January 19 – Day One – Jaffa

After spending the night in the lovely Dan Panorama Hotel in Tel Aviv, we will begin our day in near-by Jaffa, the modern location of the ancient Biblical city of Joppa.

Key Biblical events:

1. The entry point for the Cedars of Lebanon that were floated down the Mediterranean for both the first and second Temple. 2 Chronicles 2:16 and Ezra 3:7

2. The place Jonah went to board a ship headed for Tarshish when God asked him to go in the opposite direction to Nineveh. Jonah 1:3

3. The home of a believing lady named Tabitha (Dorcas in Greek) who died and was raised to life by Peter. Acts 9:36

4. Peter remained in Joppa for some time after raising Dorcas and it was there, while staying with a leatherworker named Simon, that he had the vision of all manner of animals being let down in a sheet. Soon after the vision, he was summoned by men from Caesarea to go talk with a Roman officer named Cornelius. Acts 10

We did not go to Jaffa this year, but I expect one site will be the traditional home of Simon the Tanner.

Leaving Jaffa we will trace Peter’s steps as he headed to Caesarea Maritima.

January 19 - Day One Stop 2 - Caesarea Maritima (Caesarea by the Sea)

Lanny’s Pictures

Herod the (not so) Great, a descendent of Esau, was appointed by the Roman Senate to be King of Judea. His number one job was to keep Caesar happy and to that end he built Caesarea Maritima, naming it in honor of his benefactor Augustus. He started building it about 22 BC and completed it around 9 BC.

The city was a center for Roman administration and offered Roman amenities such as a theatre, a sea wall, harbor, hippodrome, bath houses, a palace for Herod, and a governor’s palace. The city was built with underground sewer systems.

There was very little fresh water since there was little to no rainfall. Therefore, Herod erected a raised aqueduct (which we will see) that ran for 8 miles transporting fresh water from the natural springs on Mt. Carmel to the city.

Key Biblical events:

· Home of Pontius Pilate – only place where archeologists have found his name

· Philip the Evangelist (one of the 7) lived and preached here – Acts 8:40; Acts 21:8

· Paul was here at least three times:

o Soon after his conversion - Acts 9:23-31

o His encounter with the prophet Agabus in the home of Philip - Acts 21:8-16

o Where he stood trial before Felix, Festus, and Herod Agrippa after having declared his Roman citizenship in Jerusalem; And from here he was subsequently sent to Rome. Acts 23 - 25

· This is the city where Peter met with Cornelius and his household, Acts 10 -11.

· It’s where Herod Agrippa, grandson of Herod the Great, was afflicted with worms and died – Acts 12

Later events:

· Some of the riots that led to the Roman destruction of Israel began in Caesarea in 66 AD.

· After Jerusalem fell in 70 AD, Titus brought many captives to Caesarea and 2,500 Jews were slaughtered in gladiatorial games as part his celebration of his brother, Domitian’s birthday.

· According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, in 484 and 548 AD the Samaritans instigated bitter riots here against the Christians. This resource also states that Jesus visited Caesarea but it is not recorded in the Bible if He did.

· The Crusaders took the city in 1101 AD, lost it to Muslims, retook it, and lost it again in 1265.

Next we head north to the mountain range named Carmel. Note the “el” in the word Carmel.

January 19 - Day One Stop 3 – Carmel el-Machraqah

Before leaving Caesarea, here is an interesting video of a reconstruction of what the city looked like when Herod completed building it.

And now we are off to Carmel to confront the false prophets of Baal.

Lanny’s Pictures of Carmel

Carmel is a mountain range. The name is from two Hebrew words: El for God and karm for vineyard, thus “God’s Vineyard.”

I Samuel 15:12 – Samuel went to find Saul and was told that he had gone to Carmel to set up a monument to himself.

I Samuel 25:40 – Abigail, who talked David out of killing her ill-tempered husband after Nabal insulted David, and later became David’s wife after Nabal died, lived at Carmel.

I Kings 18 – Elijah (El Yahu = Yahweh is my God) triumphs over Ahab, Jezebel, Baal, and the prophets of Baal by calling down fire from heaven to consume his sacrifice.

Baal, the bull, was god of storms, thunder, and lightening. He could not break the three year drought that Elijah had imposed nor could he bring down fire to ignite the sacrifice to his prophets. Elijah did both. In so doing, Elijah demonstrated that Jehovah was the true God and that Baal was nothing more than an idol.

