Holy Land Trip Day 9: Jerusalem Day 2

I'm looking back at my notes on what we did on our second day in Jerusalem, which was a Friday. If I hadn't written it all down I would say that it was impossible, that I was somehow misremembering. But there it all is, in a nice, numbered list in my little notebook:

We got up early in the morning and had breakfast in our hospice. I mention that because I wanted to show this picture of Peter. Doesn't every man dream of being alone in a roomful of women? Ha!



First, we visited the cathedral of St. James. This church, in the Christian Quarter, is an Armenian establishment. It is built over the supposed site of the tomb of James the Apostle. It was not open, but we were able to enter the courtyard.


PETER AT THE GATES OF THE CATHEDRAL OF ST. JAMES

Our goal for the morning was to see the sites on the Mount of Olives. This famous hill lies directly east of the city, and of course was the location for many of the events of Christ's time in Jerusalem. A cab driver took us the LONG way up to the top of the hill. Rather than trying to visit the various sites and churches in any sort of chronological order, it makes the most sense to start at the top and work your way down. The hill is steep, and even in February it was fairly warm!

Our first stop was, a bit ironically, a mosque. The Mosque of the Ascension was built over the top of an earlier Crusader church constructed on top of an even earlier church of the fourth century, to mark the supposed site of Christ's ascension to heaven after the Resurrection. The basis for this association is a "footprint" in marble, supposedly the footprint of Christ. This is apparently not a very visited spot, and poorly upkept. Because Jesus is also considered a Prophet in Islam, it is a site for veneration in that religion as well, but obviously not a popular one. Besides the small dome built over the site of the footprint, you can also identify some nice Crusader column capitals that were stuck in willy-nilly when the later Muslim construction was done.


THE MOSQUE OF THE ASCENSION.


THE "FOOTPRINT OF CHRIST" INSIDE THE SMALL MOSQUE.

Based on that site and the neighborhood immediately surrounding it, our first impression of the Mount of Olives was that it was dirty and rundown, full of litter. Luckily, as we worked our way downhill it became much more pleasant and picturesque.

Our next stop was the Church of the Paternoster (Our Father). This church was constructed in the late 19th century by a French princess. Interestingly, there was a church constructed here by Constantine's mother, Helena (St. Helen), because the site was believed to be where Christ ascended to heaven. Wait a minute...? Yes, there are many competing claims for lots of the Biblical narratives. It's something you just come to terms with when visiting the Holy Land. At any rate, by the time the present church was constructed, the grotto it was built over was considered to have been the site where Christ taught his Disciples to pray. Hence the name "Paternoster" ("Our Father, who art in heaven...").


THE SO-CALLED GROTTO OF THE PATERNOSTER

The church is very pretty. The main attraction is the fact that the Lord's Prayer is mounted on beautiful painted tiles all around the church and cloister, inside and out, in more than 60 languages, some of which we had never heard of.



I was particularly happy to see this one:



The next church we visited was the Dominus Velit ("The Lord Wept") chapel. It is situated in a gorgeous grove, overlooking the Golden Gate of the Old City. It marks the spot at which Christ wept over the future fate of Jerusalem before he made the Triumphal Entry (Luke 19:41). The view from inside the chapel is spectacular.


PETER CAPTURED THIS GREAT IMAGE OF TWO OF THE CHAPEL'S NUNS. THEY WERE SITTING ON THE WALL, LOOKING OUT OVER THE OLD CITY AND SINGING A SONG ABOUT JERUSALEM.


THE VIEW OF THE OLD CITY FROM THE DOMINUS VELIT CHAPEL.

On our way down the hill, we passed many Jewish cemeteries, located here as I mentioned before because the Valley of Jehoshaphat, at the foot of the Mount of Olives, will be, according to Jewish tradition and an Old Testament passage (Joel 3: 1-17), the site of the Resurrection of souls on the Day of Judgment. We did not go into any of the cemeteries.


A MAN VISITS A TOMB ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES

The Garden of Gethsemane was our next goal. Although no one can be sure where on the Mount of Olives stood the actual grove that Christ prayed in, and where he was arrested, the trees in this grove are old enough to have been standing in the time of Christ. Because they are fenced off, the effect is somewhat sterile, but I suppose it is also important to protect them from people (like me) who want to pull off a twig to take home. Nope, you can't reach any of the branches!



Just past the grove stands the modern Church of All Nations (built using donations from 12 different nations, in 1924), which is built (supposedly) on top of the rock where Christ knelt and prayed (it is sometimes also called the Church of the Agony). As usual, there was an earlier Crusader church here, on top of an even earlier church of the 4th century. It is an impressive building, but I found the mosaics on the pediment too modern and jarring. Inside, the rock is surrounded by a cast-iron crown of thorns. We did not get to see it because there was a service going on at the time we visited.



We left the Garden of Gethsemane and crossed the road to the Tomb of the Virgin which is obviously revered as the site of the burial of the Virgin Mary. This site also has a long history. It is a subterranean burial grotto which lies in the Valley of Jehoshaphat (recall it's associations with the Day of Judgment). There are tombs inside the walls of the church that date to the 1st century AD. The main crypt area was carved in the Byzantine period from solid rock. There was once an upper, above-ground church which was built by the Crusaders, but Saladin destroyed it when he conquered Jerusalem in 1187. Today, ownership of the crypt is shared by Greek, Armenian, Syrian, and Coptic Christians. We were totally unprepared for what we would see there. It is without a doubt one of the most lingering impressions of our days in Jerusalem. Descending the steep stairs, past tombs carved into the walls, the crypt is mostly dark, but lit faintly by hundreds of lamps hanging from the ceiling, and by candles. The air is completely filled with incense, and singing and chanting is continuously performed. While we were inside, there were two competing services going on -- we know one was Greek and think the other was Armenian (maybe). They were definitely trying to out-sing one another! I will try to attach a video at the bottom of this entry for those who are interested in trying to sort it out.


