Scholar sees change in biblical archaeology
Caution replaces rash claims to prove Bible
Yet there's no reason to shy away from comparing scientific findings to biblical text, either, says a longtime archaeologist.
The challenge is to use caution, rather than leaping to what seem to be "logical conclusions" about findings that go well beyond the actual science involved with high-profile finds, some of which turn out to be forgeries.
That is according to Aren Maeir, chairman of the department of archaeology and Land of Israel Studies at Bar Ilan University in Tel Aviv. Rather than trying to "verify beliefs according to archaeological remains," Maeir said archaeologists driven by science are leaving those kinds of discussions to theologians. Archaeologists seek to provide information on what they find in the ground, when they believe it originated and how it may or may not play into theological discussions.
The current spate of Near Eastern excavations began not as a way to "prove" the Bible as a historical text, but as a 19th century project by the British army to update its topographical maps.
That approach has "come under a lot of criticism, mostly among 99.9 percent of Israeli archaeologists, but here and there it still exists, usually from very specific groups within the political spectrum in Israel."
Today, there is a move in some quarters of the profession to "dump the whole premise of biblical archaeology and just look at sites from a clearly archaeological perspective, rather than enmesh it with an ideological, religious or nationalistic perspective," he said. Some are looking to abandon the term "biblical archaeology" in favor of "Near Eastern archaeology."
Yet that approach is espoused "by those who have a very strong ideology in the other direction," Maeir said, and don't believe there is any historical accuracy in the Bible.
"Very often these critics come from a very small group that's not necessarily representative of what the public is interested in hearing," he said.
Not that scientists should conduct research based on what the public is looking for, he said, but findings have to be presented in layman's terms with explanations that don't require an advanced degree. "We can be extremely sophisticated in naming things, but if we use titles that turn off the public, then we're missing our mark."
Recent comments
So many issues with these comments:
The shroud has not been scientifically...
Thadd Nelson | Dec. 13, 2007 at 2:46 p.m.
RE: False Information. We are learning how and why there are false...
My 2cents | Nov. 27, 2007 at 12:27 p.m.
My reaction to his Shroud comment is the same as others who have...
G.M. Grena | Nov. 25, 2007 at 10:08 a.m.
