Wednesday, 10-21-09

Today began our second tour day in Jerusalem. We started our day with a reading from Psalm 28, and sang praise songs together on the bus as we made our way to the Temple Mount. We entered through the Dung Gate, the gate nearest to the Western Wall. It is thought that the Dung Gate gets its name from the ash that was taken from the Temple to be dumped outside the city walls. It is the smallest gate, but is the main entrance and exit for the Jewish Quarter. Since the Muslims control the Temple Mount, we were not allowed to take anything inside which had any Christian prayer or scripture on it, so we left our Bibles and journals behind.

We reviewed the history of the Jewish temples… the first being built by Solomon around 960 BC which was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC; the second was a much smaller temple built after the exile in Babylon by Zerubbabel around 515 BC, and the last temple was built by King Herod to gain favor with the Jews, and it was the most extravagant. It was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

Our Tour Guide, Roni, also reviewed some Jewish history with us…

After the Muslims conquered Jerusalem in 638, they wanted to make it a “Holy Place” which would be a site for Muslim pilgrims, and would supplant the religion of Christians and Jews. In 691 they built the “Dome of the Rock” over the sight of where Herod’s Temple was located. According to Islamic tradition, the rock is the spot from where Muhammad ascended to Heaven accompanied by the angel Gabriel. The mosque is an octagonal shaped building with a gold covered dome. For a short time during the Crusades, the Dome of the Rock was occupied by Christians, but it was taken back by the Muslims after Salidin recaptured Jerusalem in 1187. The Jews had been forbidden to enter into Jerusalem until their victory in the 1967 Six-Day War. However, in order to keep the peace, the Israelis have allowed the Muslims to remain in control of the Temple Mount.

Dome of the Spirits

According to Roni, the Jews are accepting of Muslim control because they feel that the Dome of the Rock is actually built over the area of the temple known as the “Court of the Gentiles,” and the site of the “Holy of Holies” is actually about 300 feet north. This location was the actual place of Ornan’s threshing floor, on which the Holy of Holies and Ark of the Covenant rested. It is marked by an arched cupola and is called the Dome of the Spirits or Dome of the Tablets. This spot also lines up with the Eastern Gate (also called the Golden Gate or Beautiful Gate). Ezekiel 44:1-3 says that this gate will remain closed until Messiah comes in glory. When Jesus returns, He will come down from the Mount of Olives (Zech 14), and enter Jerusalem from the East (Isa 61). The Muslims blocked it off in the 1500s to prevent his entrance, and they placed a cemetery just outside the gate, thinking that no Jew would defile himself by passing through this cemetery. It has remained closed off since that time.                                

                                                            Lion's Gate

After viewing the site of the Holy of Holies (called the Dome of the Spirits) and the Eastern Gate, we exited the Temple Mount through the Lion’s Gate (also called the Sheep Gate and Stephen’s Gate) on the Eastern wall, north of the Temple Mount. We proceeded on to the Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus healed the invalid man of 38 yrs on the Sabbath (Jo 5:1-15) This was a location where people came for healing, and it consisted of 2 large pools fed by rainwater and underground springs. When there were surges, it was said that an angel was ‘stirring the waters’ (John 5:7)

Pools of Bethseda
Adjacent to this area was the Church of St. Anne’s. This is a Roman style Crusader church with tall, vaulted ceilings with crossed arches, and large pillars. This church is well known for its outstanding acoustics. We were able to sing some praise songs together here and as we sang, we paused to hear the echoes. From there we went to the Church of Flagellation, the traditional site where Jesus was flogged.  This church had beautiful stained glass windows depicting Jesus’ scourging, and in the dome above the altar, a mosaic design in a crown of thorns. Next we went into the Church of the Condemnation, commemorating the site where Jesus took up His cross after His sentencing.

Church of St. Anne's                                           
                                                             Church of Flagellation

Crown of Thorns mosaic

                               Church of the Condemnation

Inside the Church of the Condemnation 

Then we learned about the water system of the Temple Mount, and got to walk through some underground aqueduct tunnels and view cisterns, and the old underground Roman road before coming out onto the street above.