THE STAIRS DOWN TO THE TOMB OF THE VIRGIN

From the Tomb of the Virgin we decided to walk back to the Old City through the floor of the Valley of Jehoshaphat (also called the Kidron Valley in the New Testament -- Jehoshaphat is the Old Testament name). Jehoshaphat means "God judges." I don't think, from the looks of it, that many people choose this particular route. There are interesting things to see there though, including three rock-cut Jewish tombs dated to the 1st and 2nd centuries BC, although one of them was thought in Medieval times to have belonged to David's eldest son, and was so called the Tomb of Absalom. One of them we know from inscription was the burial place of a family of priests.


THE "TOMB OF ABSALOM"

The Valley spit us out at its southern end into a somewhat depressing Muslim neighborhood. From there we climbed up to the oldest part of the Old City (that is, the area where the oldest settlement of Jerusalem is known to have existed), to see the City of David. The City of David is really the name for the whole area, since it is known to have been the site of the original founding of the city. Now a super-touristy archaeological area, it is worth seeing, but not very well interpreted. There are remains of a palace that "may" have belonged to David, as well as walls dateable to as early as the 13th century BC. But the main attractions are subterranean: the first is now known as Warren's Shaft, for the 19th century Englishman who discovered it. It is a tunnel dug by the Canaanites to reach a pool that is naturally replenished by the Gihon spring. You can walk through the tunnel and down to the pool, where you can see remains of the 18th century BC (!) Cannanite wall.


THE CANAANITE WALL AND POOL, DATING FROM THE 18TH CENTURY BC.


The other attraction we were not prepared for. In the 10th century BC, the Hebrew king Hezekiah famously built his own tunnel to bring the water from the spring all the way into the city, a much-needed resource in time of siege. The prepared traveler can bring (or buy there for a more-than-modest price) water shoes and a small flashlight and wade in water (which would have been thigh-high on me even in the midst of this dry season!) through the entire tunnel and out to the pool. The two tunnels start as one, then Hezekiah's tunnel branches off, so we were able to peek in. It is completely, 100% pitch black, and the water was REALLY rushing through it by the sound of it! I wanted to go, but we were both wearing jeans, and Peter was really not interested in walking around wet for the rest of the day. I know he was right, but I really really wanted to do it! But not by myself! So who will volunteer to go back with me and have that little adventure?

Believe it or not, or day was not even half over at that point. Back in the Old City, we happened to spy a spot that our guidebook had told us provided an access to a "shortcut" over the city -- along the roofs. We went up, and were rewarded with a really unique perspective on things. Markets below us, church towers at almost eye-level -- and lots of traditional Jewish men and boys crossing the city that way. We came out by a Jewish school, practically through their courtyard, which was a bit awkward.

Back on the ground, we walked back to the Christian Quarter, to the Syrian Orthodox church of St. Mark's. It is a pretty little church, built supposedly on the site of the home of Mary, the mother of Mark the Evangelist. The main attraction is an old, old, old icon of the Virgin Mary and the Christ child that tradition says was painted by Luke, from life! Of course that is impossible, but even a non-specialist can clearly see that it is an incredibly old icon, and painted on parchment, which is unusual. No photos of it are allowed, but the nun inside gave us handfuls of prayer cards with the image on it to take away. Also, the cellar room below the church is where some scholars do believe that the Last Supper actually took place.


THIS IS A SHODDY COPY OF THE REALLY OLD ICON. THIS ONE HANGS ABOVE AN ALTAR IN THE CELLAR WHICH MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE ROOM IN WHICH THE LAST SUPPER TOOK PLACE.

Our next visit was to the Alexander Hospice. This is the most important church in Jerusalem for the Russian Orthodox believers. It is also extremely important archaeologically. Inside this church lie some of the scant remains of the original Church of the Holy Sepulcher, constructed by Constantine on the site of the crucifixion and burial of Christ. I will share later about our visit to the "modern" Holy Sepulcher church (itself quite old) which lies next door, but we wanted to see what we could of the fourth-century building -- which, unfortunately, is not much. But the ruins of the church and other monuments excavated inside the Alexander Hospice are extremely important. I'll walk you through a few pictures of the site so you can see what the great importance is:

TRIUMPHAL ARCH FROM HADRIAN'S FORUM, CA. 135.


IN THIS ROOM OF THE CHURCH, THE ONLY ONE WHERE PHOTOS CAN BE TAKEN, LIE SOME REMAINS OF WHAT IS PROBABLY AN ALTAR FROM ONE OF THE MANY CHAPELS IN THE ORIGINAL HOLY SEPULCHER. YEP, UNDER THAT RED CLOTH!


YES, I ASKED FOR PERMISSION BEFORE SNAPPING THIS. THE PICTURE DOESN'T SHOW MUCH, BUT IT'S SOMETHING.

The other important archaeological find within the church is something that they will not allow pictures to be taken of, unfortunately. It's the remains of a Herodian-era wall with a large gate in it (so, late 1st century BC- early 1st century AD). To one side of the major gateway in the wall is a much smaller opening with a tapering top. This may be the "Eye of the Needle" (as in, it's easier for a camel to pass through it... (Matthew 19:24)). Whether or not that is the case, the discovery of this wall proved once and for all that the site of the Holy Sepulcher, and therefore of the supposed tomb of Christ, was outside the city walls at the time of the Crucifixion (a fact which many scholars had previously doubted). Although this does not prove the location of the tomb, it does lend credence to its identification. That would also make this particular gate the famous Gate of Judgment through which all condemned criminals were led to execution.

