Jerusalem Approaches

This is a combination of two impression reports. We did the first part of this field study last Saturday. Unfortunately, it was interrupted half-way through, but we finished it up yesterday afternoon, so here are my impressions from those days.

September 13, 2008
Jerusalem Approaches Field Study

Today was an interesting day in more ways than one.

We started on the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem. We noticed that even though Jerusalem is surrounded by mountains, the mountains are closer on the east and west. The northern direction was probably the most open and therefore where attackers generally approached from.

We then crested and went a tiny ways down the other side of the Mount of Olives where we could look into the Judean wilderness. The contrast was stark. The trees and greenery end abruptly. The rock changed quickly from Cenomanian to Senonian limestone. Jerusalem and all places directly east are on the Dead Sea side of the watershed ridge, but Jerusalem is protected by the Mount of Olives. We talked briefly about how the prophet Jeremiah used the imagery of the dessert encroaching to warn the Judeans about approaching judgment.

From there we drove along the top of the Mount of Olives for a short way and stopped again to overlook Jerusalem. We walked down the mount, stopping at various tradition sights. The fist place was stopped is supposed to be the place where Jesus wept over Jerusalem.

Matthew 23:37-39
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’”

I’ve always like those verses. They show the love that Jesus had for His people. And there have been times when I have felt similarly, when people I love have shown no interest in Christ. I’m sure that even then my emotion was nothing compared to His. Lord, come soon!

From there we went to the Church of All Nations, one of the traditional sites of the garden of Gethsemane. I suppose these churches are built to memorialize and help us remember these important events in the life of our Savior. I have to admit, though, that it is hard for me to spend time really thinking about exactly what he went through nearly 2000 years ago, possibly at the very spot we were at. We spend so little time at most of the places we go, and there are so many people, that I don’t really spend time thinking about what Jesus went through. Perhaps I’ll need to go back someday (with any luck, when its not as busy) and spend some time meditating on these things.

From there we walked to the bus, passing some monuments/tombs that were probably around in Jesus’ day. It was interesting that the monuments are called “nephesh.” It seems to speak of the eternal human desire for death not to be the end, for there to be something more beyond this life.

Once on the bus we headed into the west bank on our way to the Herodian. Unfortunately, we never made it there.


Saturday, September 20, 2008
Jerusalem Approaches (Part 2)

This week’s field study was a vast improvement over last week’s, or at least the ending of last week’s.

We started the day at the Herodian. We were blessed by a clear sky – much clearer than last week – which enabled us to have a great view of all the surrounding area. It kind of amazes me how close everything is. In Montana we have to drive for hours to get to the next city. You can also drive for hours without having any drastic changes in scenery. It can change fairly quickly at times, but it’s pretty uniform in other places, especially eastern Montana. Here, however, you have four (plus) important Biblical sites (with their four modern day cities) all within walking distance. It especially struck me how close Jerusalem and Bethlehem are. Also here, looking off of the Herodian, you can clearly see the boundary between farmable land with the Cenomanian limestone and terra rosa soil and the wilderness of Senonian limestone and basically no soil. So much history took place in this tiny area that I can see from the top of a relatively short man-made hill, it’s almost too much for a li’l Montana girl to take!

Herod himself was an interesting man and the structure of the Herodian tells us quite a bit about him, as does his newly discovered tomb site (probably). I don’t have much to say on the subject at the moment, but it is something to ponder.

From the top we could see Tekoa (Amos’s home town), Bethlehem, numerous other towns and villages, Jerusalem (or at least the Mount of Olives), the Judean Wilderness, the Dead Sea, and even into the Trans-Jordan highlands. We looked over the area where David must have watched his father’s flock and read Psalm 23. Shepherding in that country is very different from Europe or America. I’m sure that all areas have their dangers and inconveniences, but in the Judean wilderness, “green pastures” and “still waters” are basically unknown. I’m not quite sure what (if any) difference that should make in my interpretation of the psalm, but it does give an interesting insight into David’s life and faith.

After exploring the Herodian and taking the requisite pictures of people on pillars, we went on to Bethlehem and the church of the nativity. I don’t think I’m a huge respecter of “place.” If that’s the actual exact location where Jesus was born, that’s kind of cool, but I don’t think I have the same awe and reverence that some people seem to have. Nonetheless, it’s kind of interesting to see. It’s interesting to see how (and what) people worship. I also enjoyed taking pictures – there are a lot of old and beautiful things. We didn’t have much time there, which is ok, but it would be kind of nice to go back sometime and observe people a little more and maybe have some time to stop and think instead of rushing through, taking pictures of every interesting thing I see as quickly as possible.

Our last stop of the day was at Ramat Rachel where they are excavating the remains of a Judean palace, possibly build by Hezekiah. It was a beautiful area. One of the most interesting things were the cut stones that were thought to be capitols, possibly the forerunners of Ionian capitols. That, mentioned in conjunction with the concept of the alphabet (developed here and also exported to Greece and the rest of the world), made another idea that’s been in the back of my brain come more to the front. Exactly how much did the Jewish nation contribute to world history? They are considered a “mouse” rather than a “cat” and yet so much of our Judeo-Christian culture has stemmed from here. A. W. Tozer once said, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and man’s spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God.” Now, the Israelites did not always have a high view of God, but at least some of them did at sometimes, which is more than can be said of the cultures around them. Did this help them make advances in some that other nations could not have made? Advances that were then borrowed by other cultures? I have heard different theories propounded on this issue. Another thing to ponder in my spare time.