What on earth happened to the 10 commandments tablet ?

Algis.Kemezys - The first question that I would ask before I looked for it is whether there is any proof that it physically existed at all.

The broken tablets of the Ten Commandments were laid within the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark was said to reside within Holy of Holies in the Great Temple of Jerusalem, though who can be sure since only the High Priest was allowed to enter there. The Ark may have been in the Temple as late as the Fall of Jerusalem in the late 1st century. However, the spoils of the Temple are displayed on the Arch of Titus, and there is no depiction of the Ark there.

Some say that the Ark was hidden prior to the Roman seizure of the Temple. Where no one can say. Some believe that the Ark is hidden in a vault beneath what is today one of the most holy places in Islam. Other's believe that it was carried away and hidden elsewhere in Palestine. There has been some speculation that the Ark was sent to Ethiopia and secured within a monastery there. The monks who are charged with care of the Ark refuse to let anyone see it, much less examine the artifact to determine if it is genuine. Probably not, but again who can say for sure?

Perhaps, Indiana Jones did find the Ark and today it is housed in an anonymous government warehouse unrecognized, or even missed.

Asherman beat me to the Raiders(nope, nothing to do with Oakland).

I remember how shocked I was when I read that some guard reached out to steady the ark as it was being transported, and was smitten dead. I did not, and still don't, understand that.

Asherman

Did you shave????????????????

Mel Brooks had 20 on two tablets, but he broke one.
I saw the film.

[heresy]
This sort of thing really bugs the hell out of me. They should be made to reveal what they have in there. It's a disgrace that some people and organisations stand in the way of the furtherance of knowledge and truth. They need to be removed.
[/heresy]

Frank,

Yeah, I gave up my patriarchal beard for the drooping moustachios of a retired gunfighter. I can't get them to curl just right, even with wax, and so they may also go to the cornfield sometime in the Spring. Over the years I've gone through dozens of cycles with sartorial style. Keep'em guessing.

Phoenix,

My guess is that the Ark of the Covenant did exist, and may even have contained the Tablets of the Law. There seem to be some reasonably good second-hand evidence that the Ark existed and was at the heart of early Judaic religion. When exactly it disappeared, and where it went are unknown.

The origin of the Tablets is another matter. If we suppose that Moses did exist and did most of the things he is credited with, was it really God who wrote the Commandments in stone? Since, I totally reject the foundations on which the Abrahamic religions are based, the notion of God writing on stone is absurd. Perhaps Moses, feeling the need for an authoritative code to reign in those pesky Israelites, did it himself.

Letty,

There are at least three possibilities re. the lethality of the Ark. First, it may not have been lethal at all, but was regarded as so sanctified that it must be fatal to mortals. When the Ark fell into the hands of the enemy, they are said to have died in droves until the Ark was returned. That might have some basis in fact, though not necessarily because of any supernatural power of the Ark. Second, the Ark may have been so built as to possess the electrical power of a crude battery/capacitor. This notion has been advanced by some, but it seems a bit of a stretch to me. The third possibility is, of course, that God strikes dead anyone who disobeys his specific orders. Right.

Heliotrope,

"They should be made to reveal what's in there." "They need to be removed."

Whoa! Just who is it that you think has the authority, or right, to interfere with the religious convictions of someone else? I doubt that any one except the members the Abrahamic religions gives a damn. Are you suggesting that Christian or Islamic radicals stage a raid into Ethiopia? Would Israel be justified in stagng a commando raid to recover their long-lost property? Perhaps the United Nations could threaten force if the Ethiopians don't deliver up a religious article they believe God gave into their care. A group of religious scholars might institute an embargo on Ethiopian goods and services until the rascals give up the Ark. Let's fight a war against the Ethiopian tyrants for withholding the Ark, we can deal with international terrorism later.

When the Ark was housed within the Holy of Holies, no one was allowed to see it except the High Priest who only entered the sanctuary once, or twice a year. Do you think that if the Ark was still in the possession of the Jews that it should be taken from them and opened on national television?

