The Bible and Archaeology

An important step forward in scientific archaeological research, and a 19th-century outgrowth of the previous centurys Enlightenment  was the search for the truth of the events written about in the ancient historical accounts of the past. The main truth of the Bible, Torah, Koran, and the Buddhist sacred texts among many others is (of course) not a scientific one but a truth of faith and religion. The roots of the scientific study of archaeology are deeply planted in the establishment of the boundaries of that truth. Is the Bible Fact or Fiction? This is one of the most common questions I get asked as an archaeologist and it is one for which I have yet to find a good answer. And yet the question is at the absolute heart of archaeology, central to the growth and development of archaeology, and it is the one that gets more archaeologists into trouble than any other. And, more to the point, it brings us back to the history of archaeology. Many if not most citizens of the world are naturally curious about ancient texts. After all, they form the basis of all human culture, philosophy, and religion. As discussed in the earlier parts of this series, at the end of the Enlightenment, many archaeologists began actively searching for the cities and cultures described in the available ancient texts and histories, such as Homer and the Bible, Gilgamesh, Confucian texts, and the Vedic manuscripts. Schliemann sought Homers Troy, Botta sought Nineveh, Kathleen Kenyon sought Jericho, Li Chi sought An-Yang, Arthur Evans at Mycenae, Koldewey at Babylon, and Woolley at Ur of the Chaldees. All of these scholars and more sought archaeological events in the ancient texts. Ancient Texts and Archaeological Studies But using ancient texts as the basis for historical investigation was—and still is—fraught with peril in any culture: and not just because the truth is hard to parse out. Governments and religious leaders have vested interests in seeing that religious texts and nationalistic myths remain unchanged and unchallenged—other parties might learn to see the ancient ruins as blasphemous. Nationalistic mythologies demand that there is a special state of grace for a particular culture, that the ancient texts are received wisdom, that their specific country and people are the center of the creative world. No Planet-Wide Floods When early geological investigations proved without a doubt that there was no planet-wide flood as described in the Old Testament of the Bible, there was a great cry of outrage. Early archaeologists fought against and lost battles of this sort time and again. The results of David Randal-McIvers excavations at Great Zimbabwe, an important trading site in southeastern Africa, were suppressed by the local colonial governments who wanted to believe that the site was Phoenician in derivation and not African. The beautiful effigy mounds found throughout North America by Euroamerican settlers were wrongly attributed to either the mound builders or a lost tribe of Israel. The fact of the matter is that ancient texts are renditions of ancient culture which may be partly reflected in the archaeological record and partly will not be—not fiction nor fact, but culture. Better Questions So, lets not ask if the Bible is true or false. Instead, lets ask a series of different questions: Did the places and cultures that are mentioned in the Bible and the other ancient texts exist? Yes, in many cases, they did. Archaeologists have found evidence for many of the locations and cultures mentioned in the ancient texts.Did the events that are described in these texts happen? Some of them did; archaeological evidence in the form of physical evidence or supporting documents from other sources can be found for some of the battles, the political struggles, and the building and collapse of cities.Did the mystical things that are described in the texts occur? Its not my area of expertise, but if I were to hazard a guess, if there were miracles that occurred, they wouldnt leave archaeological evidence.Since the places and the cultures and some of the events that are described in these texts happened, shouldnt we just assume that the mysterious parts also happened? No. Not any more than since Atlanta burned, Scarlett OHara really was dumped by Rhett Butler. There are so many ancient texts and stories about how the world began and many are at variance with one another. From a global human standpoint, why should one ancient text be more accepted than any other? The mysteries of the Bible and other ancient texts are just that: mysteries. It is not, and never has been, within the archaeological purview to prove or disprove their reality. That is a question of faith, not science.

A History of Adinkra Symbols

Adinkra is a cotton cloth produced in Ghana and Cà ´te dIvoire which has traditional Akan symbols stamped upon it. The adinkra symbols represent popular proverbs and maxims, record historical events, express particular attitudes or behavior related to depicted figures, or concepts uniquely related to abstract shapes. It is one of several traditional cloths produced in the region. The other well-known cloths are kente and adanudo. The symbols were often linked with a proverb, so they convey more meaning than a single word. Robert Sutherland  Rattray compiled a list of 53 adinkra symbols in his book, Religion and Art in Ashanti, in 1927. The History of Adinkra Cloth and Symbols The Akan people (of what is now Ghana and Cà ´te dIvoire) had developed significant skills in weaving by the sixteenth century, with Nsoko (present-day Begho) being an important weaving center. Adinkra, originally produced by the Gyaaman clans of the Brong region, was the exclusive right of royalty and spiritual leaders, and only used for important ceremonies such as funerals. Adinkra means goodbye. During a military conflict at the beginning of the nineteenth century, caused by the Gyaaman trying to copy the neighboring Asantes golden stool (the symbol of the Asante nation), the Gyaaman king was killed. His adinkra robe was taken by Nana Osei Bonsu-Panyin, the  Asante Hene  (Asante King), as a trophy. With the robe came the knowledge of adinkra aduru (the special ink used in the printing process) and the process of stamping the designs onto cotton cloth. Over time the Asante further developed adinkra symbology, incorporating their own philosophies, folk tales, and culture. Adinkra symbols were also used on pottery, metalwork (especially  abosodee), and are now incorporated into modern commercial designs (where their related meanings give added significance to the product), architecture and sculpture. Adinkra Cloth Today Adinkra cloth is more widely available today, although the traditional methods of production are very much in use. The traditional ink (adinkra aduru) used for stamping is obtained by boiling the bark of the Badie tree with iron slag. Because the ink is not fixed, the material should not be washed. Adinkra cloth is used in Ghana for special occasions such as weddings and initiation rites. Note that African fabrics often differ between those made for local use and those that are exported. The cloth for local use is usually replete with hidden meanings or local proverbs, allowing locals to make particular statements with their costume. Those fabrics produced for overseas markets tend to use more sanitized symbology. Use of Adinkra Symbols You will find adinkra symbols on many exported items, such as furniture, sculpture, pottery, t-shirts, hats and other clothing items in addition to fabric. Another popular use of the symbols is for tattoo art. You should further research the meaning of any symbol before deciding to use it for a tattoo to ensure it conveys the message you desire.

