The Jesus Trail in Twelve Easy Steps

The Jesus Trail Steps:
1. Wake up really early and take a bus from Jerusalem to Nazareth (important note: try not to miss it!) We met at the gate of JUC at 5am, packed up all the food for the trip and headed out for Jerusalem's central bus station. It's about a 45 minute walk, so we arrived in plenty of time to catch our bus. It's a two part trip, so after about an hour and a half we arrived at a place called Afoula (sp?) and got off to catch our next bus. The bus to Nazareth pulled up, one person jumped on and it started to pull away again. Robbie, looking slightly confused, kind of puts his hand out and says, wait guys, isn't that our bus? The bus driver looks at us, sees our confusion and stops again. We sprinted onto the bus and just barely made it to Nazareth! It could have been such a different experience...

2. Arrive in Nazareth and take pictures of the guy with the coolest mustache ever We got into Nazareth at about 9am, which was great time. Just as we pulled into town, Emily looked out the window and saw this guy pretty much the bushiest, best handlebar mustache that any of us had ever seen. Of course, we had to take pictures to prove our find. After that we went to the Church of the Announciation. It was a very impressive church. I think the coolest part was that they had artwork of Mary and Jesus from at least a hundred different countries. It gave a really cool perspective on how different cultures view the same thing.

3. Hike up several hundred steps through Nazareth, then up some more hills to Nazareth Ridge, and try to convince yourself this wasn't as bad of an idea as it seems

We arrived at the start of the Jesus Trail and discovered some concrete steps. No big deal, right? Well, that's what we thought too, until we realized they just kept going, and going, and going. By the time we got to the top of them, we all wanted to quit before we had started. Then we started up some hills. I guess they just want to know if you're really cut out for the trip or not!

Eventually we made it to the top and realized that we were standing on Nazareth Ridge. It was a super cool view down into the valley, and it made the climb worth it (well, nearly)!

My trail buddies as we left Nazareth and headed out into the country.

4. Curse the trail markers...may they wither like the fig tree

We got our first taste of this on the way into Cana. Apparently the well marked trail was not always so well marked. For all we searched and searched we couldn't find the next blaze. After some map consultation we figured out that we must be on the descent into Cana, but other than that, we were pretty lost. After sending scoutes in several directions, Mitchell ran into a very nice man who gave us directions to the church in the center of Cana (a stop along the Jesus Trail). He then proceeded to offer us cold water and Sprite. Can I just say that I love Middle Eastern hospitality? I love it!

5. Hike through Cana, on to the Golani Junction and make camp

We followed the very nice man's directions down into the town of Cana, where we stopped for some wonderful falafel. It may have been some of the best falafel I've ever eaten, or I may have just been really, really hungry. Either is a distinct possibility. Or both. One just never knows about such things. We hiked up the hill to the church, and stopped to look around. It was pretty small but had lots of neat side rooms and stuff to explore. It also had a place to fill our water, something we were well in need of by that point.

Leaving the church, we hiked on out into the middle of nowhere. I've decided that I really like the middle of nowhere. On the way, we cursed some more trail markers. I think there must be a lot of withered trail markers by now. After hiking through a totally wild and very untrail looking field, we found a road with no more trail markers. I eventually found a marker for a different trail that we thought would meet up with the Jesus Trail. At this point we also met up with a couple of Germans who were also hiking the Jesus Trail named Gino and Suzanne. We ended up hiking with them for the next couple of hours, all the way to the Golani Junction and into a camping area just beyond called Lavi Forest.

At Lavi, we never found the campsite. We looked and looked, and by the time we actually stopped, Emily and I were both about to sit down and call it quits. We simply didn't care if we found the campsite or not. Any open field would do at that point. The guys also decided that, and we found the least rocky field that we could and set up camp. Gino and Suzanne kept looking, but eventually ending up camping near us. For all that we were outdoors and a bit uncomfortable, we were completely out and slept straight through the night.

6. Get up, hike all day, see some cool stuff and camp at the Cliffs of Arbel (important note: don't get attacked by jackels while sleeping)
We started off by getting up about 7:45 this morning. By the time we got breakfast, packed up and headed out it was about 9:00. First thing, we stopped at a gas station and filled our water bottles as well as brushed our teeth and such. I was amazed how much better I felt after sleeping! I was so tired and sore last night, I pretty much could have passed out. This morning I still ached a bit, but in general, I really wasn't all that sore.

Emily and Dan at the gas station, trying to figure out a new mode of transportation

The real hike began with a game of frogger across the highway to pick up the trail again (we were very safe about it, I promise). Everything up until the Kibbutz was pretty routine. Then we started hiking through grain fields. I felt very Jesus like at that moment. The feeling of walking in the footsteps of Jesus soon gave way to feelings of scratched and scraped as we continued trecking through thorny bushy things. After going around the kibbutz and past all the cows, we headed towards the Horns of Hittim.

By the time we were approaching, I was hot and tired but super excited to be there. By the time we reached the saddle, I was definitely ready to stop for lunch. We discovered that a whole bunch of people were stopping and eating up there, so we moved further down the line of trees. After lunch, we started putting our boots back on and packing up. Several of us discovered we had blisters on our feet, myself included. Ibuprofen made the rounds. We also took the time to take some more pictures as we had a sweet view of Arbel from there.

As soon as we started down, we discovered a LOT of cows. There was even one baby cown among the group. We tried to take a group picture by using the timer on Robbie's camera, but failed. Gino came up at that point, and he took it for us.

The trail markers got tricky at this point, and we ended up going down the wrong way. It was a steep climb down, but we still made it to Nebi Shu'eib, a Druze holy site. We started by filling up our water, which was pretty much empty. Then we took a look around. We were able to go into the Druze shrine as long as we covered our heads and arms and took our shoes off. The shrine is supposed to be the burial place of Jethro, Moses father-in-law, who they claim is the father of monotheism. We also got to see the strange baggy pants the men wear because they think the messiah will be born of a man, and it may happen at any time. Where does an idea like that even come from? I've learned not to be all that surprised by stuff in Israel, but that one still made me scratch my head the first time I heard it.

We all grabbed slushies at a little stand on our way out and took off down the road. Follwing the Jesus trail took us well away from Arbel and then back around again. It also took us a lot longer than expected. We went through a lot of mud and puddle crossings along the way, but we made it. I got entertained along the way by Robbie's stories, for which he definitely has a gift (no surprises, he's studying creative writing). The hike up Arbel was pretty steep but not quite as bad as I had anticipated. Near the top, we discovered a 4th century synagogue and stopped to watch the sunset there. Starting again was hard, but we got moving and made it to Arbel in another 45 minutes or so.

Once there, we found the gate (and bathrooms) locked, but they had outdoor water, which was good. We filled up and then hiked to the top where we found a place to camp for the night. Dinner commenced, but everyone got a bit nervous when we heard hyennas down in the valley. We decided to put the food in a couple of stuff sacks and moved it away from the sleeping site. At about 2:00 or so, Robbie and Mitch both heard jackels, probably only 15 feet or so from where we were. Thankfully, I slept through that part. Mitchell may have collected some rocks, just in case. Around 4:30, we all woke up to the sound of jackels, close, but not right next to us. The varying responses of the group were awesome. Mitchell - guys, we'll be fine (as he checks to make sure he still has the rocks). Emily - very worried look on her face, not saying much (later found out she dug out her knife). Robbie - slightly worried, but taking it all in stride. Me - a bit worried and uncomfortable, but more ok when all the guys who knew the difference between hyennas and jackels seemed to think it was just jackels and not that big of a deal. Dan - guys, it's just some jackels (and promptly back to sleep within about 60 seconds).

7. Watch the sun rise over the Sea of Galilee from Arbel

I woke up again about 5:30 and started going back and forth between sitting up to see the sky and resting some more. Sometime a little before 6:00 the sun started coming up and the colors got awesome! I can't even believe how blessed I am to be sitting on the top of the Cliffs of Arbel watching the sun rise over the Sea of Galilee. I am so excited to be here right now! As we were waking up, an older couple walked by our camp with their cameras. I felt a little awkward, but just waved from my sleeping bag and said good morning as they came past. On their way back, the guy stopped and took a picture of us in our sleeping bags and tarp. The illegal campsite is now documented. Most excellent.

8. Hike down Arbel and on to Capernaum (important note: you will need to find Robbie, the herdsman, in order to get past the cows on the trail)

After enjoying the sunrise, we started getting changed, eating breakfast, and packing up. We headed out and down the cliffs. It turned out to be a decently difficult climb down involving iron staples and lots of careful footing. I definitely wished for Ibex skills on that one. But wow, what a view!

