The Vatican Insider has an interesting article on the possible discovery of Noah’s vineyard. This supposed discovery of Noah’s vineyard has generated a few discussion in the Internet.  Below is an excerpt from the article:

It all started with an article – actually very simple – published back in May on the prestigious “Journal of Archeological Science.” It speaks of an excavation conducted by a team of Armenian, American and Irish scholars in the caves of Areni, an archaeological site located in Armenia, in the border area with Iran.  In one of these caves there were findings which – through a particular chemical analysis – reveal that about 6 thousand years ago products that derive from grapes had been stored there.  This suggests that in the Middle East produced red wine much earlier than previously thought.

It would have remained a matter for specialists, if a singular coincidence had not turned it into a tasty morsel for the media: the village of Areni is, in fact, just 60 miles from Mount Ararat, where according to tradition, Noah’s ark had stranded.  And – as told in Genesis (chapter 9 verse 20) – according to the Bible, the patriarch of the flood was the first man to cultivate a vineyard.

The article in the Vatican Insider also deals with the lost tomb of Jesus and with the recent “discovery” of the lost Christian books found in Jordan several months ago.

The article deals primarily with efforts to prove that the Bible is true (or not true) with the help of the so-called “archaeological discoveries.”

As the article points out, “Noah’s vineyard” is not a fake.  It is a real discovery.  However, the imaginative reconstruction of the history behind this discovery takes away the importance of the discovery.

No imaginative reconstruction of history can prove the authenticity of the Bible. Those who use imaginative reconstruction of history to prove the Bible do a disfavor to the Bible.

Read the article [Note: The article has been removed by The Vatican Insider].

Claude Mariottini
Emeritus Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

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