From there we popped across the street to the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer. Not to be deterred by a little exhaustion, we climbed the 177 steps to the top of the belltower, to look out on the city:


NOW WE WERE LOOKING DOWN ON THE PEOPLE WALKING ACROSS THE ROOFTOPS, AS WE HAD BEEN A FEW HOURS BEFORE!


FROM UP THERE WE GOT A REALLY FINE VIEW OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHER, WHICH I WILL TALK MORE ABOUT BELOW. OH HEY -- IS THAT SCAFFOLDING?

177 steps back down (very dizzying!), we decided to take advantage of another opportunity to see the city from a high angle. By the Jaffa Gate there is a tiny entrance that leads up to the top of the Old City walls. For a reasonable fee, you can walk two different stretches of the wall. Together, the two routes almost completely circumnavigate the city, and walking them is a fantastic way of grasping the layout of the often confusing city. However, it requires going up and down several small but steep flights of stairs, and in most places the only safety guard on the interior side of the wall is one of those ridiculous railings that hits you at just about the height where if you fell against it it would cause you to fall off the wall, rather than stop you. If anyone is prone to vertigo, this is probably not the activity for them. But for the rest of you, it is highly recommended! Because it was now a Friday afternoon and time for Muslim prayers, we had to avoid the section of the walls that passes near the Dome of the Rock, and above the Muslim Quarter. So we walked along the Christian and Jewish quarters instead, from the Jaffa Gate to the Dung Gate, near the Western Wall. So we saw mainly sites on the west and south sides of the Old City:


I WAS COMPLETELY UNAWARE THAT THERE WAS A WINDMILL IN THE MODERN CITY. IT WAS BUILT BY SIR MOSES MONTEFIORE, A RICH BRITISH JEW WHO FOUNDED THE FIRST JEWISH COMMUNITY OUTSIDE THE WALLS OF THE OLD CITY IN 1891. HE CALLED IT MISHKENOT SHAANANIM ("DWELLINGS OF TRANQUILITY"), BUT PEOPLE WERE AFRAID TO MOVE THERE BECAUSE THEY WERE AT THE MERCY OF BANDITS IF THEY LIVED OUTSIDE THE WALLS. MONTEFIORE WANTED THE RESIDENTS TO BE SELF-SUFFICIENT AND MILL THEIR OWN FLOUR. UNFORTUNATELY, THERE IS NOT ENOUGH WIND IN JERUSALEM TO DO THAT! NOW THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS VERY UPSCALE, AND IS CALLED YEMIN MOSHE.

When we got back down, we did what all guidebooks and US consular personnel advise against: we walked smack through the middle of the Muslim Quarter after noon prayers. And guess what? No problems whatsoever. Of course this is not always the case, and you have to be on your toes and very aware of the vibe in the area. But don't allow the overly cautious to keep you from doing something you really want to do, and we had a goal: to walk the Via Dolorosa with the Franciscan friars, who traverse the route every Friday afternoon.

But before meeting up with the friars, we visited briefly the Church of St. Anne. It was so amazing that we had to go back the next day and take another look, so I will save the description of the church and grounds until that point. But this first visit was interesting because I fell into a conversation with a priest who had been a parish priest for many years at a church not a mile away from my old apartment in North Hollywood. And there we both were in Jerusalem.
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Walking the Via Dolorosa, the path that Christ walked on the day of his Crucifixion, should be a highlight of anyone's trip to Jerusalem, whether they are Christian, or religious at all, or not. Although the walk can of course be made on your own, every Friday at 3 pm, the Franciscan friars lead a group in the walk, and in prayers and song along the way (if you don't know the Catholic mass in Latin, you are out of luck for following along though!). I was surprised by the size and diversity of the crowd that walked with us. In many ways what we saw during this hourlong experience encapsulated the experiences and tensions of living and worshiping in Jerusalem, home to so many faiths. Again, I hope some pictures and captions can tell the story.


THE MEETING-PLACE FOR THE VIA DOLOROSA WALK IS A MUSLIM SCHOOL COURTYARD. HERE, A CATHOLIC NUN GAZES OUT THE WINDOW OF THE COURTYARD AT THE NEARBY DOME OF THE ROCK, WHERE FRIDAY'S PRAYERS, THE MOST IMPORTANT OF THE MUSLIM WEEK, ARE BEING CARRIED OUT.


OUR GROUP INCLUDED NOT ONLY CHRISTIANS, BUT OTHER INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS. YOU CAN SEE FROM THE HEADGEAR OF THE CROWD THAT IT INCLUDES MUSLIMS AS WELL.


THE MONKS GATHER. NOTICE THE MUSLIM MAN ON THE RIGHT.


SEE WHAT HE IS CARRYING? A WHIP? HE ACCOMPANIED US THE ENTIRE WAY. WE DID NOT UNDERSTAND HIS SIGNIFICANCE AT THE TIME, ALTHOUGH WE WONDERED ABOUT IT. ONE OF OUR FRIENDS HERE IN ISTANBUL WHO LIVED IN JERUSALEM FOR MANY YEARS TOLD US THAT HE IS THERE TO KEEP THE PEACE. BECAUSE THE ROUTE OF THE VIA DOLOROSA PASSES THROUGH THE MUSLIM QUARTER, AND FRIDAY IS A PARTICULARLY SENSITIVE DAY, HIS WHIP ASSURES THAT NO ONE WILL BOTHER THE MONKS OR THEIR CROWD.


