An almost silent night

3/29/13

Last night I went with a group of students to the Mount of Olives and read the account of Jesus' betrayal in Matthew.  The Garden of Gethsemane area seemed to be closed so we sat down on some steps nearby and read and prayed.  Afterwards the doors were open and we got to wander around the garden and into the church for a while.  Every once in a while the cars would stop honking at each other and there would be a lull in the noise.  In those moments the evening was so quiet it was almost eerie.  The moon was full and the night was a dark dark blue.  It was certainly a night that left an impression on me.

There and back again, a West Bank story

Today I spent the afternoon in Beit Sahour.  Osama, the regular driver for PAIDIA, picked me up just after the check point as usual.  As soon as I got in the car he apologized for being late and told me that I shouldn't be afraid.  I was a little bit confused as I thought he was just talking about busy traffic or not being able to get to the school on time, but then he went on to tell me that two families living between Bethlehem and Beit Sahour were fighting.  He explained how there are still tribal tendencies in the Palestinian culture and the families that he was talking about consisted of maybe 500 people or more.  Apparently the families were running around in the streets with machine guns shooting at each other.  On his way to get me bullets were flying very close to his car, and he told me that we would have to wait until the police had stabilized the situation.  About every five minutes or so he would call his friend who was a captain on the local police force and ask if it was clear, but we were told to wait time after time.  Later I found out that the entire Bethlehem police force had been deployed in order to try and get the situation under control.  Eventually we were able to skirt around the danger and get to where we needed to be.  Osama said that this was a fairly normal thing in the West Bank.  After teaching and getting through the checkpoint I saw that there weren't any buses heading to Jerusalem and I decided to just walk back.  This was the first time I had walked a round trip.  I enjoyed the walk, but unfortunately I didn't make it back in time for dinner so I walked over to the Old City and satisfied my hunger with falafel.  Good times.

Double update!

3/21/13

I walked to a Hebrew Bible store today in the New City of Jerusalem and ran into Rabbi Moshe.  We talked about comic books for a while and then went on our separate ways.  The guy at the store was pretty rude so I didn’t spend much time there.  I spent most of my day in the library overlooking Gehenna and then went to the music festival in the Old City in the evening.  It was great!  There were all sorts of colored lights being projected along the walls giving the city a uniquely festive and outlandish atmosphere.  There were several stages set up throughout the Old City with different bands playing a variety of music.   Some of the really eclectic Middle Eastern melodies were haunting and captivating and inspiring all at once.  The mixture of the music and lighting, as well as the mood of the crowds in the city was perfect.  It was something so foreign from what I have known, yet beautiful in a way that unmistakably resonated with me.  Afterwards, when I got back to the campus and the available wifi, I sent Elise a picture of the stage at the cardo.  I wish I could have talked to her but she was at work and I was ready to pass out for the night.  

3/24/13

Today was Palm Sunday and I walked the procession from behind the Mount of Olives to the Old City of Jerusalem.  There were so many people there, but it was nice to remember the events of the triumphal entry in to Jerusalem the week before Good Friday.  There were palm branches waving in the air and songs being sung by pilgrims from all around the world and the local people living in nearby villages dancing in the streets with guitars or drums.  Overall we walked for about 4 and a half hours (including the time it took to get there and the time it took to grab shawarma afterwards).  It was a great way to spend Palm Sunday in Jerusalem!  It is kind of strange living here and feeling a bit like a local who is watching all of the tourists come celebrate their holiday in Jerusalem, even though I was also participating in these events for the first time.  

Galilee Day 3 and 4

3/18/13

            It was a full day today.  We went to a total of six locations.  Our first stop of the day was at the Gadot Lookout, where we discussed some more modern history.  Next we travelled through the Huleh Basin stopping at Hazor and hiking around tell Dan.  Then we moved on to Caesarea Philippi to do a little more hiking.  Finally we ascended in elevation on our way up to a volcano, Birkat Ram, and further up to Har Ben Tal. 

