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Israel and Palestine

February 2022
A 27-day adventure by skip's retirement travel Read more
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  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 8

    Mount of Olives

    February 9, 2022 in Palestine ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

    The Mount of Olives is a ridge east of Jerusalem that overlooks the location of the Temple. It is so called because olive groves covered much of the ridge in ancient times. A bit farther to the east is Bethany, home of Martha, Mary and Lazarus. The Mount is the place of a number of events in Jesus' life.
    There are many churches here, 3 of which I'll mention. The 1st 2 pictures are the chapel of the Ascension. The original church dated to the 4th century. It was destroyed and rebuilt several times. The current octagonal chapel is built on the Byzantine and crusader structures. The 2nd picture is of the rock inside the chapel traditionally held to be the place from which Jesus ascended. The indentation is believed to be Jesus footprint.
    The 2nd church I'll mention is the Pater Noster. This site dates to at least the 4th century and was known as the Church if the Disciples and Ascension. There is some evidence that this is where Jesus taught the disciples the pater noster (Our Father). The current buildings date to the 19th century. The largest part of the site is a cloister and olive garden, seen in the 3rd picture. The 4th picture is in the church. Notice the plaques to the left and right of the altar. These are 2 of the scores of similar plaques around the site that contain the Lord's Prayer in more languages than I could count.
    The 3rd church I'll mention is actually my favorite, Dominus Flevit. Some of you may remember this from a sermon I preached. Dominus flevit means the Lord wept. This is traditionally the site where Jesus wept over Jerusalem. The 5th picture looks from inside the chapel out across the valley to where the temple stood in Jesus' time. The last picture is a detail of the front of the alter showing a hen gathering in her chicks under her wings and protecting them with her body.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 10

    Gethsemane

    February 11, 2022 in Palestine ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    The garden at the foot of the Mount if Olives, across the Kidron Valley from where the temple once stood. This is where Jesus prayed on the night after the last supper and before the crucifixion.
    The 1st picture is taken from the temple side of the valley looking back to Gethsemane. Part of the Garden is now the church with the 4 columns to the right of center. The 2nd and 3rd pictures are of the olive trees in the garden. The oldest of these trees is about 800 years, but olives extend shoots from the roots. So it is possible that some of these trees could be descendants of trees that were here 2,000 years ago.
    The 4th and 5th pictures are in the church in the garden, known variously as the Church of All Nations or the Basilica of the Agony. The 4th picture is in the nave, while the 5th picture looks closer at the chancel. Tradition says that the stone in front of the altar is the stone where Jesus prayed and suffered that night.
    The last picture is the view from Gethsemane to the mount where the temple stood on Jesus' day.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 13

    Masada

    February 14, 2022 in Israel ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Masada is the ancient fortress built by Herod the Great, more than 2,000 years ago. This was his place of safety, located on top of a high geological feature with only difficult access. The site is probably best known for the siege by the Romans at the end of the 1st Jewish-Roman war in 73/4 CE where the last rebels held out.
    My 1st impression was that the fortress is a lot larger than I expected. This is another example of mistaken ideas about what I expected.
    The 1st picture is of the mountain looking up to where Herod built his fortress. This was taken from the cable car that provides easy access to the top.
    The 2nd picture looks back down from the top. Notice the squares. These are Roman army encampments. There were 8 at that time, all connected by a wall that cut off any chance for relief to the rebels.
    The 3rd picture is of the model of the north end of the fortress. The 3 levels constitute Herod's palace.
    The 4th picture looks across the remains of the fortress, giving a sense of scale of the place. This is only half of it, looking south. There isn't any place to see the whole site at once unless you have a drone. The 5th picture looks north from about the same spot to show some of the ruins. Note that the palace in the 3rd picture is beyond what's visible here. If you look closely, you will see in some places a black line painted on the walls. This makes the extent of the ruins before restoration. Everything below the line is original in situ. Everything above the line is reconstructed.
    The last picture is the synagogue of the fortress. It is a well preserved part of the structure.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 13

