H-ARK! THE HERALD ANGELS' WINGS!

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IN SEARCH OF THE LOST ARK OF THE COVENANT
by Robert Cornuke and David Halbrook
published: 2002
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I was just poking around in a little Christian bookshop at Lake Arrowhead Village in August of 2001, when I happened upon Robert Cornuke's IN SEARCH OF THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD. I was intrigued by the photos right away and bought it. I've now read 4 of Cornuke's books in 4 years. Not too bad for a dude who turns his nose up at the Indiana Jones movie series!
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Ol' Cornuke really accumulates those "frequent flyer" credits. He's traipsed all over the world in search of archeological evidence supporting the historicity of The Holy Bible: Egypt and Saudi Arabia in search of the real Mount Sinai; Turkey in search of Noah's ark; Malta, seeking signs of the lost shipwreck of Saint Paul; and Africa, looking for the mysteriously missing Holy Ark Of The Jewish Covenant. Man, by now Ol' Cornuke's dogs must be really barking! OK, so what if he has to soak his feet in Epsom salts from time to time -- what a cool ride he's taken us on, eh?
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I'll confess that I wasn't overly impressed with the first half of IN SEARCH OF THE LOST ARK OF THE COVENANT, as it chronicled the legend of the Ark's removal to Ethiopia from ancient Jerusalem (which I was already somewhat familiar with) and Cornuke's first excursion into Africa in search of answers. It was in the second half of the book, as the archeology of Bible passages turned up clues, that I really got sucked into the story.
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This is not surprising, as I am really fascinated by Bible study. I consider the Holy Book to be the cosmic crossword puzzle -- an exciting source of mystery which, for the person willing to deeply study and contemplate it, slowly unveils far-reaching answers to Man's most urgent questions.
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One thought that leads me to believe that the Ark still exists somewhere is that there is no written record of an invading army capturing it from the Jews and removing it from their Temple. The Ark would have been a prestigious prize for an enemy to boast of possessing -- certainly the world's most noteworthy booty at least until KC And The Sunshine Band came into prominence in 1975 and '76. To my knowledge, no ownership claim was ever made by another nation. And if the Ark does still exist, Ethiopia must certainly be considered the most likely location, for reasons outlined in Cornuke's book.
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An Ethiopian man named Haile, serving as an official government museum curator, gives Cornuke a firsthand account of the Ark's appearance after he and two companions stole a peek at it. According to Haile, all three of them were immediately knocked to the ground by an unseen force. The other two died shortly thereafter, and Haile was quickly losing his eyesight. I found this interesting in that it seems to closely parallel the experience of the soldiers who, in trying to impose their will on Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, were unexplainably knocked to the ground. (See John 18:3-9) And yet, at the same time, I find this curious because, considering that the Life, Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus supplanted any other representation of God in the physical world, I would expect the Ark, if it still exists, to now be devoid of any mysterious power, and serving merely as a symbol. I don't know what to make of Haile's account... if it is truthful.
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The most original idea put forth in Cornuke's book is that the "Mercy Seat" -- the gold covering with its cherubim (angels) and their downward sloping, outstretched wings that sit atop the Ark -- will actually serve as the Throne for Jesus when it is brought back to Jerusalem at His return. That's a pretty wild concept, to be sure, but read the book, and you'll see that it actually does have some merit. A very intriguing theory worth considering!
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If, like me, you really enjoy exploring the intricacies of The Bible in search of its greatest nuance, you will undoubtedly find IN SEARCH OF THE LOST ARK OF THE COVENANT well worth reading. If deep Bible study does not particularly interest you, you probably won't make it to the end of the book. Either way, I recommend starting with Cornuke's best book, IN SEARCH OF THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD, then read THE LOST SHIPWRECK OF PAUL, and finally, this one. I suggest skipping IN SEARCH OF THE LOST MOUNTAINS OF NOAH altogether.
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So, do I really believe that the ancient Holy Ark of The Covenant resides in the Chapel Of St. Mary Of Zion in Axum? I'd say that there's a very strong possibilty of that. I don't know that I'd go so far as to bet my life on it, but I'm fairly certain that I'd be willing to bet YOURS!
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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CAP'N BOB IS LED TO THE SEA TO SEE THE LEAD!