The Gadot Lookout was an unexpected start to the day.  It used to be an Syrian military base and was subsequently taken by Israel in 1967.  There were fence posts that lined either side of the narrow road with signs that warn of the multitude of remaining land mines.  Dr. Wright told us a little bit about the sites strategic importance and pointed out some geographical landmarks.  Then he told us a fun little story about an Israeli spy who complained about the heat of the sun and requested to build trees near the Syrian bunkers to provide shade.  When his commander gave in and the trees sprouted up, the spy told the Israeli military to aim their artillery for the trees.  It’s sort of a rumored tale though, so there is no telling whether it really happened or not.  It is, however, interesting how many of the bunkers on the site were stationed right beneath trees.   After story time we got to climb around inside of the bunkers.  That was fun.

            Hazor was huge.  There wasn’t a whole lot to look at that was excavated, but the tell itself was massive.  I was very interested to hear about the caches of texts found at other international sites and how there is a fairly certain expectation that Hazor will yield a similar early archive for the first time in the land of Canaan.  It seems odd to think that when the text archive at Hazor is found it will be more significant than the finds at Qumran as Dr. Wright suggested.  It was also interesting to see basalt (volcanic rock) that was cracked because of burning (cooled lava being hot enough to crack! Imagine that!).  In the lecture Dr. Wright discussed the destruction layer found here at Hazor and how it fits so well with a late date of the Exodus.  I have only read about the issues of the early and late dating of Exodus in general, but this really piques my interest.  If this is the correct interpretation then that would put the Exodus after the Amarna period.  It makes me think of Jan Assman’s book Moses the Egyptian.  I still don’t buy into his ideas, but it reminds me of what he suggested. 

            Tell Dan was such a rich and interesting site.  There was a great nature hike around the area.  All throughout the area we could hear the sound of water rushing into the Jordan river.  It was tumultuous yet peaceful at the same time.  The Ancient Israel section of the tell was huge, especially the gate.  The Middle Bronze Canaanite mudbrick arched gate was so unique.  I was able to see the Canaanite gate at Ashkelon but it wasn’t nearly as well preserved as this one was. 

            Caesarea Philippi was great.  It was fun to climb up to the niches and take pictures.  The cave and foundation for the Greco-Roman religious center to the deity Pan was massive.  It was nearby that Jesus spoke to Peter saying, “upon this rock I will build my church” (Matt 16:18).  It was a strange juxtaposition thinking of Jesus’ words and the religious center devoted to worshiping Pan.  Afterwards we had a really nice hike around the area. 

            Then we went to Birkat Ram and got to hang out on a volcano!  How cool is that!? I couldn’t help but wonder if it would randomly erupt.  It was colder than I thought it would be so close to a volcano.  We also stopped at a demilitarized base, known as Har Ben Tal, that looks out into Syria.  I was reminded of the tragic violence still taking place in the country.  It was, however, interesting to reflect upon the history of the land of Israel coming into contact with the Assyrian Empire in antiquity and how vital this geographic location was then and how it still is today, despite the shift in the technology of warfare.  We also got to run around in the tunnels the military base with a flashlight and peek out of the bunkers facing the Israeli/Syrian border. 

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3/19/13

            This trip has gone by so fast.  On this last day we started out by driving to the nearby En Gev Harbor to take a boat out onto the Sea of Galilee!  It was a great surprise.  Afterwards we went to Kursi, which is the most likely spot for the story of the Gospel of Mark chapter five.  Next we went to Capernaum, a site I had been looking forward to from the start, and the nearby Tabgha area.  Finally, we ended the day at the cliffs of Arbel, overlooking much of the Galilee area and the locations we had traveled to throughout the trip.            

As we pulled up to the En Gev harbor early that morning, I began to imagine how nice it would be to get on a boat and sail around the Sea of Galilee.  Almost immediately after thinking this, I began to wonder whether or not something like that might be included in our fieldstudy, and shortly after my suspicion was verified.  It was a beautiful morning, having the entire body of water all to ourselves (without any water-skis or tourists boats blasting country gospel music).  When we got out into the sea a ways and turned off the engine, there was a moment of silence that felt almost like travelling back in time.  It was quite a unique experience and I was very glad to have class there as well. 