We ended up on the Via Dolorosa (Way of Suffering). The traditional route that Jesus walked was from Gethsemane to the House of Caiaphas on Mt. Zion, then to Herod’s Pratorium, and on to Golgotha, the site where the Church of the Holy Sepulcher stands. Along this route are marked the 14 Stations of the Cross, each one which identifies a particular event which occurred along the path to Jesus’ crucifixion.                                        

Next we visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which is the traditional site of the crucifixion and burial of Jesus. The site of the tomb is positioned under a large domed structure. There are many ornate lamps, religious objects, paintings and mosaics located within this church. This church is owned by a Muslim, and shared by the Catholics, Greek Orthodox, Coptic and Armenian religions. This church site was extremely crowded and we waited in long lines and tolerated heavy crowds to see the traditional locations of the crucifixion and tomb of Jesus.

                                                          

                                       Church of the Holy Sepulcher

                                                                                      Dome above Jesus' burial tomb
"Golgotha" site of the crucifixion

Then we visited the City of David, just south of the Temple Mount. Here we saw evidence of an unearthed cistern, and the probable area of David’s palace. Recently uncovered in 2005, are foundation walls of a large building, and a seal or “bulla” from a government official mentioned in the book of Jeremiah.

From here we visited Hezekiah’s Tunnel. We did not walk through the tunnel, but saw the beginning and end of it and where it flows into the Pool of Siloam on the southern end of the City of David. The Gihon Spring in the Kidron Valley, southeast of Jerusalem (in the City of David) is the source of the water flow. Around 700 BC, King Hezekiah, in an ingenious engineering feat, had a 600 yard tunnel dug in the shape of the letter "S" to divert the waters of the Gihon Spring into the city to protect the city’s water supply from Assyrian invaders (2 Ki 20, 2 Chr 32). This tunnel was dug by 2 teams from opposite ends that met in the middle.

The Pool of Siloam was used for ritual cleansing before entering the temple. It was also where Jesus healed the blind man in John ch. 9. Jesus taught us that it was not this man’s sin, or the sin of his parents causing his blindness, but that the work of God might be displayed in his life. Jesus made some mud and put it on the man’s eyes, then told him to wash in the Pool of Siloam.

Some coins found during excavation of Hezekiah's Tunnel and the Pools of Siloam

From here we traveled through the Kidron Valley past the tomb of Absalom to the Garden Tomb. This is an alternate tomb site for Jesus located on the north side of Jerusalem outside the Damascus Gate. The Bible describes that Jesus was crucified outside the city of Jerusalem near a gate of the city along a major thoroughfare, and that at the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a tomb. The tomb is described as being a new tomb cut out of rock, belonging to a wealthy man by the name of Joseph of Arimathea. It had a weeping chamber, a burial chamber, it was sealed with a rolling stone, and it had a traditionally low doorway through which the disciples were forced to stoop in order to look into.

At this site, our guide gave abundant scriptural support for this location of Jesus’ tomb, but beyond that, he emphasized that “the tomb is empty”, acknowledging the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and our hope for salvation through Him. After the guided tour, our group met together in the garden for a time of worship, communion and a devotional led by Lori DeNicola, focusing on Isa 41: 17-20. We were reminded of how when God led His people back into this land of Israel, He brought fruitfulness, like trees in a desert, an oasis of beauty. In contrast, the wicked are described as bushes in a wasteland. We were encouraged that we too, can have fruitfulness in our lives though the power of the Holy Spirit.                                                                   

From here we headed to the southwest corner of the Temple Mount, and the site of the “Wailing Wall.” This area is actually the retaining wall built by King Herod in 20 BC on the western side of the Temple Mount, which remained after the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. The Jews consider this a sacred place of prayer, because it the closest location they can come to, nearest to the location of the Holy of Holies in the temple. The men and women have separate areas for prayer at the wall. People often write their petitions on small pieces of paper and place them in the cracks of the wall. We all had an opportunity to approach, touch, and pray at the wall, and were encouraged by Pastor Steve to connect with and pray for loved ones while we were here.

