FROM DAN TO BEERSHEBA (and then some)

Then all the people of Israel came out, from Dan to Beersheba, including the land of Gilead, and the congregation assembled as one man to the Lord at Mizpah (Judges 20:1).

The phrase, from Dan to Beersheba, occurs 9 times in the Old Testament, being a general description of the area settled by the Hebrew people, Dan being the northern most and Beersheba being the southern most. It is not a precise description, but is a good general one.  This description was advocated by the Brits following WW1 as a mandate for a homeland for the Jewish people.  On our 2014 trip we pretty much covered that description.  We could have gone further north and south, but none of us desired to.

Israel is a tiny country, being as much a county as a country, yet it is a mighty country for its size.  In terms of its economy in the middle east, only Iran's might surpass it.  In terms of technology, it is a world leader, advancing in computer tech, medical tech and the sciences.  In terms of military might, it is thought, though no one knows for sure, that Israel could be the world's 4th leading nuclear power.  Though the Palestinians resent a powerful Israel and think the Israeli's should give up more, being so tiny they could not exist otherwise.

I have wondered why the Jews in America generally support liberal lefties in American politics.  Our present president's administration has not been a big supporter of Israel, to say the least.  To my Jewish seatmate I asked why Jews supported Obama while his policies have imperiled Israel rather than empowering Israel.  He said, "We have been imperiled for 2,500 years."  The modern State of Israel was started as a socialist democracy.  The Jews are comfortable with it so they support socialist government.  I think the reason socialism seems to work for Israel is that there is a thin line between existence and nonexistence and everyone feels the need to contribute, while in America socialism produces a lot of people with their hands out wanting more.  Israeli's practice the wisdom of John F. Kennedy much more than Americans, "Do not ask what your country can do for you, but what can you do for your country."

"From Dan to Beersheba" Israel is a museum.  That statement is not meant to be derogatory, but rather, to be complimentary.  To muse is to think deeply, to ponder or to meditate.  A museum is a place that stimulates one to think, and

that is what Israel does.  I cannot go there without thinking about history, examining my faith and thinking about the future--from history to hope.  (Doesn't this "hanging tree" in Jaffa stimulate your thinking?  Well, I had to use the picture somewhere.)

Our Father's Love,
Tom

DAY 8: WHAT A DAY! (With Wyoming and Elvis)

Jesus answered him, "If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him" (John 14:23).

Our plane landed in Omaha at 4:00 p.m. central daylight time, Friday, March 21, 2014.  Helen asked me if I was good to make the 3 hour drive home.  I assured her that I was.  About an hour from home, I went to sleep and our car nearly went into the ditch, but providentially, I came to my senses in time to prevent a bad accident.  From our experience, the most dangerous part of a trip to Israel is the drive from the airport home.

Actually, the day began at 6:00 Thursday morning, packing because we would not return to the hotel, this was our last day in Israel.  The last day was a day of remembrance of modern Israel.  We left the hotel at 9, our destination being Yad Ben Zvi.  Izhak Ben Zvi was the 2nd president of modern Israel.  He was a very modest man in terms of his accommodations.  He did not think it right for political leaders to live in plush housing, elegant clothing and prestigious treatment while the common folks experienced lack.  As a result, he lived in a modest house and did not care what visiting heads-of-state thought about it.  Also on display at Yad Ben Zvi were the Ezekiel tablets, thought by some to be at least as old as the Dead Sea Scrolls. The tablets are absolutely unique in that the lettering on them is relief lettering, that is it is raised lettering.  No one knows for sure how the lettering was done, but the theory is that it was a kind of etching process where the letters were made with wax and acid dissolved the surrounding material.  It had to have been pain-staking work!

