Biblical Archaeology: Birthplace of Jesus of Nazareth

Monday, December 24^th, Christian pilgrims gathered in Bethlehem to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Bethlehem is in area known as the West Bank. According to NPR …

…Israeli archaeologists now say there is strong evidence that Christ was born in a different Bethlehem, a small village in the Galilee. About 100 miles north of where the pilgrims gathered, shepherds still guide their flocks through green unspoiled hills, and few give notice to the tucker-away village with the odd sounding name: Bethlehem of Galilee. But archaeologists who have excavated there say there is ample evidence that this Bethlehem is the Bethlehem of Christ’s birth. … It was inhabited by Jews. I know it was Jews because we found here remnants of an industry of stone vessels, and it was used only by Jews and only in the period of Jesus. He also found artifacts which showed that a few centuries later the community had become Christians and had built a large and ornate church. He says there is significant evidence that in early Christianity this Bethlehem was celebrated as the birthplace of Jesus. The emperor Justinian boasted of building a fortification wall around the village to protect it. The ruins of that wall … still circle parts of the Galilee village today.

Science and Creationism: A Never-Ending Discussion

In the world of science – Jim Dent:  Science, Evolution, and Creationism …

Today, the National Academy of Science released a book called Science, evolution, and Creationism. The book argues that creationism has no room in the scientific classroom. From the book:
“The arguments of creationists reverse the scientific process. They begin with an explanation that they are unwilling to alter – that supernatural forces have shaped biological or Earth systems – rejecting the basic requirements of science that hypotheses must be restricted to testable natural explanations. Their beliefs cannot be tested, modified, or rejected by scientific means and thus cannot be a part of the process of science.

Moses Red Sea Crossing and Palm Sunday

Quills, Iowa sent an email that is passing around about the archaeological finds that back up the story of Moses and the People of Israel who crossed the Red Sea to escape Pharaoh’s chariot division with the result of the entire “army” being swallowed up by the Red Sea. Tomorrow is Palm Sunday, and the following Sunday is Easter. I thought this would be an appropriate time, although long before Jesus time on Earth, to write this article. The media announced this discovery in 2003, so the recent email represents old news in the world of archaeology and matters of strange phenomenon.

The Crossing of the Red Sea has been an inspiration, as well as the life of Moses who was a prophet of the people of Israel during the time period called “The Captivity”. Depicted on film by the director great – Cecil B. Demille - a legend in the film industry, as well as written about by theological scholars and historians – the Crossing of the Red Sea is a big story concerning divine intervention that saved a people who would later marched through history, and themselves considered the historians.