Where's Indiana Jones when you need him? Massive ancient monument discovered at Petra, hidden in plain sight

Archaeologists have discovered a massive new shrine at the archaeological site of Petra in southern Jordan. Perta is a famous site with massive edifices cut into the faces of cliffs. Most Americans will recognize it from various movies including "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."

Although millions of people have visited Petra, nobody, including these characters, discovered the massive monument hiding in plain sight.

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) - Petra is the site of ancient ruins in southern Jordan. It has been well surveyed by archaeologists and receives visitors throughout the year. The city was built by the Nabateans, who left no written records. They inhabited the area during the time of Christ, and made fortunes in trade between the Persians and Greeks. The city eventually fell under Roman control, and later became part of the Ottoman Empire. It was abandoned in the sixth century and forgotten until its rediscovery in 1812.

The city is now one of the most famous sites in the Middle East, especially outside of Israel. It has been featured in movies, including the film "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade." However, despite all its attention, archaeologists have missed something big.

Literally hidden in plain site, less than a kilometer form the town's center is a massive platform with a smaller platform on top of it. Its function remains mysterious, but the feature is large enough to be spotted in satellite photos, which is how it was discovered.

Archaeologists Christopher Tuttle and Sarah Parcak discovered the feature while studying satellite images of the area. The feature had been noticed previously, but was routinely dismissed as nothing of particular interest. Nobody realized how large it was until it was seen in the satellite photos.

The location of the monument from the ground. The ruin had been noticed before, but was dismissed as having no importance.

The platform likely served a display function, but nobody know what was displayed there. Nor is the purpose of the smaller platform on top of it known.

The aerial view shows the size of the platform and the orientation of the smaller platform on top.

The discovery is humbling. It reminds us that as much as we think we know about the past, there is a lot that we do not know. Many mysteries remain hidden in plain site, and it is often our dismissive attitude that causes us to miss them and their significance.

Archaeologists are expected to study the platform in more detail.

Saint of the Day for Sunday, June 12th, 2016

St. John of Sahagun

John Gonzales de Castrillo was born at Sahagun, Leon Spain. He was educated by the Benedictine monks of Fagondez monastery there and when twenty, received a canonry from the bishop of Burgos, though ... continue reading

More Saints of the Day

St. John of SahagunSt. AmphionSt. AmpliatusSt. ChirstianSt. ChristianSt. CominusSt. CuneraSt. Cuniald & GeslarSt. EskillSt. Gaspar Bertoni

St. GerebaldBl. Lorenzo SalviSt. Marinus, Vimius, & ZimiusSt. OdulfSt. OlympiusSt. OnouphriusSt. Peter of Mount Athos108 Polish MartyrsSt. Ternan

Daily Reading for Sunday, June 12th, 2016

Reading 1, Second Samuel 12:7-10, 13

7 Nathan then said to David, 'You are the man! Yahweh, God of Israel, says this, "I anointed you king of Israel, I saved you from Saul's clutches,

8 I gave you your master's household and your master's wives into your arms, I gave you the House of Israel and the House of Judah; and, if this is still too little, I shall give you other things as well.

9 Why did you show contempt for Yahweh, by doing what displeases him? You put Uriah the Hittite to the sword, you took his wife to be your wife, causing his death by the sword of the Ammonites.

10 For this, your household will never be free of the sword, since you showed contempt for me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite, to make her your wife."

13 David said to Nathan, 'I have sinned against Yahweh.' Nathan then said to David, 'Yahweh, for his part, forgives your sin; you are not to die.

---

Responsorial Psalm,Psalms 32:1-2, 5, 7, 11

1 [Of David Poem] How blessed are those whose offence is forgiven, whosesin blotted out.

2 How blessed are those to whomYahweh imputes no guilt, whose spiritharbours no deceit.

5 I made my sin known to you, did not conceal my guilt. I said, 'I shall confess my offence to Yahweh.' And you, for your part, took away my guilt, forgave my sin.

7 You are a refuge for me, you guard me in trouble, with songs of deliverance you surround me.

11 Rejoice in Yahweh, exult all you upright, shout for joy, you honest of heart.

---

Gospel, Luke 7:36--8:3

36 One of the Pharisees invited him to a meal. When he arrived at the Pharisee's house and took his place at table,

37 suddenly a woman came in, who had a bad name in the town. She had heard he was dining with the Pharisee and had brought with her an alabaster jar of ointment.

