Construction Begins: DC Museum to Bring Bible Alive - CBN News

Museum of the Bible sketch

Construction Begins: DC Museum to Bring Bible Alive

By Paul Strand

CBN News Washington Sr. Correspondent

Friday, February 13, 2015

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WASHINGTON -- Washington, D.C. Is famous for its museums.  Some are dedicated to art, some to history, and a couple to air and spacecraft.  But soon the Bible will have its very own museum right in the heart of the nation’s capital.
 
Construction of the world’s largest Bible museum  began this week with an act of destruction, as a huge construction claw began ripping away at a building in the way of the future 430,000-square-foot structure.

The seven-story, $400,000,000 museum will tell the impact, history and narrative of the the holy book that Bible museum President Cary Summers called “the most read, most debated, most banned book in history."
 
CBN News recently spoke to Steve Green, the museum’s founder.

Steve Green - Museum of the Bible Founder

“Our idea and our desire is to tell the Bible story in such an engaging way that people will want to spend hours in the museum,” Green said.

Green’s family not only runs the mega-business Hobby Lobby, but also owns one of the largest collection of Bible artifacts in the world.  Most will find a home in the new museum, along with many hi-tech, innovative displays to bring God’s Word to life.  
 
“When we think of the word ‘museum,’ sometimes you think of old and dusty,” Green said.  “But what we will be doing is making this technologically advanced, where that it is very engaging and interactive, where that somebody could have a customized tour if they wanted to.”

The museum is set to open in 2017, just a few hundred yards from the National Mall and the most famous Smithsonian attractions, like the popular National Air and Space Museum.  

These 11 Retailers Are Effectively Declaring War on Christmas

 11/24/2014 DEBORAH HAMILTON  CHARISMA NEWS

The American Family Association is urging retailers to incorporate the word "Christmas" in their holiday marketing. (CharismaNews file)

Just in time for Black Friday shopping, American Family Association (AFA) has released its annual "Naughty or Nice" list of retailers who either embrace Christmas in their seasonal shopping campaigns or leave it out in the cold.

With the goal of keeping Christ in Christmas, AFA has reviewed the websites, media advertising and in-store signage of the top 100 national retailers in an effort to help consumers know which companies are Christmas-friendly and which are acting like "Scrooge."

"There are concerted efforts in our country to eliminate 'Christmas' because the word itself is a reminder of Jesus Christ," said AFA President Tim Wildmon. "Those who hate Christ want to eradicate anything that reminds Americans of Christianity. That is why it is important to remind companies to keep the word 'Christmas' alive. AFA wants to keep Christ in Christmas and Christmas in America."

AFA rates the retailers in four categories. AFA "5-Star" retailers promote and celebrate Christmas on an exceptional basis. These include: Belk, Hobby Lobby, Lowe's, Sears and Wal-Mart.

"Nice" retailers use the term "Christmas" on a regular basis and are considered "Christmas-friendly." The "Nice" list includes about 45 retailers, from Amazon.com to Zappos.com.

Thirteen retailers this year made the "Marginal" list, meaning these companies refer to Christmas infrequently or only in select advertising mediums.

The 11 retailers on the "Naughty" list may use "Christmas" sparingly in a single or unique product description, but as companies, do not recognize it. These include: Barnes & Noble, Family Dollar, Foot Locker, Limited Brands, Maurice's, Office Depot, Office Max, PetSmart, Staples, Supervalu and Victoria's Secret.

Last week, AFA announced a Christmas shopping boycott of the national pet retailer PetSmart for omitting any references to Christmas in its shopping promotions.

"PetSmart has ignored the pleas of its shoppers and AFA for years and doesn't deserve your business," Wildmon said. "As consumers, let's tell PetSmart that we won't be doing any Christmas shopping for Fido and Fluffy in its stores this year."

AFA reached out to PetSmart in 2007 and 2011 regarding its glaring omission of the word "Christmas"—with no response.

Soon after AFA sent the PetSmart Action Alert to its one million-plus friends and supporters last week, PetSmart sent a promotional email to its own consumer list, using the word "Christmas," but PetSmart's newfound "Christmas" spirit appears relegated to this one email and a small gift labeled "Merry Christmas" in a television commercial, with no indication of any real change on the part of the retailer.

In 2013, AFA encouraged a similar boycott of the Christmas-unfriendly Radio Shack, which saw dismal electronics sales and was forced to close 200 locations this year. In fact, many of Radio Shack's franchise owners joined AFA in urging the company to include "Christmas" in its marketing. This year, the shopping season at Radio Shack looks much different. The tech retailer began using "Christmas" well before the end of October. In fact, in a press release dated Oct. 22, Radio Shack promoted an "exclusive lineup of Christmas gifts."

In the past, AFA has called out Wal-Mart, Lowe's and Sears, urging them to use "Christmas" in their marketing efforts. Wal-Mart responded by stating, "We learned a valuable lesson. Next year, we will use Christmas early and often." Today, all three retailers are on AFA's "5-Star" list and have even set up Christmas shops inside their stores.

Ancient Prayer Book Highlights Judeo-Christian Heritage

By Julie Stahl and Chris Mitchell

CBN News Middle East Bureau

Friday, September 19, 2014

JERUSALEM, Israel -- A rare Jewish prayer book is on display for the first time ever. It is part of an exhibit highlighting the Jewish-Christian heritage of the Bible and the Jewish roots of Christianity.