AS WE MOVED ALONG THE ROUTE, WE WOULD STOP AT EACH STATION OF THE CROSS, AND THE FRIARS WOULD RECITE, OVER A LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM, A READING OR A PASSAGE OF SCRIPTURE RELATED TO THAT STATION (SOME STATIONS ARE NOT MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE). THEY RECITED FIRST IN SPANISH, THEN IN ENGLISH. AS WE MOVED BETWEEN STATIONS, THERE WAS SINGING AND CHANTING IN LATIN. INTERESTINGLY, AS WE PASSED THROUGH THE "TERRITORY" OF OTHER CHURCHES AND MONASTIC GROUPS, WE WERE JOINED BY MORE AND MORE MONKS AND NUNS OF DIFFERENT ORDERS. THEY WOULD BE STANDING READY AT WHICHEVER STATION WAS INSIDE THEIR CHURCH, THEN WOULD CONTINUE WITH US.


EACH STATION IS MARKED BY A SIGN AND INSCRIPTION. HERE YOU SEE THE TITLE "ST (WHICH STANDS FOR STATION): FOLLOWED BY THE FRANCISCAN "JERUSALEM CROSS" THAT IS MADE UP OF FIVE SMALLER CROSSES. THAT IS THEIR WAY OF INDICATING THAT THIS IS THE FIFTH STATION, THE SPOT WHERE CHRIST FELL AND SIMON OF CYRENE WAS FORCED TO CARRY HIS CROSS. FROM THIS POINT, THE VIA DOLOROSA ASCENDS THE HILL TO CALVARY. THE ACTUAL STATIONS ARE INSIDE SMALL CHAPELS OR CHURCHES. WE COULD NOT ALL FIT IN, SO MOST OF US STOOD OUTSIDE WHILE THE MONKS WENT IN, THEN PEEKED IN THE DOORS AS WE WALKED ON ALONG.


THE FINAL FIVE STATIONS ARE INSIDE THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHER. APPROACHING THE CHURCH, ONE OF THE LAST STATIONS OUTSIDE OF IT IS STATION NINE, WHERE CHRIST FELL FOR THE THIRD TIME. SOMEONE HAD LEANED A CROSS AGAINST THE WALL.



WHEN WE ENTERED THE COURTYARD ON THE BACK OF THE HOLY SEPULCHER, WHERE STATION TEN IS LOCATED, WE FOUND A LARGE NUMBER OF MONKS AND NUNS WAITING SILENTLY FOR US TO ARRIVE. IT WAS A VERY DIFFICULT AREA TO WALK INTO!


WHILE WE WAITED FOR THE LARGE GROUP OF PEOPLE TO FILE INTO THE COURTYARD, WE ADMIRED THE BUILDINGS ON THE ROOF. THESE SIMPLE STRUCTURES ARE ACTUALLY AN ETHIOPIAN MONASTERY. MULTIPLE RELIGIOUS GROUPS "OWN" VARIOUS PARTS OF THE HOLY SEPULCHER (MORE ON THAT LATER), AND THE ETHIOPIANS GOT BOOTED UP TO THE ROOF ON THE BACK WHEN THEY COULDN'T PAY THEIR TAXES TO THE OTTOMANS IN THE 17TH CENTURY, AND HERE THEY STAY!


TWO OF THE ETHIOPIAN MONKS


WE PASSED THROUGH THEIR CHAPEL ON OUR WAY INTO THE CHURCH (THE BACK WAY). IT IS MUCH MORE COLORFUL THAN ANY OF THE OTHER CHAPELS IN THE CHURCH.

I'm not going to describe the Stations inside the Holy Sepulcher at this point, because we went back the next morning, very early, to look around the church when there were not hundreds of people inside and I would rather "narrate" it and show you those pictures in another post. I am glad that we went twice though, because the first time it was a hive of activity and we needed to see it that way, too. Each of the monastic groups that owns one small portion of the church was trying to carry on a service, or a procession, all at the same time, and they kept bumping into each other! At one point I am certain that the Armenian monks organized a procession JUST BECAUSE the Roman Catholics were holding a mass in front of the tomb. There seemed to be no other reason for the Armenians to suddenly line up and march from one side of the church to the other, chanting loudly! The disagreements over who owns what part of the church have been so extreme that back in November, a fistfight broke out between the various groups of monks, and they started hitting each other over the head with chairs! Nothing like that happened while we were there, but they were definitely trying to outdo each other.


AN ARMENIAN ORTHODOX MONK PREPARES TO JOIN THE PROCESSION ACROSS THE CHURCH (WHERE THE CATHOLICS ARE HOLDING A SERVICE)

But we did have a very special opportunity on this first visit. As you can see in the pictures below, there were dozens and dozens of people lined up waiting to see if they would be allowed to go into the actual tomb of Christ.


THAT LARGE BOX IN THE CENTER IS THE SHRINE ENCLOSING THE ACTUAL TOMB. I WILL INCLUDE BETTER PHOTOS OF IT IN THE NEXT POST.



The rock of the mountain where the tomb was said to be was cut away by Constantine in the early 4th century, leaving only the tomb itself as a free-standing structure. Over the years, the box enclosing it became more and more ornate. All of the denominations own it in common, and take turns holding services inside and manning the door. Today, if you receive permission to enter that box-shaped shrine in the center of the church, you pass through a small antechamber and into the actual tomb itself, which is tiny: maybe seven feet long by three feet wide. Of course everyone wants this experience, but the monks who tend the tomb do not allow everyone to go inside. We were very dismayed when we saw how many people were waiting, and how few were going in. I walked over to one of the Armenian monks standing to one side and asked him if we would be able to go inside if we came back very early the next day, when there was not such a crowd. He just said, "I will take you in. I will tell them you are Armenian." So before we knew it, he swept us up past all of those people, spoke to the two monks guarding the door, and we were inside!

