Since Saudi Arabia relaxed rules and expanded visas for tourists in 2019, Christians have been increasingly visiting the country, drawn by word of mouth and promotional YouTube videos, in search of Mount Sinai, where the Bible recounts God revealing the Ten Commandments to Moses.
For many centuries people have believed the location to be in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Catherine, the wife of the Eastern Roman emperor Justinian, is said to have journeyed throughout the region and identified the site of Mount Sinai. A monastery bearing her name was built there in 550 C.E., and it has served as the presumed location of Mount Sinai ever since.
But this was entirely based on the word of local tribes living some 2,000 years after the event. Most scholars believe that the location of Mount Sinai is unknowable from the available textual evidence.
Jacob Love, a lecturer in religious studies, examines the various theories of the existence of Mount Sinai and provides insight on its early mentions in the Bible and throughout history. Read the full article at The Conversation.
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Contact:
Cindi King (865-974-0937, cking126@utk.edu)