Our next stop was the Holocaust Museum.  Israeli policy is for every person that serves in the military, every public servant and politician, every foreign dignitary to visit this museum so they understand what happened, why it happened and that it could happen again if it is forgotten.  No pictures were allowed to be taken in the museum, and it was the most emotional experience of the tour.  After this day we were emotionally drained.  When we went to lunch after the museum tour, I asked Keren if she had read "Man's Search for Meaning" by Victor Frankl.  I was amazed that she had not.  Because of the crowding at lunch my explanation of Frankl was a stumbling, bumbling affair that did not help her--she probably thought I'd gone schizo or something (I did buy and send her the book).  I was amazed that the museum did not include any of Frankl's work because he was a Jewish psychiatrist who did survive the Nazi death camps.

We next went to the Israeli national cemetery where the honored military dead are buried.  They are all buried alike with little difference between various ranks of officers and soldiers because in Israel it is important for people to be treated alike.  We saw the grave of Prime Minister Netenyahu's brother who was killed in the raid on Entebbe and other heroic dead.  We saw the graves of Theodore Herzi, Yitzhak Rabin and Golda Meir.

Keren gave us an hour to shop and tour in a market area in Jerusalem.  The markets are interesting to me because there is so much and there is so much that is perishable and it is open air.  Keren told us that there is much that is simply given to the poor on Friday afternoon.  It was time to say our goodbyes to Keren.  We had grown close to her in 8 days, so it was sad to say goodbye. Keren, though a warm friend, knows how to maintain emotional distance.  In her business, guiding as many people as she does, she would be an emotional wreck if she did not.

What are the odds?  On the way to supper we saw a chevy van with a Wyoming license plate.  It was the only American plate I saw in Israel and that from the least populous state in America.  It made me ready to go home.  We also had to make a potty stop, so we stopped at a convenience store/restaurant that had a 10 foot statue of Elvis in front and featured Elvis music inside--it's almost like Israel is our 51st state.

We had a farewell dinner in the Christian village of Abu Ghosh.  It was a great, all Israeli, dinner.  We ate until we were absolutely stuffed.  We arrived at the airport in Tel Aviv at 9, stood in a long line to check in and were on the plane just after midnight.  Two crying babies kept us awake during the most of the flight.  We said goodbyes to our new tour friends--another sad time.  Helen and I arrived in Omaha at 4:00 with very little sleep in 36 hours and it took a full week before we felt like we had recovered from time zone trauma.  But, you know what?  I'm ready to go again if we can find 20 people who want to go with me.  Interested?

Our Father's Love,
Tom

Helen, Keren and me.  This picture came from one of our group's I phones.  Keren was our tour guide and we could not have asked for a better one.  It is interesting to me that Keren's voice and English speech patterns are very much like a friend's in eastern Europe.  It was fun to listen to her talk.

DAY 7: JERUSALEM

If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill.  May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy (Psalms 137:5-6).

Touring the Holy Land is not easy, but it is good.  One of the good things one receives from the tour is good physical conditioning--we all went home in better condition than we came, not only physically, but spiritually, and emotionally as well.  This day, March 19, 2014, we spent all day on our feet, as much below ground and above it.  We became very intimate with this city, learning and experiencing much of its history.  If a person does not go to Jerusalem then he has not gone to the Holy Land!

We started the day at the Jaffa gate where the "tower of David" stands.  It was originally built by Hezekiah some 2700 years ago, having been knocked down and rebuilt no less than 7 times since then.  At the Jaffa Gate citadel we ascended to the ramparts, top of the wall, at walked up and down and over very irregular walkways to the Zion Gate.  One gets a real sense of what it must have been like to defend the city from these walls that have withstood onslaughts for literally hundreds of years--there are bullet scars from 1967.

We descended the wall at the Zion Gate and walked to see David's Tomb at Mt. Zion.  While there we encountered a great number of black folks from Nigeria.  Keren told us the Nigerian government was paying the travel expenses for Christians to see Jerusalem and for Muslims to see another of the Islamic holy cities.  David's Tomb is a traditional site, but it is next door to the upper room, site of the Last Supper and the site of the disciples being overwhelmed with the Holy Spirit.  If those are actual places it makes Peter's statement in Acts 2:29: Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day,  much more colorful.  Peter says these words and gestures in the direction of David's tomb.  But of Jesus, Peter declares: God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses to this fact (Acts 2:32).  Praise the Lord!!!  Jesus Christ has risen!