Perhaps Jayson will want to pause here for us to sing “These are the days of Elijah” as we reflect on the awesome power of our God.

Leaving here we will make our way to the Kibbutz Maagan Hotel on the shore of the Sea of Galilee in the area of Tiberius. This will be our home for the next four nights.

We are thinking that we will try to find a location in the hotel where all who would like to can gather after the evening meal to share thoughts and impressions from the day and debrief in general. We will close with a prayer of gratitude for the day and ask God’s blessing for a restful night.

January 20 – Day 2 - stop 1 - Bet She’an (Greek name = Scythopolis)

Lanny’s Pictures

Scythopolis (Bet She’an) was one of the 10 cities that formed the Greek Decapolis. They were grouped together because of their language, culture, location, and political status. The Decapolis cities in Jesus’ time were centers of Greek and Roman culture in a region that was otherwise Semitic. The original city may be as much as 7,000 years old. It has been conquered and re-conquered many times.

Matthew 4:25, Mark 5:20, and Mark 7:31 make reference to the Decapolis region in relation to Jesus’ ministry. Jesus probably had more contact with Gentiles in these areas than anywhere He went. This would account for the herd of pigs being present that Jesus sent the evil spirit Legion into (Mark 5) since Jews would not have been raising them.

Joshua 17:26 Bet She’an was inhabited by the Canaanites that Manasseh failed to drive out.

I Samuel 31:10 The Philistines fastened Saul’s dead body to the wall of Bet She’an. Men from Jabesh went and retrieved the body and carried it to their home in Jabesh where David finally claimed the bones.

I can well imagine that people hearing the story of the prodigal son (Luke 15) would immediately imagine Bet She’an or one of the Decapolis cities as they listened.

Bet She’an was one of the sites for the filming of the 1973 movie “Jesus Christ Superstar”.

This is one of the better preserved/restored sites that we will visit.

January 20 – Day 2 - stop 2 – Megiddo

Lanny’s pictures

Tour Guide describing a scale model of Megiddo

Wikipedia article on Megiddo

We gather now on a hill (“har”) named Migiddo (Har-Magedon; Armageddon) that seems to be the place John envisioned in Revelation 16:12-16 as the site of the final conflict. It is certainly a fitting symbol of such an event since it is the scene of over 100 significant battles.

Originally occupied by the Canaanites 5,000 years ago, it has been the battle ground of Pharaoh Thutmose III of Egypt, Joshua, Jehu, Deborah, Solomon, Shishak of Egypt, Pharaoh Neco, Christian Crusaders, Napoleon Bonaparte, and, in this century, General Allenby as he drove out the Turks, to name a few.

Twenty six civilizations have been uncovered on this historic tel.

One of the most significant archaeological finds here at Megiddo is the city's water system. It consists of a vertical shaft 120 feet deep connected by a tunnel 215 feet long going to a spring located outside the city walls. The more adventuresome among us will want to climb the steps through this tunnel and shaft to the top of the hill. I have forgotten how many steps there are but I think the mathematical term is “a bunch”.

Standing on top of Megiddo, we will gaze across the Jezreel Valley and get our first glimpse of Nazareth on the side of another hill across the valley.

Some Bible references:

• Joshua 12:21 – Joshua killed the Canaanite king during the conquest of the land
• Judges 1:27 – Manasseh failed to drive the Canaanites out of the land
• Judges 4:13-15 – Deborah and Israel’s commander, Barak, overcame the Canaanites
• II Kings 9:27 – Jehu killed King Ahaziah here
• II Kings 23:29 – Pharaoh Necho struck a fatal blow against King Josiah here

This may be a good place to pause and sing “The Battle Belongs to the Lord”.

January 20 – Day 2 - Stop 3 – Nazareth Village

Lanny’s pictures

Bible Atlas Map

John 1:46 - “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”

Today there are about 70 or 80 thousand people, all of them Arabian, living in Nazareth. When Jesus lived there you would have had to look hard to find 1,000.

Nazareth Village is a small area owned by a YMCA upon which has been constructed a re-creation of the community as it may have looked during Jesus’ time there. You will even have an opportunity to “pass through the eye of a needle.”

· Joseph, Mary, and Jesus moved to Nazareth, their home town, after returning from Egypt, Luke 2:39, Matthew 2:21-23.

