The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-04-24
RUINS 10 THE EAST OF PIATEAJT oT7 nm TA7oP-

=
stions, which speak of it as the Sacred
Mountain of GaIiIee Father. Barnabe
holds that the tradition which located
the TRANSPORTATION on Mount Tabor is
one of the best founded Of all traditions,
going back to the very first century
or the Christians. Orfgen EsusebiIle
St. Cyril OF Jerusalem. and St Jerolne
are unanimous IN proclaimihg Tabor
as the Mount of TRANSFORMATIONS At
tentive. study Of the accounts in the three
gospels of the transffguratfon points
toward Tabor, although it is not named
Faeher Barnabe points out that Jesus.
during the last few weeks of his life
was making a. final pastoral journey
in Galilee. He came from Tyre and
was on his way to the Sea of Gene
sereth- At last he reached Caesarea
Philippi on the extreme northern
boundary OF the territory of Israel, in
me center Of a population largely
pagan. When he arrived in this neigh
borhood he asked his disciples:
VINO do they say the Son of Man
is2 And You yourselves, who do YOU
say l amp Simon-Peter, answering.
said: You are the Christ, the son
OF the living, Cod Seeing them SO
Wen nxed in his faith Jesus began to
disclose to his disciples that he must
go TO Jerusalem, suffer much, be put
Z? oedtn ana rise en the third day. OF
MS further sojourn in Caesarea no
single detail is given. Six DAYS later
the mystery of the TRANSPORTATION took
place. All three eYangelists seem t6
insist upon q space of time having
elapsed between the last discourse .of
the Savior and his trans flgura ZION i
since no word is said of any preaching
during this time it is probable that the
SIX days We're passed in a journey.
ana lt might easily take six days walk
ing as slowly as Jesus walked in con
verse with his disciples. to 90 from
CaeSarea Philippi 10 Tabor
,HavlftS satisfied himself by his in
VestlSatioIls both historical and geo
sra Dhleali tlat Mt Tabor was the site
OF the TRANSPORTATION, Father Barnabe-
set himself TO the examination OF the
runs found there. The transforrna-
ions OF the buildings on Tabor have
been SO numerous that they, present
many difficulties to the archaeolOsrFSF
VINO mas TO- help himself by history at
times, and then ill in the gaps of mis-
tory oy his discoveries. The Drinci-
pal RUNS OF religious order are to he
round grouped together in a square
on the western side Of the plateau 70
the left on entering are the remains
OF a small church the walls of which
are. still standing from three to six
teet high This was the first sacred
edltce found in excavating this corner
OF the plateau There seems to have
been a second church here also. rFhe
nrst was hardly more than a chapel.
l2XlS feet, with a. serni-circular recess
on the west. The walls are built IN
Homan. style, covered on the inside by
White stueeo, on which are some traces
OF decorative foliage in red tints The
pavement IS a mosaic of black and
lozenges -
!. Thissiittie building bears the .ehaFae-
Ter OF the oratories of the
fourth and fifth centuries. 1t
1T without doubt one of the
Oldest church edifices ever tliscov-
cred in the Holy Land. Two inches
~ the recess show the Christian char
acter of the edifice without any doubt,
Tor one is evidently the. prothesis or
obla ticEarLTn, where the faithful de-
posit their Offering of bread and wine;
and the other is the diaconicun, where
me cnaitee and gospel We're kept A
little further to the west is a church
with three naves. having small chapels
on each. side of it. St Arltonir1e OF
Pialsance states (570l that he found
three churches on Tabor at the spot
at which Peter said to Jesus. TT is
good LORD, TO be here. Make three
tanernacies, one for you. one for Moses
and one for Elias" 1t is known that
IN 533 the council OF Constantinople de-
creed the erection of a bishopric upon
Mount Tabor, and, in consequences,
there must have been a cathedral
there. Dnon the best archaeological
grounds 1t can be asserted that the
ruins found here are not later than
the. sixth century, but they may be
much earlier The church was perched
upon the solid rock, aon the very spot,
according to tradition, where the trans
hgura-foa took place. On each side are
the chapels dedicated 20 Moses and
Elijah, and they we're certainly con-
'structed al the same time as the main
edifee. In she ruins of this, church We're
found several capitals In white marble
One of these capitals is perfectly pre-
served, and is a foot and a half thigh.
1t is markedly Corinthian in character,
and Identical with those of the Basi-
lica of Bethlehem, which archeologtsts