The first small antechamber inside holds a piece of rock that tradition says is part of the stone that was rolled away from the door of the tomb by an angel. Through a second small door is the actual burial chamber. There is just room to kneel by the side of the shelf that was carved for a body to be laid on it. There is no doubt that this was a tomb of roughly the 1st century AD, although the marble slab here now, which was intentionally cracked to make it unattractive to Ottoman looters, was only installed in 1555. While we may never know with certainty that it is actually the tomb in which Christ was placed, the experience is still a powerful one. Hanging a few feet above your head, if you look up, are dozens of red glass lamps, which give the effect that there is no ceiling, only a dark expanse with tiny lights. We only stayed inside for a minute or so, but we were allowed to touch the rock-cut shelf the way countless thousands of pilgrims have done for 1700 years before us. It was truly the experience of a lifetime!

IN THE TOMB OF MARY:

Holy Land Trip Day 8: Jerusalem Day 1 (How's that for a confusing title?)

The first thing we realized when we started planning our days in Jerusalem was that there was no possible way we could see and do everything we would like to. Also, we had to be very careful about scheduling our days since we were to be there on a Friday and a Saturday. Friday afternoons mean closure of Muslim sites, Saturdays (from dawn to dusk) of Jewish sites. So it was imperative that we carefully structure our days. Of course since I am a huge stickler for organization anyway, this was right up my alley. And as you will see, in the end we did a pretty awesome job of seeing a lot of things! It helps that the Old city of Jerusalem is actually scarcely larger than an average city neighborhood. Religious sites and historical points from so many periods and cultures are stacked literally one on top of the other. Navigating is tricky because of the narrow, winding streets, but nothing is ever far away!

We did see so much, though, that to really write a good description and historical discussion of each of the many sites would take a long, long time, and no doubt tax the attention of readers. So a brief synopsis will have to be enough, followed by some pictures with explanatory labels.

We started in roughly chronological order, by spending the first day seeing sites related to the Hebrew history of Jerusalem. Our first stop was the Western
Wall (also known as the Wailing Wall). Most of you are very familiar with this monument. It is the one wall that remains of the Temple Mount on which the temple of Solomon once stood. That temple was replaced by a new one in 586 BC (the Second Temple), which was then massively reworked (if not completely rebuilt) by Herod the Great in the 1st century BC. Herod's temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE. The Western Wall is actually a Herodian retaining wall, which buttressed the massive artificial terrace on which the Second Temple stood. This is the holiest site in Judaism, and Jews come every day to mourn the loss of the Temple, and to pray for the day when it will be rebuilt.


A VIEW OF THE WESTERN WALL


THE MEN'S SIDE OF THE WALL. ONLY JEWISH MEN ARE ALLOWED INTO THIS AREA (OR AT LEAST WE DIDN'T SEE ANYONE WHO WASN'T OBVIOUSLY JEWISH, SO PETER DIDN'T EVEN TRY TO GET THROUGH THE SECURITY)


SOME DEVOUT JEWS COME TO THE WALL EVERY DAY TO RECITE THE ENTIRE BOOK OF PSALMS


I WAS ABLE TO ENTER THE WOMENS' SIDE AND APPROACH THE WALL. IT WAS A VERY MOVING EXPERIENCE. PETER TOOK A PICTURE OF ME ON MY WAY BACK.


HERE YOU CAN READ ABOUT THE WESTERN WALL IN THE WORDS OF THE JEWISH RELIGIOUS AUTHORITIES

The top of the Temple Mount is now taken up by the massive complex of the Dome of the Rock, the third holiest site in Islam. Although non-Muslims are no longer allowed inside the actual mosque, we were free to wander the expansive grounds, which we had mostly to ourselves (a very rare occurrence).


AS WE APPROACHED THE HARAM ESH-SHARIF (THE TEMPLE MOUNT), PETER TOOK THIS GREAT PICTURE OF A YOUNG MAN GIVING AN OFFERING TO AN ELDERLY WOMAN.


TO PROVE WE HAD THE PLACE TO OURSELVES...I'M THE LITTLE SPECK BY THE DOME OF THE ROCK. THIS MUST BE A RARE PICTURE TO HAVE FROM A TRIP TO JERUSALEM!


PETER UNDER THE UNDER THE DOME OF THE CHAIN, THE LOCATION OF WHICH IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HARAM ESH-SHARIF INDICATES THE CENTER OF THE ENTIRE WORLD (ACCORDING TO MUSLIM TRADITION)


HERE I AM UNDER THE DOME. WHAT ARE WE LOOKING AT THAT IS SO INTERESTING?


THIS 13TH CENTURY TILING ON THE DOME, WHICH SOME SAY IS MORE MAGNIFICIENT THAN THE WORK ON THE INTERIOR OF THE DOME OF THE ROCK ITSELF.


WE MADE OUR WAY TO AN AREA THAT IS TECHNICALLY OFF-LIMITS: THE "GOLDEN GATE." ACCORDING TO JEWISH TRADITION, THIS IS THE GATE THROUGH WHICH THE MESSIAH WILL ENTER THE CITY; CHRIST PASSED THROUGH IT DURING THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY. IT WAS SEALED UP BY THE MUSLIMS IN THE 7TH CENTURY (FOR OBVIOUS REASONS). I HAVE NO IDEA WHY THERE IS A WHEELCHAIR IN THERE.