· It was a simple village with fishing, vineyards, and olive groves.

· An interesting thought is that the word carpenter is an English translation for the Greek word tekton meaning an artificer, a fashioner, or builder; it means to fabricate something. Used in scripture of wood, brass, iron, and stone.

· Many of Jesus’s teaching used stone or rock. Rarely, if ever, did he refer to wood or metal. Example: the wise man built his house upon the rock; upon this rock I will build my church; raise up stones to become children of Abraham; stones to become bread; the stones will cry out; father will not give his son a stone for food; the stone the builders rejected. At the very least it needs to be understood that the Greek word tekton doesn’t automatically mean carpenter.

· Grapes were crushed bare foot so as not to crush the seeds which would have made the wine bitter.

· Olive’s seeds or pits were crushed intentionally because the seeds contained up to 30% oil. The oil is what they were harvesting.

· Three pressings of the olives:

(1) First pressing was dedicated to the Temple, was taken to Jerusalem

(2) Second pressing for consumption, cooking, food, and medicines

(3) Third pressing, the weakest oil, was used in lamps, illumination

· Nazareth today is home to a small Church of Christ congregation made up of Arabian Christians.

January 20 – Day 3 – Stop 1 Capernaum

Lanny’s Pictures

Map

Capernaum is one of my favorite stops. It is a beautiful place on the north side of the Sea of Galilee where Peter and John and perhaps as many as 7 of the apostles lived at one time or the other.

Most fascinating is the excavated synagogue, or actually two synagogues, one on top of the other. Still visible is the foundation of the synagogue upon which Jesus stood to teach. Many places we visit “remember” events from Jesus’ day. This synagogue is the actual spot where Jesus stood.

· Matthew 4:13 Leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,

· Matthew 11:23 You, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, you will go down to Hades. For if the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in you, it would have remained until this day.

· Matthew 8:5 When he came into Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking him, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, fearfully tormented." Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him." But the centurion said, "Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.

· Matthew 8:14 Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law

· Matthew 9:20 Jesus heals the woman with an issue of blood

· Matthew 9:25 Jesus raises the dead daughter of the ruler of the synagogue

· Matthew 9:27 Jesus heals the blind and the mute

· Matthew 17:24 When they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the drachma coins came to Peter, and said, "Doesn't your teacher pay the drachma?"

· Mark 1:21 They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue and taught.

· Mark 2:1 A paralyzed man was lowered through the roof to get to Jesus for healing

The traditional site of Peter’s home has been traced back to the 1^st century. An octagonal church was erected in the 5^th century on top of the spot to preserve its location.

January 20 – Day 3 – Stop 2 Chorazin

Map

From Capernaum we will go a short distance (about two and a half miles) up to Chorazin.

Matthew and Luke name Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum as cities in which Jesus performed "mighty works". However, because these towns rejected his work, they were subsequently cursed (Matthew 11:20-24; Luke 10:13-15).

Chorazin is thought to be the same place as Korazim which is now the site of a National Archaeological Park. Extensive excavations and a survey were carried out in 1962-1964. Excavations at the site were resumed in 1980-1987. It is associated with modern day Kerazeh.

Chorazin was not included in our tour last January so this will be new territory for all of us.

Pictures of the excavations appear to be very interesting.

Here is a short YouTube presentation from Chorazin

Bible Walks pictures and comments on Chorazin

January 20 – Day 3 – Stop 3 Bethsaida (House of Fishing)

Map

Lanny’s Pictures

Matthew 11:21 Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

There is confusion on exactly where the Bethsaida of Jesus’ ministry was and there is even a compromise suggesting that there were two villages of that name in close proximity to Capernaum. Part of the confusion has to do with Bethsaida needing to be on or near the shore of the Sea of Galilee while the traditional site (et-tell) that we will visit is some distance from the Sea. However, realizing that the Jordan River was 10 times as large as it is today, it is reasonable that the Sea of Galilee extended much further up the Jordan than it now does, putting it much closer to Bethsaida.

Key events:

· Feeding of the 5,000 – Mark 6:32

· Blind man healed – Mark 8:22

· Home of Philip, Andrew, and Peter John 1:44 (Peter’s mother-in-law lived in Capernaum and he, along with several Apostles, lived there for some period of time.)

