At the end of ‘The Dead Sea Scrolls & The Bible” exhibit, there is a representation of Jerusalem’s Wailing Wall. And like the original, the pseudo wall allows visitors to write notes or prayers on paper and wedge the messages in between the stones.
Having been called a “Wi-Fi evangelist” many times, perhaps you can guess the subject of the tiny message I scribbled on a Post-It parchment and wadded into the display.
More on that later. About The Scrolls and their significance …
Isaiah Scroll, Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
In beginning communications classes, there is an exercise in which the instructor says a few words to a student, and then instructs that person, and others in the class, one after the other, to spread the word on down the line. When the instructor quizzes the last person in the line of communication five minutes later, the message usually is unrelated and perhaps unrecognizable when compared to the initial message. Hold that thought …
Secondly, consider how different people see and interpret the same events. If you have never written a news story or an account of an event, I can attest that in the news industry, five reporters can go to the same place and see the same thing and hear the same people speak, and then they will go to their newsrooms and retell five very different versions of the same story an hour later. Sometimes it’s a matter of style … sometimes there are total contradictions.
I offer both of these human examples to support the miraculous phenomena of The Dead Sea Scrolls. What are the odds that ancient narratives passed down through generations match documents written and locked away like time capsules for centuries?
The Dead Sea Scrolls, handwritten on parchment and paper form a complete set – containing copies of every book of The Old Testament, except Esther. Interesting.
And there is so much riding on this information. It is the history of our Jewish brothers. To me and the other Gentiles, this uncanny, miraculous accuracy is vital not only because it is our foundation, but because the Old Testament predicts and specifically mentions Christ, more than a thousand years before His birth — complete with ghastly details of His crucifixion.
But a skeptic might say that The New Testament could have been written in a way to satisfy prophecy. Malarkey! I guess some might also argue that The Old Testament probably changed as it was passed from one generation to the next.
On the contrary, it is my understanding that this is the true importance of The Dead Sea Scrolls. They show the narrative survived any number of translations, political upheavals, agendas and the message — not just the writing of man, The Word of God — remains the same forever.
Undoubtedly, when a goat-herding, Bedouin youth followed a stray into a cave, near the ruins of Qumran in 1947, he made one of the most important archaeological discoveries … ever.
Regardless of creed, everyone should experience the scrolls, especially while a great representation is in Fort Worth. No doubt, your visit will be different than ours … but here are a few thoughts …
First off, I thought I should take a special guest. A friend of mine just returned from The Holy Land where he visited all the major hotspots of Judeo-Christianity – The Sea of Galilee, The Wailing Wall, The Temple Mount … But, he didn’t see The Scrolls. So how cool would it be to return home from Israel and then see this biblical history in Cowtown? Rats … Rony couldn’t make it. (He was going to add a special element to my blog … and he blew it …)
Prior to seeing The Scrolls, in the past, I have had to get my Biblical Archaeology Review nerd fix at my Osteopath’s office (Ha … my subscription has lapsed). Before I let the doctor stick acupuncture needles in me, I get to read his archaeology magazine for free. A Messianic Jew … thats diversity.
So, with a second ticket in hand, I thought about the good doctor. (Because I thought he would enjoy … and yes, selfishly, I thought he too could spice up the old blog …) Ha … One might say I needed a replacement Jew. Sadly, there aren’t that many He-bros in my life. But, I didn’t get around to it and went alone. Guess we’ll have to compare notes the next time he is sticking needles in my back … I digress …
So, without wandering off into the weeds of theology too deeply, let’s just talk about the exhibit.
First off, glad I went just to see Fort Worth’s Southwestern Seminary more closely … with several new, impressive facilities.
Like any museum exhibit, be prepared to read.
Immediately, as is my custom, my visit to The Scrolls also included a search for Wi-Fi and a dose of people watching. The atmosphere and mood at the exhibit were somewhat reverent, as one my expect around ancient religious artifacts … So of course I found it a bit absurd when the first person I saw in the exhibit was a young cowboy, wearing a large black cowboy hat, somewhat “possessed” with a loud, violent case of the hiccups as he read. I moved on around him.
Like most exhibits, there were many kiosks and posters printed with facts and explanations and historically significant information. Ha! A few more turns through the maze of information, and I spotted one of the many security personnel and police officers … only this one was dancing from one foot to the other, as if she had forgotten to take care of business on break … a little humor in uniform …
I digress …
Most of the scroll translations were a few words here or there, maybe a complete verse. (I wanted to see some older actual accounts of what happened at Sodom and Gomorrah for instance, textbook examples of how God deals with a sinful land.)
I didn’t find S&G, but yes, I found Wi-Fi and of course updated my Facebook status, ever so religiously … But I couldn’t find the specific characters for Yeshua by name – in the Old Testament book of Isaiah. I mean, arguably his coming is foretold in that book …
Ha … Near the start of the tour, I was so impressed with the 11X17 parchment sheets of transcriptions, that were sewn together with twine and how they had then been rolled into scrolls … then I got to the part of the exhibit where the signs pointed out that particular scroll, in its entirety was a facsimile. I felt a bit punked (in the biblical sense of the word).
So … in summary, the exhibit is so cool … so pertinent … impactful … but be prepared for this reality — the remnants are small. The pieces of actual scroll were like so many oversized cornflake shapes, with faint hand writing. The portions of actual scripture are like tweets and I wanted the blog. The actual fragments of The Scrolls are small, and they are in dimly lit cases for their protection. You will not be blown away by the physical … I think it is the spiritual that will leave the biggest mark on visitors.
There are 21 scroll fragments in the exhibit, 12 of which have never been displayed before. Don’t even think about shooting photography … prolly turn to stone …
Now … back to that model of The Wailing Wall. This is the message that thou dost subscribed-eth and sitteth in the stones … “Dead Sea Scrolls, timeless significance, proof of the Living God and Wi-Fi throughout several floors of the exhibit … Excellent … just wanted more — 6 pings.”
Know what I sayeth?
