Holding Old Stuff

Holding really old things is much like holding brand new things only much, much scarier. Today I had the opportunity to tour the Archaeology museum at my school, and I was allowed to hold a clay pot that was 3,000 years old. It's quite an ethereal experience, to have something that was used so long ago in my hand that is around here and now. The artifacts in the museum are from various digs around Israel and Jordan and range from the Early Bronze Era to 7th century AD. These are the tools used during the Exodus, the time of David, and the time of Christ. Often the narrative of the Bible gets so shelved like any other stories from the past as being other-worldly. But here were the tools of the world right before my eyes and in one case, in my very hands.

Some of the in the late Roman section had words written in Greek on them. One said Christos, Greek for Christ. Many religions claim many things, but ours has a very special claim: that God came down in history and used tools like these. His hands are in the dirt, crafting all the universe with his fingertips.

In other news:

I heard a story on NPR about classical music riots. People were so angry in the early 20th century about a change in the music of Igor Stravinsky that they rioted outside the theater after the debut. What is going on here? This is awesome.

Also, I hope someone can help us design a new background for our blog. We're very technically unsavvy, and we can only have the Olan Mills template for so long.

Blessings,

mark