· Jesus took the Apostles here after their limited commission Luke 9:10

Bible Walk pictures and discussion of Bethsaida

January 20 – Day 3 – Stop 4 Ancient Boat

Lanny’s Pictures

This boat, discovered in 1986, and carbon dated to the time of Christ, is no doubt similar to the ones used by the fishermen Apostles and Jesus.

January 20 – Day 3 – Stop 5 The Sea of Galilee (Lake of Gennesaret, Lake Tiberias, Kinneret)

Lanny’s Pictures

Map

At its longest point it is 13 miles long. At its widest point it is 7 miles wide. It averages about 145 feet deep. It is hardly what you would call a “sea”. Yet it plays a very prominent role in the life of Jesus and His disciples.

It provided a livelihood for Peter, Andrew, James, and John. Jesus walked on it and around it and calmed the storm from the boat he was in. Peter walked on it (for a little while). If you want to try your hand at walking on the water where Jesus did, here is your chance, but you might want to bring a dry change of clothes.

Here Jesus multiplied the catch of fish and here He prepared a fish supper for his disciples after His resurrection.

The Sea of Galilee served as a back-drop for Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and for His miraculous feeding of the 5,000.

Our tour should get us to the dock for a ride on the Sea at a time when we can enjoy the sun setting on the Western edge. Hopefully we will have a clear day with calm winds. Even now the Sea can become too rough for the size boat we will be using.

This was a favorite part of our last tour and I am praying that we will be able to have an equally inspiring boat ride this time.

January 22 – Day 4 – Stop 1 - 2 Mount of Beatitudes Tel Dan

Lanny’s Pictures

It is Sunday morning in Israel and this is our first stop. I am looking forward to this because it is our plan to worship and commune on this Lord’s Day on the hillside where it is believed Jesus gave His Sermon on the Mount. (If it wasn’t the exact site, it was near-by and similar.)

Hopefully it will be a sunlit day and we will be able to look across the Sea of Galilee as we hear anew the words of the beatitudes.

January 22 – Day 4 – Stop 2 Tel Dan

Map

Lanny’s Pictures

Located on the Syrian border in Northern Israel, it is often used in conjunction with Beersheba to define the length of Israel (from Dan to Beersheba).

Dan is rich in Biblical history. Here we will see and walk beside the headwaters of the Jordan (Jor-Dan) River.

Archeologists have uncovered a gate that dates back to around 1750 B.C. It is now referred to as Abraham’s Gate. It may be that Abraham visited this village in search of his nephew Lot. Genesis 14

This is where Jeroboam I set up one of the two golden calves (the other was in Bethel) so the Northern tribes would not try to go to Jerusalem to sacrifice when the kingdom divided. We will visit the visible site of this alter.

The city was destroyed by the Assyrian, Tiglath-pileser III in 733 BC.

Additional information

January 22 – Day 4 – Stop 3 Caesarea Philippi

Map

Lanny’s Pictures

Brief YouTube presentation

The Gates of Hell – Andy Cook

In 2 B.C. Herod the Great’s son Philip named the city Caesarea in honor of Augustus and to differentiate from the Caesarea Maritima. It is situated some 25 plus miles north of the Sea of Galilee at the base of Mt. Hermon.

It is one of the largest springs feeding the Jordan River. Abundant water made the area fertile and attractive for building. Numerous temples were built at this city in both the Hellenistic and Roman periods.

The Greek god Pan, half man and half goat, was worshiped here, a cave, believed by them to be a gate into the hadean world, was considered to be his birthplace. He is often depicted playing the pan flute. He was the god of nature, fields, forests, mountains, and flocks.

The walls had many niches carved into them to hold statues of their deities.

As Rick shared with us in one of his sermons this year, Rabbi Jesus felt it important enough to lead His Apostles all the way from the Sea of Galilee up to this center of evil where parents sacrificed their children to Pan and worshipped Baal and Asherah with every perversion known to pagans to ask them one question.

“Jesus was standing on a road in an area littered with the temples of the Syrian gods, a place where the Greek gods looked down, a place where the most important river in Judaism sprang to life, a place where the white marble splendor of the home of Caesar-worship dominated the landscape. And here, of all places, He stands and asks men who they believe Him to be. Peter boldly answers that He is "the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Matthew 16:16

It was here, on this rock of infamy, in this epitome of evil, that Jesus declared that He would establish His Sacred Community and that these Gates of Hell would not be able to prevail against it.