AS HAS HAPPENED MANY TIMES IN THE PAST, WE FOUND OURSELVES ACCOMPANIED BY TWO IMPROMPTU "GUIDES." THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE IN SCHOOL (OR AT LEAST THERE WERE PLENTY OF BOYS THEIR AGE THAT WE COULD SEE THROUGH THE DOORS OF THE MEDRESES WERE IN CLASS), BUT THEY PREFERRED TO WALK WITH US AROUND THE HARAM.


I TOOK THIS PICTURE OF A LITTLE BOY PLAYING IN ONE OF THE PAVILIONS ON THE HARAM. I JUST THINK IT'S CUTE.


A VIEW FROM THE TEMPLE MOUNT. THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT VANTAGE POINT. THE ARCHES IN THE FOREGROUND ARE PART OF ONE OF THE "QANATIR", THE ARCHWAYS THAT MARK THE STAIRWAYS UP TO THE PLATFORM OF THE DOME OF THE ROCK. THEY ARE ALSO CALLED "MAWAZIN" WHICH MEANS "SCALES." ACCORDING TO MUSLIM TRADITION, GOD WILL HANG THE SCALES HE USES TO WEIGH SOULS ON THE DAY OF JUDGMENT FROM THESE ARCHES. THROUGH THE ARCHES YOU SEE THE MOUNT OF OLIVES, COVERED IN JEWISH TOMBSTONES. JEWISH TRADITION STATES THAT IT IS IN THE VALLEY OF JEHOSHAPHAT, BETWEEN THE TEMPLE MOUNT AND THE MOUNT OF OLIVES, THAT THE SOULS OF MANKIND WILL BE RESURRECTED ON JUDGMENT DAY.

After this brief detour into the Muslim world, we turned our attention to the early history of Jerusalem. We visited the Ariel Center for Jerusalem in the First Temple Period. There, a very knowledgeable young woman gave us a brief private lecture on the history of the earlier temple, and the Jewish people in the Holy Land in general. We felt a bit awkward, but because we were pressed for time I eventually broke into her excellent presentation and told her that we were archaeologists, so she skipped to the "good stuff" and took us to see the model of the city as it appeared at the time of King David (as far as archaeologists can tell). This was an extremely educational museum, although there were no real artifacts to see. But we set off with a much better knowledge what was under our feet, and how Roman Jerusalem, which is much more visible to the eye, relates to the Jerusalem of the time of the Prophets and Kings.

At her direction we passed by a monument which is known as the Broad Wall. It was excavated not too long ago. It is from the First Temple period, possibly part of an extension fortification that the Bible says was completed by King Hezekiah in what historians believe was the 8th century BC, to enclose a new neighborhood constructed to house refugees of the Assyrian invasion in 722. The discovery of this wall proved once and for all that the city was larger at that early date than most historians and archaeologists assumed it could have been.


THE BROAD WALL

Our next stop was the Wohl Archaeological Museum, which was built over the excavation of several houses from the time of Herod and later, which apparently belonged to members of the priestly upper-class. Some show the tell-tale signs of having been burned when the Romans sacked the city in 70 AD.

We continued to the Burnt House museum, which is a similar museum built over another house that was burned by the Romans. There is some film they show that is a completely fabricated story of the people who might have lived there. We were completely unimpressed with the site, and frustrated when the film was not being started although we were the only people in the one-room museum, so we left. Of all the things we saw on this trip, this is probably the one thing we would NOT recommend to anyone!

More archaeology awaited us at the Jerusalem Archaeological Park, which is located at the foot of the Temple Mount. This park contains excavations from multiple periods, from the Second Temple period to an Ottoman palace garden. Here are a couple of the highlights (in our opinion):


THE STONES JUTTING OUT FROM THE WALL ARE CALLED "ROBINSON'S ARCH" FOR THE ARCHAEOLOGIST THAT IDENTIFIED THEIR FUNCTION. THEY SUPPORTED THE MASSIVE STAIRS TO THE TOP OF THE TEMPLE MOUNT, AS ILLUSTRATED IN THE IMAGE BELOW:




THESE MASSIVE STONES WERE CAST DOWN FROM THE TEMPLE MOUNT WHEN THE ROMANS DESTROYED THE TEMPLE IN AD 70. IT IS DIFFICULT NOT TO THINK OF WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT THE TEMPLE WHEN HE STOOD THERE THREE DECADES BEFORE: "NOT ONE STONE HERE WILL BE LEFT ON ANOTHER; EVERY ONE WILL BE THROWN DOWN" (MARK 13:2). THE WALL BEHIND ME IS A CONTINUATION OF THE WESTERN WALL, SOUTH OF THE AREA USED FOR JEWISH PRAYER.

Our next stop was The Citadel, which is now the home of the Tower of David Museum of the HIstory of Jerusalem. The present citadel is from the 14th century, but excavations have revealed remains on the site from at least the second century BC. It is highly probable that a fortress was here in the time of Herod, and possible that this was the site of the trial and condemnation of Christ. I confess to being confused here. Site fatigue had set in a bit, and there was so much to see related to so many time periods. We saw a very odd animated film on the entire history of Jerusalem, and walked through many different exhibits on various historical moments. Not much of it sank in. But what we DID get was an excellent view of the New City when we climbed one of the Citadel towers.


THERE ARE LAYERS FROM MORE THAN A THOUSAND YEARS OF HISTORY IN THIS SHOT: THE TIME OF THE KINGS OF ISRAEL, OF HEROD, OF THE CRUSADERS AND THE OTTOMANS. WE WERE TOO TIRED TO FIGURE THEM OUT.


