Tag Archives: Bible

Thomas Jefferson’s Secret Bible?

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In 1820, Thomas Jefferson put the finishing touches on a strange modified Bible entitled The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth. The work, which took him over a decade to complete, was not published until 1895, 69 years after Jefferson’s death. What was the purpose of the Jefferson Bible?

Thomas Jefferson & the Jefferson Bible?

Thomas Jefferson was a great admirer of the “Christian System.” However, although he had tremendous appreciation for Jesus’ moral philosophy, he had little patience for stories about miracles, the virgin birth, or the resurrection. So, using a razor, he cut out selected sections of the books of Matthew, Mark Luke, and John. Then he arranged them in chronological order and pasted them to sheets of paper. By the end, he had created his own unique and private account of the life of Jesus Christ, sans supernatural elements.

Guerrilla Explorer’s Analysis

Afraid of what other people might think, Jefferson never published the book and in fact, only mentioned it to a few people. It was finally brought to market in 1895 and then again by order of Congress in 1904. For many years afterward, “it was presented to all newly elected members of that body.” Jefferson’s secret Bible is not well known today. However, it would appear that his desire to craft his own unique faith informed his views on why religion needs to be protected from intrusion by the state.

“…I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ thus building a wall of separation between Church & State.” ~ Thomas Jefferson, 1802

Here’s more on the Jefferson Bible from Mitch Horowitz at CNN:

Imagine the following scenario: A U.S. president is discovered to be spending his spare time taking a razor to the New Testament, cutting up and re-pasting those passages of the Gospels that he considered authentic and morally true and discarding all the rest.

Gone are the virgin birth, divine healings, exorcisms and the resurrection of the dead, all of which the chief executive dismissed as “superstitions, fanaticisms and fabrications.”

Such an episode occurred, although the revised version of Scripture remained unseen for nearly seven decades after its abridger’s death. Thomas Jefferson intended it that way…

(See the rest on the Jefferson Bible at CNN)

Apostle of Christ Unearthed?

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On July 26, a team of archaeologists announced the discovery of an ancient tomb. But not just any tomb. They claim that this particular tomb belongs to St. Philip, one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. If correct, it promises to be one of the most astonishing discoveries in recent memory. But is this really Philip’s tomb?

Who was St. Philip?

Philip was one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. He rarely appears in the New Testament. His most notable showing is during the Last Supper, when his question led Jesus to teach the disciples about the unity of the Father and the Son.

Much of our knowledge of Philip derives from non-canonical texts. According to the Acts of Philip, he was crucified upside-down in Hierapolis for converting a city official’s wife. He died while preaching to a gathered crowd, sometime around the year 80 AD. Afterwards, he was buried in an octagonal tomb named “The Martryium.” It should be noted that the Catholic Church does not accept this story as fact.

St. Philip’s Tomb?

Since 2003, Italian professor Francesco D’Andria has been leading archaeological excavations within the ancient city of Hierapolis. Recently, he unearthed an old tomb near the ruins of a church.

“Until recently, we thought the grave of St. Philip was on Martyrs’ Hill, but we discovered no traces of him in the geophysical research conducted in that area. A month ago, we discovered the remnants of an unknown church, 40 meters away from the St. Philip Church on Martyrs’ Hill. And in that church we discovered the grave of St. Philip.” ~ Francesco D’Andria

The tomb has yet to be opened. However, according to D’Andria, its structure and etchings prove that it belongs to St. Philip.

“St. Philip is considered a martyr. In fact, the church built in his name on the Martyrs’ Hill is, for this reason, also called Martyrion, despite the fact there were no traces of the grave of St. Philip. As we were cleaning out the new church we discovered a month ago, we finally found the grave. With close examination, we determined that the grave had been moved from its previous location in the St. Philip Church to this new church in the fifth century, during the Byzantine era. We are extremely happy and proud to have discovered the grave of a saint whose name appears in the bible – this surely is an important discovery for religious tourism, archaeology and Christendom.” ~ Francesco D’Andria

Guerrilla Explorer’s Analysis

D’Andria has been working in this area for over three decades. His recent article for the Biblical Archaeology Society, Conversion, Crucifixion, and Celebration, provides terrific background on the story of St. Philip as well as his own excavations at Hierapolis. He is more than credible which makes impossible to dismiss his claim. Still, its a rather extraordinary claim, seemingly based on nothing more than the structure of the grave and its inscriptions. Heck, the tomb hasn’t even been opened yet.

As for me, I remain skeptical. I would like to learn more about D’Andria’s evidence before I form an opinion. I read every single article I could find on this discovery but unfortunately, none of them discussed why the tomb’s structure and inscriptions pointed to St. Philip as the only possible occupant. So for the time being, I’ll eagerly await future news on D’Andria’s work. For if his claims prove accurate, then the tomb is one of the most significant archaeological finds in recent memory.

Ark of the Covenant: Lost Technology?

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The Ark of the Covenant is, perhaps, the most famous lost artifact of all time. According to biblical accounts, it contained the Ten Commandments and was used by Moses to communicate directly with God. Its ultimate fate remains an enduring mystery to this day. However, not everyone is convinced that the Ark was a mystical object. They believe that the Ark can be explained by science, specifically electrical engineering. Do their claims hold any merit?