    Qumran

    February 14, 2022 in Palestine ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Qumran is a name familiar to many as the place where the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered. Less familiar, perhaps, is the community that lived there, produced the scrolls and ultimately hid them in caves in clay jars before the Roman army arrived when putting down the rebellion in the late 60s to early 70s CE.
    The site is dated to the late 2nd century BCE during the Maccabean period. There is debate about who the people who lived here were. Some suggests Essenes, others suggest Zadokites who were opposed to the priest kings of the Maccabees. It appears to be an all male community, many of whom were scribes, given the many scrolls found here.
    The 1st picture looks from the community site up to the mountains and the caves. Visible in the center is cave 1.
    The 2nd picture looks across some of the excavated ruins. Lower right is a structure that appears to be a ritual bath or cistern. Ablutions we're required multiple times each day. Obviously, water is required for drinking, cooking and ritual bathing, which can be challenging in a desert environment. The 3rd picture is a channel for distributing water through the site. The 4th picture is at the end of one of the channels at a ritual bath.
    The 5th picture shows a restored whitewashed wall next to one of several kilns. It seems that they made their tableware on site, used it once and then broke it.
    The last picture is where they used the *single use, disposable" tableware: the refectory or dining room with the Dead Sea in the background.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 14

    En Kerem The Church of the Visitation

    February 15, 2022 in Israel ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    En Kerem is the village where Zechariah and Elizabeth lived. Elizabeth was Mary's cousin and mother of John the Baptist. This is where Mary went to visit her cousin. The church is built on the traditional site of Zechariah's summer home, likely where the cousins met.
    The 1st picture is the front of the church with the mosaic of Mary riding a donkey to see her cousin. The 2nd picture is the outside wall which is covered with the Magnificat in many languages. Tradition holds that this is where Mary offered this prayer.
    The 3rd and 4th picture are in the basement of the building. This is a vaulted chapel. In the 3rd picture are some of the mosaics of scenes related to the visit including Zechariah in the temple, the visit and Elizabeth and John hiding in the well.
    In the 4th picture is the altar and, to the right, is the well where Elizabeth and John are said to drink and to hide.
    The 5th picture is upstairs in the main church with its frescoes showing the council of Ephesus where Mary was declared Theotokos, the wedding at Cana and more.
    The last picture is of one of several garden around the site.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 14

    Yad VaShem

    February 15, 2022 in Israel ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Yad VaShem is the Israeli Holocaust memorial. They allow pictures only outdoors. So the bulk of what is here is off limits to the camera.
    The 1st picture is at the start of the site. The 2nd picture is outside the children's memorial. This part is stunning. It is a dark room with many, many lights like candles above, below and around. Each child who has been identified gets named aloud together with his home, in English and in Hebrew. The light, especially candles, are a Judaic symbol of life.
    The 3rd picture is of part of the main building that is cantilevered, with the other end buried. The last picture is a small exhibit before the entry that changes regularly. It's the only thing I could photograph.
    I can say that this museum is different in some ways. The main exhibit goes from showing European Jewry living out their lives before the rise of the Nazi party. It follows the rise of the Nazis, the gradually increasing oppression up to and including the death camps.
    I have been to the Holocaust museum in Washington and to Dachau, Auschwitz and Birkenau. All those place show the horror and let the visitor leave feeling that. This museum, in Israel of all places, doesn't do that. The exhibit continues on after the war. When I got to the section on the Righteous Among the Nations (the recognition of non-Jews who risked their lives to help), I felt a very different feeling. The horror didn't go away exactly, but it was at least partially replaced with a sense of what might be relief or, even hope of a future without horrors like the Holocaust I was and am most impressed by this.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 16