The 1,200-year-old Hebrew text can be seen at the in Jerusalem.

"It touches the hearts and souls of every Jew everywhere in Israel, everywhere in the world because it is the oldest known document, written document of a prayer book," said Amanda Weiss, director of the Bible Lands Museum.

CBN News received a private look at the prayer book as it arrived for exhibition.

"This is part of their heritage and we are excited to bring it here and we are excited to be able to do a lot more study on it because it's part of their tradition," said Steve Green, president of Hobby Lobby and chairman of the Museum of the Bible, which will one day house the Green Family Collection of biblical artifacts.

The prayer book will be part of a larger exhibit called "The Book of Books," which includes some of the most important biblical texts ever seen in Israel.

Most of the exhibit comes from the Green family, who owns one of the largest collections of biblical artifacts in the world. It traces the written word from the Dead Sea Scrolls to the Gutenberg Bible and beyond.

"It tells us about roots of history of the Jewish people, which obviously is where Christian foundation is built upon, Hebrew scripture," Green told CBN News.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu viewed the ancient book before its unveiling and became one of the few people to ever read from it.

"This prayer book is a most important find," Netanyahu said at his office. "It is written in Hebrew and contains the prayers that the people of Israel say to this very day. It is a connection between our past and our present and that is something of great value."

Green also presented Netanyahu with a rare parchment from his collection of religious texts as a gift. Originally found in the Cairo Geniza, the parchment dates from the 12th and13th centuries. It includes a dialogue written in Arabic about the relationship between man and his creator.

Weiss said the book was dated by carbon-14 testing to the year 820 and there's still a lot to learn about it.

"We know it comes from the Middle East for sure," she said.

The 50-page compilation was written by four different scribes. It is opened to the Shacharit prayer. Based in large part on the Book of Psalms and other scriptures, it's the same prayer Jewish people around the world still pray in the morning.

Prayers like, "Bless the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting and let all the people say 'Amen. Halleluyah!'"

"It helps them understand more of its roots," Green said.

Interest in "The Book of Books" exhibit has been overwhelming.

"I have never experienced an exhibition so globally appreciated by everyone that's seen it," Weiss told CBN News.

With the condition of the world today, Green says the message of the Bible is more important than ever.

"There's not a better time than today than to have people take a look at this book," Green explained. "When you have a book that says that the summation of this book is to love God and to love one another, I think that's a message for this world today and has been a message for the world since the beginning."

Coming back home...

I shall take you one from a city  and two from a family and  I will bring you to Zion. JEREMIAH (3:14) וְלָקַחְתִּי אֶתְכֶם אֶחָד מֵעִיר  וּשְׁנַיִם מִמִּשְׁפָּחָה וְהֵבֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם צִיּוֹן ירמיהו ג:יד ve-la-kakh-TEE et-KHEM eh-KHAD may-EER  oo-shna-YEEM mee-meesh-pah-KHA ve-hay-VAY-tee et-KHEM tzee-YONE Jerusalem Inspiration Jeremiah describes the return of the Jewish people  to the Land of Israel in two ways. They will come from  certain places and they will return as families. Today  "Israel Returns" is helping to fulfill Jeremiah's words  by bringing families of lost Jews back to Israel, after  thousands of years of exile.   Play a Part in the Unfolding Miracle of the Return to the Land » Celebrating Aliyah to Israel Relive the excitement and emotions of an Aliyah flight  from North America arriving at Ben Gurion Airport.  The immigrants step off the place and become the  newest Israeli citizens. Watch Now » Hobby Lobby Head Donates Collection To Bible Museum Despite numerous assertions that he is an Anti-Semite,  polarizing Hobby Lobby president Steve Green has  donated his collection of ancient Codex Climaci  Rescriptus to the Jerusalem Bible Land Museum. Read More » Jerusalem T-Shirts Check out this line of cool Jerusalem t-shirts. These  lightweight shirts sent directly from Israel are great to  buy as a present for a loved one, or for yourself! Check out this Amazing Deal » Jerusalem Daily Photo Today's Jerusalem picture courtesy of Nefesh B'nefesh  features new immigrants from the United States and  Canada who immediately enlisted in the IDF. Help Bring the Jews Back Home » Thank You Today's Jerusalem Scenes and Inspiration is  sponsored by Tine Van der Meer of Brazil in honor  of her sister's birthday. Sponsor a Day » “Someone Out There With the Same Dream as Mine” Stay in Touch » Shalom, It was one of my long lost dreams since  2005 to visit Jerusalem, and I always thought it  would be impossible. But the Holy One of Israel is in charge and He made it possible so I am visiting  Jerusalem/Israel next year. Then I will see with my  eyes your beautiful city and country. Thank you for  your wonderful photos and news you share every  day with us. If there is someone out there with the  same dream as mine, just keep faith the Holy One  will provide in His perfect time. Baruch HaShem!  Erika, South Africa Blessing from Jerusalem, Rabbi Tuly Weisz RabbiTuly@Israel365.com Copyright © 2013 Jerusalem365, All rights reserved. Thank You for Signing Up for the Jerusalem365 emails. Our mailing address is: Jerusalem365 36 Ein GediRamat Beit Shemesh 99000 Israel