In our program “Biblical Archeology” we discuss one of the most important discoveries of last year—a temple to rival the Temple in Jerusalem. Tel Aviv University archaeologists calculate that a temple, discovered during reconstruction of Israel’s Highway 1, near Jerusalem, was built around 900 B.C. The Motza temple is estimated to be similar in size to the temple built by Solomon a half-century earlier and just five miles to the east. The rival temple was likely used to worship the God who brought the Israelites out of Egypt—and other gods too. The discovery was startling but fits well with the Old Testament narrative of national disputes over where, how, and whom to worship. Scholars think some key Scriptural texts were composed as defenses of Jerusalem-based worship, and 1 Kings recounts how, during the same century, the northern kingdom of Israel constructed worship centers at Dan and Bethel.
We all heard the song which begin with joyful and powerful testament to our Lord—“I sing the mighty power of God, that made the mountains rise…” In our program “A Capella history” we talk about Isaac Watts. He was the father of English hymnody. Unfortunately he was frail in health during much of his life. For the last 30 years of his life he was more or less an invalid in the home of his friend, Sir Thomas Abney, where Watts devoted himself in comfortable and happy surroundings to the writing of many of the fine hymns still used today. Watts’s ambition, according to his own words, was as follows: “My design was not to exalt myself to the rank and glory of poets but I was ambitious to be a servant to the churches and a helper to the joy of the meanest Christian.”
In a continuation of the series, “Division in Christianity,” we try to find deep roots of contradictions between Christians and how we can overcome such problems. As we can see, faith and love for Jesus Christ can unite us and bring peace to our relationships and to our souls.
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