"Brit-Am Now"-292

September 14, 2003
  Contents:
1. Scientists back Biblical tunnel
2. Australian Soldiers Liberated Jerusalem
3. NZ Soldier Flew Jew Flag in Jerusalem
4. Humor: Noah's Ark
5. Manessah be Israel and Lost Ten Tribes

1. Scientists back Biblical tunnel
By Richard Black
BBC science correspondent
Israeli scientists have used radiometric dating to show when a tunnel in Jerusalem, described in the Bible, was excavated.

It is believed to be the first time a structure described in the Bible has been accurately dated, and scholars say it will be useful in refining the
history of Jerusalem.

Modern-day tourists know the Siloam Tunnel as a half-kilometre-long passage running under Jerusalem's ancient city walls.

According to the Bible it was excavated by King Hezekiah to carry water from the Gihon spring into the city, securing the supply in times of warfare.

Most scholars believe this happened around 700 BC, though some have contended it is much younger.

Now research led by Amos Frumpkin of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, reported in the scientific journal Nature, has confirmed the date, which he says is a rare success.

"It's very rare to find things which are mentioned in the Bible that have been confirmed independently by dating," he said.

"First of all it's very difficult to find such structures; it's very difficult to identify them; and usually they are not very well preserved."

Ancient wonder

Dr Frumpkin's team found plant remains and stalactites in the Siloam Tunnel which they examined using carbon dating and another similar method involving uranium. They confirmed the age at around 700 BC.

Scholars say it is a useful find because it sets an absolute date for a Biblical event, rather than having to rely on interpretations and calculations.

But they say it does not constitute proof that any particular race or community settled in Jerusalem before any other, and shouldn't be used to claim any kind of primacy.

The Siloam Tunnel itself remains a wonder of ancient engineering, excavated by two teams of diggers starting at opposite ends and meeting somehow - no-one knows how - in the middle.

Two thousand seven hundred years after its construction, it is still carrying water into Jerusalem, though this is no longer used for drinking.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/science/nature/3098018.stm

2. Australian Soldiers Liberated Jerusalem
From: Peter Moore
Subject: Re: Joshua 12

<<MOSES THE SERVANT OF THE LORD>>: Moses destroyed these people and gave their land to Israelite Tribes. This was the will of God and Moses fulfilled the will of God. Conquering the Holy Land and placing it in the possession of Israel is fulfilling the will of God. British forces (in which Australian and New Zealand contingents were prominent) conquered Palestine and gave it to the Jews. This was the will of God and they where HIS servants.

Just a little background to what you are talking about.

My Grandfather was a Lieutenant General  [or Lieutenant Colonel -the title rank is not certain] in the Australian Army in the First
World War.    He Died before I was born by two years.  I  spent a lot of time with my Grandmother when I was young.  I would  look  through His
Photographs of WW1.    One time I asked why did he take photographs of these wells for?   I was told these photographs were famous, because of the Miracle that took place at Beesheba.   It was explained a few times to me in no uncertain words, that this was a mighty Miracle.   He was there when it all happened. He also had photographs of the Soldiers marching into Jerusalem.  It was also explained that the Arabs standing on top of the Buildings were Australian Soldiers Dressed as Arabs.  That every "Arab" about was an Australian Soldier. That My Grandfather had placed them in these places to protect the Soldiers marching in.

3. NZ Soldier Flew Jew Flag in Jerusalem
From: Shmuel Treister <tt2@canaan.co.il>
Subject: Fw: NZ in Tenach
BS"D
Dear Yair,
Thanks for your note. You might like to include this interesting piece of history: In 1917 the British forces that conquered (then) Palestine included a contingent of Anzac soldiers. Among them was a Jewish soldier from New Zealand named Louis Salek. While serving in Egypt he had made contact with the local Jewish community and was given a Jewish flag, half blue and half
white, with a Star of David in the middle.
In December 1917, Allenby, the British commander, made his official entry into Jerusalem on foot, through the Jaffa Gate. Corporal Louis Salek (Za"L) who had prepared for the moment and had the flag in his backpack, quietly detached himself from the soldiers and climbed up to the top of David's Tower and flew the flag! As a result for the first 20 minutes of the official ceremony in Jerusalem of the British conquest of Palestine, a Jewish flag was flying from David's Tower. The local Jewish population fuss about it and after 20 minutes the British ordered that it be taken down. The moment was felt to have great spiritual and historical significance by all the Jews who saw it. In July 1992 the flag was donated by the Salek family to the Museum situated in the Tower of David and there it can be seen to this day. Also of interest in the context of a name involving "Clouds" is the indigenous (since approx. 900 CE) Maori name for New Zealand - "Aoteoroa" which is translated to mean "The Land of the Long White Cloud". 
Shabbat Shalom from Zefat.

4. Humor: Noah's Ark
From: "Clayborn, John L" <John.Clayborn@ucnsb.net>
Subject: Noah's Ark
 > Everything I need to know, I learned from Noah's Ark:
 >
 > ONE: Don't miss the boat.
 > TWO: Remember that we are all in the same boat.
 > THREE: Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.
 > FOUR: Stay fit. When you're 60 years old, someone may ask you to do
 > something really big.
 > FIVE: Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be
 > done.
 > SIX: Build your future on high ground.
 > SEVEN: For safety's sake,


5. Manessah be Israel and Lost Ten Tribes
From: Judy Snyder <yudeit@hotmail.com>
Subject: Quote from a book

I found this quote from a book MINYAN - 10 JEWISH LIVES IN 20 CENTURIES OF HISTORY by Chaim Raphael

Page 66
The key lay in his (Manessah be Israel) being able, through the discovery  of America by Columbas, to give a new kind of realism to ancient legends about "the  Lost Ten Tribes." The Bible describes how the ten tribes, constituting the northern  kingdom of Israel, were carried off into captivity by Assyrian invaders (721 BCE) and never heard of again. The belief arose that the Messiah would only arrive when the lost
tribes were found and reunited with the rest of the Jewish people.....The prophet Daniel had intimated (12:7) that the final Redemption would begin only when the dispersal of the Jews was complete "from one end of the earth to the other". In mediaeval Hebrew, this phrase, "end of the earth" was used loosely for England (Angleterre).

About Brit Am meeting this month in Texas. Due to so many functions and preparation for other functions several members of Brit Am of Texas will not be able to attend the meeting this month, so the next meeting will be October 26, 2003.

Kol tov, Judy L. Snyder

---

Now Index

Home