Max Rameau And Advocate For The Homeless - 1119 Words

The focus of this PBS documentary is on, Max Rameau and advocate for the homeless in Miami, Florida. Rameau is helping the homeless get into homes albeit in an unlawful manner as he encourages civil disobedience. Rameau describes his movement, â€Å"Take Back the Land† as a humane approach to put a â€Å"bunch of people with no place to sleep, into a bunch of empty houses.† Rameau provides homes to families by identifying the empty homes that have longest time available before legal repercussions. Rameau essentially creates time for the family to obtain financial stability to move on to a stable (and lawful) living situation. Rameau’s approach is secretive as he calculates the response of the lending agencies and property managers against the benefits to the family and community. If a mediator were to address the conflict in Miami the first step would be to identify the various cultures involved in the conflict. There four cultures present in the documentary; the homeless, the activists, the police and financial institutions. The â€Å"homeless culture† is a mix of the people from a variety of backgrounds. They share a culture in that they lost their homes when they were disenfranchised due the US subprime mortgage crisis. The â€Å"activist culture† is comprised of multiple groups in numerous cities that share the same interest, helping the homeless culture. The activists address the futility of people living on the streets when perfectly viable properties remain empty. The

Employee Relations Globalizational Business Enviroment

Question: Discuss about the Radicalism is no longer relevant to understanding capitalist countries today. Answer: Radicalism in Employee Relation The thinking on the part of the Employee relations has taken a dramatic shift in a globalized environment. Managers of even the capitalistic countries have paved way to more liberal ideas of managing the organizations. Marxist frame of radicalism marked that the there has to be a command disparity between the labor and the capital. Marx has been of the view that in capitalistic countries there were power struggles and the inequalities persisted in the wealth and even in the ownership (Marx 1978). Capitalism asked for ruthless attitude and exploitation of labor to survive in the business. However considering the case of todays environment it has been witnessed that the radicalism is a basis of the extra costs that has to be accounted for in some form or another. Take the case of the capital controls where the tariffs of the state result in increasing the cost of inputs (Rose, 2008). Employee Relations in Australia Considering the case of Australia, it is witnessed that the state has played a crucial role in removal of the disparities that existed in the Marxist system or Radicalism. The state policies have been framed so that the employee interests are protected. The studies from Lewis et al. (2003) mentioned that the legislative framework by the Australian policymakers was prepared especially taking into consideration the employee relations. The segregation by the Australian system has been on the basis of three segments, employer, employee and trade unions. The trade unions have been legalized so that the workers interests are safeguarded and they are not taken for an undue advantage. The claims settlement process is legalized so that the undue advantage is not taken for by any of the stakeholders (Australian Government, nd). Employee relations and their demands are also measured as per the laws and undue advantage and false claims are checked so that ethical values are restored in the emplo yee relations. The policy makers are also indulged in laying the hours of work for the workers, health and safety standards to be maintained in the organization and the wages are set by the state of Australia itself. As per Rose (2008) state is not just the arbitrator, what it helps in setting the terms between the employers and the employees. These kind of set norms that are followed in Australia is certainly change of stance from the radical approach followed by the capitalistic countries. Conclusion Wealth and property concentration of capitalistic countries created opportunities that lead to exploitation of labor and employees. The capitalistic concentration of powers as per the radical perspective has been transformed into a system where the concentration of powers is used to provide equal opportunities. The case of Australia was discussed where the state owns the responsibility that the wealth and power should not be exploited by a section of capitalists for their benefit. The segregation of powers in between the employees, labor unions, and employers is an example of what can be done in order to save the idea of employee relation. References Australian Government (nd). Consultation and Cooperation in the workplace [Online]. Retrieved from: https://www.fairwork.gov.au/about-us/policies-and-guides/best-practice-guides/consultation-and-cooperation-in-the-workplace. Accessed on 23 March 2015. Marx, K. (1978). Wages, Labour and Capital in R. Tucker (ed), The Marx and Engles Reader, Penguin, London. Lewis, P., Thornhill, A., Saunders, M. (2003).Employee Relations: Understanding The Employment Relationship.New York: Financial Times Prentice Hall. Rose, E. (2008).Employment Relations.New York: Financial Times Prentice Hall.