38 She waited behind him at his feet, weeping, and her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them away with her hair; then she covered his feet with kisses and anointed them with the ointment.

39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, 'If thisman were a prophet, he would know who this woman is and what sort ofperson it is who is touching him and what a bad name she has.'

40 Then Jesus took him up and said, 'Simon, I have something to say to you.' He replied, 'Say on, Master.'

41 'There was once a creditor who had two men in his debt; one owed him five hundred denarii, the other fifty.

42 They were unable to pay, so he let them both off. Which of them will love him more?'

43 Simon answered, 'The one who was let off more, I suppose.' Jesus said, 'You are right.'

44 Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, 'You see this woman? I came into your house, and you poured no water over my feet, but she has poured out her tears over my feet and wiped them away with her hair.

45 You gave me no kiss, but she has been covering my feet with kisses ever since I came in.

46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.

47 For this reason I tell you that her sins, many as they are, have been forgiven her, because she has shown such great love. It is someone who is forgiven little who shows little love.'

48 Then he said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.'

49 Those who were with him at table began to say to themselves, 'Who is this man, that even forgives sins?'

50 But he said to the woman, 'Your faithhas saved you; go in peace.'

1 Now it happened that after this he made his way through towns and villages preaching and proclaiming thegood news of the kingdom of God. With him went the Twelve,

2 as well as certain women who had been cured of evil spirits and ailments:Mary surnamed the Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,

3 Joanna the wife of Herod's steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of their own resources.

---

Reading 2, Galatians 2:16, 19-21

16 have nevertheless learnt that someone is reckoned as upright not by practising the Law but by faith in JesusChrist; and we too came to believe inChrist Jesus so as to be reckoned as upright by faith in Christ and not by practising the Law: since no human being can be found upright by keeping the Law.

19 In fact, through the Law I am dead to the Law so that I can be alive to God. I have been crucified with Christ

20 and yet I am alive; yet it is no longer I, but Christ living in me. The life that I am now living, subject to the limitation of human nature, I am living in faith, faithin the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.

21 I am not setting aside God's grace as of no value; it is merely that if savingjustice comes through the Law, Christdied needlessly.

Daily Reading for Sunday, June 12th, 2016

Reading 1, Second Samuel 12:7-10, 13

7 Nathan then said to David, 'You are the man! Yahweh, God of Israel, says this, "I anointed you king of Israel, I saved you from Saul's clutches,

8 I gave you your master's household and your master's wives into your arms, I gave you the House of Israel and the House of Judah; and, if this is still too little, I shall give you other things as well.

9 Why did you show contempt for Yahweh, by doing what displeases him? You put Uriah the Hittite to the sword, you took his wife to be your wife, causing his death by the sword of the Ammonites.

10 For this, your household will never be free of the sword, since you showed contempt for me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite, to make her your wife."

13 David said to Nathan, 'I have sinned against Yahweh.' Nathan then said to David, 'Yahweh, for his part, forgives your sin; you are not to die.

---

Responsorial Psalm,Psalms 32:1-2, 5, 7, 11

1 [Of David Poem] How blessed are those whose offence is forgiven, whosesin blotted out.

2 How blessed are those to whomYahweh imputes no guilt, whose spiritharbours no deceit.

5 I made my sin known to you, did not conceal my guilt. I said, 'I shall confess my offence to Yahweh.' And you, for your part, took away my guilt, forgave my sin.

7 You are a refuge for me, you guard me in trouble, with songs of deliverance you surround me.

11 Rejoice in Yahweh, exult all you upright, shout for joy, you honest of heart.

---

Gospel, Luke 7:36--8:3

36 One of the Pharisees invited him to a meal. When he arrived at the Pharisee's house and took his place at table,

37 suddenly a woman came in, who had a bad name in the town. She had heard he was dining with the Pharisee and had brought with her an alabaster jar of ointment.

38 She waited behind him at his feet, weeping, and her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them away with her hair; then she covered his feet with kisses and anointed them with the ointment.

39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, 'If thisman were a prophet, he would know who this woman is and what sort ofperson it is who is touching him and what a bad name she has.'

40 Then Jesus took him up and said, 'Simon, I have something to say to you.' He replied, 'Say on, Master.'

41 'There was once a creditor who had two men in his debt; one owed him five hundred denarii, the other fifty.

