Vendyl Jones
Vendyl Miller Jones (May 29, 1930 – December 27, 2010) was an American
Biography
Vendyl was born in
Between 1955 and 1956, Jones was pastor of the Dungan Chapel Baptist Church located on the border of Virginia and North Carolina. Vendyl came to believe that many apparently anti-Jewish statements in the gospels were "omitted in more ancient manuscripts" basing this claim on the "marginal notes" of an unidentified Bible.
In October 1956, Jones resigned the pastorate and moved to
Continuing his studies, Vendyl lectured for the Biblical Research Society from 1964 to 1967. He then established the Judaic-Christian Research Foundation, which later gave birth to the Institute of Judaic-Christian Research (IJCR), which has now become Vendyl Jones Research Institutes.
In 1964, the Journal of Near Eastern Studies reported the 1952 discovery of the Marble Tablets in Beirut, Lebanon. That same year the Copper Scroll was found in Cave #3 at Qumran, West Bank, which listed the hiding places of 64 sacred articles which included the Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant.
Move to Israel
In April 1967, Jones moved his family to Israel to continue his studies in the Department of Judaica at
In the years following, Jones continued to work in the Judean wilderness with his friend and mentor, the late Pessah Bar-Adon. Jones also worked at Tel Debir (Kiryat HaSefer) with Professor Moshe Kohavi and Anson Rainey; the University of Tel Aviv and the Citadel of Herod the Great in Jerusalem with Professor Hillel Geva.
After 1972, Vendyl conducted eight excavations at Qumran, involving over 300 volunteers and funded by individual supporters of VJRI. There has been no support nor funding from the government, foundations, or grants. Jones's methods, claims and qualifications have been disputed by academics such as Joe Zias and Robert Elliot Friedman, and Jones has been denied digging permits by the Israeli authorities.
In 1988 an excavation team led by Jones found a small Herodian period jug in a cave near Qumran containing what was possibly balsamic oil, a type of oil which may have been used to anoint some Israelite kings.[4] Jones stated that this was the original balm of Gilead.[5] This was originally considered to be genuine and was publicised in the media.[6][7]
In the 1992 excavation, the VJRI team announced the discovery of a hidden silo in the bedrock that contained a reddish snuff-looking material that appeared to be organic in nature.[8][9] It was analyzed by Zohar Amar of Bar-Ilan University who noted that "According to Jones, the site where the red material was found corresponds exactly to the description of the ‘‘Cave of the Column” referred to in the Copper Scroll." Amar criticises Jones for being selective with his data, omitting material that challenges his claims. He concludes that the substance found by Jones "is a cleaning material known in the ancient Hebrew as "borit" [lye] which was produced in this region by the inhabitants of Qumran and was one of their industries."[10]
Jones believed his archaeology to have
Noahide Movement
Vendyl Jones was active in the Noahide movement, also known as Bnei Noach.[12][13][14]
While attempting to find or grow a
After his passing, the Noahide Nations organization, with the permission of his wife Anita Jones, created the Vendyl Jones Scholarship Fund.[19]
Indiana Jones
Jones also claimed to have been the subject of a movie script that was circulated in Hollywood, and which he claimed inspired the character of Indiana Jones.[citation needed] He dedicates a chapter to the subject in his book A Door of Hope: My Search for the Treasures of the Copper Scroll stating he never claimed to be the basis for Indiana Jones.[20][21][22] He states, "I cannot help that my name is Jones and that I happen to be looking for, among other things, the Ark... Admittedly, I have enjoyed the notoriety that the film created.. however I want to make it clear once and for all, that I have never stood up and declared, 'I am the real Indiana Jones.'"[21]
According to the story, a certain Randolph Fillmore, who had been on one of Jones's digs, wrote the first draft for Raiders of the Lost Ark; Vendyl became "Endy", then "Indy".[23][failed verification] According to the now defunct Vendyl Jones website: "In 1977, a young man volunteered for one of our archaeological digs. His name was Randy Filmore. He wrote a screenplay based on Vendyl's experiences and titled it "The Search for the Ashes of the Red Heifer." Upon returning to the States, Randy contacted Vendyl with the news that he'd found representation for his script in Hollywood. To this day, Vendyl has not heard from Filmore. When Vendyl recounts this story to the press, they often misinterpret it as a claim by Vendyl that he and Indy are the same."[24][25]
However, accounts of the making of the film flatly contradict this. Philip Kaufman and George Lucas came up with the idea of an archaeologist hunting for the Ark, while Indiana was the name of Lucas's Alaskan Malamute. The character was to be named Indiana Smith after Nevada Smith (Steve McQueen's character in the eponymous film), and this was changed to Indiana Jones by Steven Spielberg.[26] In his book he adds, "did Fillmore's script make its way to the West Coast and into the hands of a producer who showed it to Kaufman? Did it cross the desk of Spielberg or Lucas? I really don't know, nor do I care."[21]
More recently, the FAQ section of Jones's web page has stated that, "It may be hard to believe but Vendyl has no connection with the popular motion picture character [Indiana Jones]. He has never received any money from the producers of the movie. And he's never asked."[27]
Other men more frequently identified as the inspiration for Indiana Jones are Hiram Bingham III, Colonel Percy Fawcett and Roy Chapman Andrews.[26][28][29] A Smithsonian Channel analysis concludes that the similarities to these men was indirect, with explorers like these serving as the model for heroes in adventure films of the 1940s and 1950s, which inspired writers like Lucas.[29]
Works
In 1983, Vendyl published Will the Real Jesus Please Stand?. The book covers material he had previously released on cassette tapes addressing seven riddles of Israel and the Messiah.