MAYBE NOT THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING WE SAW FROM THE CITADEL TOWER, BUT INTERESTING ANYWAY! SOMEONE WAS CAMPING ON A NEARBY ROOF.

After a quick lunch, we dashed to catch a cab out into the modern city, to the Israel Museum, which houses the magnificent archaeological collections put together from finds all through Israel. We were looking forward to seeing Hittite, Canaanite, Hebrew and other objects, many taken from sites we had already visited. But it was not to be. Apparently, the museum is closed until 2010! This was probably the most disappointing moment of the trip.

HOWEVER, one part of the museum remained open: the Shrine of the Book. This remarkable building houses the Dead Sea Scrolls and other objects discovered at Qumran, on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea. Here a monastic group, the Essenes, lived and studied. It turned out to be perhaps one of the best museum exhibits either one of us had ever seen. Although we could not photograph what was inside, we highly recommend that anyone who has an opportunity make the trip. It is really remarkable what has survived in the hot, dry desert around Qumran. For example, we have both seen hundreds and hundreds of clay lamps from the Roman period, but here we saw something entirely new: a clay lamp with the ORIGINAL WICK still in it! One highlight of the exhibition is the Isaiah Scroll, a complete copy of the book of Isaiah dating from 100 BC. Although all of the Scrolls are not on display (some are traveling the world, so many of you may have a chance to see them in a museum near you!), a copy (or two, or three) in a variety of languages (Greek and Aramaic as well as Hebrew) of every book of the Old Testament, with the exception of Nehemiah and Esther, were found at Qumran. This of course was of immense importance in understanding the development of the Hebrew Bible.


THE EXTERIOR OF THE "SHRINE OF THE BOOK." IT IS DESIGNED IN THE SHAPE OF A LID FROM ONE OF THE JARS IN WHICH THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS WERE FOUND. THE CONSTANTLY FALLING WATER SYMBOLIZES THE RITUAL PURITY IN WHICH THE ESSENES ATTEMPTED TO LIVE. YOU CAN HEAR THE WATER WHEN YOU ARE INSIDE LOOKING AT THE SCROLLS AND IT IS A *VERY* NICE EFFECT!


THIS WAS ON DISPLAY OUTSIDE THE MUSEUM: STONE PIPING FROM THE ROMAN PERIOD. THIS PICTURE IS FOR YOU, JIM!

We then returned to the Old City and managed to squeeze in a few more sites, believe it or not! They are all on Mt. Zion, which is just outside the Old City walls, to the east. Many scholars (and non-scholars) believe that the Last Supper occurred somewhere on this mount, although opinion is divided as to where.

The first site we visited was the Tomb of David. Although there is absolutely nothing to suggest that this is really the tomb of King David, the tradition is strong enough that it is an extremely holy site for both Jews and Muslims (who consider David a Prophet). During the period between 1948 and 1967, when Jordan controlled the Old City and Jews were restricted from visiting the Western Wall, they came here instead. It is not an impressive site visually. Men and women visit different sides of the room, separated by a curtain. Interestingly, a second tradition names this site as the room in which Christ washed his Disciples' feet after the Last Supper (John 1: 1-17).


THE WOMEN'S SIDE OF THE TOMB OF DAVID


OUR "GUIDE" INSISTED ON TAKING OUR PICTURE OUTSIDE THE TOMB. WE THOUGHT IT WAS WEIRD.

This association is linked to the tradition that the room directly above this is the Hall of the Last Supper. I am unsure how far back the tradition goes, but the Crusaders believed it enough to build a church on the spot, so what you can visit today is a Gothic hall, which the Muslims later converted into a mosque. Today it is nothing more than a tourist site. I tend to favor another site as the probable location of the Last Supper, but more on that in a later post.


THE "HALL OF THE LAST SUPPER" WITH ITS GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE.

Directly next door to the Hall of the Last Supper is the gorgeous Church of the Dormition, built on the supposed site of the death (the "dormition" or "Falling Asleep") of Mary. This site, like others in the area, has no proof of being the location of the event with which it is associated, but archaeological evidence suggests that there was a church on this spot as early as the fourth century (so shortly after Christianity became the official religion of the Roman empire, which suggests that this was a highly sanctified site for early Christians), and definitely by the sixth century. The modern church was built on the order of Kaiser Wilhelm II in the early 20th century. We had very little time inside, as it was closing up when we arrived, but we were able to appreciate beautiful views of its belltower over the following days (these will appear in later posts).


THE CHURCH OF THE DORMITION


AN INTERIOR SHOT, FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH


ONE OF THE MOSAICS INSIDE THE CHURCH. I JUST THOUGHT THIS PICTURE TURNED OUT NICELY!

It was a very full first day, but we were beginning to get our bearings. After a meal at a traditional Armenian restaurant, we called it a relatively early night, because we had a lot planned for the following day!

Holy Land Trip Day 7: West Coast of Israel

After spending another night in Nazareth, and picking up our rental car (which we had left parked at the hotel there, which was, incredibly, easier and just as cheap as renting a second car upon our return to Israel), we left early and drove to the west coast, to the town of Akko

Akko is more famous by its earlier name, Acre, and is probably best known as the last stronghold of the Crusaders to withstand Arab conquest. It provided a port through which the Crusaders could communicate with and receive supplies from Europe. Saladin conquered it at one point, but Richard the Lionheart recaptured it and it was the last of the Crusader outposts to fall. It was also important under the Ottomans, and one of its proudest moments came when the Ottoman governor Ahmed Pasha el-Jazzar was able to withstand a vicious siege by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799.