We walked the "Cardo" of Jerusalem, an 1800 year old shopping mall, still in use today.  The Broad Wall is near the Cardo, and was the next place for us to visit. The BW  is the remnant of the city fortifications dating to the eighth century b.c. built by Hezekiah.  The wall is 22 feet thick.

We stopped for lunch.  There were quite a lot of choices for lunch, but I kept it simple: pizza and a Coke Zero.  After lunch I needed a bathroom break and it was here that we had our first experience with a unisex bathroom.  Helen and I both looked straight ahead--no looking around!  We have no pictures of that.

When we gathered after lunch, we walked to the City of David--the original Jerusalem.  This was the Jerusalem that David captured from the Jebusites (2 Samuel 5:6-17).  Some of our group walked through the wet Hezekiah water tunnel, but Helen and I walked through the dry section.  Hezekiah's water tunnel is an amazing fete of engineering that no one today is quite sure how they accomplished it, but it did bring water into the city which was especially import during times of siege.  Hezekiah was quite a builder and engineer.  Check out 2 Kings 20:20 & 2 Chronicles 32:2-4 & 30.

At the end of Hezekiah's tunnel was the Pool of Siloam, and important place in the gospels (See the man born blind, John 9).  Siloam was excavated in 2005. Since I was there in 2008, a walk way has been excavated that the pilgrims of Jesus' day would have taken from the pool of Siloam to the Temple.  Back in the day it would have been an open-air walk, but now it is a long, narrow, rough, wet tunnel.  It was a difficult walk for our seniors, but we imagined what it must have been like for pilgrims eagerly anticipating worship in the Temple of God.

We walked to the southern wall of the Temple Mount and walked the teaching steps of the temple where Jesus taught his disciples and the Apostles taught those first members of the infant church and preached their first sermons.  We visited the holiest place of the Jewish people, The Western Wall and we were guided through the tunnels of the Western Wall, by a young man specifically trained to do this.  He gave us a very good lecture on the construction and history of the Temple Mount and then asked if there were questions.  I asked, not intending to cause trouble, what he thought about the different theories of the placement of the Temple on the Mount.  He acted as if I had asked the stupidest question in the world.  'The only place the Temple could have been located,' he said, 'is where the Dome of the Rock now sits,' "There are no other choices!" I didn't say, though I should have, "I'm sorry, but there are some credible scholars that believe otherwise."  I'm too easy.

Heim met us with the bus.  We were glad to see him because we were tired, having walked about 6 miles that day.

Our Father's Love
Tom

Hezekiah's tunnel was 1700 feet long--a 3rd of a mile. Two crews worked, one from each end and they met.  They didn't have time to waste, the Assyrians were coming and they needed a safe water supply.

DAY 6: ON THE JERICHO ROAD

A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers.  They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead (Luke 10:30).

On March 18th we did a road trip from Jerusalem to Masada and the Dead Sea.  It makes a lengthy trip through the desert to get to those places, so there was a lot of bus riding.  As we descended from Jerusalem towards Jericho, we stopped at the Church of the Good Samaritan.  It would have been at about this location that the good Samaritan in Jesus' parable discovered the man who had been beaten, robbed and left half dead.  The Jericho road was notoriously dangerous, being infested with crooks, robbers and the violent.  In ancient times the church occupied this spot, but now only a part of the church mosaic floor exists.  Actually, the Israeli government funds this site.  It has now become a place where mosaic floors from other archaeological sites are restored and exhibited.  The Israeli government is doing God's work, I truly believe that, and will explain it as I close out this Israel tour series.

