Ancient Biblical city of Shekhem uncovered

A team of Dutch and Palestinian archaeologists have unearthed a biblical ruin inside a Palestinian city in the West Bank and are planning to open it as an archaeological park next year.

The residents of the city of Nablus long used the particular area the archaeologists are working on as an unofficial garbage dump, but it has now been rescued and will help introduce the Palestinians in the area, who have been beleaguered for the last ten years by bloodshed and isolation, to the wealth of antiquities in the middle of their city.

"The local population has started very well to understand the value of the site, not only the historical value, but also the value for their own identity," said Gerrit van der Kooij of Leiden University in the Netherlands, who co-directs the dig team.

"The local people have to feel responsible for the archaeological heritage in their neighborhood," he added.

The ancient city of Shekhem was positioned in a pass between the mountains of Gerizim and Eibal and controlled access to the Askar Plains to the east. It was considered an important regional center more than 3,500 years ago and as such had extensive fortifications. The city was surrounded by fortifications of massive stones, was entered through monumental gates and centered on a temple with walls five meters thick.

A king of Shekhem, Labaya, is mentioned in cuneiform tablets of the Pharaonic archive found at Tel al-Amarna in Egypt, dated to the 14th century B.C. The king had rebelled against his Egyptian overlords, and soldiers were dispatched to subdue him, but failed.

The city also appears often in the Bible. In Genesis, Abraham passes near Shekhem when God promises to give the land of Canaan to his descendants. In another story, Abraham's grandson Jacob was camped outside the walls when a local Canaanite prince raped his daughter, Dinah. Jacob's sons sacked the city in revenge. The remains of the most famous son of Jacob, Joseph, were brought out of Egypt hundreds of years later by fleeing Israelites and buried at Shekhem.

Renowned Christian leader, John Stott, passes away

One of the most significant Christian leaders of the 20th century, John Stott, passed away on Wednesday afternoon, at the age of 90.

Stott was renowned as an Anglican theologian of the highest order, and also a passionate voice for evangelical Christianity in particular.

Stott was the former Rector of the renowned All Souls Church in Langham Place, London and was perhaps most famous for being one of the founders of the Lausanne Movement, a worldwide movement of evangelicals.

He was the chief architect of two of the Movement’s major documents, the Lausanne Covenant in 1974 and the Manila Manifesto in 1989.

Stott was firm in his emphasis on the basics of classical evangelicalism, including the need for personal conversion, the authority of Scripture and the centrality of Jesus’ death for sinners. Yet, he was equally passionate about the moral and social dimensions of the gospel, including justice for the poor and care for creation.

In 2005, Stott was featured in TIME magazine as one of the world's "100 Most Influential People." He was the author of about 50 books published in 65 languages. Among his best known are “Basic Christianity” (1958), “Christ the Controversialist” (1970) and “The Cross of Christ” (1986).

“Basic Christianity” alone has been translated into more than 60 languages and has sold more than 2.5 million copies.

Despite the success of his work, Stott was known by many as 'Uncle John,' and was well regarded for his humility.

“Pride is without doubt the greatest temptation of Christian leaders,” he once said. “And I’m very well aware of the dangers of being feted and don’t enjoy it and don’t think one should enjoy it.”

Upon hearing of his death, tributes from other leaders from around the world immediately began pouring in, including one from another renowned evangelical leader of his generation - Billy Graham.

"The evangelical world has lost one of its greatest spokesmen," said Graham in a statement.

"I have lost one of my close personal friends and advisors. I look forward to seeing him again when I go to Heaven."

Scientists believe 'God Particle' could be found by 2012

Scientists in charge of the research being carried out through the Large Hadron Collider at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) have informed the press that the existence of the sub-atomic "God particle" should be decided by the end of 2012.

Physicists have long wondered about the possibility of the particle, also known as the Higgs boson particle, which is a hypothetical massive elementary particle whose existence would resolve inconsistencies in physics. If this particle does exist, it would help explain how all matter in the universe comes to have mass. This would also complete the puzzle for the Standard Model of physics that was first established in 1970, a theory that explains the Big Bang.

However, scientists have not yet been able to find proof to support the existence of the Higgs boson. Yet interestingly enough, at the International Europhysics Conference on High-Energy Physics in Grenoble, France, researchers recently presented some curious data bleeps that could hint at the existence of this particle.

“This experiment is one of the most significant of this third millennium,” said Dr. Karl W. Giberson of the BioLogos Foundation.

Giberson described the LHC experiment an “extraordinary event for Christian to contemplate” and believes it could lead to further experiments that will one day answer our deepest questions regarding the universe.

“What is most exciting in this experiment is that it lets us push back a bit closer to that mysterious moment almost 14 billion years ago, when our universe emerged in the Big Bang,” Giberson said.

“What the LHC might demonstrate is a piece of the grand puzzle: where does mass come from? If Christians can embrace the Big Bang theory, instead of inventing odd and implausible reasons to reject it, they will be drawn into a most wonderful world of grandeur that will greatly enlarge their concept of God."

(Image shows the Hadron Collider at CERN)

Norway killer labels self as ‘cultural Christian’

Anders Behring Breivik, who has admitted to killing approximately eighty people and injuring many others in a violent rampage across Norway, on Monday pleaded not guilty to charges of terrorism. Breivik informed Judge Kim Heger that he believes the killings were necessary.

