21 Oct, 2008
Phony biblical relics spark controversy
Medieval pilgrims would have understood the throngs who crowded Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum to see the James Ossuary. Only six years ago, the stone box inscribed "James, Son of Joseph, Brother of Jesus" in Aramaic, made Time magazine's cover and drew 100,000-person lines to see the limestone box that, by implication, may have once held the skeletal remain of Jesus' brother.
But like so many religious relics before, the ossuary, a two-foot-long box that Jewish inhabitants of burial-site-poor Jerusalem typically used to store remains around the First Century, A.D., turned out to have a checkered past. The 2002 vetting of the box's authenticity described in the magazine Biblical Archaeology Review came under fire quickly, from experts who complained the box's origins were unknown. Oded Golan, the antiquities dealer who owned the ossuary, only said he had bought it from another dealer in the 1970's.
Many outside experts, concluded the second part of the ossuary inscription, the reference to Jesus, was a fake, including the scholar Rochelle Altman who found that it "bears the hallmarks of a fraudulent later addition," and "is questionable to say the least." Others, such as Amnon Rosenfeld of the Geological Survey of Israel, continue to defend the inscription's authenticity.
Picture by Biblical Archaeological Society (AFP/Getty Images). Partial article by Dan Vergano. To see the full story go to USAToday.com.
Prove it!
2 Corinthians 1:21-22
21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (NIV)
What does God's Story scripture teach us about the proof behind our faith?
Today's story is yet another chapter in the long debate over the authenticity of relics that attempt to support Biblical accounts. Many artifacts are believed to be authentic by every expert that views them. Others are easily proved to be phonies. This one appears to still be in question.
We can be encouraged (and really shouldn't be surprised) when artifacts are discovered that support what we know to be true about Biblical history. We should not, however, be discouraged when such "findings" turn out to be false. The reason for this is simply in the fact that our faith lies not on hard physical proof, but on faith in the God who lives in us!
This scripture teaches us that we can be confident of our faith in Jesus Christ and His return because of the "deposit" that He has given to us. When you put a deposit down on a purchase, it is a guarantee that you will fulfill the rest of the agreement. When we expressed our faith in Jesus Christ, He promised to fill us with the Holy Spirit. It was His guarantee that what He promised will be fulfilled.
We also have His perfect Word (the Bible) that is true in every way. In I John 5:13, the apostle tells us that "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." John is telling us, "Hey...I actually hung out with Jesus! I saw all of this with my own eyes...you don't have to doubt...this stuff I am writing is true!"
Though we do have other proof...nothing more than His word and His Spirit in us is needed.
How can we connect God's Scripture story to our lives?
- Stand firm! When the news and media push you to doubt your faith at all...remember that the God of the universe lives in you...no one can argue with that!
- Since the Holy Spirit is God living in us, let's spend more time listening to Him and allowing Him to direct our daily decisions.
- Since the Bible is God revealing Himself through written word, let's spend more time reading it and living it!
How can we connect today's story, God's Story and our story to others?
Remember that, ultimately, we are God's best proof of His existence to those around us.
- When they see His love in our actions...they will know that He is real.
- When they see His truth in our words...they will know He is real.
- When they see His compassion and caring in our eyes...they will know He is real.
- When they see His provision through our giving of ourselves...they will know He is real.
They will know He is real...not because of some relic...but because there is no arguing the authenticity of God being lived out in His people.
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