World’s oldest church?

The Kingsleys put me on to this interesting story about an archeological find in Israel.  A prison inmate in Megiddo was shoveling away rubble to prepare the ground for a new prison ward, when he uncovered the edge of a mosaic.  It turns out he may have discovered the world’s oldest church building.

Of course, in the early days churches would meet in public areas or in homes.  As persecution intensified, meetings would also be held in catecombs.  There is a great deal of controversy about this church for that very reason – if this church was build in the 200s, that would be before Christianity was even "legal" in the Roman empire.  Perhaps that’s why the church was destroyed in the first place.

But whenever it was built, it seems likely it was early.  For one thing, there’s no crosses anywhere.  For centuries Christians avoided the cross symbol – after all, crucifixions were actually taking place long after Jesus’ death.  The fish was the more popular symbol.  Also, the alter in the centre of the church provides some clues – actually, it’s not called an alter in the inscriptions.  It’s called a table.  Far from the rows of pews in later churches, early Christians would come together to eat, learn, praise and fellowship.  If this really is a table, there may be more insights to come about how people thought of church back in those days.

Inscriptions included dedications and memorials.  The building was dedicated to Jesus, and an inscription names the Roman soldier who donated money to make the floor, and a lady who donated the money for the table.

Why not visit the church for yourself?  There are a handful of photos at National Geographic.  Some questions answered, more photos and further thoughts over at Blog Rodent.