holy Spirit, it follows that the books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching solidly, faithfully and without error that truth which God wanted put into sacred writings for the sake of salvation" [Dei Verbum, 11].

I've always thought that those who believe that the Bible, particularly the Old Testament, is littered with fictional characters must not think very highly of the Holy Spirit. After all, in effect they're saying that the Holy Spirit, unable to raise up faithful servants from among His People, instead invented fanciful heroes to carry out God's will in the world.This, of course, assumes that they accept the Holy Spirit's role as the Divine Author of Sacred Scripture. 

K. A. Kitchen

Although my interest in biblical archaeology began with William Albright's book, it was further influenced by the work of K. A. Kitchen. A Professor Emeritus in Egyptology at the University of Liverpool, and also an evangelical Christian, Dr. Kitchen wrote two books that I found truly fascinating. In the first, published in 1966 and entitled, Ancient Orient and the Old Testament, Kitchen attempted to synthesize the work of two very different and too often independent areas of study: Ancient Near Eastern studies and Old Testament studies. But then in 2003 Kitchen published a comprehensive work, On the Reliability of the Old Testament, in which he argues (I believe, successfully) that the archaeological and textual evidence confirms the historical accuracy of the Old Testament. 

Interestingly, what we're finding as a result of recent archaeological discoveries is that the Bible is a remarkably accurate historical document. I've included stories relating to a few of these discoveries that confirm what the Bible tells us. The links will take you to the online articles.

Shiloh's Destruction. Shiloh is the city in Samaria where the ark of the covenant was kept after Joshua and the Israelites conquered Canaan. Shiloh was later destroyed by the Philistines not long after their victory at Aphek, a battle in which the two sons of Eli, the priest, lost their lives. Although many scholars assumed these event were apocryphal, recent archaeological findings confirm the destruction of the shrine at Shiloh c. 1050 B.C., a date that corresponds closely to what the we find in 1 Samuel. The remains of Shiloh may be found is the exact location described in the Book of Judges (Jgs 21:19).

Shiloh today -- Photo by Abraham Sobkowski OFM 

Siloam Tunnel. This remarkable tunnel zig-zags for over 500 yards beneath the ancient city of Jerusalem. The construction of the tunnel, an underground waterway, is described in both 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles. Built during the reign of King Hezekiah (727 - 698 B.C.) to protect the city's water supply in anticipation of an Assyrian siege, the tunnel was recently carbon dated to 700 B.C. confirming the Biblical description of its construction at that time. Once again, the Bible displays its historical accuracy. 

Siloam Tunnel beneath Jerusalem

Pharaoh Shoshenq and Kingdom of Israel. Many scholars have long thought that the Biblical descriptions of the early Jewish kingdoms are complete fiction, and that if David and Solomon actually existed, they were no more than petty chieftains. Increasingly, though, archaeological evidence supports what the Bible tells us. Among many recent discoveries is evidence that the army of an Egyptian pharaoh by the name of Shoshenq I (Shishak in the Bible) raided and sacked the town of Rehov in Israel 3,000 years ago. The event has been dated archaeologically to 925 B.C., just five years after Solomon's death. The Bible describes this military expedition by the Egyptians in 2 Chronicles 12. Here's a part of the narrative:

"Once Rehoboam had established himself as king and was firmly in charge, he abandoned the law of the LORD, and so did all Israel with him. So in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak, king of Egypt, attacked Jerusalem, for they had acted treacherously toward the LORD. He had twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen, and there was no counting the army that came with him from Egypt — Libyans, Sukkites, and Ethiopians. They captured the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem" [2 Chr 12:1-4].

Addressing this discovery at Rahov, Professor Lawrence Stager, director of Harvard University's Semitic Museum stated, "There's no question that Rehov and the other cities that Shoshenq conquered were indeed there at the time of Solomon."

Captives with hands raised submitting to Pharaoh Shishak

David, King of Israel. Another related discovery, made in 1993, uncovered a chunk of basalt, dating to the 9th-century B.C., inscribed with words referring to the "House of David" and "King of Israel." To those of us familiar with the Old Testament, this is no great revelation, but archaeologically it represents the first time David's name had been found outside the Bible. The discovery was made at Tel Dan, located in the north of Israel.

The Tel Dan Basalt Stele

Aristotle's Grave. One last item has little to do with Sacred Scripture, but because it was announced only recently and should be of interest to anyone with a classical education, I thought I'd include it. Konstantinos Sismanidis, a Greek archaeologist, is convinced that he has located the tomb of the Greek philosopher, Aristotle. For 20 years Sismanidis has been working a site near the village of Stagira, Aristotle's birthplace. The archaeological team have uncovered the tomb and an altar both dating to the time of Aristotle. Other evidence also support Sismanidis' conclusion. The drawing below shows what the tomb would have looked like when it was built. Note the altar and the raised walkway leading to the door.

Artist's conception: Aristotle's Tomb

Today the excavated tomb is not as pristine, but check out the view:

The tomb today -- a room with a view.

And so, for those of you who struggled through the study of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, you can now make a pilgrimage to the philosopher's tomb and perhaps leave a small token of your esteem. 

Until next time...

Rome, Catholicism and the Papacy

Taylor Marshall, a former Episcopal priest and now a Catholic, has written several wonderful books, chief among them The Crucified Rabbi: Judaism and the Origins of Catholic Christianity. He has just written another, soon to be published, which focuses on the the question of why Rome and not Jerusalem is the center of the Catholic Church.