In 2005 the book A Door of Hope: My Search for the Treasures of the Copper Scroll was published. In it, Jones discusses his childhood, move to Israel and digs for archaeological artifacts. He ends with stating that although he may not have found the lost ark, he found camaraderie with his co-workers and volunteers stating "...my search for the treasures of the Copper Scroll has allowed me to learn from some of the finest minds driven by the biggest hearts... maybe I found what I was seeking." (page 226)[20][21][22]
While running the Institute for Judaic-Christian Research, he published a newsletter, The Researcher, which went out to his supporters.
Death
On December 27, 2010, Jones died from throat cancer. His funeral took place in Grandview, Texas.[30]
News Items and Interviews
- BBC News Real 'Raiders of the lost Ark
- Israel National News: Kabbalist Blesses Jones: Now´s the Time to Find Holy Lost Ark
- Israel News Radio Archived 2006-07-17 at the Wayback Machine
- The People: A Million a Minute - Time
- Quest: The Search for the Ark of the Covenant (documentary film) - IMDB
- The Strange Search for the Ashes of the Red Heifer - The Biblical Archaeologist, 1996 The Biblical Archaeologist
- Searching for Biblical Treasure - Radio interview with George Noony Coast to Coast
- Interview with Vendyl Jones - Israel National Radio
- Vendyl Jones's Search For The Lost Ark - Associated Press (Video)
- From the Pulpits of Tennessee to the Desert of Israel: Legacy of Spiritual Maverick Vendyl Jones Lives On - Breaking Israel News
- Masquerader of The Lost Ark: Is a renegade Texas archaeologist the real Indiana Jones? - Texas Monthly, 1992
- "Finding the Lost Ark" by David Margolis
References
- ^ Vendyl was reported in interviews to have received a master's degree from a Baptist higher education institution. This is verified by his third degree received from the Hebrew University program which cooperates with the American Institute of Holy Land Studies used by a consortium of many North American theological seminaries and Christian colleges and universities.
- ^ Archaeologist Vendyl Jones Speaks About His Research and Discoveries, Lali Dzhanashvili, Baruch College (The City University of New York) Newspaper, October 27, 2003 (The Ticker website)
- ^ Raider of the Lost Artifacts Karen Boren, Deseret News, June 25, 1992 (Deseret News website)
- JSTOR 27926136.
- ISBN 9781118100585.
- )
- ^ National Geographic Magazine October 1989 Vol 176 No 4. National Geographic Society. 1989-10-01.
- ^ "Spiritual Significance of the Incense". www.jewishmag.co.il. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ^ Paul Tweed (2011-08-08), Temple Scroll Cave and Incense Cave 1992 Excavation, archived from the original on 2021-12-15, retrieved 2016-03-12
- JSTOR 4193076.
- ^ Sanhedrin Moves to Establish Council For Noahides Arutz Sheva 29/9/2005
- ^ "Broadcast 1 Part 1 – Noahide pioneers". Noahide World Center. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ^ noahidenations (2015-09-11), B'nai Noah Throughout History, archived from the original on 2021-12-15, retrieved 2016-03-09
- ^ "vendyl jones". roshpinaproject.com. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ^ Jones speeking in 1979 about the quest for the red heifer (Audio, Apostilic Archive channel on YouTube)
- Israel National Newswebsite)
- ^ Rabbi Yeshayahu Hollander with the Vendyl Jones (Noahide World Center channel, YouTube)
- ^ (In Hebrew) Bedouins from the South and Rabbis attempt to connect the nations, Yitzhak Tessler, October 14, 2009, Makor Rishon newspaper (Israeli NRG website)
- ^ "VENDYL JONES SCHOLARSHIP FUND". www.noahidenations.com. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ^ a b "Vendyl Jones". lightcatcherbooks.com. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ^ ISBN 9780971938854.
- ^ a b "Door of Hope". Goodreads. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ^ "Other Religious Topics | Watchman Fellowship, Inc".
- ^ "F A Q s". 1998-01-11. Archived from the original on January 11, 1998. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ^ Masqueraders of the Lost Arc Mark Seal, August 1992, Texas Monthly (Texas Monthly website)
- ^ a b "Log into Facebook". Archived from the original on 2003-12-07.
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: Cite uses generic title (help) - ^ "妈妈买饭把2岁儿子绑床上,问其原因哭着说:怕摔下来-深圳市三和晟电子有限公司".
- ^ http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2005-09-22-peru_x.htm
- ^ a b "Smithsonian Channel: Telling America's Stories". Archived from the original on 2013-02-02. Retrieved 2013-01-03.
- ^ Fendel, Hillel (2010-12-27). "Noahide Archaeologist Vendyl Jones Passes Away". Israel National News. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
External links
- "sohbet"
- Vendyl Jones website (now defunct, link to archive.org version)