            When we arrived at Kursi, the location that best preserves the memory of the events of Mark 5 and the location known in the New Testament as Gergesa, there didn’t seem to be much there.  Sometimes being at these locations that appear in the Bible really helps to adjust one’s concept of the material culture and the overall physical setting, thus forcing you to deal with the reality of the event as opposed to an artists’ rendition or pure imagination.  It was nice to see how the city and the steep hill fit together along with the sea. 

            Then we went to Capernaum, where the huge spaceship looking observatory hangs over the archaeological remains of the traditional spot of St. Peter’s house.  I was really excited to see the spot because there are so many events in Jesus’ ministry that take place in Capernaum, but the overall focus of the site seemed to be around St. Peter’s house and the remains of  4^th or 5^th century synagogue nearby.  I thought it was really interesting how the synagogue was built on top of the black basalt foundation of an earlier synagogue, probably dating to the time of the New Testament.  The distinction between the earlier and the later synagogue foundation was very obvious.  That was a good connecting point between the physical remains at Capernaum and Jesus.  Peter’s house was interesting to look at, but it was clearly set up for pilgrimage/tourism, which can often be distracting.  Tabgha also remembered many events from the Gospels, and that was a nice little spot to reflect on the ministry and miracles of Christ.

The last stop was at the Cliffs of Arbel.  It was a really fun place to review what we learned and climb into some interesting caves.  The climb down was so much more adventurous than I anticipated.  At one point we were climbing down a very steep face of the cliff without guard rails.  The footing of that part was so narrow and the descent so steep, but there were cords and small handles firmly rooted into the rocks that we could use to safely move along.  Jason and I climbed up to several caves that required a lot of rock climbing and difficult positioning.  I wasn’t so sure about climbing up to some of the caves, but somehow we didn’t break any bones or take any nasty falls so it worked out alright.  It was quite an adventurous afternoon and when it was time to finally climb down and descend, the atmosphere was that of the agricultural lifestyle, as cows and horses grazed the side of the fertile green hills.  

Galilee Day Two

3/17/13

            We only had four stops today on our field studies, but they were some pretty impressive and helpful places to visit.  The morning began with a great view at Mt. Precipice, also known as Jumping Mountain.  It actually rained during the last bit of our time there so we finished our class time in the bus and moved on to Sepphoris.  After Sepphoris we visited the Beth Alpha Synagogue, a site I hadn't heard of before today.  Last, but certainly not least, we finished the day off at the Old Testament site of Beth Shean, which is also the New Testament site of Schythopolis. 

            When we arrived at Jumping Mountain the view was quite beautiful.  I have really grown to love the rocky, limestone-filled landscape of Israel.  The land is so full of old gnarly olive trees and fertile terraced hills.  On clear days the typical horizon is swarms with an interesting mixture of Cenomainian, Senonian, and Eocene foundations, which mold and shape the everyday life of this land.  The wadis bend around the erosion lines like twisting fingers reaching out into the wilderness.  The view from virtually any high point is breathtaking.  Mt. Precipice was no exception.  In the distance Mt. Tabor stood tall and prominent with its head wrapped in the clouds, which were swiftly moving about in the bright blue sky.  The tradition attached with the site, however, seemed a little bit strange to me.  Apparently, local tradition holds that this was the mountain where Jesus was almost thrown off of (Luke 4:29-30) but escaped by jumping off the cliff.  Hmmm…

Afterwards we stopped at Sepphoris, a site just north of Nazereth.  It was fascinating to think of Jesus growing up not far from this major Greco-Roman city and possibly contributing to its construction; he was, after all, a builder.  It had a nice theatre and several mosaics.  I had seen pictures of the so called, “Mona Lisa of Galilee,” but it was quite exquisite to gaze at firsthand.  Sepphoris really seemed to be mosaic land.  If there was a theme park or museum in the ancient world where people came from afar to see a variety of mosaics I would imagine it being something similar to this city.  It was also helpful to stand atop of the nearby Crusader building and focus on understanding the land from a different orientation, as we had done on Mt. Carmel, from Jezreel, and just recently from Mt. Precipice.  The shifting perspective really forced me to look at the land with the concept of a map in mind, but through the true lens of spatial reality. Before leaving we climbed down into the water shaft and walked around.  Unfortunately it had some water in it, which didn’t stop some students, but I preferred not to take off my shoes and trek through the ankle deep tadpole rich mud puddles.  We had already been to a few water shafts and there wasn’t much left to see of that shaft anyways.  The synagogue was really interesting as well.  I wasn’t really aware of the zodiacs included in the 1^st century Jewish mosaics.  I wish we could do more than just speculate as to why they were included in what was typically an aniconic religious tradition, but the lack of textual detail only allows speculation.  It really seems a stretch to think that these images were simply adopted and adapted to fit Jewish theology.  The Beth Alpha synagogue was essentially a more complete attestation of the mosaic style found at Sepphoris.

