Journey is the institutional magazine of Carson-Newman University. Journey tells stories of Carson-Newman students, faculty and alumni of the University.
Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/50035
Taken this summer at dig headquarters, Garner and sophomore Josh Carter participate in the daily reading of pottery from the previous day's finds. knew she would not hear it again when she returned home. In the fall of 2011, Emily enrolled in a master's degree program at the Univer- sity of Cincinnati where she was award- ed a full graduate assistantship to study world history, Middle Eastern studies, and Arabic language. She continues to move forward in her education and life experience. 2011 The son of a pastor, Josh Carter is a nursing major from Ohio who sees his future in medical ministry and church planting in a developing nation. The C-N sophomore was eager to get the experience in an Islamic country that could mix his discoveries of ancient history with his observations of a con- temporary culture he had never seen. He spent a week in Israel and then joined the excavation for the 2011 dig season. During the dig, Josh ate watermelon as the refreshing snack at "second break- fast," like "coffee break" back home. Since the day begins at 4:30 a.m., a tasty refreshment break at 9 a.m. is a good idea. Aſter five weeks of digging at Mudaybi' and experiencing a world-class ar- chaeological excavation firsthand, Josh summarized his impressions. "Archaeology is the most boring, mo- notonous, fun, interesting, tedious, detailed, time-consuming, aggravating and yet exciting and exhilarating thing you can ever do!" 30 JOURNEY fall 2011 That pretty well covers it. And now the nursing student wants to write a "fun" research paper on the Byzantine Em- pire's presence in Jordan with a particu- lar emphasis on the Karak Plateau. "[Jordan] not only enhanced my love of history, but has added to my personal cultural awareness of Muslim coun- tries, especially in the Middle East," Josh explained. "I definitely could see myself moving back to the region in the blink of an eye, but most likely aſter I finish my graduate studies in nursing and theology of mission. I could move there tomorrow, but I know I need to make more solid preparation. Ten-plus years from now, I may be living and serving among the Palestinian people through a mission organization." And so it has gone, the excavation of an ancient site some 6,000 miles from campus helps students understand the value in moving from the known to the unknown. Dr. Don Garner is a professor of religion in C-N's School of Religion. He holds the BA from the University of North Carolina and both the MDiv and PhD from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.