The latest issue of Gloria TV news contains two very interesting archaeological notes. First the Pope confirmed today that scientific testing on the bones of St. Paul confirm that they are of antiquity, most certainly from the first or second century. This would tend to confirm the Churches claim that they are in fact the Bones of St Paul.
The final item on this newscast is cause for some alarm if you ask me:
“The Patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia, Abuna Pauolos, has announced last Friday the unveiling of the Ark of the Covenant, the container of the tablets of the law that God delivered to Moses. According to the Patriarch it has been hidden away in a church in his country for millennia. Now, the is supposed to be shown in a museum.”
What?! A Museum?! It is debatable if this really is the Ark of the Covenant but many, even millions, think it is. For a religious leader of the Church that has reverently kept this reputed treasure and venerated its status as a holy receptacle of the Presence of God, to put this in a museum is reprehensible! For the Jewish people of old the Ark was so sacred that no one could look upon it, except the High Priest and he, only once a year. The Ark carried the presence of God in Israel. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has venerated this Ark for centuries and limited its exposure to the world much as did the ancient Jews. It is astonishing to me that the Ethiopian Patriarch would every consider such a move. It would almost be like a Catholic Bishop taking a tabernacle, fully loaded with the Blessed Sacrament and putting it on display in a museum. Unthinkable! It is so crazy that I think this must be a hoax. There are others who claim that the Patriarch was misquoted (cf HERE and HERE) . At any rate, I hope the matter proves to be what I suspect, a hoax. So here is the latest Gloria TV News
I have every confidence that the Patriarch was misquoted. We will not see the Ark in any museum any time soon. Next to the Eucharist, this Ark is their most sacred relic. Many would like to see permission for scientists and researchers of antiquities to get permission to examine it. Recent DNA tests of Ethiopian Jews coming to Israel showed genuine Semitic ancestry. Tradition has it that many of the Ethiopian Jews received the Christian faith from missionaries and the Eunuch baptized by Philip. It is claimed that the Ark passed from Jewish to Christian hands. Supposedly the Ark was initially absconded down the Nile to prevent its destruction. Of all the legendary stories about the Ark, this one seems the most plausible. Of course, politically, there could be great risks with even allowing experts to see it. Israeli hardliners might take it into their heads to return the Ark to Israel. Already there is much ferment about rebuilding the Temple, although funding seems to be coming from certain fundamentalist Christian sources.
This newscast is not “cause for some alarm.” What is cause for alarm is Gloria.tv’s sensationalist tone and inference that the Ark is in the hands of the wrong people. If the Ethiopians were European, there would be less concern about what they planned to do with this religious relic, if, in fact, it is authentic.
Interesting, this post in over three years old, so I am not sure what you are saying here. But anyway, I agree Gloria.tv news is a poor outfit and they ought not call it news, it is commentary.