January 23 – Day 5 – Stop 1 Jericho

Wikipedia - Jericho

Map

Jericho was not on our tour last year so we will all be first-timers here.

This area is rich in Bible history, being the first city conquered by Joshua as the Israelites began their conquest of the Promised Land.

Here, Rahab and her family were spared and she became part of the linage of Messiah.

It is also the place where Jesus met blind Bartimaeus.

It is perhaps one of the oldest continually inhabited places on earth. When the walls fell, Joshua prophesied that if anyone rebuilt it he would do so with the loss of life. 1 Kings 16:34 In his days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho: he laid its foundation with the loss of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the loss of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of Yahweh, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

This is the home of the tax collector, Zacchaeus who used a sycamore tree to see Jesus and then became his host.

January 23 – Day 5 - Stop 2 Qumran Qumran Caves

Wikipedia - Qumran

Last year we got to Qumran just after they had closed the park for the day so we didn’t get to see much. This will essentially be a first time for all of us.

Even though Qumran isn’t mentioned in the Bible that I am aware of, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, beginning in 1947, and the believed Essene connection make this an important site.

January 23 – Day 5 – Stop 3 Genesis Land and lunch with Abraham

Ok cowboys and cowgirls, time to put on your spurs and mount your camel. Your camel will considerately get down on his knees for you to get on but, unfortunately, that means he has to stand up with you perched precariously on his back. The trick is to know which way to lean and to not panic. But don’t worry about it, just remember to not panic. Oh, did I mention, it is better if you don’t panic.

After a short but bumpy camel ride, we will arrive at the tent of Abraham and Sarah where we will be treated to a sumptuous and graciously hosted meal served, as you would expect, on the ground.

If you want to defer your camel ride to the return trip, you might want to talk to Rick. I understand it is considerably more perilous, but only if you have concerns about narrow paths, steep cliffs, and loose rocks; more reason to not panic.

January 23 – Day 5 – Stop 4 Jerusalem

Lanny’s pictures from Mt of Olives

Lanny’s pictures in Garden of Gethsemane

Mt of Olives

Wikipedia – Mt of Olives

Leaving the Genesis Land, we make our way toward the Holy City, the most sacred, contested, contentious, and fought-over piece of real estate on earth.

Our first view of Jerusalem will be from the Mount of Olives looking across the Kidron Valley at the Eastern Wall of the Old City.

From here we will take the Palm Sunday walk and end the day in the Garden of Gethsemane.

· II Samuel 15 - David fled to the Mt of Olives to escape from Absalom

· Zechariah 14 – On the Day of the Lord, the Lord will stand on the Mt of Olives.

· Matthew 26 – In Gethsemane Jesus prayed three times that the Cup of Suffering be removed

We are truly walking on Holy Ground. Don’t rush. Calm your mind and let the full weight of this sacred place wash over you. Take time to talk to God. Recommit with “not my will but Thine be done.”

January 24 – Day 6 – Stop 1 Masada

Wikipedia - Masada

Lanny’s Pictures

According to Josephus, Herod the (not so) Great fortified Masada between 37 and 31 BC as a refuge for himself in the event of a revolt. In 66 AD, a group of Jewish extremists, called the Sicarrii (part of the Zealot group), overcame the Roman garrison of Masada.

After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, the Romans laid siege to the refuge and built an enormous siege embankment that allowed them to breach the top.

According to Josephus, when Roman troops entered the fortress, they discovered that its 960 inhabitants had set all the buildings but the food storerooms ablaze and committed a mass suicide.

Masada is an exciting and interesting stop for us. There is a cable-car ride to the top unless you insist on climbing it on foot and you should be prepared for windy conditions while up there. A wind breaker will feel good.

We will have a wide panoramic view of the Dead Sea and the mountainous wilderness region while there.

January 24 – Day 6 – Stop 2 Arad

Map

Wikipedia - Arad

We will travel down the length of the Dead Sea and turn west for about 15 miles to get to the dry dessert village of Arad. People with asthma love to come here for the humidity.

Arad is mentioned 4 times in the Old Testament but only to identify the southern region of Judea.

We did not go here last year so this will be new for all of us.

January 24 – Day 6 – Stop 3 Beer Sheva

Wikipedia – Tel Be’er Sheva

Map

This is another place we did not go last year. In addition to defining the southernmost limit of the Land of Israel, it is rich in Old Testament history.

