Christian Legacy at the Israel
Museum/Jerusalem Norman A. Rubin (For Christian pilgrims, the Israel Museum is a must in their tour of the Holy City of Jerusalem. Its collections offer a chance to see unique objects dating to the times of early Christianity.) Situated close to the entrance to the museum is the Shrine of the Book which houses the Dead Sea
Scrolls; its white dome resembles the shape of the lids of the clay jars in which the scrolls were found. The Judean Desert Sectarians, the authors of the scrolls, lived in a commune at Khibert Qumran, bordering the Dead Sea. The Sectarians awaited the coming of the Messiah, at which time, according to their belief, a war would be fought between "The Sons of Light (the sect) and the Sons of Darkness (the forces of evil)". Most scholars identify this group with the Essenes, one of the three major sects of the Second Temple
Period; they clearly exercised a marked influence on Christianity. The tour of the Christian past at the Israel Museum continues with a visit to the Samuel Bronfman Biblical and
Archaeological Wing. The chronically dated exhibition gallery display finds from the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods covering events from the conquest of the land by Alexander the Great in 332 BC to the Muslim conquest in 640 AD. This was an important period for the future of Western civilization since it saw the beginnings of Christianity. The periods of the Bible are also represented in the Canaanite halls, in the hall of the Judges, and those of the Israelite Kingdoms f Judaea and Israel, until the destruction of the First Temple. Many objects came from excavations made at Biblical sites; the study of these
findings are enriched with information from the Bible. Most of the archaeological exhibits are on loan from the Israel Antiquities Authority. The Roman Gallery covers the period from the destruction of Jerusalem to 324AD when Emperor Constantine inherited the rule of the Holy Land and his support of Christianity transformed it into an important province and place of pilgrimage for the entire empire. Continuing on the historical tour a visitor will see in the next gallery a display of many fine mosaics of the Byzantine period when Christian pilgrimage and major church construction took place. Amoung other highlights into the early Christian past is a building stone with an inscription which is the only surviving reference from antiquity to Pontius Pilate; an ossuary in which the bones of the High Priest Caiaphas were buried 1,950 years ago, referred to in Matthew 26:57-66 and John 18:12-24 "to the house of Caiaphas the High Priest." Concerned Christian pilgrims are sure to find that many artifacts, exhibited at the Israel Museum, confirm that Israel is indeed the "The Land of the Bible". The archaeological finds make what we know of the Bible more fascinating and interesting and widens the historical picture. The same archaeological findings coupled with artifacts of recent past will also widen one's knowledge of the rich traditions of the Christian faith. Note: The Rockefeller Museum in East Jerusalem, within the Israel Museum complex, houses similar archaeological findings dating to the early Christian era that was excavated prior to 1948. Among the artifacts shedding light - on life and death – in ancient Jerusalem is a heel bone with an crude iron nail driven through it, that was found in an ossuary of a Jew named Jehohanan, who was crucified and buried in Jerusalem 2,000 years ago. The most significant display is two carved lintels from the portals of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher depicting scenes from the life of Jesus, such as his entry in Jerusalem and the Last Supper.
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