It is a very pleasant city. We spent all of our time in the Old City, which is surounded by high walls. Our main goal was to visit the Crusader city, which preserves remains of the Crusader fortress (heavily restored), including halls of individual orders of knights, as well as a large refectory where it is very likely that Marco Polo at one time dined.


THE REFECTORY HALL OF THE CRUSADER FORTRESS

You can also walk quite a long distance through an underground Crusader tunnel, with water rushing past beneath your feet.

We also enjoyed walking along the walls of the Old City, which are the original Cursader walls, rebuilt and further fortified under the Ottomans. There are signs along the way indicating where decisive moments in the defeat of Napoleon took place.

It was also very pleasant to walk along the sea here and imagine what it must have been like to live here during Crusader times, watching for reinforcements and supplies to arrive from Europe.


VIEW OF THE HARBOR OF AKKO (ACRE)




FISHING BOATS IN THE HARBOR OF AKKO

We also had a great lunch here, at a place that serves nothing but hummus (it's called Humous Sa'eid and is found in the bustling old covered market in the Old City). There was a line out the door. Actually, out two doors, one on either side of the business, but it moved quickly and we ate the best hummus I have ever had in my life, elbow to elbow with tourists, locals, and Israeli soldiers.

From Akko our plan was to drive on down the coast to the site of Roman Caesarea. This entailed passing through Haifa, and although there is much to see in that city, such as Mt. Carmel, we had decided we did not have time to stop. Fate had other plans, however, and as we found ourselves more and more lost and disoriented trying to "pass through," I suddenly looked up from the map and realized that we were passing one of the most important landmarks of the city: the gorgeous Baha'i Temple and Gardens. This is the headquarters of the Baha'i faith. One of our fellow Fellows here at the RCAC is Baha'i, and had suggested that we see it. When we told him we did not think we had time, he was a bit disappointed. So we were happy to pull over, take some photos, and show him when we got back that, like it or not, we had seen the site! It is incredibly beautifully landscaped:



We finally found our way out of Haifa and back onto the main highway south along the coast. We arrived at the site of Caesarea Maritima (Caesarea on the Sea) in plenty of time to get in and look around. We had heard wonderful things about the site from Asa, another Fellow, who has excavated there. We had also eagerly read up on it.


THE ROMAN THEATER AT CAESAREA MARITIMA

Caesarea was founded by Herod the Great on the site of an earlier Phoenician port, and he built many magnificent buildings there. The most important of his projects was a spectacular harbor (built between approximately 22 and 9 BC), constructed where there was no natural breakwater. It was a marvel of construction, using poured concrete put into place by divers (the Romans had devised a mixture of concrete that could harden underwater). Fun fact: the term for professional divers in Latin was "urinatores" because they spent so much time underwater without bothering to come out that they...well, we'll let you figure the rest out.

The harbor largely sanK over the course of centuries, and although it was described in ancient texts, archaeologists doubted for a long time that the Roman engineers had been capable of executing a feat of its magnitude. Eventually, however, underwater archaeologists did prove that the ancient descriptions were correct. Those with diving certifications can now swim amongst the ruins and check the construction out for themselves.

Famous historical figures who hailed from Caesarea include Eusebius (the historian and friend of Constantine the Great), and one of the most important Church Fathers, Origen. Caesarea also figures prominently in several New Testament passages, including the story of the centurion Cornelius (Acts 10). We also know that Philip the Evangelist lived here for a time (Acts 21), and that it was here where Paul was confined by Herod for awhile before requesting to invoke his right as a Roman citizen to be tried in Rome before the emperor (who had him executed) (Acts 23).

In many ways, the site of Caesarea was very disappointing, though. In recent years it has been made into a "destination" that has nothing to do with archaeology.


A SUPER-CREEPY MODERN STATUE INSTALLED IN THE SITE OF CAESAREA

Shops, restaurants, bars, and boutiques have been opened amongst the ruins, and trendy Israelis were walking their dogs in the Roman hippodrome:



A tad bit deflated, we made our way back to the main gate to leave and discovered that we were locked in!



YES, WE HAVE TO CLIMB THAT FENCE!

Apparently we had missed the exit time, and the staff had closed up shop. There was one young staffer still outside, but she had no keys. Unlike at most sites, there was no revolving gate that will let you out but not back in. We had two choices: walk up the beach for a few miles to the far northern edge of the site, or climb the fence. Climb it was!

Before leaving the site, we drove north along the beach to see one of the other engineering marvels of the site: a dual aquaduct. If you look closely at the pictures, you can see that what looks like one construction is really two. Apparently, Herod constructed the first (on the left), and the emperor Hadrian later doubled its capacity by building a second flush against it. This is not found anywhere else in the Roman world (to my knowledge), and survives here for a great distance, running along a popular beach.




THE SUN SETS ON THE BEACH OUTSIDE CAESAREA

After leaving Caesarea we drove back to Ben Gurion airport to return our car and catch a shuttle to our final destination, Jerusalem! The shuttle ride in was quite interesting. I had always picture arriving to the Old City of Jerusalem as some sort of mystical experience, but suddenly here we were driving in a madly swerving van full of an interesting mix of people -- European tourists, a Hasidic Jew who looked completely traditional and local, but pulled out his cell phone and made a call with a thick New York accent. Barreling through the traffic of modern Jerusalem with Stevie Wonder's "Part-time Lover" blaring on the radio, it was not QUITE what I had always imagined. But once we were finished driving around trying to find the home of the sister of one of the elderly Jewish ladies on the van (she could only remember that her sister's house was "old"!), we were finally dropped off outside the Jaffa Gate, tired and a bit shell-shocked, and walked into the Old City around midnight to find the monastery where we would be staying. Tomorrow we would see Jerusalem!