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The Mt. Ebal Curse Tablet
Foreword
{Post one of thirty}
We should give Moses, Joshua, and the Hebrews of the Conquest a chance to prove who they are! We must excavate now “Joshua’s Altar,” the origin of the Mt. Ebal Curse Tablet!
This site in Judea/Samaria has lain exposed for forty years. Yet, it may harbor some of history’s greatest archaeological artifacts.
Note
This is the first post of my memorandum on the Mt. Ebal Curse Tablet.
If you have not arrived at this topic via captivatingtwists.com and wish to read the entire memorandum in sequence, click here.
Otherwise, continue below.
My name is Ernie Vallery. I am a retired Louisiana attorney living in South Coast, Massachusetts.
Claims about the Curse Tablet counter an entrenched historical premise. Generations of scholars have said that Moses could not have written the Torah. Scripture attests otherwise. So may the tablet.
This memorandum grapples with an element of this issue.
Between the two sides, tensions exist. One says that minuscule evidence underpins the tablet’s claims. Thus, archaeologists should spend no further resources on excavating.
The other retorts that ample evidence supports excavating now. Dire consequences flow, they say, from not doing so. Such jeopardizes humanity’s proper understanding of history, philosophy, law, politics, and more.
Our problem is how to resolve, in part, this tension.
My answer is that we apply a legal standard such as the one used in federal courts for summary judgment.
Legal summary judgment and the decision that we seek are alike in two ways. Both seek to resolve tensions early in a deliberative process. Both also involve important competing interests.
In summary judgment, the competing interests are judicial economy and due process.
Likewise, here interests compete. One side seeks to prevent frivolous archaeological claims from wasting resources. Another desires to safeguard precious evidence.
Given the similarities, a like rule should apply. U.S. courts address summary judgment with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56. For our issue, I, thus, employ a comparable rule.
My plea results. Regional and international actors must stir. They should finish excavations at Joshua’s Altar. They should spend the necessary financial, political, and other resources.
Why? Enough evidence supports the Curse Tablet’s claims.
Here is a summary of this situation and my goal:
In 2019, an archaeological team found this tiny piece of lead in Judea / Samaria.
Today, in academic circles, it causes great consternation. Some scholars declare it the archaeological find of the 21st century. Others say, “There is nothing to see here!”
The debate I do not seek to resolve.
Instead, I argue for something less, yet necessary.
Joshua’s Altar and the Curse Tablet deserve a chance to prove their identity. Are they a consequence of the words and actions of the Hebrews of the Conquest? Humankind deserves to know!
The exigent evidence I find demands:
This argument raises necessary questions, which I should address at the outset. Before launching into the matter’s heart, I thus present these three prefatory posts:
Two introductory posts follow. The first seeks to arm readers for a 3,500-year journey. The second wets enthusiasm for that trip.
Those posts are:
Afterwards comes the main body.
The table of contents is thus:
It seems like a lot! But do not be intimidated. Hang with the story. Then this consequential topic becomes easy, much like witnessing a cascade of dominoes.
Here is a question. What present historical issues compare to those explored in this memorandum? Let me know in the “comments”.
Thank you for engaging with this topic thus far!
The next post addresses: “Why Write This?”
I look forward to continuing with you there.
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My wife and I like having dinner guests.
We, too, have dreaded the dinner conversation lull and its consequences.
Some advice we gleaned from professional dinner organizers. One recommended: “By the way, if you don’t usually prepare topics for conversation, you should.” 1 Another declared: “If it makes your guests uncomfortable, then avoid it.”
With this sound advice, we concur with a couple of provisos.
The first regards uncomfortable subjects. Often, hosts interpret this as excluding politics and religion. To that I say, “No way!” I maintain that if you and your guests are adult enough to speak of such with reasonable gentility, then go for it. (Disregard, however, if you live in certain settings. Those include Putin’s Russia, Xi Jinping’s China, and the Ayatollah’s Iran. Of course, add Kim Jong Un’s North Korea and Lukashenko’s Belarus. Note too that MAGA America also aims for this list.)
The second proviso is about preparing. Some think that identifying interesting topics completes the task.
In fact, engaging subjects, while important, are not good conversation’s sole precursor.