We continued east, down the steep Jericho road from Jerusalem. About 3-4 miles from Jericho we made a right turn and headed south towards Masada and the Dead Sea. It should be noted that there is, in the 20 miles from Jericho to Jerusalem a 3300 feet difference in elevation, Jericho being 740 feet Below Sea Level.  The Dead Sea is 1401 feet BSL and is 1237 feet deep.

Before we reached the DS and Masada, we made two stops: one, for Helen to ride a camel and two, to visit the ruins at Qumran. Helen looks great on a camel, or anywhere for that matter, but as a matter of history,  Qumran is very important.  For about 300 years, 250 B.C. to 70 A.D., the Essenes occupied Qumran.  What is most important about them is the copying and preservation of Scripture--they produced the DS scrolls.  Because of their work, the Old Testament is, from a historical perspective, a credible document.  And we know that Daniel is what it claimed to be, inspired predictive prophecy, not history written as prophecy as some of the critics claimed.

Masada was the next stop.  Masada is an amazing mountain-top fortress over-looking the DS.  It was built by Herod the Great before the birth of Christ for his own personal protection.  However, Jewish zealots used it to hold out against the Romans after 70 A.D., but by 73 they could hold out no longer.  The Jews committed mass suicide rather than surrender to the Romans.  That story is embedded in the Jewish psyche to this day.  It was at Masada that we encountered the "Insight For Living" tour group.  They had 18 tour buses, which translates conservatively into 720 people.  In a group that large each person has to be tagged and numbered like cattle.  I would never go on a celebrity tour like that.  I loved our little group of 21! Keren was able to count noses.  Because of the crowded conditions, Keren was able to pull us into one of the many rooms Herod built and talk to us about what we were seeing.  Keren was a gem! And, we did not see Chuck.

Our final stop was at the DS for some bathing.  Any Holy Land tour is deficient without floating in the DS. I enjoyed the half hour in the sea, but I wanted to share some quick facts about it: 1. There are dry-valley lakes in Antarctica that exceed the Dead Sea's 33.7% salinity. 2. Many cosmetics and fertilizers are made from the DS's minerals. 3. People come here for health treatments.  Because of the minerals in the sea, the low pollen, reduced UV rays and higher atmospheric pressure, bathing and just laying out in the sun is good for what ails.

After all of this activity it was time for lunch, even though it was late afternoon.  This was our evening meal, and we ate at the resort hotel dining room.  After eating, it was a long, sleepy bus ride home to Jerusalem.
It was dark by the time we arrived at our hotel in Jerusalem.  Some of us were hungry again, so several of us who liked to walk, walked about 10 blocks to a McDonald's.  It was not kosher.  Helen and I bought "Big America Juniors" to eat.  They were considerably more expensive than an American equivalent, but there was also an 18% tax.  I have eaten at McDonald's in Romania and Israel.  Even though MD's tries to have uniformity, to me, there is a distinct national flavor to each one, but they are all good.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

The view from the top of Masada towards the Dead Sea.  Notice the square?  That is the place of one of the Roman encampments that circled Masada.

DAY 5: ST. PATRICK'S DAY IN JERUSALEM

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you!  How often would I have gathered you children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not! (Matthew 23:37).

Sometimes my notes are a little sketchy about the events of a day.  I never carry a note book with me during the day to record the events of the day as they happen, rather, I rely on my keen memory.  In the evening I write down the events that readily come to mind, my reasoning being that the events that readily come to mind are the events that impressed me and interested me the most and they are the ones that should be recorded.  For some unknown reason, day 5 is really sketchy and we covered some of the most interesting ground of the trip.

We started the day on the Mount of Olives, located across the Kidron Valley, east of Jerusalem.  Jesus was sitting on Olivet when he spoke about the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple and the last days--he had a perfect view of the Temple and the city from there (see Matthew 24).  The Mount of Olives is where the Lord will return, so it seemed logical to ask one of our co-pilgrims to take our picture there with the Dome of the Rock in the background.