Surely there are more important, and significant things in the world, to be "bugged" about than what happened to a religious artifact a couple of thousand years ago.

Perhaps they're in the same place as Joseph Smith's golden plates...The Holy Grail may be there, too.

I thought they just moved them to a back room of that Alabama Courthouse.

They should stay there if you ask me.

I appreciate your information, Asherman. I was already familiar with much of it, and my conclusions about it are much the same as yours.

Nonsense. The 10 commandments are amongst the most famous historical artifacts of all time. Many many historians, archaeologists and so on, as well as the general public, would be quite interested.

But yeah most of the world doesn't take the Ethiopian monks' claim too seriously.

Right. They were broken - and now, designs made of broken stone are called mosaics.

God is omniscient, right? So why didn't He just write the Commandments to CD so they would be more portable, couldn't be broken, and could be referred to in 2003, when we so obviously need Them?

These artifacts should be taken out into the light and examined using the best techniques available. If they are found to be what they purport to be then all well and good. If they are not then the respective religions can stop murdering people over them because of their misguided and ill informed views.

That is completely specious and absurd.
I want the facts about these artifacts. Not some cobbled together belief system that is based on nothing but speculation and revealed knowledge.

Why ? One must ask.
Is an artifact from g*d not a possession of the entirity of the human species ?
Or do the priesthood have something to hide ?
*hollow laugh*

Absolutely.
If I could pay to be there in person I would.
I wish to know what's in there and what it is.
Facts again. Investigation. Removal of the garbage that surrounds these artifacts and the political uses religions put them to.
If they are what they are claimed to be then use them for the benefit of all humans not just some self-serving minority who think they have a hot line to g*d.
If they are found not to be what they are claimed to be then they are worthless and should be discarded.

Indeed. But I haven't even begun to demonstrate the depths of what "bugs" or interests me.
I suggest you not imply that my interests are limited to such "unimportant and insignificant things" and keep your oblique insults to yourself.

to all of the above, this is great! be back soon.

Does any one have any idea what the 10 commandment tablet was made of ?

Phoenix, It still could be here, maybe, at least I hope so.
Asherman, I managed to walk through the passage way to the wailing wall, looking for something and I was disturbed several times for falling asleep aside the dome of the rock.
I don't think it's around there. I guess Moses brought the tablets down from Mt sinai, or Mount Olympus? Could My Ararat which I passed by have the possibilty of holding the item ? The object might be the same as the Holy Grail? What exactly did King Arthur take from the stone.Could the tablet that Moses had be the last piece of metamorphic rock before it too was turned off forever. If it was could not that stone have dissolved some of it's essence into the earth and somewhere in the appropriate place ,where must one must look .Secrets of the canvas are a clue to some dipiction on the planet. .???

Sorry if all seems nonsensical but does anyone ahve any reactions to any of this that might further extend this dialogue. When was the Tablets last seen is of some stratigic infomormation.

Could the golden fleece be of the same ilk and time and substance as this heavily sought after item?

Whatever the ideas remember we are controlled by the ultra amazing direction of the miracle DNA within us.

I think the original Tablet hasn't yet been returned to the library. Ain't the fine goin' to be high. heh heh heh

McTag -- you can get the Interactive version on DVD produced by the Bishop of Rome, it's available at Blockbuster. No Anglican version yet due to internal conflicts over bishops of a certain bent.

I have it with the knick knacks on my mantel. Does someone want it back?

Why do you think this questioning from Asherman's was specious & absurd? I can asure you that the Ethiopian monks guarding the Ark, as well as the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and Ethiopian government, wouldn't comply with Isreal, the UN, the Discovery Channel or any other entity that merely asked nicely if they could have a look at the Ark. It would have to come down to threats, raids, embargo, theft, corruption or suchlike (though it would be a tad hard to pay off a monk who's commited both to safeguarding the ark & to living a life of poverty ).