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Lybia, O Lybia, Say Have You Met Lybia

Sicilian archeologists, diving for shipwrecks off the coasts of Lybia, found something more: a sunken Roman-era city.

They found walls, roads, buildings and tombs at a depth of between one and three metres. It is a portion which extends over a hectare of a large city which some of the scholars had intuited the presence of due to the remains of wall structures hidden among the sandy dunes hit by strong winds. It is believed that a large part of the city sunk due to a large bradyseism. Initial morphological analysis showed that changes to the area were macroscopic even in recent times, and the ruins found at the bottom of the sea are part of a city existing in the Imperial Roman era during the second century AD.

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Patristics in Opryland

Well, close anyway.

I’m giving three talks at the 2010 St. Thomas Aquinas Theological & Catechetical Forum at Aquinas College, Nashville, Tennessee. The annual forum, aimed at catechists, offers an intensive study of a particular point of doctrine or devotion. This year’s particular point is patristics. (Now, say that five times fast.) I don’t know how I got on the program with the other speakers, who have actual gravitas, but somehow I did.

You can find out more about the program at Aquinas College’s website or by reading the feature in the Nashville diocesan paper.

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Partial to Marshall

Surely you know Taylor Marshall from his blog, Canterbury Tales. He’s frequently linked from here. A teacher at the University of Dallas, he ponders things patristic. Now he’s committed a book, and just in time for you to order it for friends for Christmas. It’s called The Crucified Rabbi: Judaism and the Origins of Catholic Christianity. I read it while I was traveling, a little over a month ago, and I’ve been meaning to post a review. As that becomes a less realistic expectation, I’m reduced to regurgitating my blurb —  or reblurbitating my gurge — as it appears on Taylor’s website:

John Henry Newman famously said ‘To be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant.’ Taylor Marshall helps us to be more Catholic by taking our faith to its most profound depths — its ancient roots in the religion of Israel, the Judaism beloved by the Apostles, the religion of the Temple and Synagogue, the Torah and the sacrifice. Jesus said he came not to abolish that faith but to fulfill it. In this book, we see that fullness down to the smallest details. I treasure this book.

I think this book’s market should not be limited by its subtitle. Taylor digs into areas that will fascinate Christians of all sorts. He is especially keen on the influence of ancient Jewish liturgy on the rites of emerging Christianity. It’s all well documented, to satisfy us nerds and send us on to the primaries and the wider contexts.

The chapters: 1. Jewish Messiah – Catholic Christ; 2. Jewish Kingdom – Catholic Church; 3. Jewish Tevilah – Catholic Baptism; 4. Jewish Passover – Catholic Mass; 5. Jewish Kohenin – Catholic Priests; 6. Jewish Vestments – Catholic Vestments; 7. Jewish Temple – Catholic Cathedral; 8. Jewish Synagogue – Catholic Parish; 9. Jewish Nazirites – Catholic Monastics; 10. Jewish Marriage – Catholic Marriage; 11. Jewish Holy Days – Catholic Holy Days; 12. Jewish Tzaddikim – Catholic Saints; 13. Jewish Afterlife – Catholic Afterlife.

Along the way, he answers many burning questions — though some of those questions, for some of us, were burning deep underground like a mine fire. (I’m from anthracite country. I work with what I have.) Taylor’s book made them flash to the surface of consciousness.

A sampling of subsections: How has the Jewish Temple influenced traditional Christian architecture?  How does Jesus fulfill over three hundred Messianic prophecies of the Hebrew Scriptures? How does the Old Testament relate to the New Testament? Is Catholicism inherently Anti-Semitic? How does Jewish thinking presuppose devotion to Mary? Is the Catholic Church a fulfillment of historic Israel? How did the Israelite identity of the twelve Apostles influence the early Church? How do Jewish water rituals relate to Catholic baptism? Is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass a Passover meal? Should the Catholic priesthood conform to the priesthood established by Moses? Does the Pope wear a yarmulke?