Our day ended with a fabulous guided tour of the Western Wall tunnels. These tunnels were excavated to expose the entire length of the Western Wall, underneath the Old City of Jerusalem. We saw a model of how the original temple and city walls were laid out. We learned about how the Romans were able to move the massive stones with levers and pulleys. The largest foundation stone was reported to weigh close to 600 tons! There were shafts dug very deep to show how high the original wall was. We passed an area called “Warren’s Gate” and our tour guide told us that this is the closest point one could get to the Holy of Holies. There were people praying and placing their paper prayer requests in the wall here as well. At the northern end of the tunnel we saw a large cistern which supplied water to the Temple Mount. There is an exit point from the north end, but it was closed by the time we ended our tour, so we traveled back through the tunnels and exited into the Western Wall Plaza.

Wow… another day filled with wonder and amazement! We were overwhelmed with seeing so many sites and learning so much about Bible history!

 

Tuesday, 10-20-09

Today our day began with a visit to the Mount of Olives which overlooks Jerusalem on the east side, across from the Kidron Valley. While we were there, Richard and Stardedt couldn’t resist a camel ride : ) Then Regina and Barbara had to have a ride too!

The Mount of Olives was a place Jesus and the disciples visited often, and the location where Jesus taught them about End Times. It was also from here that he entered Jerusalem during the “Triumphal Entry,” and He wept over Jerusalem as He fortold of it’s destruction. Jesus ascended into heaven from the Mt. of Olives, and this is where Zechariah prophesies that He will return.

From here we went through 2 different cemeteries, one Jewish, and one Christian. We learned that Jewish law does not allow a person to be buried within the city of Jerusalem, but they would like to be buried as close as possible to it. They always bury their dead with their feet facing toward Jerusalem. This is because they believe that when Messiah comes, he'll descend from the Mt. of Olives through the Eastern Gate, and thus they believe they'll be the first to be resurrected.


The Eastern Gate

Next to the Mount of Olives is another cemetery called “Dominus Flevit” which means “The Lord wept.” This is the oldest “Messianic” Cemetery known. Many of the early Christians were buried here. The Jewish burial tradition was a lengthy process, involving burying the body in the ground, and allowing for decomposition to occur, and then removing the bones and burying the longest bone(the femur) in a crypt like structure. Families were  often buried in the same tombs or stacked one upon another. The Jewish people do not place flowers on the gravesites. Instead they place stones on the tombs, as a marker and sign that they were there to visit, thus many stones are visible on top of the tombs in the cemeteries.

From this area, we proceeded to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus sweat drops of blood as He prayed that God might find another way to redeem His people, and yet Jesus yielded His body to His Father’s will. It was here that Jesus was arrested. Pastor Steve read Psalm 22 here, wearing his prayer shawl, and we spent some individual quiet time in the garden where Jesus prayed so long ago.

The Garden of Gethsemane contains several very old olive trees, which are believed to date up to 2,000 years old. So it is possible, we are told, that some of these trees may have been there during the time of Christ.

After this, we visited ‘The Church of All Nations,’ also called, ‘Basilica of the Agony,’ where, in front of the altar is the traditional “Rock of Agony” where Jesus prayed the night before His arrest. This church was filled with beautiful paintings and mosaics.

From here we went on to the the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu and the House of Caiphus, the High Priest during the time of Jesus. In the courtyard was the location of Peter’s denial, just as Jesus fortold. It was here that Jesus was mocked and beaten, and held captive until his hearing before the elders and chief priests, and then Pilate and Herod.  We saw some underground caves and chambers here, and a cistern which could have been the place where Jesus was held prisoner the night before he was taken to Pilate.  We imagined the horrible conditions Jesus was subjected to, and we read Psalm 88 together, as we appreciated how Jesus was abandoned, and the suffering He went through for our sake.                   

   Sculpture titled: "I do not know him"

After this we headed for Mount Zion, in southern Jerusalem. We went into the “Upper Room” which is located above the traditional burial site of King David. This is also the location where the apostles waited for the baptism of the Holy Spirit at Pentacost. The room we viewed was built by Franciscans in the 14th century, but was later taken over by Muslims and turned into a mosque.

The Upper Room
From here we headed out to the city of Bethlehem. the location where Rachel was buried, the home of Naomi, and where Ruth gleaned the fields and fell in love with Boaz, her kinsman redeemer. This was also where David was born and anointed by Samuel to become king. But the most notable event that occurred here was the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We remembered how that all these events speak to us of the great love of our God.