The super awesome view as we hiked down the Cliffs of Arbel (Sea of Galilee straight in front)

One of the caves at Arbel where Jewish zealots hid from the Roman soldiers during the Great Revolt

Potentially my favorite moment of the whole trip happened on this trail as well. At one point we ran into a whole bunch of cows, and they were just standing there. And standing there. Mitchell stared at the cow, and the cow stared at Mitchell. So Robbie, in good Robbie fashion, moved past us and said, "no guys, what you have to do is wave your arms up and down and go moo!" And then he proceeded to do exactly that. The cows looked at Robbie for just a moment and then turned around and started trotting down the path. So there were the cows, and there was Robbie trotting right along after them. After a moment of stunned laughter, we all started hurrying along after him. No exaggeration, we must have followed those cows for a half mile until they turned aside into a cave with a whole bunch of other cows.

9. Stop and see a donkey along the way

We finished our hike down the cliffs and made another gas station stop for morning coffee, teeth brushing and the like. The rest of the hike to Capernaum was pretty flat (with a few smaller hills thrown in) and relatively uneventful. We ran into an escapee donkey at one point, which the group had some fun feeding and taking pictures of. We also met a couple guys on bikes who wanted to ask us some questions about the area. We assured them that they would not be able to bike the Jesus Trail unless they wanted to carry their bikes on their backs up the Cliffs of Arbel. We then sent them on to Capernaum to go talk to someone there who might know a lot more than we did.

10. Arrive in Capernaum and take triumphal pictures

We got into Capernaum about 2:00 or 2:30. Having already been there before on a Physical Settings field study, we didn't bother to pay the entrance fee and go into the site. We took some photos under the sign announcing Capernaum, just to prove to ourselves that we had actually done it. We made it! We hiked 40 miles in 3 days, and made it from Nazareth to Capernaum! Despite being really tired, we all felt pretty good about ourselves right then :)

11. Hitch-hike to Tiberius
Unfortunately, being in Capernaum would not get us home to Jerusalem. Having completed the trip and feeling no particular need to walked another 4 or 5 miles to Tiberius, we headed out to the road to find ourself a ride. Knowing that no one would ever pick up 5 hitchhikers, Mitch and Emily split off and went farther down the road to try to snag a ride while Dan, Robbie, and I stayed where we were. Within about 15 or 20 minutes a girl stopped and picked the 3 of us up. She was only going about half way to Tiberius, but we took it. Passing Mitch and Emily on the way, we hoped they would get a ride soon as well.

The girl dropped us off at the intersection where she needed to turn and we proceeded to try to find our next ride. This proved harder than the first one. After nearly an hour of trying with no success, we decided three was just too hard. Robbie took off down the road and Dan and I kept trying. Within about 20 minutes a young couple on their way to Beth-Shean offered us a ride through Tiberius. We gratefully hopped in. Arriving in Tiberius 10 minutes later, Dan found the way to our pre-arranged meeting place, and we found Mitch and Emily already there. Unfortunately, no Robbie. We hung out by the Sea of Galilee for the next 45 minutes or so awaiting Robbie, and finally, he made it. Mission accomplished!

We grabbed dinner at a little shop down the boardwalk and then headed to the bus station.

12. Take a bus back to Jerusalem and walk back to JUC

We actually got to the bus station just as the first bus to Jerusalem pulled in. We quickly jumped on the bus and settled in. It was about a 2 1/2 hour ride back. Arriving at the central bus station in Jerusalem about 9, we proceeded to walk back to JUC. While practically speaking it was one of the easiest walks we had made in 3 days, it seemed like forever. So close and yet so not. The gates of JUC have never looked so good as they did when we walked up to them, finally completing our whole journey at about 9:45. There were a few welcome home greetings and some hugs from fellow students, then showers and bed. Home is so good after a trip!

Impression Report - Jordan Day 4 (Tuesday, April 12)

While not really a biblical site in its current remains, I loved spending time at Karak Castle this morning. It is largely a Crusader castle, but it is built on the remains of a much earlier Nabotean fortress. We weren't able to see any of the more ancient fortress, but a lot of the castle remains in pretty good condition. Wandering through the tunnels and rooms was so cool for me. Every little girl dreams of exploring a real live castle, not just the ones in her fairy tales. Admittedly, at 22, I haven't moved too far beyond that dream. There was something about seeing the structure that made it so easy for me to imagine the Crusaders there setting up shop. I could almost hear the clinking of armor as being cleaned and put away and the conversations taking place over the baking of the bread. I could see the soldiers on the walls checking the area.

There was a thick blanket of fog surrounding the castle this morning. Normally, I would have been a bit annoyed by the way the fog blocked the view of the surrounding area and the valley below. This morning I almost felt like it added to the experience. At times the fog was so thick I couldn't see from one end of the castle to the other. It lent a certain eeriness to the air of the castle. There were moments where I definitely felt like I had entered a story book world and was walking in someone else's shoes. The best way I know how to describe it is that moment in books or movies where a character enters another world and isn't sure yet whether or not it is real or a dream. I sort of felt like that. It was so cool and so different from much of anything else that I have done of experienced!

From Karak we went to Dibon, which was Mesha king of Moab's capital. He moved the capital here from Kir (Karak). Of note, Kir also has the same basic topographical shape as the other ancient capitals that we have visited and discussed so far. Very interesting. Also of interest, Dibon is the same way, but it is not nearly as protected as any of the others, even less so than Jerusalem. Basically, it's placed in a position that allowed Mesha to reach out into other lands, not one truly chosen for defense.

While at Dibon, we read through the Mesha Stela in which he recounts his victory over the heir of Ahab. There are actually several very interesting parts about the stela. First, it gives a view of the battles from a non-Israelite source. The Bible never mentions losing the Medeba Plateau to Mesha, but it does mention capturing Kir and then retreating. Basically, by piecing things together one can discover that Mesha dealt Israel a nasty blow and then they managed a small push back by taking Kir. It never occurred to me before that like any good nationalist, biblical authors might have left major defeats out of their history (unless they were using them to display a theological point). It was an interesting idea for me to consider.

Also of interest in the Mesha Stela is a mention of the house of David. It's one of the very few direct mentions that we have proving a Davidic dynasty. Obviously, that alone makes it a pretty important find. I also found it interesting how much understanding geography plays into understanding the stela. The cities Mesha captures first are strategic crossroad cities. Holding them gives him power and position to do other things after. Lastly, just hearing the language also provides an interesting look into the time and culture. Parts of it actually sound very much like Solomon when he talks about how he built the Temple. It's fascinating to see some of the patterns throughout time and kingdoms.

After Dibon we went to Medeba. The real thing of interest there is a fascinating mosaic. A lot of it was destroyed during some of the Islamic period, but what remains is impressive. The mosaic shows a map of the land of Israel, with special focus given to Jerusalem. In fact, Jerusalem is blown up so we can see the layout of the city. This mosaic has provided useful information about the city at the time and Nachman Avigad actually found the cardo (main N/S street) when he excavated. Having talked about it before, it was cool to actually stand and look at the mosaic.

Our last stop of the day was Mt. Nebo. This is the mountain where Moses went up to survey the land of Israel before he died (somewhere in that vicinity). This last stop was pretty bittersweet as it was our last Physical Settings field study. For many of us it was a major reminder of the fact that our time in Israel has sped by and is quickly drawing to a close. At the same time, I was both fascinated and moved by what Dr. Wright taught there.

Starting with the 40 years desert wandering, Dr. Wright basically walked us through the end of Moses' life. In a nutshell, he preaches Deuteronomy down on the Plains of Moab, looking towards the land. On the edge of entering a new kind of life, Moses repeats the Ten Words (Commandments) and gives new instructions relating to settled life instead of a Bedouin way of life. Then he instructs the people to someday go to Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerazim. He sings a couple songs, one a creation story of people and one a blessnig of the 12 tribes, fitting their land. After all that, Moses goes up to the Pisca Ridge (in the area of Mt. Nebo) and God shows him the land, giving him a counter-clockwise itinerary.

At this point good geographical scholars run into a problem. It's not possible to see all of the places described from Mt. Nebo. A lot of people automatically take this to mean that some kind of spiritualizing is going on here. Dr. Wright offered us another solution, which I kind of like. Moses recently took out Og, king of Bashan, from which he would have seen Galilee and Mt. Hermon. On a clear day, it is possible to see the Mediterranean (western sea) from Gerash (where Moses had also been recently), and it was likely he came through in winter, increasing the chances of it having been a clear day. Certainly, Moses had recently been in the Negev. Everything else can be seen from Mt. Nebo. Thus, when God says that Moses had seen it all with his own eyes, he may not be talking figuratively or talking about exactly at that moment. Instead, he may be referring also to recent events.

I found that whole description fascinating, but I was equally if not more struck by the way Dr. Wright related it to our lives afterwards. I often have a hard time seeing how something like that could possibly have much to do with me, but it turns out it has everything to do with me. Basically, Israel was standing on the edge of a new land. God gave them instructions and faithfully brought them into the land he both promised them and prepared for them. We are pretty much all standing on the edge of a new land. Like it or not, our time in Israel is ending soon. At the very least we have all come here and changed. And we are all going back to worlds that have also changed without us. So we are all entering the new land of the lives we came from. Like he did for Israel, God will be faithful to prepare these lands and bring us into them. And they will be good lands, full of the life that God has for us.