We descended the Mount to the Church of All Nations, which is in Gethsemane.  It was in Gethsemane that Jesus spent his last free hours before his betrayal, arrest and crucifixion in prayer.  Olive trees never really die.  It is alleged that a couple of those very old trees in Gethsemane came from the very roots of the trees that were there in the time of Jesus.  Most likely, the Romans cut all the trees out of Gethsemane in 70 a.d..

We next walked into the old city of Jerusalem and walked the Via Dolorosa, the way of sorrows, the route Jesus carried the cross from the place of trial to Golgotha, the place of crucifixion.  There is more tradition than history in this route, but as old and narrow as the streets are, it gives one a strong sense of reality.  The way of sorrows ends at the Church of Golgotha and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.  I care not for the old churches but I do care about the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus.  There is more history associated with these sites, than the other site that seems more plausible to me.  We next walked to the Garden Tomb.  To me it seems much more likely that this where the crucifixion and resurrection took place, but it does not have the weight of nearly 2,000 years of tradition on its side.

Supper time found us eating supper with a couple of Israeli soldiers, a young man and a young woman.  These soldiers were called "Lone Soldiers" because they have come from abroad, without their families, to serve in the Israeli Defense Forces.  I hope we were good company for them.  The young woman was Shara from Philadelphia.  She said her service in the IDF made her appreciate history more, especially American history.  She doesn't take the Fourth of July for granted any more.  The young man was Philip from New York.  He wanted Americans to understand that Israel is not all about military and defense, it is about culture and Americans should make an attempt to understand Israeli culture.  Both these soldiers were bright, articulate and unafraid.  I was glad we had the opportunity to share some time with them--I hope they were rewarded as much as we were!  I would say Israel is in good hands.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

Helen and I are standing on the Mount of Olives, the Dome of the Rock and old Jerusalem being in the background.  This was about where Jesus was when he spoke to his disciples Matthew chapter 24.  Notice, I did wear green for St. Patrick's day.

ADDENDUM: DAY 2

This is a real picture that I took in 2008 at Caesarea.  It is a picture of the aqueduct that brought water to the city.  That this piece of architecture still stands so strong after more than 2,000 years is a testimony to the engineering skills and the masonry precision of that day.  I do not know why our tour of Caesarea did not include this, but we had more to do than we could get done anyway (note day 2).  It was kool knowing that I had seen something the others hadn't.  I mentioned it to Helen, but to no one else--I didn't want to stir up dissatisfaction.  Note the blue Mediterranean through the arches of the aqueduct.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

DAY 4: NEVER PASS UP AN OPPORTUNITY

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John.  But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"  Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness" (Matthew 3:13-15).

Helen and I were awake at six.  We bathed and packed our bags and ate another delightful breakfast.  Our first stop that day, Sunday, March 16, was the traditional baptismal site on the Jordan River.  Two of our group were baptised that day.  The Jordan is a muddy river in that location, it made me think of the leprous captain Naaman who was commanded to dip seven times in the Jordan and he protested that the rivers in Syria were much cleaner.  I'm sure he was right, but it is not the cleanness, but the obedience that heals (see II Kings 5:1-19).

We spent a short time shopping, though Helen still spent a lot of money, and we were off to Beit she'an, one of the cities of the Decapolis.  The Decapolis was a group of ten cities dedicated to the promotion and preservation of Greek and Roman culture.  The New Testament tells us that Jesus traveled within their scope of influence.  Beit She'an was the only city of the ten located west of the Jordan River.  This was the city, according to Keren, where Saul and Jonathon's bodies were hung from the city walls.  Beit She'an was, in Greco-Roman times, a metro area of roughly 40,000*, having all the trappings of wealth, theater, hippodromes, baths, saunas and gyms.  It had all the sophistication of Roman culture but was decadent and cruel with ritual prostitution and blood sports.  So it was interesting that we paused for Sunday morning worship within the ruins of Beit She'an.  We sang hymns and prayed.  We had a short message and celebrated the Lord's Supper there too.  I wonder if Beit She'an had ever had a Christian worship service in it?