Intriguing observations about the Ark of the Covenant

The Ark of the Covenant was a rectangular box made of wood (probably Acacia arabia), measuring about four and a half feet long, two and a half feet wide, and two and a half feet tall. All surfaces, interior and exterior, were plated with gold. A gold crown or molding wrapped around the structure. Gold rings were attached to each corner, to be used in conjunction with carrying poles. A gold lid sat on top of the Ark. On top of the lid rested opposing gold cherubims, with their wings stretching out towards each other.

According to the Book of Exodus, Moses built the Ark of the Covenant based on instructions he received from God while atop Mount Sinai. The Israelites proceeded to carry it for the next forty years while they wandered through the desert. While at rest, they stored it inside a portable, sacred temple-like structure known as the Tabernacle. The Ark performed many strange, mystical feats. To mention just a few:

Nikola Tesla’s Speculations on the Ark of the Covenant

For centuries, the Ark was viewed as a mystical object from God, beyond the knowledge of man. However, that changed on September 9, 1915, when the famous scientist Nikola Tesla published an article entitled The Wonder World to be Created by Electricity. In it, he made the following astounding claim:

…Moses was undoubtedly a practical and skillful electrician far in advance of his time. The Bible describes precisely and minutely arrangements constituting a machine in which electricity was generated by friction of air against silk curtains and stored in a box constructed like a condenser. It is very plausible to assume that the sons of Aaron were killed by a high tension discharge…

The term condenser is an older word for what we now know as a capacitor, or an electrical machine capable of storing energy. Tesla thought that the Ark generated static electricity by causing air to rub against curtains. This created static electricity which was then stored inside the Ark, turning the box into a giant Leyden Jar. But how did this work exactly?

The Secret of the Ark of the Covenant?

According to Michael Blackburn and Mark Bennett, the true secret lies within the Tabernacle (in the picture below, the Ark is in the foreground while the Tabernacle is being constructed in the background). The Tabernacle was a roofless, three-walled wooden structure. It was closed off with curtains made of different materials, including goat’s hair and rams’ skins. These curtains rubbed against each other, creating an initial static charge. As this charge built up, the entire structure along with the Ark became highly electrified. At full tilt, Blackburn and Bennett estimate that the Ark would’ve been capable of carrying a charge in the range of fifty thousands volts.

Guerrilla Explorer’s Analysis

The theory that the Ark carried massive amounts of static electricity accounts for the oddities mentioned above. First, anyone foolish enough to touch it risked death by electric shock. Second, the enormous build-up of static electricity within the Tabernacle would’ve been more than enough to keep Moses from entering it. And third, the communications from God could be explained by an electrical discharge. In other words, when the static electricity within the Ark reached a certain level, it would’ve been able to overcome air resistance and in effect, jump from one cherubim to the other one. This would take the form of “an intense burst of brilliant light of considerable duration and power.”

It must be noted that this theory doesn’t explain everything. According to the Bible, the waters of the River Jordan parted before the Ark. Also, after being captured by the Philistines, they suffered boils, tumors, and other plagues which they attributed to the Ark. In addition, the Ark was instrumental in bringing down the walls of Jericho, acting as a sort of ancient weapon of mass destruction.

So, was the Ark a piece of ancient, brilliant technology? There seems to be a distinct possibility that this is the case. But until adventurers manage to locate it, its exact nature will remain one of history’s most enduring mysteries.

The Great Flood: Fact or Fiction?

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It’s one of the Bible’s most iconic stories.  Infuriated at the wickedness of mankind, God sent a giant flood to wipe out the earth’s population, saving only Noah, his family, and two of every animal.  Many people consider the story just that…a story.  But in fact, there is evidence to suggest that the Great Flood has a historical basis.

The Mysterious Black Sea?

On July 7, a Bulgarian expedition, led by underwater archaeologist Professor Petko Dimitrov, announced the discovery of the original shoreline of the Black Sea, buried deep beneath the water’s surface (the Black Sea is the smaller body of water in the above picture).  If correct, this evidence could help to support a longstanding theory that at some point in the past, the Black Sea experienced a sudden and tremendous influx of water which would later be recorded in history as the Great Flood.

The Black Sea is a peculiar body of water.  It is a saltwater lake.  Also, its deeper waters don’t mix with its surface waters, leading to a situation in which 90% of it contains very low levels of oxygen (bad for life, but terrific for underwater preservation).  Generally speaking, most scientists agree that it started as a smaller freshwater lake.  Thanks to a breach in the Bosporus Strait, the Mediterranean Sea flowed into the Black Sea, raising its water level and changing its salt content.

Did the Great Flood take place in the Black Sea?

However, the manner in which this happened is one of intense debate.  Did it take place gradually?  Or in one sudden moment of time?  The latter theory is known as the Ryan-Pitman Theory.  In essence, it postulates that the Black Sea experienced a massive deluge around 5600 BC due to glacier melting after the last Ice Age.  The latest findings from Dimitrov’s expedition appears to support this theory.

Guerrilla Explorer’s Analysis

Direct evidence linking the Black Sea to the Genesis story of the Great Flood remains skimpy.  However, the gigantic deluge theorized by the Dimitrov expedition would’ve had enormous ramifications for the area and the people who once called it home.  Over time, those ramifications could have changed into the story that we now know from Genesis.  Regardless, this latest discovery seems to indicate that a large, sudden flood did indeed take place in the Black Sea area many centuries ago.  If nothing else, we are one step closer to finally learning the truth about the Great Flood.