What else does a dinner need? An appropriate format helps. This reduces the likelihood of these discussion derailments:
What is a dining format? It is a structure that provides:
The idea of a dinner format is not unique. Search the internet. Examples there one can explore.
Some popular ones include Jeffersonian and Zeldin dinners.
In certain circumstances, we perceive how each might work well.
Still, they seemed inappropriate for our home dinners. A successful Jeffersonian, for example, hinges upon having a somewhat authoritarian moderator. Such did not seem to fit a pleasant occasion with four to six neighbors and friends. The Zeldin dinner elicits too much personal information from guests.
So we opted for another solution–“Dining Entente Cordiale.” That is dining pursuant to a friendly agreement, a working relationship, or an accord.
The gist of the idea is this: Guests and hosts agree to dine together to tackle a set of issues.
Book clubs operate somewhat like this.
So, does the Sky News program, “The Wrap.” There, a host moderates a discussion with prominent guests from the British press. Together, they parse daily articles from assorted newspapers and tabloids.
Major components of this format include:
Sounds like a lot of work! Well, yes, it can be.
At this site, though, we take on much of that. For each dinner option, we present much of what the evening needs. We supply topics, a sample invitation, review material, dinner questions, and an itinerary.
Of this format, there is an important benefit. It fosters colorful interactions among guests and hosts.
People in our modern world seldom have the opportunity to discuss the same texts with others. This is especially so in light of the alarming decline in local print media. Often, people’s information flows from the particular news outlets toward which they incline. Seldom do they sit down together to talk about material from a shared source.
In our format, our guests have agreed to be familiar with the same text. To it, they bring their own perspectives. Yet, these perspectives focus upon the shared material.
This format also encourages guests to explore issues with different people. That is with those outside our normal conversation groups. Seldom are we versed in a subject with people of different backgrounds. At our dinner, everyone can discuss the issues at hand. All have had an opportunity to review the text/s and the questions. The result is often refreshing perspectives expressed.
There are, of course, disadvantages.
One of the things mentioned before is that it requires more up-front work for all involved. The guests have more preparation added to their busy lives. The hosts have increased moderating responsibilities.
The format, however, compensates guests with a good meal, refreshing conversation, and camaraderie.
The hosts, too, can present a more fluid, organized, rewarding evening.
Our Dinner
My wife and I plan to host Entente Cordiale dinners. There, we will moderate a conversation with four to six friends.
After the dinner, I will draft a report. This will include an “after-action review” in which my guests, my wife, and I take part. Our goal will be to memorialize the evening. We should capture what went well. That should also include what needs improvement. Further, it aims to capture how to improve.
Once we record these, others who wish to host a similar dinner will have access to our insights.
Our first dinner topic is the Mount Ebal Curse Tablet. You find this in the navigation bar at the top left of this site’s blog page.
The preparatory material is a memorandum I wrote. It consists of thirty posts. The main subject covers twenty-nine of those. The thirtieth contains the following:
As mentioned previously, I will also include a summary of our dinner participants’ “After Action Review”.
We aim to have other prepared topics.
If you have ideas for such, let us know.
In the meantime, feel free to use the topic(s) presented.
If you do, please give us feedback on how well it worked for you.
Try the Entente Cordiale format. See what captivating twists it brings to your next dinner!
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You do all that work—invitations, shopping, preparing an awesome meal.
A wonderful evening you envision, one abounding in cordiality, universal involvement, and engaging conversation.
Instead, you realize that the evening could go flat. Rather than a triumph, conversation could lag. Only tired talk about pets, family, bills, costs, ailments, and neighbors revives it. Some people struggle to participate. Others monopolize. Guests leave appreciative of your efforts, but relieved to go home.
Hosts usually aim to enrich relationships.
Yet, they realize that a meal alone, no matter how sensational, may not achieve such.
However, they know what can. That is a great conversation.
But where might they find a catalyst for this? How is it introduced?
This website proposes a catalyst and vehicle. That is entente cordiale dining. For great conversations with potential captivating twists, it strives.
The next post describes this dining format and its introduction. Subsequent ones detail examples.
I invite you to continue with me there.