· Abraham sent Hagar out into this wilderness.

· In this Philistine land, Abraham made a treaty with Abimelech concerning a water well and here he planted a Tamarisk tree and called upon the Name of the Lord

· God appeared to Jacob in a vision at Beersheba.

· Elijah left his servant in Beersheba and went a day’s journey further to sit under a broom tree and have an encounter with an angel.

· Samuel’s two unworthy sons were judges in Beersheba.

January 24 – Day 6 – Stop 2 Ein Gedi

Wikipedia – Ein Gedi

Lanny’s Pictures

Map

This stop is not on our original itinerary and we really appreciate Mickey (our guide) graciously adding it in for us. We really enjoyed this place last year and wanted all of you to get to see it also.

This is where David ran to escape King Saul and took refuge in its caves.

Located about mid-point on the western shore of the Dead Sea, it is a beautiful oasis in the wilderness. There is a lovely waterfall and an abundance of wild life. The cony, spoken of in Proverbs, lives here, as does the not-so-wild goat.

The stop involves a bit of a stroll but it is well worth the time and effort.

January 25 – Day 7 – Stop 1 Jerusalem

Today is a very special day. We spend the entire day in the Holy City. I don’t know how Mickey will organize our time but places we expect to visit include:

· The Western Wall – the most sacred place now available to the Jewish people There is a separate section for men and women and all must have a covering for their head.

Lanny’s Pictures

· The Temple Mount – home of the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque; located on Mt. Moriah where Abraham prepared to offer Isaac; home of all three Temples (Solomon’s, Ezra’s, and Herod’s); now controlled by Muslims; no Bibles allowed
Lanny’s Pictures

· The Pool of Bethesda – where Jesus healed the lame man (location of St Anne’s Church) We will pause to worship in this acoustical marvel built by the Crusaders over the traditional birthplace of Anne (Hanna) mother of Mary.
Lanny’s Pictures

· The tunnels under the Western Wall – ancient aquifers and passages We expect to have an opportunity to lift our voices in praise of our Awesome God in one of the caverns.
Lanny’s Pictures

· The Via Delarosa – path thought to be taken by Christ on the way to the cross
Lanny’s Pictures

· The Church of the Holy Sepulcher – one of two traditional sites of Jesus’ burial
Lanny’s Pictures

· The Southern Steps – where we will take a group picture

· The House of Caiaphas – where Jesus was taken for trial
Lanny’s Pictures

We will have lunch and shopping time in Old Jerusalem.

January 26 – Day 8 – Stop 1 Israel Museum

Lanny’s Pictures

We have come to the last full day in Israel.

Our time at the Israel Museum will likely be limited to visiting the model of Jerusalem as it was during the time of Christ. It is a large outdoor model that allows you to put all of the places you have visited into their proper geographic perspective.

January 26 – Day 8 – Stop 2 Yad Vashem – The Holocaust Memorial

Lanny’s Pictures

There will not be enough time to see all of this but there will be enough time to see more than you want to see. It is a somber reminder of unimaginable evil. Along with the museum there is a special tribute to the children who died and on the grounds you can walk among the trees planted in honor of the “Righteous Among the Nations” including such names as Corrie Ten Boom.

January 26 – Day 8 – Stop 3 Herodiom

Bible Walks Blog

Wikipedia says “Herodiom is a volcano-like hill with a truncated cone located seven miles south of Jerusalem, near the city of Bethlehem in the West Bank. Herod the Great built a fortress and palace on the top of Herodium, and may have been buried there.”

It is also home to one of the oldest synagogues in Israel.

We didn’t go here last year so this will be a first visit for all of us.

January 26 – Day 8 – Stop 4 The Garden Tomb

The Garden Tomb web site

Lanny’s Pictures

This is our last scheduled stop on our tour and it is a wonderful way to conclude our examination of the Holy Land.

The Catholic Church rejects this site as a possible location for the burial and resurrection of Christ, preferring the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. It may be that neither place is the right one and it is likely that there is more evidence for the Catholic position than for the Garden Tomb which is favored by some Christians. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter since it is not the site, but the event that makes all the difference.

For me, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is garish, over stated, overcrowded, and much too secular. The Garden Tomb, on the other hand, is simple, natural, calm, and pulls one into a reflective state.