I give Taylor Marshall’s The Crucified Rabbi my strongest recommendation. Use it as a stocking stuffer!

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Immaculate

I wish you a very happy feast of the Immaculate Conception. You’ll find excellent patristic catenas, on every aspect of the dogma, at New Advent. (New Advent also offers catenae for the purists.) In the East, Mary is all-holy, panagia. In the West, we celebrate her as sinless. These are two complementary aspects of the same truth. (And maybe the most perfect illustration of the difference between a “half full” and “half empty” approach to theology!) God infused the world with beauty at the conception of the Blessed Virgin. Don’t let the day go by in an ordinary way! (Here’s some extraordinary reading for starters.)

Not long ago, Pope Benedict made me aware of Gregory Nazianzen’s doctrine of Mary as “pre-purified.”

Mary, who gave human nature to Christ, is truly the Mother of God (”Theotókos”: cf. Epistle 101, 16: SC 208,42), and with a view to her lofty mission was “prepurified” (Oratio 38,13: SC 358,132, presenting a type of distant prelude to the dogma of the Immaculate Conception). He proposes Mary as a model for Christians, above all for virgins, and as an aid that should be invoked in need (cf. Oratio 24, 11: SC 282,60-64).

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Go Directly to Jail

Surely the most way-cool discovery in the last couple years — and the rare discovery whose hype has withstood scrutiny — was the “world’s oldest church” dug up by prisoners working at the jail in Meggido, Israel (the biblical Armageddon). It came with intact inscriptions hailing the divinity of Christ, and even an altar.

Now Haaretz reports that Israel is going to open the site to tourists.

Megiddo prison, surrounded by prison guards on horseback supplemented by guard dogs, is not a place that many people would care to approach. But if a plan now in the final stages comes to fruition, it could become a tourist attraction drawing Israelis and tourists from around the world.

Behind the prison walls, the remains of the oldest Christian house of worship ever discovered were unearthed four years ago in the course of prison renovations. The plans that are coming together call for the relocation of the prison to a site a short distance away so that the archaeological site can be opened to the public.

Some prisoners, including both common criminals and security prisoners, were allowed to dig below the prison – jailbreak style – as part of the archaeological research. The ancient finds on the site have led to an agreement in principle involving the prison service, the Megiddo Regional Council and the Antiquities Authority for the relocation of the detention facility.

In 2005, work was undertaken to replace a tent encampment for prisoners with detention cells, and because the Megiddo area is known for its rich archaeological finds, the Antiquities Authority required a salvage dig be carried out.

At the edge of the site, a magnificent mosaic floor featuring important inscriptions, including a reference to Jesus, was found, along with the foundation of a building from the 3rd or 4th century C.E.

The finds were evidence that the site was used for Christian religious worship before Christianity became the official religion of the Roman empire, and it is thought to contain the remains of the oldest church in the world.

Officials involved in the dig explained that the finds show a link between the Roman army that encamped there then and communal Christian activity. At the center of the site remains of an altar or prayer table were found.

The site is also identified with the Talmudic-era Jewish village of Kfar Otnai, mentioned in Hebrew sources. The headquarters of the sixth Roman legion was established there along with the town of Maximilianopolis, which is mentioned in historical sources.

According to Hanan Erez, head of the regional council, “the discovery of the finds created great excitement in the Christian world and among researchers of early Christianity. The discovery was even a main topic of a conference of researchers in Washington three years ago.”

Shortly after the discovery at the site, the Antiquities Authority quickly recommended the relocation of the prison so the site could be opened to the public. An agreement to that effect is now being worked out.

Megiddo council head Erez said: “On the site, a tourism complex is to be built, the central focus of which will be the ancient house of worship, alongside, of course, the Tel Megiddo archaeological site, which is also a significant site for the Christian world.”

He noted that the plans for the funding of the project have been presented to the Finance Ministry. The plan calls for the state to guarantee the financing package.

The construction of the new nearby prison is part of a larger plan to build new prison facilities around the country.