I found this to be particularly true for my life right now. I have come to Israel and watched God do some awesome stuff here. Now, as I approach the moment of returning home, I'll admit to some feelings of apprehension as to how exactly I will fit the person I have become into the world that I came from 3 1/2 months ago. Additionally, I'm going back to a very different world even than the one I left, and I'm not exactly comfortable in it. After 2 1/2 years at the same job, I've completely switched roles and taken a position as an RA. I think it will be a good land, but also a scary one. Entering my senior year, some of my closest friends have only one semester left, leaving me in a very strange world for second semester. And like so many seniors, I really don't know what I'm doing afterwards. With so much uncertainty, it's really easy for me to freak out about this new place that I'm moving into. The reminder that God has prepared the land and will faithfully see me into it was both very timely and very impactful. All things put together, this was a fantastic last day of field study!

Impression Report - Jordan Day 3 (Monday, April 11)

Today we only visited two sites, but both of them were pretty major. Our first was Petra, followed by a quick stop at a lookout near Bozrah and then ending up at Bozrah. Admittedly, Petra was by far the most awe inspiring site. While not really a biblical site, it certainly displayed the accomplishment of the Naboteans and showed the importance of a desert "port" city.

Petra was potentially the most impressive place I have ever seen. Not only are the buildings beautiful, but it is hard to imagine they were carved. It is impressive enough that someone could build a tomb of the magnitude of these, but to carve it out of solid rock is amazing! The variety of the tombs was also impressive. While there was certainly a particular style, all of the tombs looked different and unique. Some of my favorite were the ones in the very colorful rock. The blue, red, and yellow all streaked together was incredible. When tombs were carved into it besides, it was certainly a unique site.

Besides all the carvings at Petra, the landscape itself is stunning. It reminds me of a grand canyon type landscape. The cliffs are massive, and there are a lot of really nice places to hike. We went up to the High Place and then hiked through a wadi (the name of which I unfortunately do not quite remember). I think the wadi hike was my favorite part of the day at Petra. It was completely awesome just hiking through the hills and steps and stopping in all the caves we found along the way. It was such a memorable experience.

I also got a bit of a new appreciation for the difficulty of living on the frontier. As much fun as it was to walk through Petra, I could see the challenges involved in living in such a place. The dangers of the cliffs, the dry land with a scarcity of water, and the potential dangers of enemies around make life on the frontier a pretty tough place. We could see that even as we walked through. Staying on paths was critical, but sometimes even the path was difficult to distinguish.

Another interesting part of Petra was realizing what the uses of all the carvings were. Interestingly, all the beautiful, elaborate buildings were tombs, and the smaller, simple caves were homes. It portrayed a view of after-life that placed a lot of importance on the physical dwelling. Basically, they wanted to make an elaborate home for the one they would spend eternity in, but they did not bother too much with the one they were only going to spend 50 years or so in. There were also a lot of carvings of idols which portrayed the religious natuer of the site. People came to worship as they walked through the entrance to the main part of the city.

Moving on from Petra, we made our way to Bozrah. Just before arriving, we stopped at a lookout spot and looked down into the wadi there. From that view point we could see just how difficult it would be to drive and army up the cliffs into the heartland of Edom. It helped to give us a good view of just how secure Edom actually was. It was also cool to see because we will be hiking through that wadi in just a month or so on the Cultural Backgrounds trip into Jordon.

At Bozrah, it was really interesting to discover that yet again the capital city looked a fair amount like Jerusalem (at least topographically). To be fair, Bozrah is actually significantly more defensible than Jerusalem with steeper and higher hills surrounding the plateau of the city; however, the basic concept is the same. The drawback to Bozrah is the springs are all the way at the bottom of the cliffs, unlike Jerusalem where they can be walled within the city. This makes it more difficult for Bozrah to get the water they need if they were to be in the middle of a battle.

Here as well, I got a definite impression of how difficult it might be to live in that part of the land. Today the wind was so strong it almost knocked me over a couple of times. The dust got in everything and was just generally annoying. Getting up to the city involved plenty of driving around twists and turns and through a tough terrain. Anyone who lives in a place like that must belong to a tough people. It is no wonder Edom must have thought highly of their secure city or that they looked down on those in Jerusalem, as being soft and taking an easy life. It is also understandable how the Jerusalemites could think the Edomites a wild and uncultured people living out there on the edge.

As usual, today was another good day of learning new things and exploring new places. We looked at the challenges of the frontier life as well as the importance of the desert "port" cities.

Impression Report - Jordan Day 2 (Sunday, April 10)

Today was a very long day, but a good day. We started in Amman, the present day capital of Jordon but also the ancient capital of Ammon. As always, the history of the area continues to hold my interest more than their attemps to become more like the West. At the Citadel of Amman, I really enjoyed going into the museum. Unfortunately, a couple of the things I was really excited to see were no longer there (like the Dead Sea Scrolls), but there were still several very interesting artifacts. It was pretty neat to see the inscription about Balaam after just having read it yesterday at Deir Alla (biblical Succoth).

I also discovered that Ammon's capital looks remarkably like Israel's capital, Jerusalem. The topography is strikingly similar with both having hills on three sides dropping into valleys and only one real access point. In Jerusalem this is the to the north, in Ammon, to the east. Additionally, the architecture of the Judean palace and the palace at Amman certainly bear a strong resemblance. I guess I never realized before today how closely related these two places were. Of no great historical significance, it was kind of weird but really neat standing beneath the really tall pillars and looking up and seeing how the cloud movement made you feel as if they were swaying. In fact it was enough to make you want to move your feet to counter the swaying.

Our next stop was Gerash, which was very impressive because of its size and architecture. I loved just having a good chunk of time to wander and discover things there. Near the temple to Artemis, we found a building with a very large mosaic, perhaps the largest I have seen so far. The temple itself was pretty impressive both in size and design. We all enjoyed the fact that Artemis and Diana are the same goddess, so we stood Diana up on the steps leading to the temple and took pictures. There were also some really cool storage areas undernearth the temple. Diana got invited down to see them by a not so good intentioned vender, but as Andrew went along, all was well. It also meant we all got to see a pretty neat spot I never would have thought to look otherwise. So I guess occasionally not so good intentioned venders are good for something after all.

I certainly understand now why Gerash has been called the "City of 1,000 Columns." Walking into the open plaza just made me want to stand in awe. It was a large, circular, open courtyard completely surrounded by columns. They were everywhere we went, both impressive and beautiful. Being a lover of pillars, I think Gerash stole my vote for coolest site of the day.

The theater was also quite impressive. There is one point in the middle where if you drop a coin you can hear it at the top. Even cooler, there are several circles cut out of the front row. If you put your head next to one, you can hear any person along the row who is talking near one of them. There was also a group of Arab musicians with bagpipes and drums near the front of the theater. I had to laugh when they all started playing, and it ended up being completely American music (think Amazing Grace and Yankee Doodle). The West invades yet again.

Stopping near the Jabesh River provided a good view of the land. It also provided some comic relief when Dr. Wright decided to start wrestling Matt to illustrate the story of Jacob wrestling the Angel of the Lord. Classic Israel moment. I really like discussing the Bible with the landscape actually in front of me and seeing a context for stories I've heard all of my life.

To end the day we went to an unknown site. Dr. Wright wouldn't tell us anything about it. Instead, he just brought us to it, told us to look away from the sign with the name of the site on the way in and then turned us loose to make observations. We walked around the site and looked at the way the stones were cut, the architecture of the building, the carvings on it, the layout of the interior, the direction it faced, and many other details like that. It was a really cool exercise to walk around with no prior context and just see what we could figure out. It helped me to engage the principles I've been learning, instead of just trying to absorb more. It was also really neat to discover how much I have actually learned these last couple months in regards to archaeology and identifying distinctive markings. The site ended up being the pleasure palace (place of retreat) of a man kicked out of Judea (who thought he should have been governor). It is a place called Tyre of Tobias.

I was not too thrilled to be watching the Royal Tour of Jordan that James insisted on showing since I figured it would be a lot more of the modern stuff. Surprisingly, it was actually a lot better than I anticipated. While it felt really scripted a lot of the time, the views we got to see on the film were quite nice. I enjoyed getting some great views of the Wadi Rum as well as learning about some of the sports that they participate in there.

Impression Report - Jordan Day 1 (Saturday, April 9)

My first impression of today had nothing to do with cities or the Bible or really much of anything related to historical geography. It was much more of an impression of current political realities. I was reminded of the annoyance and hassle of border crossings. Having started at 6am and thus being a bit tired probably did not help to make me less annoyed with the system either. All in all we made pretty good time fo an international border crossing, so I really could not be upset about that, but just spending so much time in lines and waiting for processing is always annoying.

