c. 2008 Religion News Service
World’s oldest church believed found in Jordan
JERUSALEM (RNS) Archaeologists excavating in Jordan believe they may have uncovered the world’s oldest church in an underground cave.
Discovered beneath the altar of the ancient St. Georgeous Church in the northern Jordanian town of Rihab, the underground space _ believed to be a chapel _ dates to the period AD 33-70, just a few decades after Christ was crucified in Jerusalem, according to the archaeologists.
If the dates are confirmed to be correct, the chapel would be the oldest known place of Christian worship. St. Georgeous Church dates back to 230 AD.
“The discovery was amazing. We have evidence to believe this church sheltered the early Christians: the 70 disciples of Jesus Christ,” archaeologist Abdul Qader Hussan, head of the Rihab Centre for Archaeological Studies, told the Jordan Times.
Archaeologists say the mosaic inscription “70 beloved by God and Divine” discovered long ago on the floor of St. Georgeous refers to Christians who fled Roman-ruled Jerusalem.
“We believe that they did not leave the cave and lived until the Christian religion was embraced by Roman rulers. It was then when St. Georgeous was built,” Hussan told the paper.
Several steps lead down into the chapel, which is about 36 feet long and 21 feet wide. Hussan described it as “a circle shaped area, believed to be the apse, and several stone seats for the ecclesiastics.” A wall separates the chapel from a space probably used as living quarters.
A long, deep tunnel leads to a cistern, and archaeologists hope to begin excavating it in the near future. An inscription and coins have already been found there.
_ Michele Chabin
PCA taps missions executive as moderator
(RNS) A missions executive was elected Tuesday (June 10) as the new moderator of the Presbyterian Church in America, the denomination announced.
Paul D. Kooistra, coordinator of Mission to the World, the denomination’s missions agency, was chosen at the PCA’s General Assembly in Dallas. He has worked for the missions agency since 1994 and previously served as the president of the PCA-affiliated Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis.
“Paul Kooistra has served the PCA in many capacities,” said current Covenant Theological Seminary President Bryan Chapell, who nominated Kooistra. “He’s been a leader of remarkable courage and insight when we needed it most.”
At the meeting, officials of the nation’s second-largest Presbyterian denomination reported an increase in membership, from 338,873 in 2006 to 342,041 in 2007. The number of congregations rose to 1,666, an increase of 27.
_ Adelle M. Banks
Gordon-Conwell taps ethicist as new president
BOSTON (RNS) One of the nation’s largest evangelical seminaries has tapped a prominent ethicist and administrator to become as its next president.
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, which serves 2,100 students in four locations, on Tuesday (June 11) announced that Dennis P. Hollinger will take the helm on Aug. 1. Hollinger currently serves as president and professor of Christian Ethics at Evangelical Theological Seminary in Myerstown, Pa.
“We are thankful to God that he has brought us a leader and scholar in Dr. Hollinger,” said Thomas J. Colatosti, chair of the seminary’s board of trustees. “We are thrilled to have a person of Dr. Hollinger’s competence and character to lead our preeminent seminary into the future.”
Hollinger will head up an institution that’s been in transition since 2006, when the 10-year presidency of Walter Kaiser ended. James Emery White, a megachurch pastor in Charlotte, N.C. succeeded Kaiser, but stepped down less than a year later, citing family issues that prevented him from relocating to the school’s main campus in South Hamilton, Mass.
Hollinger plans to craft goals for his presidency in the months to come.
“I plan to work collaboratively with trustees, administration and faculty to develop a vision that is broadly and enthusiastically embraced,” Hollinger said.
Gordon-Conwell is looking to Hollinger to build upon the school’s rapid growth in recent years. Since 1997, Gordon-Conwell has added a new campus in Charlotte and launched a satellite campus in Jacksonville, Fla. Enrollment has swelled from 900 to 2,100. Gordon-Conwell is now the fifth-largest seminary in North America
Hollinger, a Brethren in Christ pastor, has been a local church minister as well as provost of Messiah College in Grantham, Pa. An expert on Christian bioethics, he’s authored three books and 65 published articles. His next book will address sexual ethics and the moral life.
_ G. Jeffrey MacDonald
Evolution alternatives bill progress in Louisiana
BATON ROUGE, La. (RNS) The Louisiana House of Representatives has approved a science education bill that one prominent church-state group predicts could yield a lawsuit over teaching religion in public schools.
The bill would allow science teachers, after a request by a local school board and with the approval by state education officials, to use supplemental materials when teaching subjects such as evolution, global warming, cloning and the origin of life.
The House passed the bill in a 94-3 vote on Wednesday (June 11) and sent it to the state Senate. The bill would then go to Gov. Bobby Jindal, who has publicly expressed his support for teaching alternatives to evolution.
Supporters say the measure will encourage honest discussions about controversial topics, with teachers using the most up-to-date research that sometimes is not included in textbooks.
The bill is supported by the Louisiana Family Forum, usually associated with the traditional social conservative agenda. But the Washington-based Americans United for Separation of Church and State called Wednesday’s vote as an “embarrassment” to the state.
“It’s time for Louisiana to step into the 21st century and stop trying to teach religion in public schools,” said the Rev. Barry Lynn, the group’s executive director. “If this new law is used to promote religion in Louisiana public schools, I can guarantee there will be legal action.”
The bill includes a clause stating that the intent is neither to promote nor discriminate against any religious doctrine.
In 1987, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a 7-2 decision that struck down a legislative mandate that biblical creationism be given equal time by public school teachers who present Darwinian theories on evolution.
_ Bill Barrow
Quote of the Day: Virginia Muslim Abdulkareem Jama
(RNS) “The average person here has had no interaction with Islam. They may even think we are the enemy, especially after Sept. 11. The more we open up and interact, the more we demystify things and seem normal to each other.”
_ Muslim Abdulkareem Jama, a native Somalian who now lives in Virginia, where he leads a mosque dedicated to building ties with new immigrants and non-Muslims. He was quoted by The Washington Post.
KRE/CM END RNS