Thanks to Jim Davila for pointing us this way. He also points to some background material on his own excellent site.
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Milano Mysteries

Today is the memorial of the great St. Ambrose. Bishop of Milan, friend of Augustine and Monica, great teacher of the Milanese clergy, and great mystagogue for the laity, Ambrose is one of my favorite figures from the era of the Fathers. From the first post on this blog, I’ve returned to him again and again (sometimes in friendly disagreement with Adrian Murdoch, esteemed fellow of the Royal Historical Society). You can read selected backposts here, here, here, and here. (Adrian has posted the ancient accounts of Ambrose’s episcopal consecration.)

Here’s a fascinating recent study of Ambrose’s approach to the formation of the laity: Ambrose’s Patriarchs: Ethics For The Common Man.

I recommend celebrating the day with great quantities of these.

UPDATE: Father Z has posted a lovely appreciation of Ambrose: St. Ambrose: silent reader, croaking crow – beloved of Augustine, hated by Jerome.

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Free Music, in Perpetuity

Over the last couple years I’ve had the pleasure and privilege of working on a couple monuments to St. Perpetua, the much-beloved third-century martyr. I served as script consultant for the excellent animated feature The Story of Saint Perpetua. Reviewers have praised its production values, comparing it to Disney (see what Rod Bennett and Carl Sommer had to say, and Binks and Happy Catholic).

To enhance the experience of the animated feature, the producers made a documentary as well: The Passion of Saint Perpetua: Martyr of the Faith (also available for online rental). I’m the face and voice on that production, but it’s redeemed by lots of footage shot on-site in North Africa. The camera takes you into all the relevant ruins,

I absolutely love the musical theme, “Perpetua’s Song.” It’s haunting in an indie kind of way — a setting of Psalm 86, in both Latin and English. It can be downloaded FREE at CatholicHeroesOfTheFaith.com. All you have to do is register. There are lots of other goodies on the site, including illustrated bios on St. Damien of Molokai and St. Nicholas.

Patristics and matristics for kids. Who knew?

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Holy Patrologist, Batman!

I’m late getting this up, of course. Still catching up.

Pope Benedict plans to beatify Newman during visit to Britain

By Simon Caldwell

The Pope is to waive his own rules so he can preside in person over the beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman during a papal visit to Britain next year, according to sources close to the Vatican.

Pope Benedict XVI will personally take charge of the ceremony to declare the Victorian convert Blessed when he visits England in early September at the invitation of Gordon Brown.

The Pope has previously insisted that all beatifications are carried out by a Vatican official in the diocese in which the candidate died, which in Newman’s case is Birmingham.

But because the Pope has such a strong devotion to Cardinal Newman and his theological writings he has decided to break his own rules and beatify the cardinal himself.

Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster refused to either confirm or deny the report: “The details of the Pope’s visit are far from clear,” he said. “What is clear is that the Holy Father has a great and long-standing devotion to Cardinal Newman and the beatification of Cardinal Newman is due.”

Fr Ian Ker, author of the definitive biography of Cardinal Newman, said: “By breaking his own rules Pope Benedict clearly shows he regards Newman as a completely exceptional case, one of the great theologians of the Catholic Church. Many of the popes have been anxious to canonise Newman. They look to him as a man who welcomed modernisation but in fidelity to Church authority and in continuity with the traditions of the Church.”

Pope Benedict announced the beatification in July after Vatican theologians ruled that the inexplicable healing of Jack Sullivan, an American with a severe spinal condition, was a miracle brought about by praying for help to Cardinal Newman.

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Archeological Updates

Faint writing seen on Shroud of Turin

Syrian archeologists unearthed a Roman and Byzantine-era cemetery.

An update on that Israeli cave quarry: “Among the markings were crosses that were carved into the stone … the site had once served as a monastery or place of refuge between the years 1 – 600 CE.”

The Crux Vaticana — a 6th-century reliquary containing what is revered as fragments of the cross on which Jesus was crucified — has been restored to its Byzantine-era glory.

Ancient churches: interiors and artworks. (Thanks, Binks!)