Perhaps the thing that made the particular border crossing annoying was all of the Jordanian regulations. I have done enough international travel to be pretty used to the process by now, but some of the Jordanian stuff just made me frustrated. First, I still cannot figure out what the purpose of the tourist police officer is. I know we are required to have one on our bus, but I just don't understand it. Overall, it really does not affect me much at all, it just seems kind of weird to me. Second, I can't say as I am a big fan of the requirement of having a Jordanian tour guide. Besides just seeming unnecessary, I feel like it kind of takes away from the experience a bit as well. Dr. Wright, if you were trying to make us appreciate your teaching more, you can consider your mission accomplished.

I discovered on this trip that I really like the system of teaching that draws on our foundations as well as connecting to places in the Bible and then just having free time to wander. Once I have the knowledge in my head, I learn a lot just by letting my feet feel the ground, my eyes see the stones (or mud bricks) and surrounding country, my ears hear the noises, and just taking in the general experience of the place. It was a bit hard to get that today when James (the Jordanian tour guide) would talk about a place and then just start walking to the next spot. It felt a lot more like a museum tour and a lot less like just experiencing the land.

Frustrations aside, there was a lot to be interested in today. Our first stop at Deir Alla made me realize several things. First, in many ways the land in Jordan looks a lot like the land in Israel. While the alluvial fields of the Jordan Valley more closely resemble the Coastal Plain, all together the land looks a lot like the other side of the Jordan. Second, Israel does a much better job at keeping up their sites. Third, I had never thought about the Philistines having any other motivation for taking Judah than just the country itself. It makes a lot of sense that they might have been interested in the metallugy going on beyond the Jordan. Fourth, the Balaam was really cool. It is fascinating and encouraging to see and study text like that which throw more light on and corroborate biblical stories. Last, I was reminded that we have certainly entered an Islamic country when I started seeing the women in full burkas everywhere and the men wearing gallibeahs and kaifas.

Moving on to Gedara, I was really impressed by the columns and architecture there. The view was beautiful as well. Also interesting was the mix of white limestone and black basalt. Normally we only see one or the other. As usual, I felt pretty impressed by Rome.

Ending the day at Ramoth-Gilead, I was yet again reminded of how little Jordan values their ancient biblical sites compared to Israel. It was certainly helpful to stand on the tel and see its close proximity to Syria as well as to feel its distance from Israel. However, beyond that, little at the tel actually displayed much. As a random point of interest, I very much enjoyed the camels at Ramoth-Gilead. I've certainly seen plenty of them before, but never so many of them never all together like that. I was reminded that I get to ride one in another month or so. Also, I got to try camel's milk tonight. It wasn't my favorite, but it certainly wasn't awful either.

All together, today held a lot of new experiences and a lot of new sights and new ideas. It was certainly frustrating at times, but a good day of field study, all things considered.

How Do I Define Church?

I don't actually have all that much time before I have to run away, eat some lunch, and then get to Cultural Backgrounds of the Bible class. However, I've been thinking about this thought for a few days now, and I wanted to share it with all of you, so here goes. Also, keep in mind that this is really just my thoughts and ideas on the topic, not a fully formed opinion.

The question in the title of the blog post really says a lot about what I've been considering. I know most of us have heard the idea before that the church is the people of God, not the building housing them. And I hope that is something we believe. Jesus calls and sanctifies people, not structures. Standing in Jerusalem I've come to the conclusion that if God wanted a new building, he could have done a lot better than we ever do with our churches. He could have raised up someone to take back the Temple Mount, and he could have restored it to the splendor of the days of Solomon. I, like some of you, have stood at the walls of the Temple Mount, and God has not done that. In fact, I'm more grieved than anything else when I stand at the Western Wall and watch the fervent prayers of a people who still have a veil across their eyes.

That is my picture of what the church is not. But I still have to ask the question, what is the church? I know the first thing that typically comes to mind is local communities of believers gathered together in a building and worshipping God together. And please don't think I have anything against that. I'm strongly affirm the local church, and I have every intention of happily rejoining with mine when I return to the States. But I also wonder if we haven't lost a bit of something in the institutionalizing of the church.

I have been in Israel for over two months now, and I have to admit that I've only been to a traditional church service twice. Very rarely in my life have I spent so little time in a church. And I've never been ok with it before. I've always felt hungry and longing for the community and corporate worship that I find within the church. Yet, for all my lack of church in the last two months, I'm not feeling dry or desperate for fellowship. If fact, it's quite the contrary. I feel like I'm drinking more deeply than I ever have before, and God is working awesome things in my life and the lives of the people around me. So what's different this time?

At JUC I'm surrounded by a community of believers, many of them from pretty different backgrounds and many of them really deeply rooted in Scripture and in a strong and earnest desire to seek after God. Throughout my week, I'm spending time worshipping with other students (sometimes planned, sometimes not), we're praying together for our community, for those who are hurting or struggling, for each other and our own places of need, for God's Presence and instruction, for his leading. There's an honesty and realness here that I've rarely seen in any church back home. I'm not saying that we don't want it in our churches, just that it rarely works that way. Most of us come to church with our good faces on. We don't come to church wearing the nastiness of the week and looking for someone to step into it with us.

So I come back to my original question: what makes a church? Do I need a pastor to have a church? Do I need a worship leader? Or do I just need a bunch of people coming together, committedly sharing in each others, and devoted to seeking God together?

As a last note: I'm not advocating forsaking our local churches and running to start some new movement. I'm really not. I see a great deal of value in the local church, and I think we would miss out on so much if we stopped participating in them. However, I am asking the question of how we view church, and whether or not it is the way we were intended to view church. And if not, how might we start to change that, right where we are?

Well, those are my thoughts from the moment. Please feel free to comment, to agree, to disagree, whatever it is you think on this.

Impression Report - Galilee Day 3 (Saturday, March 26, 2011)

Perhaps one of the things that impressed me most about today was the water. For having seen so little thus far in Israel, it feels like everywhere we went today was flowing with water. Everywhere I look I see green fields and things growing. Even if I've been seeing it for three days, it still impresses me every time I see it. It is so different than Jerusalem and so different than the Negev.

This morning at Hazor, I very much enjoyed seeing the old ruins. I still have a fascination with all things old, and places like Hazor just kind of wow me. I was also really interested when we moved the rock armies of the King of Hazor and recreated the possible Joshua conquest on the map. For so many of these stories I have never really had a visual context before, and I love seeing it play out. At Hazor, I think I was most impressed by the Late Bronze Age (pre-Israelite) mudbrick still standing, and perhaps equally by the idea of a fire that could crack basalt foundations. If you think about the fact they are lava rock, it must take an incredibly hot fire to break them. It kind of lends a pretty decent picture as to why the Bible bothers to point out that Joshua burned Hazor. It must have been quite a day there.

Moving on to Dan, I was massively impresssed the amount of water pouring through. The rapids and strength of the water was pretty amazing. Beyond just the water, I also was kind of in awe of the gate with the mudbrick arch from the 18th century B.C. It is pretty cool to me to think that Abraham could have passed through there. Additionally, I studied the Tel Dan inscription in hermeneutics this past semester as part of a project on Israelite minimalism. It's always neat to see places that I have an academic connection to. I also found it really interesting when we were able to see into Lebanon. My great-grandparents emigrated from there, so I've kind of always wanted to go. While I can't at the moment, it was cool to think I was looking into Lebanon.

When we went to Banias following Dan, I was equally impressed by the water there. The temple to Pan was also very interesting. As we discussed Jesus and his ministry and the choices he made in regards to when and where he said things, it just continued my thoughts from yesterday about his origins. I never realized that he chose his farthest point from Jerusalem for Peter's confession. Then he started his journey to Jerusalem. It gets me to think about his motives and his plan and why he might have chosen the places he did. On a way less theological note, the massive waterfall was pretty much the highlight of my day. I kind of have a bit of an obsession with water, especially waterfalls, so I very much enjoyed that.

Stopping in the Golan Heights was cool just because I've heard that area talked about so much in regards to relatively current political situations. Being able to look across into Syria was also pretty neat. I love having visual context for things, so placing biblical stories always interests me. In this case, thinking about Paul on his way to Damascus somewhere down in front of where I was standing was a pretty awesome contextualization. And I certainly felt the cold and had to give a hearty respect to anyone who calls the Golan Heights home!

Impressions Report - Galilee Day 2 (Friday, March 25, 2011)

Today I found myself a lot more engaged in field study than I was yesterday. I think it was mostly because I was feeling a lot better and therefore a lot more able to focus and with more energy to participate. Anyways, it made for a much better day.

Starting at Nazareth Ridge gave us a good horizon line. I never realized both the isolated nature of Nazareth itself and its relative nearness to the Jezreel Valley and other major areas. It was a very interesting idea for me to consider the various cultural influences that could have been a part of Jesus' life. A lot of the stuff that we talked about both on the Nazareth Ridge and at Sepphoris were ideas that I had never encountered before.