We had lunch here, and did some fun shopping in the Christian section of Bethlehem, which is mostly inhabited by Palistinians now. Then we visited the Church of the Nativity, which sits on top of the traditional birthplace of Jesus. This church is shared by the Greek Orthodoxs, Armenians, and Roman Catholics. The church is filled with ornate lamps and religious objects, paintings and mosaics. A descending staircase leads to the area of Jesus’ birth, which is covered with a silver star. Thousands of people wait in very long lines to view the birthplace and pay homage here.

Church of the Nativity                                    

         
Traditional Birthplace of Jesus

After this we headed out to the “Shepherd’s Field,” the probable location of where the angels appeared to the shepherds to announce the birth of our Savior. Together we read the story from Luke, ch. 2, and we sang praise songs to our Lord for being our great shepherd.

To conclude our day, we had a very special treat… we got to visit Calvary Chapel Jerusalem, where the ministry “For Zion’s Sake” is located. We worshipped with the small church there, and then Pastor Steve taught a message from Luke 19: 35-42. What a wonderful time of fellowship we shared with these Jewish believers.

Praise God for another incredible day in the Holy Land!

Monday, 10-19-09

The hotel we stayed at last night was located on the water front of the Dead Sea. We awoke to a beautiful sunrise, and had the morning to enjoy swimming (or I should say floating) in the strange and salty mineral water. How fun it was to be so buoyant! Our skin felt silky smooth after we got out of the water… like we’d just had a special spa treatment : )

        Wolfes at the Dead Sea                                                           

                        Having so much fun!

                            Look at us floating!              

                          

After a late breakfast, we headed out for Masada National Park. We began our bus ride with a reading from Psalm 138, and we focused our attention on God’s lovingkindness and faithfulness, and gave Him praise.

Masada is located on a plateau in the desert which rises about 1,475 feet above the level of the Dead Sea. Rather than walking the steep “Snake Path” in the 106 degree weather, we took an aerial tram up to the top. The steep cliff walls and remote location of Masada made it an ideal fortress. Herod the Great recognized the strategic advantages of this site, and chose to develop it into a great city with luxurious palaces, bathhouses,and even a large wine cellar. Even though Masada was located in the desert, water was not a problem. Herod built an ingenious water system with multiple cisterns to supply water all year long.

Herod's winter palace and bathhouses at Masada

We learned about the history of Masada mainly as reported from the writings of Josephus Flavius, a Jewish historian who became a Roman citizen from the first century. In the year 66, Jewish rebels took over Masada from the Romans, but in the year 74, the Romans took it back. They set up military camps around the base of Masada, the remains of which we were able to see. They also built a huge ramp on the western side which is also visible today, and they used catapults and a battering ram to break down the wall around Masada. The Jews built support walls out of wood, and the Romans were able to set fire to this wall, and eventually burn down the city. The 960 Jews who were greatly outnumbered by the Romans, when they knew they were facing defeat, decided rather than give up their freedom to Roman rule, they took their own lives and the lives of their families. The Romans were expecting a big fight from these Jewish zealots, and were very surprised by what they found once inside.

After this, we traveled on to Qumran National Park, the location where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. It is located on the north-western shore of the Dead Sea. We had lunch at this location and also had some time for shopping. Our Israeli tour guide told us that this was the best place to purchase Dead Sea products, like shampoos, soaps, body lotions and mineral mud products.

The Essenes, a Jewish sect living in the desert regions, were scattered after the Romans conquered Qumran in the year 68. We saw some of the ruins from their dwelling places, as well as some of the community rooms such as an assembly hall and pottery workshop. We also saw a “Scriptorium” or writing room, where the scribes wrote many of the scrolls found in the caves. It is thought that the Essenes used these caves as their hiding places for their libraries. The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered between 1947 - 1956 in 11 different caves, with over 900 documents found. They are housed at the “Shrine of the Book” Israeli museum. We also learned that John the Baptist may have been associated with the Essenes.








After our time at Qumran, we started on the pilgrimage road toward Jerusalem. We read Psalm 22 and prayed for the peace and prosperity of Jerusalem. Our tour guide played a Jewish song called, "Jerusalem," which helped us all appreciate our ascent into this great city of our God.