42 They were unable to pay, so he let them both off. Which of them will love him more?'

43 Simon answered, 'The one who was let off more, I suppose.' Jesus said, 'You are right.'

44 Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, 'You see this woman? I came into your house, and you poured no water over my feet, but she has poured out her tears over my feet and wiped them away with her hair.

45 You gave me no kiss, but she has been covering my feet with kisses ever since I came in.

46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.

47 For this reason I tell you that her sins, many as they are, have been forgiven her, because she has shown such great love. It is someone who is forgiven little who shows little love.'

48 Then he said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.'

49 Those who were with him at table began to say to themselves, 'Who is this man, that even forgives sins?'

50 But he said to the woman, 'Your faithhas saved you; go in peace.'

1 Now it happened that after this he made his way through towns and villages preaching and proclaiming thegood news of the kingdom of God. With him went the Twelve,

2 as well as certain women who had been cured of evil spirits and ailments:Mary surnamed the Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,

3 Joanna the wife of Herod's steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of their own resources.

---

Reading 2, Galatians 2:16, 19-21

16 have nevertheless learnt that someone is reckoned as upright not by practising the Law but by faith in JesusChrist; and we too came to believe inChrist Jesus so as to be reckoned as upright by faith in Christ and not by practising the Law: since no human being can be found upright by keeping the Law.

19 In fact, through the Law I am dead to the Law so that I can be alive to God. I have been crucified with Christ

20 and yet I am alive; yet it is no longer I, but Christ living in me. The life that I am now living, subject to the limitation of human nature, I am living in faith, faithin the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.

21 I am not setting aside God's grace as of no value; it is merely that if savingjustice comes through the Law, Christdied needlessly.

Is it actually possible to become an ‘ex-Catholic’?

Despite some mysterious statements in canon law, the truth is that nothing can ever erase one's Baptism

In the discussion of Fr Lucie-Smith’s excellent blog of a couple of weeks ago – reacting to the Benedict XVI Centre’s latest report (which you can, and really ought to, read in full here) – the question came up of whether, in the eyes of the Church, it is possible for a baptised Catholic to cease being one. That is, theologically speaking, is there such thing as a “former Catholic”?

The short answer is a flat no. From the Church’s perspective, such people remain part of it – and always will – by virtue of their baptism, whether they like it or not. In the words of the Catechism, “Baptism incorporates us into the Church” (# 1267), and “Baptism seals the Christian with the indelible spiritual mark (character) of his belonging to Christ. No sin can erase this mark, even if sin prevents Baptism from bearing the fruits of salvation” (#1272).

These clear-running baptismal waters are, however, muddied by a little piece of canon law (or rather, the memory of it, since it is now – with good reason, as we shall see – abrogated).

On three occasions, the 1983 Code of Canon Law cites the possibility of a baptised Catholic having made what it calls an actus formalis defectionis ab Ecclesia catholica, that is, “a formal act of defection from the Catholic Church”. All of these occur in the context of marriage, for example: “A marriage between two persons, one of whom has been baptised in the Catholic Church or received into it and has not defected from it by a formal act and the other of whom is not baptised, is invalid” (Can. 1086 §1; see also cans 1117, 1124).

The Code offers no further clue as to what such an act might entail.

Having “for quite some time received a considerable number of… questions and requests for clarification”, in 2006 the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts (PCLJ) released a statement setting out “the requirements or juridical formalities that would be necessary so that such an action would constitute a true ‘formal act’ of defection”.

While the specific, convoluted procedure need not be recounted here, its fulfilment would authorise a local bishop to have “explicit mention of the occurrence of a defectio ab Ecclesia catholica actu formali” to be formally added against that person’s name in a baptismal register.

Critically, however, the PCLJ’s statement is at pains to emphasise that such an act is a purely “juridical-administrative” one, and in no way confers a “true separation from the constitutive elements of the the life of the Church”. Hence: “It remains clear, in any event, that the sacramental bond of belonging to the Body of Christ that is the Church,  conferred by the baptismal character, is an ontological and permanent bond which is not lost by reason of any act or fact of defection.”

To put it mildly, this created a very strange state of affairs. The upshot was that, like a guest at the Hotel California, being Catholic meant that “You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave…”

Three years later, in 2009, Pope Benedict XVI then issued a decree simply deleting the relevant passages from the 1983 Code, unsurprisingly citing “numerous pastoral problems” thrown up by the wording.