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THE LOST SHIPWRECK OF PAUL
by Robert Cornuke
pulished: 2003
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All hands on deck for the reading of Robert Cornuke's, THE LOST SHIPWRECK OF PAUL, a seaworthy tale of Biblical proportions!
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This book should appeal to you if: A) You are a crusty old, armchair sea dog. B) A Christian interested in Biblical archaeology. Or, C) Simply a reader looking for a good story. But you will especially love the book if you happen to be all three: A crusty old, Christian armchair sea dog looking for a good story related to Biblical archaeology. Now we're talkin'!
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This latest installment in Robert Cornuke's series of adventures that take him in search of evidence to support the Bible's historicity, sets sail for the island of Malta, seeking the ancient lead anchors from the shipwreck of Saint Paul.
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Using the words of Luke recorded in the 27th chapter of Acts as his first mate, Cornuke calculates where these long lost lead treasures are apt to be found. It turns out that the objects of our hero's quest had already been located and raised from the sea floor by Maltese divers in the late 1960s and early 1970s. (Although the island natives had no inkling of the tremendous importance of their discoveries since the traditional site of Paul's wreck is a cove considerably further North.) Unfortunately, this fact tends to let the wind out of the sails in Cap'n Bob's adventure just a little bit.
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Nevertheless, it's a slightly padded, but worthwhile story that proves beyond all reasonable doubt that these recovered artifacts, which meet all of the demanding criteria, are indeed remnants of Saint Paul's misadventure at sea. And once again we come face to face with the prospect that, despite the hysterical ranting to the contrary by society's willfully ignorant atheistic and unthinking agnostic bilge rats, the Bible is a reliable historical document! So there! Let 'em stick this in their dinghy and smoke it!
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This title is certainly superior to Cornuke's disappointing In Search Of The Lost Mountains Of Noah, but not nearly as suspenseful as his most important book, IN SEARCH OF THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD: The Discovery Of The Real Mount Sinai. But all in all, THE LOST SHIPWRECK OF PAUL manages to stay afloat while both enlightening and entertaining. It's a quick read, making it an ideal companion on a plane flight or for a weekend at the beach. Although I doubt that I would pack it along on a pleasure cruise, not even on a mere three-hour tour, if you catch my "drift."
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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REVIEWING SOME REVIEWERS

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In Search Of THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD

by Robert Cornuke and David Halbrook

published: 2000

[This book review originally appeared at Amazon.com on 2004, May 6. It was the first review I wrote for that website.]

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I do quite a bit of reading with fairly critical eyes, and yet I don't hesitate to give IN SEARCH OF THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD five stars. It is an exciting adventure story about a very significant subject. The evidence that Mr. Cornuke provides in support of his belief that Jabal al Lawz in Saudi Arabia is the REAL Mount Sinai is absolutely overwhelming. It is an excellent book that may very well challenge some of your previously held beliefs while it authenticates the historicity of the Bible's Old Testament.
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What I primarily wish to do here is to correct some remarks in three of the other online reviews which I suspect might confuse others: 
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"A READER FROM USA" states that Jabal al Lawz cannot be the real Mount Sinai because Colin Humphreys evidently claims in his book, 'The Miracles Of Exodus', that Mount Sinai had to have been a volcano (due to its burning, smoking peak, and its trembling.) Yes, that would be true, but only if one feels compelled to attribute natural phenomena to all of the miracles described in The Bible. If a person accepts that God is quite capable of transcending His own creation, then finding a "rational" explanation for every miracle is not necessary, and probably fruitless. Because the circumstances on Mount Sinai when Moses met there with God describes what we commonly associate with volcanic activity, it does not at all follow that Mount Sinai MUST have been a volcano. God may heal a person of cancer, but that DOES NOT mean that God MUST be a surgeon. 
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"WILLIAM E. THOMPSON" seems to be reviewing two of Cornuke's books simultaneously and that is bound to cause confusion for those unfamiliar with the other book. The statement that the explorers should have (admittedly) returned to the site for further investigation is in regards to Cornuke's 'In Search Of The Lost Mountains Of Noah', in which he relates his failure to locate Noah's Ark. Although Chapter Twenty-Six ('The Blood Of The Lamb') of that book is quite moving -- in which the sacrifice of a lamb is compared with the sacrificial act of Jesus -- I agree that the book ultimately should have been shelved until the author had legitimate evidence to offer. But that is no reason to avoid this superior book on the discovery of Mount Sinai. 
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In his review, "ABUJIFAN" far too easily dismisses the many indicators that point to Jabal al Lawz as the REAL Mount Sinai. He fails to address many of the historic landmarks that (coincidentally?!) happen to be in the same general location as the burnt Mountain, and also the coral reef that (conveniently) connects the lower tip of the Sinai Peninsula (across The Red Sea) with Saudi Arabia and the immediate area where all of these landmarks are found! He didn't mention the existence of the water-worn Split Rock (referenced in Exodus 17:5-6 and Isaiah 48:21 of The Bible) -- an astonishing find! And he dismisses the photograph of the (presumed) Golden Calf Altar as a pile of rocks that "look like many naturally-occurring formations all over Western Arabia." Well, I've lived in the Southwestern U.S. all of my life, and unless rocks form quite differently in Arabia than they do here, that formation is hardly naturally-occurring, and I find it incredible that a person with a degree in archaeology would make such a claim.
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And therein, I suspect, is the rub. Is this a case of "professional jealousy"? Would it bother a pedigreed archaeologist if a testosterone-laden explorer armed with just his wits and his Bible made one of the greatest discoveries in the archaeologist's own backyard? Well, I don't know the answer to that, but I DO KNOW that 'IN SEARCH OF THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD: THE DISCOVERY OF THE REAL MOUNT SINAI' is a real page-turner and a Five Star book, doggone it! That's all I have to say. I'm gonna go climb back under my rock now and wait to see who finds me first, an archaeologist or an adventurer. 
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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