One idea that I had not recognized before was all of the similarities between Jonah and Jesus. First, I never realized that even though the towns did not exist together, Nazareth and Gath-Hefer (Jonah's hometown) are actually very close to each other. Interestingly, when the Sanhedrin in John 7 criticizes Nicodemus (for wanting to give Jesus a fair hearing) and claims that no prophet has ever come out of Galilee, they conveniently forgot Jonah. His message, like Jesus', went beyond the realm of Israel's national interests. And like Jesus, this probably did not make him very popular, either in his own day or with Israelites afterwards. If he had never preached to Nineveh perhaps they would have been destroyed and that would have crippled Assyria so much they would not have been able to wipe out Israel a generation later. Certainly this idea may have occurred to some among Israel. Both Jonah and Jesus preached messages of God's mercy in the face of repentance (Jew or Gentile) but his wrath in response to stubborn opposition.

I was fascinated to think about Jesus growing up in that area. He must have known the stories and rich history of all the places he could see from the top of the ridge. I wonder what he thought about each of them. Additionally he must have seen and felt the Roman and Hellenistic influence on a place like the Jezreel Valley. It begs the question of exactly what influences played most prominantly into Jesus' life.

At Sepphoris I saw this idea continued. As Jesus was a tecton (builder with local materials), it is entirely possible he could have gone looking for work in a place like this site of Roman construction. In which case, he may have frequently engaged in a Hellenistic world. He certainly would have learned Greek along with Aramaic and Hebrew if this were true. It at least offers the possibility that Jesus may not have been quite the backwoods Jewish peasant most Evengelicals grew up with. Having never been exposed to these ideas, I found the whole discussion fascinating. Did Jesus learn the word hypocrite by building a Roman theater?

Sepphoris also raised the intertesting question of the Hellenistic influence on Judaism. The site itself is impressive, especially the mosaics. Additionally, the mosaics within the synagogue begged some good questions and discussions. What was a Jewish synagogue doing with human and animal forms represented in a mosaic? Clearly this breaks the prohibition against such pictures. While other answers have been proposed, I find it hard to get around the idea that they may have simply relaxed on this point during that time period.

The Cliffs of Arbel gave us another great view of the area, especially places right in and around the Sea of Galilee. Interesting side note, I learned that the Hebrew word for this is Knarret, and most Israelis still call it this. Anyways, while we have no mention of it, Jesus most likely would have walked by these cliffs on his way from Nazareth to Capernaum. Josephus also talks about the cliffs during the time when Herod took Galilee. Rebels fled here to escape, but soldiers were lowered in baskets in order to kill the rebels still in the caves. Josephus again recounts a suicide story, but one still has to wonder if this is truth or literary license to impress his Roman audience with the spirit of his people.

Ending the day at the wadi was also interesting. Climbing part way up the sides of the cliff gave several of us a first-hand lesson in how challenging and tough they could be. Watching the descent of those who went all the way up also showed me the ruggedness of the terrain in many places here. Thankfully everyone came safely back down, but I realized how difficult it might be to travel through some of these places without trail maps or a guide. Some of the terrain can be downright treacherous.

Finally, while not exactly a part of field study, swimming in the Sea of Galilee tonight was awesome. Partly it was just a lot of fun to goof off and hang out. Shortly after the sun went down, I was standing on the shore with Emily and it suddenly just struck us both how much happened on and around this lake. Watching the waves I realized that one day Jesus just stood up, said, "Peace, be still," and everything went calm. He walked on water here. He met the disciples after his resurrection and restored Peter. It is pretty cool to be standing looking at this place where so much happened. Basically, it was a good day.

Impressions Report - Galilee Day 1 (Thursday, March 24, 2011)

I think my favorite spot of the day was actually where we started, at Caesaria. The rain at the beginning was a little annoying, but it was just such an impressive place. I love watching Herod stamp around the country and following in his footsteps. It never ceases to amaze me the way he totally out-maneuvers nature and does things that completely change the landscape.

In addition to just being completely awed by Herod, I simply love the sea. Growing up in a fishing town, I have a great appreciation for both its beauty and its dangers. It makes perfect sense to me why the Israelites from the hill country might fear the sea and speak of it in negative terms. Not only does it represent Hellenistic and Roman influences, it is also just dangerous. The sea can easily go from beautiful to deadly in very short amounts of time.

At Caesaria one can see yet again Herod's determination to create works of his own. Instead of using the natural ports of Joppa or Acco, he chose to creat his own by building a massive breakwater. He also established a port a bit more central by doing this. While his reasons make sense, I simply cannot imagine the kind of man it takes to decide a place like Caesaria is worth all the trouble.

Moving on from there and over to Mt. Carmel, I began to get a sense of how green this area of the country really is. Compared to our last field study in the Negev, it is pretty hard to believe that I could still be in the same country. Looking out from Carmel over the valleys also helped me start to gain an appreciation for the routes running through them. I understand now why they are the international ones. No foreigner would ever want to choose the rough hill country roads when they could run straight through the broad areas here around the Jezreel Valley.

Learning about Elijah and the "battle of the gods" on Mt. Carmel in a new perspective was also very interesting. I never occurred to me before coming to Israel that each god had their own characteristics and Israel might have struggled to see how a God of the desert could also be a god of fields. It is interesting to me that perhaps even Elijah himself had a bit of a deity crisis and God had to set the record straight that he was not the same as Ba'al (hence why he did not appear in the earthquake or the wind, things generally associated with Ba'al).

Megiddo interested me both because of the massiveness of the tel (25+ layers) and because it is one of the cities that Solomon fortified. The view from Megiddo was pretty awesome as well. Everything was completely green, rather a surprise for what I have become accustomed to. Beyond that, the way Megiddo juts out a little bit we were able to do a pretty good horizon line of the surrounding passes and mountains. As well, hearing about how Megiddo quite likely has nothing to do with Armeggedon was fascinating. It's interesting to me how the differences of lettering Hebrew and Greek could change the name from "mountain of Megiddo" to "Mount of the Assembly," which would be Jerusalem. Having given it very little thought yet, I am not exactly sure what I think. However, it certainly makes more sense theologically that way.

Ending the day at Jezreel, I was struck again just by the green everywhere. The fields were such a rich color and so full of life. I think this was one of my biggest impressions of the day, and it only takes one word - green!

Impression Report - Galilee Day 4 (Sunday, March 27)

As always, there are so many things that I could say about today. I feel like I'm taking in so much information and so many new sights and thoughts that I rarely know what to do with all of it. Today was certainly no exception.

Starting with a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee was definitely cool. It also helped me to get a visual perspective of what it must have been like to be out on the lake fishing. When we later talked about the kind of boats that the fishermen were probably using, it suddenly all made sense why the disciples would be freaking out when the storm came up. The sea was seen as something dangerous and unpredictable, Yam, the god of chaos. It's no wonder that being out in a small boat, filled with more people than it was probably made for, with possibly 3 or 4 foot waves sweeping over a boat only inches out of the water, the disciples were fearing for their lives. What continues to blow my mind is the God who could simply stand up and say, "Peace, be still," and the lake went calm. Standing on the shore last night, I was trying to imagine just that, and it just makes me stand in awe.

At Kursi (Gergesa) I found the discussion about the call of a disciple and what it means to be a disciple really interesting. I'd never really given that much thought to the fact that the disciples came from similar areas and situations and yet were so very different. You have the Zebedee brothers, who by all accounts, were probably from a pretty wealthy family. These guys clearly had a lot to lose. Then you get Peter and Andrew, definitely Jewish, and also fishermen. Additionally, there is Philip, who we don't know for sure, but with a name like that could definitely have been of much more Greek origin. Mix into that Simon the Zealot (either religiously or politically), who cannot have been very happy with a Greek, if indeed Philip was Greek. Then to make everyone really happy, Jesus calls Levi, the tax collector. The fishermen probably paid him their taxes and tried to avoid him. I can just imagine the discussion that might have gone on with Jesus at that moment. Jesus is trying to call Levi, and Peter, Andrew, James and John are frantically trying to get his attention to tell him that around here, that just isn't done. Maybe it's ok way back in Nazareth, but here, he just can't do that. And Simon the Zealot must be just fuming. No Roman sellout is ever going to be associated with the same group that he is. And yet for some reason, in the end, all of them followed Jesus, together. Something about this man drew them in a way that pushed them beyond their normal life into something altogether different.

Also interesting for was when we talked about Jesus healing the man possessed by Legion. It was a new idea to me that this man might have known something about Jesus before he met him. The region is close enough to where he spent his time that chances are, the people in Gergesa knew something of Jesus and this man may have heard the rumors as well. Equally interesting is that Jesus doesn't let the man come with him after he heals him. Instead, he sends him out to preach to his own people. Perhaps this man is something of the first missionary. The one time that Jesus comes back to the region, crowds rush out to meet him. Clearly this man did what Jesus asked of him and told his story everywhere he went. I think because I've never bothered to map the places that Jesus went or to keep close track of place names, I have never realized a lot of these details. It is making these stories come together for me so much to see them this way.