While we are here, we will have the opportunity to gather together in a somewhat separate place and linger over a sharing of the Lord’s Supper. We have suggested to our guide, Mickey, who is a Messianic Jew, that he lead us in this communion service. Regardless of how it is done, I anticipate that this will be a life-long memory for you and, quite possibly, one of the highlights of the trip.

Concluding thoughts

By this time, we will have travelled in the Bible world from the time of Abraham 4,000 years ago to the fall of the last resistance following the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Additionally we will have re-visited historic locations remembering key events in the history of the Jews up to the present day. You will have a new understand of the role of the ancient enemies of the Jews as well as the role played by the various caliphates, crusaders, and political powers of more modern times.

By this time, we will have traveled in the Bible land from the north (Dan) to the south (Beer Sheva) and from the west (Caesarea by the Sea) to the east (Jordan River). We will have tasted the land of honey and the land of milk. We will have walked along the shore of the Mediterranean, explored the head-waters of the Jordan River, sailed on the Sea of Galilee with its abundance of life, and sampled the Dead Sea where nothing lives.

And it all comes down to the Garden Tomb, which is the only reason we even care.

I pray that the trip will exceed your hopes and expectations. I pray that the Rabbi of Galilee will become more and more the living Messiah, filling you more completely than ever before.

Cambodia Day 19

According to the CIA World Fact Book, Cambodia is 95% Buddhist; but they are not. If you ask 95% of the Cambodians what religion they are they would say Buddhist; but they are not.

Even though there are wats (pagodas) everywhere you look throughout the country, and even though these wats are home to Buddhist monks and their female counterparts, and although any Cambodian can be a monk if he chooses, the people at large know almost nothing about Buddhism nor do they care to know.

The religion I hear described by my students, my translator, and my host is a very individualized mixture of Buddhism, Hinduism, Ancestry worship, and uncategorized superstition.

Perhaps this accounts for the almost universal involvement with Spirit House worship. The only constant is that the Spirit House houses spirits. Who or what they are is very much up to each individual. The spirits may be ancestors who have not yet reincarnated or they may be good spirits that protect and bless a house or a business. The Spirit House may be home for a spirit that inhabited a grand tree that needed to be cut down to make room for a rice field. And, of course, there are the evil spirits, but we would rather not talk about them.

The mother of one of my students bought a new Spirit House last week for $50 US. He reasoned with her that she really needed to spend the money for rice but she believes it is money well spent. Some people pay as much as $3,000 for their Spirit Houses.

The landlord of the house I am staying in has a nice Spirit House in our front yard. Unfortunately his spirit has done a sorry job of protecting the house from thieves.

For the devout, the most common worship carried out with the Spirit House is to bring an offering of food every 8 days and to burn an incense stick daily. For the less devout, they make up their own schedule or let the spirit fend for itself.

Cambodia Day 16

Saturday I was a tourist. When you are a tourist there are two places in Phnom Penh that you must see; not because you want to see them but because you must; because that is what tourists do.

The first place is a school turned prison turned torture chamber. It is called S-21. It’s Khmer name is Tuol Sleng Tuol simply means the highest point around. Sleng, when used as an adjective means “supplying guilt”. As a noun it refers to two different Cambodian trees, both of which are poisonous.

In 1975, under the infamous reign of Pol Pot, the school was converted into the prison that now stands as the genocide museum; home to unspeakable torture and death for huge numbers of political enemies, professionals, academicians, and not a few foreigners. Age and gender were no deterrents to the Khmer Rouge as they attempted to force a new society where all men are equal and some are more equal than others.

In a country the size of Oklahoma that has less than 14 million people today, 2 million men, women, and children were killed in a period of 4 years before the blood letting came to an end.

Many of the dead were buried in mass graves on the south edge of Phnom Penh in a place simply called “the killing fields.” Thousands of the skulls from bodies that were buried there are now on display in a solemn memorial structure with the hope that it will serve as a warning against such a thing ever happening again.

My interpreter, Tawn, was born in the middle of that atrocity. He survived because of relatives who were able to keep him in a hospital where there was still food and because he was “a cute baby.” He says that neither in jest nor as a matter of pride, but just as a matter of fact. Many of his relatives did not survive.

There are 13 students in class now. I asked how many had close relatives killed by the Khmer Rouge. All but two raised their hands. Their parents and grandparents have told them stories that are too sad to even think about.

How awesome it is that as Christians our Kingdom is not of this world.