Beth Shean/Schythopolis was huge!  The theatre was originally three stories!  It felt a bit surreal walking through what seemed to be box seats.  The cardo really helped me have a proper spatial understanding of the magnificence of Roman architecture.  Again, the look out from Beth Shean was very helpful for tracking the geographical nuances of the land.  

Galilee Field Study Day 1

Galilee (Day One)

            Today we stopped at some big name sites.  We went to Caesarea (Maritima), Mt. Carmel, Megiddo, and Jezreel.  It seems as if there is always more to see in Israel.  We have covered a lot of ground already, but there is still so much more that we have not seen, and some we won’t even get to see.  It is baffling to think that I had just looked over all of this implicit detail when reading the Bible, completely unaware of the rich content that knowing the geographical settings has to offer.

Being at Caesarea and thinking about the perspective of ancient Israel and how they would view the Mediterranean Sea, as opposed to the hill country and other land-locked territories was something I had never really taken time to do before.  The concept of the sea being a place of chaos in an ancient worldview isn’t particularly new to me, but it was quite helpful to think about the seafaring culture in the context of the clash between the Philistines/Phoenicians and the Israelites/Judeans.  It was also quite a unique experience to sit in the reconstructed theatre facing the sea and imagine a crowd filling the seats.  It must have been quite a magnificent atmosphere for a play.  The hippodrome was also really interesting.  I kept picturing scenes from Ben-Hur in my mind.  At one point we were sitting on the remains of a structure listening to Dr. Wright talk about the site and there was a moment, when he mentioned Paul’s imprisonment at Caesarea.  Almost immediately I realized I was sitting in the remains of one of the rooms where they kept prisoners.  Once again, I was sitting in scenery that had witnessed some very important events take place.  These field studies have had such a strong impact on how I perceive the events recorded in the Bible. 

            Standing on top of Mt. Carmel was amazing.  Looking out over the Jezreel valley and seeing Mt. Gilboa, Mt. Moreh, and Mt. Tabor off in the distance really helped me to orient myself to the geography of the land and get a real sense of the connectedness of the region.  The history of the ancient Near East seems to come alive in such an active area.  Empires clashed and pushed their way into this “Land Between,” kingdoms were born and crushed, and nations were either refined or obliterated as traffic passed through this valley.  The event that stood out the most, however, wasn’t a story of large nations going to war with each other.  The most prominent story was the most obvious story, the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal.  It is such an important story for understanding the nature and character of God. 

            Megiddo was quite an impressive city.  I had read about the strategic significance of Megiddo from a military standpoint, but I did not understand how economically important it was until today.  As odd as it sounds, I am beginning to see a lot a value, and take a lot of joy, in seeing the everyday life stuff of ancient Israel.  I find the storage rooms to be very interesting.  I found myself at the bottom of a stairwell at Caesarea today, walking out into the open light and knowing that when I get up to the surface I will be able to look around and see the ruins of an ancient city, but wishing that when I peek over the horizon I might be able to catch a glimpse of what things were like back in the day.  If I could only step back in time for an hour or so I think I would stand around staring at the architecture and lamps and bowls, trying to understand the layout of the land and searching for inscriptions (as I probably wouldn’t be able to get very far with the modern pronunciation of Biblical Hebrew that I am familiar with). 

            Jezreel was beautiful.  I especially enjoyed looking across the field at Shunem and thinking of the story of Elijah, the Shunemite woman, and her son.  The fields were so fertile I couldn’t even make sense of the terrain we were standing on.  It was a perfect spot to take in a sunset after a long field study. 