At Chorazim I loved seeing the seat of Moses and learning a bit about the way that rabbis taught. The more I learn, the more I realize that Jesus was pretty much following the rabbinical standards of his day, but taking them to a whole new level. He sat down and taught in their fashion, but he taught with authority they did not have. And he certainly broke the norm performing all the miracles that he did.

In Capernaum I was most interested in the idea that it was a great mix of both Jewish and Hellenistic thought. The synagogue was built by a Roman centurion, which means that there was certainly a large Roman presence there. At the same time, they had a synagogue, which in itself implies a Jewish presence. I was fascinated by the idea that in some ways this might be the "seminary" for what we see in the book of Acts. Was Jesus getting his disciples ready for what he was going to do later? Obviously we don't exactly have an answer for that, but it's an interesting way to look at what is going on here. Additionally, I was just really impressed by the Byzantine era synagogue that was there. The structure and architecture was stunning.

My feeling stupid moment of the day happened when we talked about Peter. I've read the Gospels I have no idea how many times and somehow managed to miss every single time that Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law, not Peter's mother. I think part of this might be that I've always grown up with the idea the rest of the disciples were more or less like Jesus, unmarried and somewhat disattached from family (although even Jesus may be less so than the teaching I grew up with). I was completely blown away by the realization that this means Peter had a wife and probably children. And if Peter had a wife, then some of the other disciples might have as well. I don't know why that struck me so much, but it definitely did. I guess it just changes the way that I see the group of disciples and who it was that Jesus called.

Beth-shean (Scythopolis) completely blew me away. I don't even have words to describe how much in awe of that place I am. I walked into the theater and just stood there for a couple of minutes. Even with only two of the three original layers, it is massively impressive. I can't even imagine what it must have been like for a Jewish person out of a small town in the hill country to walk into a place like that. As I walked through the city and saw the columns and buildings and just the size of the place I pretty much just kept saying wow, wow, wow. That is one major footprint of Rome. It is easy to see how this could have been Rome's gateway into the Transjordan. It certainly makes a statement about the grandeur and importance of Rome.

All in all today I just continued to see so many new things and hear so many new ideas. I love all of the things that are finally making sense to me and all the ways that I am seeing differently than I have before.

Life Flies By

Wow, so yet again, I have to apologize for being a completely delinquent blogger. My only excuse (and I think it's a decently good one) is that I've been busy living life. So many good things have been going on since I last wrote. Let's see how much I can put words to and describe.

I guess for starters, I can't believe that I've already been in Israel for nearly 2 months! Where did the time go?! But on the other hand, JUC has definitely come to feel like home, and I've fallen in love with Jerusalem and my life here and all the awesome people that I get to know and hang out with. Along those lines, I'm so thankful for some of the friendships that I've made here, particularly a couple students that I hang out with all the time. They have so richly blessed my life in the past few weeks. God has been so good and so faithful to bless me with fellowship, a listening ear, and good counsel. I've been particularly blessed this past week by Emily and B.B., a fellow Gordon student and a guy from Wheaton. Ironically, Emily was the only one from Gordon I had never met before. Over the last few weeks she has become a dear friend, and has been so good to just walk through life with me and challenge me at the moments where I've really needed it. I feel as if I've heard God's voice through her. There is something so special about having those people who you can just completely let down with and be real and honest and at the same time just being able to goof off and laugh together. I'm so blessed.

The past couple weeks have been crazy busy, but really good. Hunter came to visit, which was both very good and rather challenging. Admitttedly in the beginning it was interesting trying to figure out how my two worlds worked together. But at the same time, I am so glad that he got to come and spend time with me here and see my life and my world and meet all the people that I care about so much here. I find myself missing him at the oddest moments now that he's gone, but I know it's probably good for my studies that he was only here for a limited amount of time.

This was also midterms time, so I've taken two midterms and written a ten-page take home midterm in the last couple weeks. That certainly added to the normal busyness of classes and going places and just hanging out with people. I am very glad to now be safely through the nastiness of midterms.

Of much more fun note, I went away for last weekend. Steph (another fellow Gordon friend), Hunter and I all left Friday afternoon and went down to the Dead Sea. We spent the afternoon swimming in the Dead Sea and exploring. Then we pitched our tent on the beach. Unfortunately, when we left for dinner, someone decided it would be a good idea to steal Hunter's sleeping bag. All the same, we survived. Planning on an early night and an early morning, we went to bed about 9:30, only to discover that all the rest of the people camping out had other plans. Loud music continued for quite some time. Somewhere around 11 someone decided to add a drum to the mix of music being played by stereo. At that point all we could do was laugh, and give up on sleep for the next hour or so. We eventually did get to sleep, although certainly much later than originally planned.

The next morning we got up and hiked through the Wadi Arugot. It was absolutely beautiful. The views are breathtaking, and the hike was grueling. It is about 2, 000 ft. from the Dead Sea to the top of the wadi cliffs, and the last hour or so of the ascent is intense hiking, which more often than not might be better termed rock climbing. We reached the top by lunch, which we were more than ready for at that point. Thanks to my dad and his Lebanese skin, I was the only one of us not sunburned by that point.

After lunch, hiked back down to the lower part, and spent an hour or so swimming in the waterfalls. It was amazing after being so hot and sweaty and tired from the hike. Then we hiked back out of the wadi along the bottom, walking through ankle to knee height water most of the way. It was really, really nice.

We arrived back at the Dead Sea about 4, but since it was Shabbat, the buses didn't start running to 7, so we knew we would be killing time for a bit. We grabbed some coffee at the little stand there and then just chilled out on the shore of the Dead Sea, snacked on the remainder of our crackers from lunch and waited for the bus. It was an awesome trip!

This week life continues to go on a rather weird rhythm. Ten-page midterm due Monday, Arabic midterm Tuesday, no class at all today (it was an all day field study for a class I'm not in), and then I'll be off on a 4-day field study to the Galilee starting tomorrow at 7am. I'm so excited about this one as I've heard amazing stuff about the Galilee, and I can't wait to see it!

I guess that's enough for now, although there is so much more that I could say. Although for the sake of everyone wondering and worrying, I guess I should add that I and everyone here at JUC are safe and sound. For those who have no idea what I'm talking about, there was a bus bomb on the major Israeli line this afternoon. While this hasn't happened here in Jerusalem in a few years, it is a somewhat "normal" occurence, which means that Dr. Wright knows pretty well what the normally targetted spots are. He has put back into effect JUC's policy for what to do in times of hightened tensions. Don't worry, we won't be using any of the transportation or going to any of the spots that might put us at risk.

I hope you all are doing well, and I'll post impressions from Galilee when I get back.

Negev Field Study Day 3 (March 7)

Photos: frescos from Herod's palace at Masada - the back ones are original, the front restored (top), having just been de-salted after a swim in the Dead Sea (bottom)

So this one is obviously also a bit on the late side, but hey, I can't leave out the best day of field study so far. This was pretty much one of the most fantastic days that I've had since coming to Israel! So here's the impression report:

Today was sort of like a checklist of a whole bunch of the places in Israel that I've always wanted to see. I have heard so many stories about the incredible structure of Masada that I have been waiting rather impatiently to visit it. Herod continues to astound me, every time we run into him somewhere. It blows my mind to think about what it must have taken to build a fortress like Masada. Standing on the northern end in his palace, I was really impressed by the opulence of the columns and frescos, not to mention the view.

Another part of Masada that really interested me was hearing the stories and the archaeological finds surrounding them. I have certainly heard the story of the mass suicide at Masada. However, I had never heard that archaeology and what we know of the players in history seriously challenge that idea. It was fascinating to consider that Josephus might have simply made it up to show the Romans that his people were valient. All things considered, it does not make sense that the Romans would break through the wall and decide to wait the night. Neither does Josephus' explanation make sense of all the bones being found on the northern point within an inner wall. Nor can it explain how Jews would commit suicide, something completely dishonorable for them. For me, it was really interesting to consider all the different angles and weigh the value of the symbol of nationalism at Masada against the historical probability created by the evidence.

From Masada, heading down to the Dead Sea was another item on my list. Getting to float in the salt water is a pretty unique and rather awesome experience. It was so strange to be able to lay perfectly still and be completely supported by the water.

At the springs of En-Gedi I felt like I got such a good picture of the importance of water. After spending a day in the barren wilderness, it was so refreshing to see green and waterfalls. Swimming in them was pretty cool too. I can only imagine how someone like David might feel about En-Gedi after spending so much time on the run in the wilderness. It is no surprise then that he uses water as an image of God's provision.

