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Sodom and Gomorrah Discovered?

A Bible scholar believes he has found the remains of Sodom and Gomorrah. Michael Sanders and an international team of researchers discovered what appear to be the salt-encrusted remains of ancient settlements on the bottom of the Dead Sea during several weeks of diving in a mini submarine. Sanders says that the finding must be explored further, but the evidence suggests these remains may be Sodom and Gomorrah.

The Bible says that God destroyed the cities because of their incredible sinfulness. Genesis says that "the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire out of heaven. And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground." A growing number of experts including Sanders believe that "the cities of the plain" were destroyed by an earthquake, which threw up flaming pitch, about 5,000 years ago, raining down "fire and brimstone." Adding to the mounting evidence that the finding is actually Sodom and Gomorrah is the fact that scientists have discovered brimstone deposits on nearby cliffs. Additionally, mass graves dating back to the Old Testament have been uncovered in the area. Sanders says that further exploration is necessary before they can say for sure what the ruins are.

Exploration of the ruins has proven difficult though because the Dead Sea is currently a military zone. When Sanders' team first began investigating the ruins, they crossed into Jordan's territory and were kicked out. Sanders remained optimistic about the findings, saying, "I have spoken to geologists and nobody has come up with the suggestion that they are natural phenomena. We don't know what else they could be if they are not ruins. But we need more conclusive evidence by chipping off the salt. That's why we need to go back."

Electronic Telegraph, March 26, 2000

 


 

Preaching with Results

Ugandan church leaders have preached three pornographic magazines out of business. According to published reports, three magazines that featured nudity and other sexual content have gone out of business since pastors started preaching against pornography two months ago. Clergymen had attempted to meet with the magazines' publishers earlier but were told to preach to their own people and leave the magazines alone. In response, they urged their church members not to buy the magazines, and the magazines' sales dropped dramatically. One publisher became a Christian and apologized for corrupting young people.

Religion News Today, March 23, 2000

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  • SBC Staff