Study of Rocks

Seeing the world through the eyes of rocks

08/18/2019

Joshua 24:14-29 Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, and addressed them, saying: "Fear the LORD and serve him completely and sincerely. As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." But the people answered, "Far be it from us to forsake the LORD for the service of other gods. Therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God." So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem, which he recorded in the book of the law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak that was in the sanctuary of the LORD. And Joshua said to all the people, "This stone shall be our witness, for it has heard all the words which the LORD spoke to us. It shall be a witness against you, should you wish to deny your God."

Geology is essentially the study of rocks, and what we learn by the science of geology is the natural history of the world. The rocks themselves sort of tell the story of the interaction of natural forces that shaped the history of the visible world. We learn the age of the earth, the periods of the ice ages, the shifting of tectonic plates, the explosion of volcanoes, and so much more.

I would suggest to you that scripture study can also be a kind of study of rocks. There are rocks scattered throughout the scripture that tell us not so much the natural history of the earth but rather the supernatural history of all humanity. The careful reader of the bible will notice strategic stones that play a pivotal role in telling the tale of salvation history. Rocks, in a sense, are the enduring eye-witnesses to the interaction not only of the natural forces of sun and rain, gravity and growth, but also of the supernatural forces of grace, and love and the timeless tale of God’s romance of me and you. I used to think in college that nothing could be as boring as the study of a boulder, a rock. Now, however, I can hardly think of anything more exciting than staring at a stone.

In scripture there is no rock that has witnessed more of the story of salvation than the “Even ha-Shtiyya” in Hebrew, or commonly called the Foundation Stone. If you ever go to the Holy Land and visit Jerusalem, you will instantly notice a Muslim mosque with a bright golden dome. That is called the Dome of the Rock, because directly below that dome is the rock that the Jews call the Even ha-Shtiyya and that the Muslims believe is where Mohammed began his famous Night Journey to heaven.

But for Jews and Christians, that rock has witnessed the key points of the love story between God and man. The Foundation Stone is where God created the world, as well as Adam. The Foundation Stone is the site of Mt. Moriah, where Abraham almost sacrificed his son, Isaac. The Foundation Stone is where the Holy of Holies was located when there was a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. The Holy of Holies held the Ark of the Covenant, and would be equivalent to the Tabernacle in Catholic churches. No stone can tell the story of salvation history like the Even ha-Shtiyya. We read in Luke 19:39-40, as Jesus was entering Jerusalem, the Pharisees said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” Jesus replied: “I tell you, if they kept silent, the stones will cry out!” Indeed, the whole world – filled with rocks – is a witness to God’s love for us, but no stone has seen more of the pivotal points of that story of salvation than the Foundation Stone.

At the end of the book of Joshua, our first reading today, Joshua calls a stone into court to serve as an eye-witness to a covenant the people make with God. And that should not surprise us if we are good students of geology but also of the sacred scriptures. You are probably familiar with Joshua 24:15, where Joshua declares: “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Lots of people hang that scripture quotation in their homes. But the more important passage for us today is Joshua 24:26-27, where we read: “Then Joshua took a large stone and set it up there under the terebinth that was in the sanctuary of the Lord. And Joshua said to all the people, ‘This stone shall be our witness, for it has heard all the words which the Lord spoke to us. It shall be a witness against you, should you wish to deny your God’.” In other words, cutting a covenant is like saying your wedding vows, and therefore requires witnesses. Joshua enlists a stone as a witness because a covenant with God lasts as long as the earth itself, not just until death do us part.

Let me conclude with a very practical and powerful implication of this brief study of rocks. Every Catholic church also has a very special stone that is also an eye-witness to the covenant of love between God and humanity. That is the Altar Stone. Have you ever noticed when the priest enters the church at the beginning of Mass, he doesn’t just go straight to his chair and sit down? He first goes to the altar and kisses it. What does he kiss? He is not just kissing a table. Rather he’s kissing the altar stone, which contains the relic of a saint. But even more than venerating the relic of a saint, the priest is kissing the stone which serves as the eye-witness of a covenant between God and man called the Mass. At every Mass we declare to God like the people in Joshua’s time that we love him, and God declares his love for us in Jesus. Jesus said in Matthew 26:28: “This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” Just like the Even ha-Shtiyya, the Foundation Stone, and just like Joshua’s stone, so the altar stone bears witness to the eternal love story between God and us sealed in the covenant.

What could be more boring than beholding a boulder? On the other hand, perhaps there’s nothing more exciting than staring at a stone, which we do at every Mass when we gaze at the altar. Why? The study of rocks reveals the greatest story ever told.

Praised be Jesus Christ!