Shephelah, Negev, Dead Sea field study!

Day 1: Shephelah

It seems like many of the places and memories that I have of the Field Studies are almost being mixed together.  I have been trying to remember where we have been and what we have seen so far.  Today we went to Beth Shemesh, Azekah, Lachish, Ashkelon, and a site where we hiked partially into the Sorek wadi system.  We also had a small stop on the side of the road where some Roman pillars and a milestone marker had been found when digging up the ground to clear a path for the modern road that connected Jerusalem to Gaza. 

Being at Beth Shemesh and going over the story of Samson was so interesting.  It really brought a new dimension to my understanding of the story.  The added dimension wasn’t just seeing the land and having a backdrop in mind for the events, although that was very helpful.  The most illuminating part about standing at Beth Shemesh and seeing the land and hearing the story was having an understanding of the geographical function of the land and understanding the cultural tension between the Philistines and the Israelites.  I had heard that the Shephelah was an important point in the land, one filled with conflict, but I never really understood why until studying here at JUC.  Hearing that concept illustrated with Samson was perfect!

Another great illustration of how vital the Shephelah is was the story David and Goliath.  It certainly wasn’t a new story for me, but, again, there were aspects that I hadn’t been aware of before that really gave me a bigger idea of what was really going on.  It felt so surreal to be standing at Azekah and looking out over the field and general vicinity where these events took place.  I remember telling this story in Sunday School when I was helping out with the youth group back home.  I drew stick figures standing on two very simple hills.  It was all two dimensional, but now I have this very robust imagery and understanding of the Shephelah and the diagonal road that intersects and divides it into the lower coastal region to the west, and the inner region that begins to show more of the hilly topography to the east.

Seeing Lachish was both very exciting, but also a little bit disappointing.  I have seen pictures and models of what Lachish would have looked like before it was destroyed, but I didn’t really know how much of it would be left in the ruins and archaeological remains.  I was expecting there to be more remains.  I understand that Lachish was conquered by the Assyrians and later destroyed by Babylon, but I always hear about how that kind of devastation actually preserves a ton of material artifacts for archaeologists.  I suppose the expectations sabotaged my experience a little bit.  I am sure if I knew more about the site and the finds I would be overwhelmed with all that was found.  I remember reading one of the Lachish letters in a class and thinking that it was so haunting.  The letter mentioned something about the signal fires at Azekah having gone out.  The implication may have been that the Assyrians or the Babylonians, I can’t remember which, had reached Azekah and destroyed the city.  Being at Lachish and remembering this was quite an experience and connection with history.

Ashkelon was so huge! I was waiting all day to see what it would be like and I was blown away!  I feel so blessed to have been given the opportunity to participate in such a great dig at such a great site this coming summer!

Day 2: Negev

The field study today consisted of visiting Arad, Beer Sheba, Wadi Zin, Avdat, and Maktesh Rimon.  I have really been enjoying the multiple day field study, but I am sure it will still feel nice to be back at JUC, which pretty much feels like home now.  There was a lot of driving today.  I enjoyed it because I used the down time to reflect on past field studies and try to sort through the data in relevant ways.  I really want to digest the information and experiences I have had here and keep them in my memory.

On our first stop at Arad, I was looking forward to seeing the Judean Temple.  I had already read about it and thought about the implications, I just thought it would be really interesting to see it and get an impression of what the site was like in reality.  I remember being quite perplexed when I first read about the plurality of deity worship at this sort of secondary Judean temple.  It was also very interesting to see the Early Bronze Age remains, which were probably connected with the first Pharaoh in Egypt.  While we were at Arad we ran into another group.  I was a happily surprised to run into several friends from my home church in Wheaton!

            Beer Sheba was quite large in comparison to what I thought it might be.  I didn’t know too much about the archaeological remains at the site to be honest, but it was nice to be able to see so many four roomed houses.  There just seems to be a lot more here than at any other site that we have been to – at least the houses were more obvious and clearly visible. 