This morning I came across a video of a recent interview with Dr. Marshall in which he addresses this very subject. Although it's almost an hour long, it's well worth listening to. I have included it below...

Dr. Marshall's blog, Canterbury Tales, is also worth a frequent check.

Ancient Cemetery and Modern Politics

A portion of the Mount of Olives cemetery

Among cemeteries still in use one of the oldest in the world is located in Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives. Its earliest graves date as far back as 1,000 B.C. and Jews are still being buried there 3,000 years later. For many believing Jews it is a very special cemetery, for tradition and prophecy in the Book of Zechariah tell of the Messiah entering Jerusalem from the mount and dividing it in two:

"On that day God’s feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is opposite Jerusalem to the east. The Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west by a very deep valley, and half of the mountain will move to the north and half of it to the south." [Zech 14:4]

Many therefore believe the estimated 150,000 people buried there will be the first to rise from the dead -- prime real estate indeed.

Although the cemetery contains only Jewish graves, the Mount of Olives is also home to several Christian churches built to commemorate events in Jesus' life. And these churches have crypts and cemeteries of their own. One can even find the graves of a few of Europe's royals on the Mount. The mother of Britain's Prince Phillip, Princess Alice of Battenberg, is buried there along with some members of the last czar's family.

The Jewish cemetery, however, has apparently been long neglected and is littered with all kinds of ancient and recent rubble in the midst of many crumbling headstones. It has also been subjected to much vandalism by Arab youths. (Click here to read a recent story on this vandalism.)

One Jewish group has taken on the task of making a digital map of the entire cemetery, a task that will include recording the name on every grave and eventually making the finished product available online. To date, the group has mapped over 40,000 of an estimated 100,000 headstones. After that, the problem becomes more complex since many of the older graves cannot be easily deciphered or lie under several layers of more recent burials. The task was made especially difficult by the Jordanians who, during the 19-year period they controlled the area (1948-1967), built a road right through the cemetery, using Jewish headstones as pavers and letting the rest of the cemetery fall into disrepair.

Not surprisingly the project has encountered both religious and political resistance. First of all, the cemetery is located in East Jerusalem, that section of the city which Palestinians claim as the future site of their capital. It is literally surrounded by Arab neighborhoods. Another issue relates to Elad, the group performing the mapping. Elad is affiliated with the settlement movement, Jews who strive to increase Jewish presence in East Jerusalem in order to prevent any future division of the city. As you might imagine, they're not very popular among the local Muslims who hope to one day claim Jerusalem as their own.

Personally, I think it's great this work is being done. To date the mappers have made many interesting and some remarkable finds. If you'd like to read more about this effort, click here: Mapping Mount of Olives Cemetery.

Another Archaeological Discovery

Lately I've referred to a number of interesting archaeological finds in the Holy Land and their impact on our understanding of both Scripture and how the early Hebrews lived. The latest find, however is truly remarkable, and it took place in Jerusalem itself.

Excavations conducted by Hebrew University have uncovered a fragment of a clay tablet covered with Akkadian script that dates back to the 14th century B.C. It is the oldest item with writing on it ever found in Jerusalem. This shows that Jerusalem was an important city even before it was conquered by David a good 300 years later. It is also approximately 600 years older than any other written document found in Jerusalem.

The high quality of the fragment and the writing on it have convinced the archaeologists involved that it likely had a royal connection. Prof. Wayne Horowitz, a scholar of Assyriology at Hebrew University, assisted by Dr. Takayoshi Oshima, were able to decipher the script. Horowitz stated, "What we can see is that the piece was written in very good script and the tablet was constructed very well. This indicates that the person responsible for creating the tablet was a first-class scribe. In those days, you would expect to find a first-class scribe only in a large, important place.” He indicated that this in itself shows that Jerusalem at the time was no primitive village, but a major city.

Where there is one fragment, there are likely many more. I wouldn't be surprised if the excavations turn up additional fragments covered in script. To read more about this remarkable find, click here.

Netanyahu: Jerusalem "Eternal and Indivisible"

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister that many in our current administration love to hate, has come out emphatically in support of an undivided Jerusalem as the eternal capital of Israel. Contrary to the desires of the Palestinians, who want East Jerusalem as the capital of their intended independent state, Netanyahu's remarks send a strong signal that Jerusalem will not be any sort of bargaining chip in future negotiations with the Palestinians.

Interestingly, the Israeli Prime Minister used Sacred Scripture to bolster Israel's eternal claim to the holy city. In the course of his comments he stated that Jerusalem is mentioned 850 times in the core canon of Hebrew Scripture (the Old Testament). And while it appears 142 times in the Christian New Testament, not one of the 16 Arabic names for Jerusalem appears at all in the Koran. This, of course, is Netanyahu's response to Muslims who claim Jerusalem as their third holiest site.

It's all very interesting, and I suspect these comments have already had an impact on those in the Obama administration who tend to support the Palestinians over Israel. I'm curious to see what kind of reaction they will provide.

Here are links to two separate stories covering Netanyahu's remarks, one from Reuters and another from the Jerusalem Post:

Reuters -- Natanyahu Turns to Bible in Tussle over Jerusalem

Jerusalem Post -- Netanyahu: We Will Never Divide Jerusalem