As was then made clear in a commentary by Cardinal Coccopalmerio, the prefect of the PCLJ, one of these problems had to do with the fact that in certain central European countries, people pay a civil “worship tax” which accrues to their respective denominations unless they specifically opt out . (As they do in, say, Austria.) Naturally, it was this financial opting out that the PCLJ had meant by its reference to a “juridical-adminstrative act” in 2006, somewhat euphemistically glossed with “the removal of one’s name from a Church membership registry maintained by the government in order to produce certain civil consequences”.

While intended for a specific purpose – and, as has been noted, explicitly not conceived as actually removing a person from the Church – it is hardly surprising that a sizeable number of disaffected Catholics, not least in Ireland, sought to exploit this canonical possibility to have themselves formally removed from the Church, even if only “symbolically”.

But since 2010, this possibility now no longer exists (although one would not know from the Vatican’s own website, which, as of May 2016, still provides the unextirpated version of the 1983 Code without comment).

Of course, none of that changes the empirical fact that, in England and Wales, a huge number of cradle-Catholic adults do, in fact, regard themselves as “ex-Catholics”.

About 2.4 million of them.

Watch out: mercy can be violent

If the only way we can receive mercy is by means of divine assault, God will give us that

As a Missionary of Mercy for the jubilee year, I have preached more about mercy these past months than I otherwise would, in various places to diverse congregations. From this pastoral work I have gained a better appreciation that God grants His mercy in different ways, adapted to the difference among souls. To put it another way: if all of us need the mercy of God, then God will provide it in a way that we can receive it. Mercy given in the same measure and same manner to all would be a mercy that would miss the mark for many.

I was not in Rome for the day-long retreat which the Holy Father led as part of last week’s Jubilee for Priests, but I read the meditations he preached to priests gathered in three of the four papal basilicas – St John Lateran, St Mary Major and St Paul Outside the Walls. In the second meditation, Pope Francis corrected the tendency – sometimes evident even in official materials for the Jubilee of Mercy – to understand God’s mercy in a one-sided way, as if it always is extended in the same manner. 

“The vessel of mercy is our sin,” Pope Francis began. On another occasion the Holy Father has spoken of our sins as the privileged place where we encounter God’s tender mercy, the place where we feel God’s caress. If sin is the vessel of God’s mercy, and given that sins differ from soul to soul, consequently it must be that souls receive mercy differently too. 

Pope Francis then demonstrated this in a survey of how the “vessel of mercy” was different in various saints: “Paul received mercy in the harsh and inflexible vessel of his judgment, shaped by the Law … Peter was healed of the deepest wound of all, that of denying his friend … John was healed in his pride for wanting to requite evil with fire. He who was a ‘son of thunder’ (Mk 3:17) would end up writing to his ‘little children’ and seem like a kindly grandfather who speaks only of love. 

“Augustine was healed in his regret for being a latecomer: ‘Late have I loved thee.’ He would find a creative and loving way to make up for lost time by writing his Confessions. Francis experienced mercy at many points in his life. Perhaps the definitive vessel … [was seeing] his brethren divided under the very banner of poverty … Ignatius was healed in his vanity, and if that was the vessel, we can catch a glimpse of how great must have been his yearning for vainglory, which was re-created in his strenuous efforts to seek the greater glory of God.” 

God knows we need His mercy, so He gives it to us as we can receive it. Peter, already one of the Lord’s intimates, only required Jesus to turn and look at him after the triple denial. He was immediately repentant and began to weep bitter tears of contrition.

Such a look would not have worked with Paul who, far from being an intimate of the Lord, was zealously persecuting the early Church. For him, mercy came violently, striking him to the ground and doing bodily harm, blinding him for days. No one would prefer violent mercy to the loving look of Jesus, but if the only way we can receive mercy is by means of a divine assault, then God will give us that. 

For Augustine, there was an intellectual awakening; for Ignatius, bodily injury. God’s mercy comes to us as we are able to receive it.

This is true even in the story of the Prodigal Son, the signature parable of the jubilee year, almost always presented in a unilateral way. The father in the parable does not try to reason with his younger son, as he would later do with the elder. He simply lets him go, and though possessing the means to either follow him or send messengers, permits him to reach the abyss of moral, religious and physical degradation. Even then, he allows the younger son to find conversion on his own. To the older son, the father goes out to plead with him, to persuade him, to urge upon him a conversion of heart. Two sons, two different sins, two different offers of mercy. Each son was offered that which the father thought he could receive.

