Regular readers of this column will know my interest in history and archaeology.
For the defence of the faith, I encourage all Christians to take an interest in the evidence for the Bible that emerges from the ancient world. So the recent destruction of historic sites by the Islamic terrorist group known as ISIS has profound implications for apologetics.
The humanitarian catastrophes emerging from the Middle East have rightly dominated the news. Whether the refugees fleeing Syria or the violent persecution of Arab minorities in Iraq, there is no question that these should be uppermost in our prayers and social action. But ISIS is also at war against history, archaeology and antiquities. Claiming to be destroying idols, it is systematically erasing ancient sites and artefacts in the regions that fall under its sway.
Comedy, free speech and warnings from the past
Hannah Arendt was a Jewish philosopher who grew up in Nazi Germany. Eventually she had to flee to France and, …