Last, Qumran has definitely been on my list of places to visit for quite some time. During college I have studied the scrolls found at Qumran as well as their community. I remember having to write a paper on the teacher of righteousness and what might have been going on with the idea of the sons of light and darkness. Having spent time studying both the site and community as well as the importance of their manuscripts, it was really cool for me to actually get to see the place. My imagination can only do so much. I think it would be fair to say this was my favorite day of field study so far.

Impression Report - Negev Day 2 (March 6)

So I know this is way late in posting these thoughts as they are from a week and half ago, but life got a little busy. But I figured better late than never...

From the Negev report:

(picture to the left is in the bottom of the Wadi Zin, starting our hike out)

As is becoming the norm, today added yet another dimension to my understanding of Israel and the land and culture. Seeing so much desert and dry barrenness made me realize anew how critical rain is to productivity withing the land. Driving towards the tel of Arad this morning and seeing irrigated fields on one side and those left to rainfall on the other certainly cemented in my mind how crucial water is to these people. Within the ancient cities themselves, everything revolves around water and how they can safely get it.

At Arad I was fascinated by two ting in particular. First, I really liked all the reconstruction that had been done. While I have been attempting to reconstruct sites in my imagination up until now, it was a helpful visual to see a lot more of what the site would have looked like. Secondly, the temple there really interested me. I know that what is proscribed and what is described often vary in the Bible, but it never occurred to me that the Israelites might have tried to add a female counterpart to YHWH (in order to carry one the ideas of the gods around them). I always assumed that when they worshipped other gods, YHWH had no part in that. Seeing the larger and the smaller standing stones and incense altars in the holy of holies certainly begged the question as to who exactly the Israelites were worshipping there. It's an interesting idea for me to consider.

Moving on to Beer-Sheva, I very much enjoyed the view from the top of the observatory. Being able to look in all directions and make connections between things marked on my foundations map and things I was seeing was helpful to me. I am not sure why, but for reason it clicked a lot better for me today than it has many times before when we were doing the same thing. From Beer-Sheva and after I saw a lot of very barren land. It certainly gave picture form to the idea of the great and terrible wilderness. Admittedly, I am not sure I would want to be an Israelite out there for fourty years. Everything was just dry and hot and dusty.

One of my favorite parts of the day was hiking out of the Wadi Zin. The views were breathtaking, even if the heights occassionally got to me a bit. It was pretty awesome seeing the heights of the cliffs and the dangers they presented. It makes perfect sense why people would not want to travel in and out of wadis frequently.

Ending the day at the Machtesh Ramon was also pretty cool. It is not every day that one gets to stand and look at the world's largest erosion crater. I was completely in awe of the depth and vastness of the landscape. The drop-offs were impressive. The overall view of the land there just made me realize even more how challenging the southern highlands could be. I cannot really imagine having to cross that land (which is, I am sure, why most go around it). All in all, I certainly gained and appreciation for the ruggedness of the terrain today.

Negev Field Study Day 1 (Saturday, March 5)

Field study continues to blow me away. After five weeks in the land, I somehow imagined that I would start to get over the novelty of being in the land of the Bible. It has not happened yet. If anything, I find myself more enthralled the more I come to know and understand what is going on around me.

I gained a whole new perspective on the hill country today as we walked through the terraces at Sataf. I also really enjoyed getting to see a house built onto the front of a cave. I'm a very visual learner, so I often have a hard time really grasping something until I can see it and touch it. As we were just discussing dwellings in Cultural Backgrounds, the house really interested me. Beyond that, the Bible is filled with images of planting and fields and growing. So many passages and images make sense more clearly after walking down the terraces and realizing the livelihood they represent to the farmers.

Moving on to Beth-Shemesh, I watched the Samson story come alive. Certainly many unknowns remain, but the story plays out in the land in so many ways it cannot do outside of it. I never realized that each time Samson goes out he pushes farther into Philistine territory. I certainly never understood the story of his wife from Timnah and the way it escalates through the social levels from personal to tribal involvement. Looking at the plains and hills it also finally made sense why he would to out into the Philistine Plain and then retreat to cities in the Judean hill country.

The story of David and Goliath is a classic Sunday School story, so looking over the Elah Valley naturally held some appeal for me. In addition, last year for a historical geography exam I had to write an essay question on the importance of the David and Goliath battle. After studying things, it is always fascinating to be able to see the settings instead of just trying to imagine it. It is no wonder Jesse would send David to check on the battle when Bethlehem would be then next city on the Philistine route to Gibeah, Saul's capital.

Lachish was interesting on a number of levels. Dr. Barkay has talked about it several times in archaeology. While I understood that a tel has levels, it was very interesting for me to see the different levels and Lachish. I'm also amazed by what they were able to do in ancient times. It puzzles me how they could have possibly dug a one hundred foot well through bedrock. I'm seriously impressed.

Obviously, ending the day at Ashkelon did not hurt the overall experience. Beyond just the fun and excitement of hanging out on the beach at the Mediterranean, it also continued to expand my understanding of just how diverse the land is. From Judean hill country to the sandy beach of Ashkelon definitely constitutes a major change of terrain. All in all, it was a fascinating day of study, ending with a really fun couple hours of Mediterranean beach time and good friends.

22 in Israel

There are moments in life when I am just completely overwhelmed. Today has certainly been one of those days. I am blown away by God's goodness and the love of the people around me. As alluded to in the title, today was my 22nd birthday. Away from home and all of my normal routines and traditions, I can't say as I was expecting nearly the response that I got. Sure, I figured people would probably sing to me at some point and wish me a happy birthday. But my friends went to such lengths to make me feel special today, and it certainly worked!

To begin the day, I had a card from my grandparents, which I got a few days ago and had been saving to open. It was a really nice piece of home on my birthday. As is becoming tradition, I got sung to when I walked into Physical Settings, just before our lovely exam on the Shephelah and Negev. What better way to celebrate a birthday (please note the sarcasm)! I spent a pretty normal morning going to class and doing a bit or work afterwards. Shortly before lunch I got coersed into going out with some of the guys who had been planing a trip to local spot. Despite the rain/hail trying to dampen my spirits, I had a great time! I was certainly glad I got talked into it. We made it back with one minute to spare before my afternoon class.

After class I found a quite spot on campus to spend some time with God and then get some school work done for 2 or 3 hours. An hour or so before dinner I went and played a round of bananagrams (think speed scrabble for any of you that know it) with my friend Emily. Then we just hung out talking and for a bit. About 20 minutes before dinner, one of my friends, Dan, came in to ask Emily a question, saw me, greeted us both in Arabic (we're all three in class together) and then conveniently couldn't remember what he had come int to ask her. Right before dinner, another guy, B.B., came in with the interesting excuse that he'd sprained his ankle and needed tape. Emily took off with him to go "show him where it was." Things were starting to get fishy, but of course, I played along.

About 2 minutes later, on my way to the dining room, I ran into B.B. again. This time he was just coming out of the dining room. Seeing me about to enter, he fell down in front of the door with a mock moan about his ankle. He then proceeded to tell me that "he was born when he was very young" and all about his limited brown hair that always stood up and had to be wet down by his mother. By the time he was done I was nearly dying laughing. Finally he was able to stand up again (translation: finally I was allowed into the dining room). When I came in I got sung to again, and they had made and hung up a bit happy birthday poster, which a bunch of my friends signed.

After dinner I sat around talking with a couple friends for quite awhile. It was really nice just to sit and hang out and have some great conversation. In the middle, I got interrupted yet again by Seth and Emily, two of the grad students, who had made me a birthday slushy, complete with a candle to be blown out.

As the last great event of my birthday, I was taken out to the Israeli version of a Waffle House. It was such a great time. First of all, they have wonderful waffles with all sorts of very interesting things on them. It was definitely the best "birthday cake" I've ever had! Second, it was so much fun just to go out and have fun and do crazy stuff with friends. They told the people it was my birthday, and the cooks put sparklers on my waffles. Sparklers! I've never seen that one in the States before. It was also one of the most fun places I have ever been. They were playing music, and the cooks would just start dancing behind the counter. It was crazy, but so much fun.

Now I'm back and about to head to bed. But I've had such a crazy good day. Along with all the things that have happened, I also got lots of birthday wishes and emails and facebook notes. My friends also took it upon themselves to hang lots of random and really funny little posters about birthdays around campus. It was pretty awesome, and I kept coming across them in places I totally was not looking for them. So yeah, all I can say is this was an amazing day, and I feel so loved and so special. Thanks to everyone who participated and who made it so great!

The Dhimmi and Life in the East

One thing I have been learning since my first day here is that life in the East does not look quite like life in the West. In Israel, sometimes that fact gets covered up by the Western influence present here. But hang around long enough and the East always pushes back through. Cross into Bethlehem, 5 miles away, and the veil gets very thin where it even exists at all.