“What the court understands (is) the accused believes that he needed to carry out these acts in order to save Norway and Western Europe from among other things cultural Marxism and Muslim take over,” Heger stated after the hearing.

The 32-year-old Breivik posted a 1,500-page manifesto online shortly before the killings where he argued that Marxism and Islam are growing threats to Norway and Europe. Breivik said he had been planning the attacks for years and hoped the massacre would help to market his manifesto.

Breivik wrote of his admiration for the Knights Templar, who he described as “a defensive military organization who only seek to protect the peoples of Europe and our cultures from genocide.” The Norwegian hoped this group would lead the revolution to save Europe from Marxist and Islamic influences.

Breivik has been labelled as a “Christian terrorist” or “Christian fundamentalist” in some sections of the media because he identified himself as a Christian on his Facebook page. In the manifesto, however, Breivik insists he is more of a ‘cultural Christian,’ writing:

“If you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and God then you are a religious Christian. Myself and many more like me do not necessarily have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and God. We do however believe in Christianity as a cultural, social, identity and moral platform. This makes us Christian.”

Norway Shooting: Killer wants his day in court

The man alleged to be responsible for Norway’s horrific killing spree, Anders Behring Breivik (pictured), where at least 93 people are believed to have been killed, will appear in court on Monday and wants the world to hear his side of the story there.

Breivik has confessed to the bombing in Oslo and the mass shooting at a youth camp on Utoya island, but still denies any criminal responsibility.

Instead, the man labelled by the press as an ‘evangelical Christian’ is expected to plead not guilty in court, telling his lawyer the atrocities had been "gruesome but necessary.”

Breivik claimed he "wanted to start a revolution in Norwegian society to defeat liberal immigration policies and the spread of Islam."

It has also come to light that Breivik published online a 1,500-page manifesto hours before he began his killing spree. In this document, he refers to attending events organised by the far rights movement, The Knights Templar.

Breivik also said he had been planning the attack since 2009, while ranting against European liberal elites whom he believes betrayed their Christian heritage by promoting multiculturalism.

Breivik has also in the past blogged about his disgust for the modern church, saying:

"Today's Protestant church is a joke. Priests in jeans who march for Palestine and churches that look like minimalist shopping centres. I am a supporter of an indirect collective conversion of the Protestant church back to the Catholic."

It is becoming harder for Israelis and Palestinians to forgive, admits Christian leader

Patriarch Fouad Twal, the leader of Jerusalem’s Catholic community has admitted it is becoming harder for Israelis and Palestinians to coexist and easier to “demonise” each other, against a backdrop of constant conflict and distrust.

“An entire generation of Israelis and Palestinians grew up witnessing and experiencing violence, occupation, separation and hatred,” he said.

“There have been fewer and less opportunities to interact, and a heightened suspicion and apprehension on both sides persist.

“It is harder to forgive and strenuous to start a constructive dialogue,” he added.

Speaking at a conference on the situation facing Christians in the Holy Land held in London, Patriarch Twal mentioned that youth in particular were suffering as a result of the conflict and that hope was being “shattered”.

He fears that the possibilities for a just solution were “rapidly decreasing”, while extremist forces were gaining more and more followers.

The Patriarch also challenged Western Christians to “connect and be in communion with” Christians in the Holy Land and to “come and see” the situation for themselves.

“Share in their joys and suffering, bear their burdens with them, reflect and consider your responsibility towards your mother church,” he added.

“The Christian presence is threatened by virtual extinction, and the land of Jesus cannot become an equivalent of a spiritual Disneyland with beautiful buildings, historic sites and museums on display,” he said.

“All people - Jews, Christians and Muslims suffer the consequences of the conflict. Occupation is a terrible image for any democratic State, as it is horrible for the people of the occupied areas, where hatred and aversion are fostered and nurtured.

“We are aware of the persecution and suffering of our Christians in some Muslim countries in the region, but this is not an excuse to forget the dire reality of our situation in the Holy Land.”

Zondervan dismisses concerns over ‘Murdoch Bibles’

The Christian book and Bible publisher, Zondervan, is presently owned by Harper Collins, which is itself a subsidiary of News Corp. News Corp is of course at the centre of the phone hacking scandal alongside its founder Rupert Murdoch and his son, chairman of News International, James Murdoch.

Zondervan’s link to News Corp has been strongly critiqued in major US news outlets like the Houston Chronicle and USA Today. Blogger Will Braun was one of those who wrote debating the ethics of buying Bibles from a publisher that is owned by Murdoch.

“For those us of [sic] who care about the Christian scriptures, what are we to make of this mix of billionaire media tycoonery, allegations of phone hacking and bribery, and the Holy Word of God?" he said.

“What are we to make of the fact that every time we buy a Zondervan product we contribute to Murdoch’s mogul-dom, which includes a personal fortune that Forbes pegged at $6.3 billion last year.”

Zondervan responded to these concerns through spokeswoman Tara Powers.

"This does not present an ethical dilemma for Zondervan as we will continue to operate with autonomy as we always have,” she stated.

"We are fortunate to have strong and positive relationships with our authors. They know who Zondervan is and how we operate and we have not heard of serious concerns from authors.

“While we are obviously aware of the matter at hand, it does not distract or detract from our work at hand and we will continue to pursue our mission and operate as we have for the past 80 years."