            The hike through wadi Zin was also a great experience.  There were so many people there that it was hard to feel like I could get lost. I think if I were wandering through that area alone, even if it was clear where I was supposed to go, I could have easily been able to feel the overwhelmingly vast and confusing nature of the desert wilderness.  Still, this was such an exciting and adventurous experience.  I wish the hike could have been longer!

            Avdat was a very interesting site.  I don’t know a whole lot about the Nabateans.  When I hear or read about them it is usually in conjunction with Petra or Herod the Great.  I find it quite interesting that they eventually became Christians, something I had never heard before today!  It is quite amazing to think that they could navigate the desert and take advantage of its difficult terrain in a way that they could run and maintain the spice trade route without having to form a large military.  It makes sense after thinking about it, but it is just so brilliant.  On the site I got to see most of the ruins in passing, but I actually had a lot of fun exploring the still buried remains in the caves.  Alyssa and I found a substantially large system of caves with mostly buried Nabatean ruins inside.  It was nice to get outside of the area that has already been excavated and made accessible via paths, and climb down some steep paths and crawl through tight spaces to find some of the more adventurous spots that are less seen.

            Our last stop of the day was at Maktesh Rimon, a huge crater in the desert.  Standing on top of the Superbowl, a great nickname for the site, and looking out at the wild expanse was inspiring.  It was a great place to ponder the magnificence of God.

Day 3: Dead Sea

            Today we traveled to Masada, En Gedi, Qumran, and a militarized zone.  There was a lot of free time to wander and reflect.  It really set this day apart from some of the other field study days in that I was able to really take in the information, absorb it, analyze it, and begin to make sense of it on site.  I often feel that I need to focus on taking notes, taking pictures, and retaining the brief impression that I have of any one particular site.  The analyzing and making sense of the data doesn’t usually begin until I have some time during the middle of the week to look back on the experience and the notes, as well as the pictures. 

Masada was massive!  The walk up the side of the complex was nice.  I really enjoy walking with Ben even though we take our time and fall behind everyone else.  I know it is difficult for him to do the climbs, but it is a good time to really take in all that is going on and get a few good pictures.  It has also been a good time to just hang out.  I often have to explain to my wife Elise that guys are action oriented; we can’t just spend time together, we have to be doing something.  Really, it could be anything, we just need to be doing something like watching sports or fixing cars or climbing up the side of Masada.  It was also nice that we were able to catch the details about the site without missing much.  Yigal Yadin was brilliant for running the archaeological dig on a volunteer basis, and the contribution of the reconstruction line is also quite helpful.  It is nice to see authentic ruins or remains of ancient cultures, but the partial reconstruction and the ability to see where the two meet is extremely helpful for understanding the larger structures.

            At En Gedi we had two stops: the first stop was on the edge of the Dead Sea.  I was a little bit concerned that the water would be too cold, although I would have still gone in, I simply couldn’t pass it up.  The water, however, was just fine.  It was such a strange sensation to float so effortlessly!  At one point I got some water in my eyes and it felt like my eyes were on fire.  Afterwards we ate lunch.  It was quite nice to have a mini BBQ by the Dead Sea.  The second stop was relatively close at the En Gedi spring.  I really enjoyed seeing the Ibex so close.  One of them came right up to me.  It is strange to think that this spring with living water flowing so abundantly exists in the middle of the desert wilderness. 

            Our next stop was Qumran.  My first impression wasn’t what I thought it was going to be.  It was surreal to see the caves at Qumran, though we could really only see them from far away.  The community living space was a little bit smaller than I thought it would be, but there were so many mikvaot!  When we arrived at the Scribes room I remembered hearing how the people in the community would spend a third of the night studying or writing or something.  It really evoked a sense of discipline, which, I suppose, is quite fitting in relation to some of the community aspects.  I also got to climb way up into a cave at Qumran – not one of the caves that contained scroll fragments, but a cave nonetheless! 

            Our last stop of the day was an out of the way militarized zone that used to be a restaurant.  It seemed like an odd spot to stop at.  In the past it seems like we have always stopped somewhere really nice and epic in the scope its history/scenery/importance.  After hearing about what it used to be and how that tied in with the current political situation, the scene was well set for the imagery of the Dead Sea, used in Ezekiel to convey the hope of a new creation.