The Cross Temple is a former place of worship in Fangshan, Beijing. Built as a Buddhist temple, it may have seen Christian use during the Tang dynasty (618–907). The temple was used by Buddhists during the Liao dynasty (916–1125) and by Christians during the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), returned to Buddhist use during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), and was sold in 1911. Its first modern mention was in 1919. The Cross Temple was damaged during the Cultural Revolution but recognised as a national-level protected site in 2006. Some scholars consider it to be the only place of worship of the Church of the East (also known as Nestorian Christianity) discovered in China. In the early 20th century, two stone blocks carved with crosses were discovered, one of which had an inscription in Syriac; they are presently on display at Nanjing Museum. Today, the site features two ancient steles (one pictured) dating to the Liao and Yuan dynasties, some groundwork and the bases of several pillars.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_Temple,_Fangshan

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1786:

Angered by high tax burdens and disfranchisement, farmers in western Massachusetts led by Daniel Shays began an armed uprising against the U.S. federal government. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shays%27s_Rebellion

1831:

Michael Faraday first experimentally demonstrated electromagnetic induction, leading to the formulation of the law of induction named after him. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faraday%27s_law_of_induction

1960:

Air France Flight 343 crashed while attempting to land at Yoff Airport, Dakar, killing all 63 occupants. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_France_Flight_343

2016:

Chen Quanguo became the Chinese Communist Party secretary of Xinjiang, and in that role later oversaw the creation of the Xinjiang internment camps. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chen_Quanguo

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

make no bones about: (idiomatic) To do, indicate, or say something clearly and without hesitation, even if it may be unpleasant. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/make_no_bones_about

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

I’d like to see our politics begin to return to the purposes and practices that distinguish our history from the history of other nations. I would like to see us recover our sense that we are more alike than different. We are citizens of a republic made of shared ideals forged in a new world to replace the tribal enmities that tormented the old one. Even in times of political turmoil such as these, we share that awesome heritage and the responsibility to embrace it. Whether we think each other right or wrong in our views on the issues of the day, we owe each other our respect, as long as our character merits respect, and as long as we share, for all our differences, for all the rancorous debates that enliven and sometimes demean our politics, a mutual devotion to the ideals our nation was conceived to uphold, that all are created equal, and liberty and equal justice are the natural rights of all. Those rights inhabit the human heart, and from there, though they may be assailed, they can never be wrenched. I want to urge Americans, for as long as I can, to remember that this shared devotion to human rights is our truest heritage and our most important loyalty.   --John McCain https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_McCain