We were beginning to know our fellow travelers from Oklahoma--we couldn't have picked a better group to travel with.  Most of them were seasoned, sophisticated travelers, but very humble and loving, so we did not feel like the novices that we were.

We ate lunch at Beit She'an.  I ate a piece of pizza and a 20 ounce Coke Zero.  I tell you this because I did not take time to use the men's room before we got back in the bus for the long drive to Jerusalem.  The drive down the Jordan valley was an interesting one, but it would have been much more interesting if I would have followed my traveling policy of never passing up an opportunity to use the restroom.  By the time we reached Mount Scopus for a view of the whole city in which we would be staying for the next 4 nights, I was in absolute agony.  When the bus stopped and we exited the bus, I asked Haim, our driver, if there was a men's room around here, "I need one bad."  He said, "It is not good to keep poisons inside; find a tree."  Haim was a pragmatist in his approach to life.

Our first night in Jerusalem we slept well.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

*The picture is of the theater in Beit She'an.  It's a 4,000 seat theater indicating an approximate drawing population of about 40,000 people.  In 2008 a Jordanian tour guide said the 3,000 seat theater at Jeresh indicated a population of about 30,000 people.  Keren did not agree with that assessment saying the population was way below that.

DAY 3: GALILEE TO THE GOLAN (Peace to War).

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew.  They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen, "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:18-19).

It was a peaceful night of sleep in the historic city of Tiberius that night.  We awoke refreshed, and having broke fast with hearty Mediterranean fare we were on our way by 8:15 to another big day of touring.  We started the day by taking a boat ride on Galilee.  Most of our group thought this to be the highlight of the trip, it was still early and quiet, and not hard to imagine being with Peter, Andrew, James and John helping them to fish.  Yes, Galilee is only a lake, but still plenty big enough for a person to die in a storm.

We next stopped at Kibbutz Ginosar to see a 2,000 year old fishing boat that had been excavated from the mud of Galilee.  It was a fishing boat like the disciples would have used.  The boat was made of 12 different kinds of wood, the reason being there was a shortage of wood.  By the 19th century there was not a wooden boat to be found on Galilee (James Michener, The Source).

Our next stop was at the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5,6,7).  It was a peaceful, quiet place for meditation, but it is more of a traditional place than a historical place.

Capernaum is a historical place.  We know Jesus was there!  Jesus spent most of his ministry in north Galilee, in a 12 mile arc on the north side of the lake.  Capernaum is about in the center of that arc--it is known as the 12 miles that changed the world.  At least 8 miracles were performed in Capernaum, still there were many who did not believe.  To whom much is given, much is required.  We saw the synagogue in which Jesus taught and Peter's mother-in-law's house.

From the shores of Galilee to Caesarea Philipi was our next trip.  It was here Jesus asked the 12 to tell him who men say that he is, and then "Who do you say that I am?"  Here is the temple of Pan, the gate to the underworld (Hades) which would not prevail against the Church, Jesus told his apostles.

We hadn't stopped for lunch yet, and it was about 2 p.m. so we stopped in a Druze village on the way up to Mount Bental.  We had a delightful lunch of falafuls, swarmas and Coke Zero.  There were armed Israeli soldiers in the restaurant too--Syria was not very far away.

Upon reaching the summit of Bental, an extinct volcano, Keren, our guide, explained to us the border with Syria and told us about the war of 1967 and the real acts of heroism that were required for Israel to survive. After hearing that I mentioned to her that I thought it was Divine providence. Keren did not respond, so I am not sure if she heard me, or, that she did not agree with my belief.* I do believe, however, that there have been so many near miraculous outcomes with the Israelis that the hand of the Divine had to be in it.  We were so close to the war in Syria that we could hear it going on.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

Tom and Helen on Galilee.

*Keren was a delightful guide, and, I believe, very accurate in her presentations.  There were some matters in her presentation that were veried from what my previous guides told me.