On a related but slightly different idea, Tuesday night in my History of the Church in the East class we talked about the Dhimma. This is the part of Shari'a law (Islamic law) that deals with the non-Muslim peoples. The idea in the West is that they have managed to learn how to get along together. The Islamic governments in places like Egypt and Palestine are considered "tolerant." While they are compared to places like Saudi Arabia, as long as Shari'a law remains in effect, the Dhimma remains as well.

Since I'm sure that at this point almost none of you have any idea what I mean by the Dhimma, let me explain a little bit. The Dhimma orginates with a treaty Muhammad made with a Jewish village. In exchange for their surrender, he agreed to let them stay and work their land, but basically as serfs. According to Islam, all the land in the world belongs to Allah. This is what justifies the idea of jihad. They are simply taking back the land that always belonged to Allah and should be owned and ruled by Allah's people. No non-Muslim can own land in an Islamic society. This same custom has been adopted, expanded, and for about 1400 years has dictated the way that Muslims treat non-Muslims within their society.

The Dhimmi (non-Muslims, who therefore live under the Dhimma) must pay exhorbitant tax on their land. In addition, they all pay a pole tax - individual tax which must be paid every year. It is done in a humiliating manner, so as to remind the Dhimmi that while they pay tax, they do not receive any rights in exchanged for their tax. Over and beyond that, their Muslim land owners can decide to change the tax anytime they want, and a Dhimmi has no right to object. Also, the Dhimmi are forbidden to speak of the Dhimma. It's like it doesn't exist, at least not on a public sphere. Essentially, they are allowed to live without converting to Islam, but as non-people with no rights. Even their right to live can be taken away by the Muslims and they have to right to speak against it.

In the West, historians speak of the Dhimma as a thing of the past (when they speak of it at all). Anyone who looks deeply into Eastern society cannot hold to that idea. Certainly Eastern church leaders will come to the West and say that they live peaceably with the Muslims. What else can they say when the only line they are allowed to give is that Israel creates all of their problems? Anything else could get their churches destroyed and their members killed. One wonders why they don't speak out against it. My professor aptly compared it to an abused woman or child. These people have lived with the Dhimma for 1400 years; they don't know anything else. Partly they are afraid of what might happen if they do, but partly they are ashamed that they must pay just to work their own land. They have been stripped of their dignity, so the only dignity they have left is to refuse to acknowledge this before others. It's kind of messed up, but in a messed up kind of way, it makes sense.

Two events of recent history illustrate this idea pretty well - one from Egypt and one from Palestine (the "tolerant" countries). In 2004, in Bethlehem, Muslim terrorists seiged the Church of the Nativity for 39 days. The Muslims trashed the Church, relieving themselves on alters, ripping apart Bibles, and burning parts of it. One priest was killed and several others wounded. During the seige, one priest dared to take his towel, write "please help" on it, and hold it outside. This priest is now exiled in Australia, because to allow him to stay in Bethlehem would have both endangered his life and sent the message that the Church condoned his actions. Remember, the Dhimmi are not allowed to speak up. They cannot ask for help. Following this, the Church apologized for the actions of this priest. What kind of freedom do you have, if you cannot even ask for help in such a situation?

More recently, in Egypt, Muslim terrorists blew up a car bomb outside a church in Alexandria, just as people came out of the church following the New Year's Eve service this past year. 27 Christians were killed a couple hundred more wounded. One Muslim was accidently killed in the bomb as well. This past week, the court ruling was decided. Of the terrorists, one was sentenced to death because one Muslim died. Shari'a law requires a life for a life, so one must die. The rest were aquitted of any charges. 27 killed and over 200 hundred wounded and they won't pay anything for it. They were Dhimmi, so they have no rights, not even to their own lives.

To be fair, there are those among the people who will speak up. There are leaders who have spoken against the Islamic governments, and people who critique their standing and position. But they are few and far between. Frequently Christians are treated decently. Every week I go into Bethlehem for Arabic, and my teacher is the wife of the president of the Bible college there. She seems to get along just fine. However, the biggest issue is that the Dhimmi have no rights and no way to get them without converting to Islam. So their decent life can be taken away at any time, for pretty much any reason.

On a different, and somewhat happier note, I've been enjoying Eastern life in other fashions. This is a land of traditions and sameness and a somewhat slower paced lifestyle. Today, donned my longest skirt (shorts don't really fly over there) and went to the center where I volunteer with 4-year-old Arab children. After finishing at 11, I and the three other girls walked back from the Mount of Olives (the center's location). Entering the Old City at Damascus gate, two of us stopped at a falafel stand to get some lunch. We took it to a square, and just sat and ate and watched the goings on. Did I mention it was probably about 75 and sunny? Once we finished, we headed back to JUC so that I could meet up with the others going to Arabic. Taking the bus into Bethlehem is always an experience and today proved no different, especially when one or our guys realized that he left his passport at JUC. Needless to say, he never made it to Arabic.

In Arabic I was reminded yet again that culture here is a little different. Today we learned the words for boy and girl. At the same time we also learned that while there are separate words for boy and son, the words for girl and daugher are the same word. To differentiate you simply add a possessive pronoun. So "my girl" is my daughter, while "a girl" is referring to someone else. Tell you anything about the culture here? It should. Frustrating as it is, being a girl here means that I cannot go out by myself except in broad daylight and very public, slightly more Western areas. Going out at night requires a guy, not just a group of girls (unless it's a pretty large group). And getting harassed is pretty much a given if you spend more than a week here. It's kind of an ugly reality, but one we're learning to live with. You get pretty good at ignoring people and just keep walking. If you prove that you know their culture by refusing to pay them the time of day when they speak to you, they usually stop with just a comment or two.

Well that's probably plenty for one blog post. Time for a half hour of reading, dinner, and then more work. I've been a bit delinquent in my reading of late, and find myself in need of catching up. The sunshine has just made getting out and exploring so very tempting recently. I hope you all are doing well, and as always, I would love to hear your thoughts or things going on in your own lives. Or if you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them as well as I can.

Love,
Kristin

Reorienting My Week

One thing I'm discovering here in Israel is that it's much harder to keep track of the day of the week. My American mind is used to weeks that start on Monday and culminate in a peaceful Sunday involving church, and some down time or relational time afterwards. Not so here. Shabbat starts Friday night and goes until Saturday night. While many churches still meet Sunday morning, many Messianic congregations actually choose to meet Friday night or Saturday morning. Additionally, since all of Israel shuts down for Shabbat, Friday night very much has the feel of the end of the week. Saturday is calm and peaceful, a slow day of rest and time for thought (unless we have field study that is). Sunday starts the work week, giving it very much the feel of and American Monday.

This morning, having no school obligations, I had the opportunity to join in a local church. I chose to accompany four other students to a congregation called Jerusalem Assembly. It is a mixed church, Messianic Jews along with many internationals. As a result, the service is run dually in Hebrew and English. Nearly all of the singing is done in Hebrew, but much of it is more Western music (and the English translation is provided at the bottom). All announcements are done in both languages (usually the pastor translating himself). For the actual sermon, the pastor preached and the worship leader translated him.

It was a fascinating service for me to participate in. While nearly the whole service was translated into English, the service itself was far more "Jewish" than anything in which I have yet had the opportunity to participate. Even the sermon, instead of following a much more Western pattern of text, major points built off from it, conclusion, followed a more Eastern pattern of meandering exposition and finally back to the text. It was an incredibly interesting experience for me. I also continue to find that while the customs may be different, God is the same. It's an awesome experience to be able to go anywhere in the world and still find other believers with whom I can join in worship!

One thing that I really loved about Jerusalem Assembly was the community feel of the congregation. They are clearly involved in each others' lives and not just on Saturday morning for a couple hours. Nearly every day of the week they have some sort of small group, prayer, or fellowship activites going on. In addition, following the service nearly all of them made their way into a fellowship hall for a simple meal together. We shared a lentil soup, pita and humus, and some dessert breads along tea and coffee. It was really nice to sit and eat a meal together and meet several members of the congregation.

I was noticing that it's such a diverse and interesting group of people who come together. I'm struck by the fact that only Jesus would bring together such a group. There were Israelis, Americans, Germans and I'm sure several others. There were short-term students, long-term students and immigrants, and residents of Jerusalem. They have an Israeli pastor and an American worship leader. Every generation was represented. I saw the young, Western students with little concept of the dynamics of the land and a Holocaust survivor who is well acquainted with what it means to be a Jew.

All in all it was a wonderful morning of worship and an awesome cultural experience. Now I'm settling in to enjoy a few more hours of Shabbat before heading into the start of a new week. Tomorrow it's off to Samaria for another full day field study. More on that tomorrow night. Hope everyone is enjoying the start to their weekends! When you go into church tomorrow (if you do), remember that we are the body of Christ, more diverse than we can possibly imagine and called to love and nuture one another. Find someone to engage, and really see them. Church isn't a place we come to every week; it's a place we create when we invest our lives together with the lives of our brothers and sister. I guess I'm learning something from my Jewish brothers and sisters.

Love,
Kristin