The same Jesus who tells Peter to grant forgiveness 70 times seven to the one who seeks it, also tells him to shake the very dust off his feet at those who will not accept his preaching. The message to priests is the same as Jesus gave to His disciples – be instruments of mercy not as we would like to be, but as the people we serve need us to be.

Fr Raymond J de Souza is a priest of the Archdiocese of Kingston, Ontario, and editor-in-chief of Convivium magazine.

 

This article first appeared in the June 10 2016 issue of The Catholic Herald. To read the magazine in full, from anywhere in the world, go here

True repentance allows us to be capable of great love

The 11th Sunday of the Year: 2 Sam 12:7 – 10 & 13; Gal 2:16 & 19-21; Lk 7:36 – 8:3

“David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’ Then Nathan said to David, ‘The Lord, for his part, forgives your sin; you are not to die.’”

David, King of Israel, was remembered for his mighty deeds. As God’s anointed he had secured the future of Israel’s scattered tribes. He was also remembered for his sin. Despite the many favours that he had received from the Lord, he had blatantly disregarded God’s law by murdering the innocent Uriah and taking his wife to himself. 

Perhaps to a lesser extent we are all like David. In many ways we remain faithful to God’s will, but in hidden ways we surrender to a self-will that has the power to master us. David was also remembered for his repentance. When confronted by the prophet Nathan, David immediately confessed his sin, thereby placing himself in the hands of God’s mercy. He did more than admit his failing, he prayed for the mercy that would bring about a change of heart: “A new heart create for me, O Lord. Put your Spirit within me.”

Humble repentance, in the words of St Paul, invites a divine mercy that transforms us into the likeness of the Lord. “I have been crucified with Christ, and I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me. The life I now live in this body I live in faith: faith in the Son of God who loved me and sacrificed himself for my sake.”

We see this change of heart in the woman of bad name who attended Jesus at the banquet of the Pharisees. While the Pharisees conspired against Jesus, this woman knelt at this feet, anointing them with oil. Jesus had clearly encountered this woman and forgiven her sins. This subsequent encounter demonstrated the transformative power of his mercy. “You see this woman? I came into your house, and you poured no water over my feet. You gave me no kiss, but she has been covering my feet with kisses. For this reason I tell you that her sins, her many sins, must have been forgiven her, otherwise she would not have shown such great love.”

We are all sinners. During this Year of Mercy let us remember that true repentance bears fruit not only in sorrow, but also in an increased love for God and neighbour.

This article first appeared in the June 10 2016 issue of The Catholic Herald. To read the magazine in full, from anywhere in the world, go here

Readings for June 9, 2016

Readings for June 9, 2016

First  Reading  1 Kgs 18:41-46

Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink,
for there is the sound of a heavy rain.”
So Ahab went up to eat and drink,
while Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel,
crouched down to the earth,
and put his head between his knees.
“Climb up and look out to sea,” he directed his servant,
who went up and looked, but reported, “There is nothing.”
Seven times he said, “Go, look again!”
And the seventh time the youth reported,
“There is a cloud as small as a man’s hand rising from the sea.”
Elijah said, “Go and say to Ahab,
‘Harness up and leave the mountain before the rain stops you.’”
In a trice the sky grew dark with clouds and wind,
and a heavy rain fell.
Ahab mounted his chariot and made for Jezreel.
But the hand of the LORD was on Elijah,
who girded up his clothing and ran before Ahab
as far as the approaches to Jezreel.

Responsorial Psalm  Ps 65:10, 11, 12-13

R. (2a) It is right to praise you in Zion, O God.
You have visited the land and watered it;
greatly have you enriched it.
God’s watercourses are filled;
you have prepared the grain.
R. It is right to praise you in Zion, O God.
Thus have you prepared the land:
drenching its furrows, breaking up its clods,
Softening it with showers,
blessing its yield.
R. It is right to praise you in Zion, O God.
You have crowned the year with your bounty,
and your paths overflow with a rich harvest;
The untilled meadows overflow with it,
and rejoicing clothes the hills.
R. It is right to praise you in Zion, O God.

Alleluia Jn 13:34

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mt 5:20-26

Jesus said to his disciples:
“I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that
of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.

“You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.
But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment,
and whoever says to his brother,
‘Raqa,’ will be answerable to the Sanhedrin,
and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift.
Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him.
Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge,
and the judge will hand you over to the guard,
and you will be thrown into prison.
Amen, I say to you,
you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.”

The Gospel of the Lord.