    Bet She'an

    February 17, 2022 in Israel ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Bet She'an is an historically important city due to its location where the Jezreel and Jordan valleys meet. It is also along one of the best east-west caravan routes connecting the Kings Highway (the important inland caravan route through modern Jordan) with the coastal route from Egypt, making it a wealthy trading center.
    In addition, this is the city nearest Gilboa where King Saul and 3 sons were killed in battle with the Philistines. Their bodies were hung from the walls of Bet She'an.
    After extensive archaeological excavations, much of what is visible dates to the Ronan era when the city center moved down the hill to what we see today. The 1st picture looks along the main street called Palladius Street with some restored columns to give a sense of the place. This would be the Cardo if it ran the entire extent of the Roman city. To the right, is a basalt arch. This is one of the entrances to the theater in the 2nd picture.
    The 3rd picture looks over more of the ruins with the tel in the background. The tel is the location of the older, pre-Roman city. The 4th picture shows the Sigma and Tyche, a shopping and entertainment area that appears to have been upscale due to the size of the shops and the decoration (see the 5th picture).
    The last 2 pictures are original floor mosaics. The 5th picture is the mosaic in one of the shops here. It depicts Tyche, the goddess of the city's fortune. Notice in the 6th picture the layers. The patterned section is Roman while the lighter colored section placed on top is Byzantine.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 16

    The Church of the Annunciation, Nazareth

    February 17, 2022 in Israel ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    This is the church on the site where one tradition holds that the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, telling her that she was to be pregnant and carry Jesus. Similarly, tradition says that this is the location of one of the churches founded by Constantine's mother, Helena. Church buildings were built and destroyed here several times. The current basilica dates to the 1960s.
    The 1st picture is of the facade of the basilica from the front courtyard. The 2nd picture is a statue of Mary located in the courtyard with a small labyrinth. Note the wall to the left. There are dozens of depictions of Mary, provided by many nations. Most reflect the culture of the nation that donated each of the pieces.
    The 3rd picture is of the main doors. You can follow the Gospel story in condensed form in the carvings that depict events from Jesus' life.
    This is a 2 story building. The 4th and 5th pictures are in the lower level. The 4th picture looks across the space. The recessed area in the center gives access to the grotto located to the left. The 5th picture looks into the grotto. This is believed to be the remains of Mary's childhood home.
    The last picture is upstairs in the main church. The dome sits above an opening in the floor that is above the grotto in the 5th picture. That connects the larger church with the actual site believed to be where the Annunciation took place.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 16

    Tzfat

    February 17, 2022 in Israel ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Tzfat or Safed is a small town in the upper Galilee. It is at the highest elevation of any city in Israel. Over time it developed a wool and textile industry and became a center for the Kabalah or mystical Judaism. And it became one of the 4 holy cities of Judaism with Jerusalem, Hebron and Tiberias. Many of the buildings today are from the 19th century or reconstruction of older buildings due to done severe earthquakes up into the 19th century.
    The 1st 3 pictures are streets in the town. You will note a lot of blue paint. I'm told this is traditional here. The blue represents sky which is intended to confuse the devil if he shows up. So he leaves the town alone. The 3rd picture is in the artist colony. This is a significant group of artists and galleries with a great deal of impressive art.
    The 4th picture is in one of the many synagogues here. 5th is an outside gathering space.
    The last picture looks out from the hilltop. As this is the highest city in the country, you can see a long way.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelIsrael and Palestine
    Day 17

    The Mount of the Beatitudes

    February 18, 2022 in Israel ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    This is a memorial on the hill where Jesus is believed to have given the sermon on the mount. The site is likely up the hill from where Jesus taught. As far back as the 4th century, a small Byzantine church was located lower on the hill, closer to the Sea of Galilee.
    The 1st picture is of the church currently on site. It was built in the latest 1930s. The 2nd picture is inside the octagonal sanctuary. Notice each of the beatitudes is on the wall up high.
    The last 2 pictures are of the grounds and garden of the site.    Read more

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