Friday, February 14, 2014

Happy Saint Valentine Day


Today couples across the world will celebrate a day of love. Flowers will be given, cards exchanged and chocolate consumed. A few couples might even be lucky enough to get reservations at a local restaurant on what is one of the busiest nights of the year.

Very few, however, will think about Saint Valentine. Like other holidays (Christmas and Easter) the average person has no clue that this is a Christian holiday, established by the church. They probably don't know that Valentine was a person. Or, if they do, they may confuse him with the cupid who is the usual representation of the day. I suppose those even more ill-informed might think that today has to do with Al Capone's 1929 massacre of seven of his prohibition era competitors in a garage in Chicago. Anyway . . .

This day was named a holy day by the church in 496 AD by Pope Gelasius to remember and honor, Valentinus, the man that became known as Saint Valentine. February 14th was set aside not to remember Valentine's deep devotion to his wife, girlfriend or lover. No, it was to remember his martyrdom.

The exact circumstances of his martyrdom are not clear. Like so much in history, legend tends to overlap with the facts. And there are competing stories. But the most enduring one is about a priest from Rome.

According to Catholic.org, Valentinus was a priest in Rome, who, with St. Marius and his family, assisted the martyrs in the persecution under Claudius II. He was apprehended, and sent by the emperor to the prefect of Rome, who, on finding all his promises to make him renounce his faith in effectual, commended him to be beaten with clubs, and afterwards, to be beheaded, which was executed on February 14, about the year 270.

Of course, saint tend to have stories of the miraculous attached to them. That is, after all, one of the prerequisites for being declared a saint. One legend says that, while awaiting his execution, Valentinus restored the sight of his jailer's blind daughter. Another says, on the eve of his death, he penned a farewell note to the jailer's daughter, signing it, "From your Valentine."
The church has given Saint Valentine a rather wide job description in post-life as a saint. He is the Patron Saint of affianced couples, bee keepers, engaged couples, epilepsy, fainting, greetings, happy marriages, love, lovers, plague, travellers, young people. 

In light of this it seems like we have made a celebration of his job as a saint rather than his selfless acts on behalf of the church.
So wish those whom you love a happy Valentine’s day and enjoy your time together. But perhaps give a thought to the fact that the day is about a man who made the greatest sacrifice of love. He gave his life for his faith and his church.

Re-posted from 2011

Thursday, February 13, 2014

50 People in the Bible Confirmed by Archaeology

Anyone who works with archaeology or has even a serious interest in it soon realizes that there are limitations to what archaeology can and cannot prove. In many ways it seems that archaeology ends ups questioning more than helping our understanding of biblical events.

But it would be a shame to assume that nothing in the Bible has been confirmed by archaeology. Over at Bible History Daily there is a handy chart that lists 50 people mentioned in the Bible and the inscriptions that confirm their existence. Each name has a link embedded that will give you more information. I have pasted in the chart below.




50 Bible People Confirmed in Authentic Inscriptions

For a timeline and better view of this chart, see pp.46-47 of the March/April 2014 issue of BAR.

Egypt

Name
Who was He?
When He reigned or Flourished B.C.E.
Where in the Bible?
1
pharaoh
945–924
1 Kings 11:40, etc.
2
pharaoh
730–715
2 Kings 17:4
3
pharaoh
690–664
2 Kings 19:9, etc.
4
pharaoh
610–595
2 Chronicles 35:20, etc.
5
pharaoh
589–570
Jeremiah 44:30

Moab

6
king
early to mid-ninth century
2 Kings 3:4–27

Aram-Damascus

7
king
early ninth century to 844/842
1 Kings 11:23, etc.
8
king
844/842
2 Kings 6:24, etc.
9
king
844/842–c. 800
1 Kings 19:15, etc.
10
king
early eighth century
2 Kings 13:3, etc.
11
king
mid-eighth century to 732
2 Kings 15:37, etc.

Northern Kingdom of Israel

12
king
884–873
1 Kings 16:16, etc.
13
king
873–852
1 Kings 16:28, etc.
14
king
842/841–815/814
1 Kings 19:16, etc.
15
king
805–790
2 Kings 13:9, etc.
16
king
790–750/749
2 Kings 13:13, etc.
17
king
749–738
2 Kings 15:14, etc.
18
king
750(?)–732/731
2 Kings 15:25, etc.
19
king
732/731–722
2 Kings 15:30, etc.
20
governor of Samaria under Persian rule
c. mid-fifth century
Nehemiah 2:10, etc.

Southern Kingdom of Judah

21
king
c. 1010–970
1 Samuel 16:13, etc.
22
king
788/787–736/735
2 Kings 14:21, etc.
23
king
742/741–726
2 Kings 15:38, etc.
24
king
726–697/696
2 Kings 16:20, etc.
25
king
697/696–642/641
2 Kings 20:21, etc.
26
high priest during Josiah’s reign
within 640/639–609
2 Kings 22:4, etc.
27
scribe during Josiah’s reign
within 640/639–609
2 Kings 22:3, etc.
28
high priest during Josiah’s reign
within 640/639–609
1 Chronicles 5:39, etc.
29
official during Jehoiakim’s reign
within 609–598
Jeremiah 36:10, etc.
30
king
598–597
2 Kings 24:6, etc.
31
father of Jehucal the royal official
late seventh century
Jeremiah 37:3, etc.
32
official during Zedekiah’s reign
within 597–586
Jeremiah 37:3, etc.
33
father of Gedaliah the royal official
late seventh century
Jeremiah 38:1
34
official during Zedekiah’s reign
within 597–586
Jeremiah 38:1

Assyria

35
king
744–727
2 Kings 15:19, etc.
36
king
726–722
2 Kings 17:3, etc.
37
king
721–705
Isaiah 20:1
38
king
704–681
2 Kings 18:13, etc.
39
son and assassin of Sennacherib
early seventh century
2 Kings 19:37, etc.
40
king
680–669
2 Kings 19:37, etc.

Babylonia

41
king
721–710 and 703
2 Kings 20:12, etc.
42
king
604–562
2 Kings 24:1, etc.
43
official of Nebuchadnezzar II
early sixth century
Jeremiah 39:3
44
king
561–560
2 Kings 25:27,etc.
45
son and co-regent of Nabonidus
c. 543?–540
Daniel 5:1, etc.

Persia

46
king
559–530
2 Chronicles 36:22, etc.
47
king
520–486
Ezra 4:5, etc.
48
king
486–465
Esther 1:1, etc.
49
king
465-425/424
Ezra 4:7, etc.
50
king
425/424-405/404
Nehemiah 12:22