This article is a continuation of my trip to Israel in October (2007) with my friend Carolyn Groves and my cousins Louie and Jo Furman.
We had spent the night in Tiberias and were off early the next morning to visit the area around the Sea of Galilee, so rich in biblical history. Carolyn and Jo, both well versed in the New Testament, were enthralled as we drove along the lakeshore and stopped in the towns of Magdala, the home of Mary Magdalene and Tabgha, the traditional site of the Multiplication of the Fishes and Loaves. Not far from Tabgha is the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount.
Capernaum, a town first mentioned in the New Testament, is reported to have been the home of the apostles Peter, Andrew, James, John and Matthew, and where Jesus went after leaving Nazareth. According to biblical history, Capernaum was inhabited from 150 BC to about AD 750 and was considered a large fishing village and busy trading center on the Sea of Galilee. The ancient city of Capernaum was abandoned about a thousand years ago, but was rediscovered by archaeologists in the late 1800’s. Today it is a major archeological site and is reported to have been the home of Jesus himself. According to Luke, “ Jesus taught in the synagogue in Capernaum,” and a building, which may have been a synagogue of that period, has been found beneath the remains of a later synagogue.
We spent most of the morning in Capernaum and in the afternoon visited Yardenit, a popular baptismal site on the Jordan River at the south end of the Sea of Galilee. This site is believed by some to be the actual site where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. Today, it is a major tourist attraction and many Christian groups stop here to perform baptism ceremonies.
Israel is really a very small country geographically: only 150 miles from north to south, 28 miles wide at the Sea of Galilee and 54 miles west to east at the Dead Sea. When you look at a map, all the towns, Nazareth, Capernaum, Tabgha, Magdala and Yardenit are probably not more than 10 miles apart.
We had been on the move, at a rather hectic pace, for the past four days so it was somewhat of a relief when we arrived at the Dead Sea on a Friday afternoon. On Friday afternoons much of Israel comes to a halt…it is the Sabbath and most business and tourist attractions shut down until Saturday evening, after sundown. Even elevators have a Sabbath schedule, pre-programmed to stop at every floor.
The Dead Sea, about 70 miles east of Jerusalem, is now a popular resort area known for its spas and therapeutic treatments. Friday night most hotels offer a Shabbat dinner and on Saturdays people rest on the beach and float in the Dead Sea. Since the hotel we stayed in also had a spa, Carolyn and I treated ourselves to some “rejuvenation treatments” and joined the rest of the crowd enjoying the mild weather around the pool and floating in the salty,salty water of the Dead Sea. It really is amazing – you literally do float and when you put your hand on the bottom you come up with a handful of salt. It’s like the kosher salt you find in the store --- large rock-like crystals. We had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed our “day-off”.
We were up and out early the next morning. We arrived at Masada and ascended by cable car to the fortress built by Herod the Great (a far cry from the last time I was in Masada when to get to the top meant hiking!).
The story of Masada is both dramatic and emotional. I knew the story of Masada having been there with a Jewish youth group 40 years earlier (when we hiked the snake path to the top). However, I found an article and picture put out by the Jewish Virtual Library that tells the story far better than I remembered.“After Rome destroyed Jerusalem and the Second Temple, the Great Revolt ended, except for the surviving Zealots, who fled Jerusalem to the fortress of Masada, near the Dead Sea. There, they held out for three years. Masada is situated on top of an enormous, isolated rock --- anyone climbing it to attack the fortress would be an easy target. Yet the Jews, encamped in the fortress, could never feel secure; every morning, they awoke to see the Roman Tenth Legion hard at work, constructing battering rams and other weapons.Once it became apparent that the Tenth Legion's battering rams and catapults would soon succeed in breaching Masada's walls, Elazar ben Yair, the Zealots’ leader, decided that all the Jewish defenders should commit suicide. Because Jewish law strictly forbids suicide, this decision sounds more shocking today than it probably did to his compatriots. (There was nothing of Jonestown in the suicide pact carried out at Masada). The alternative facing the fortress’s defenders was hardly more attractive than death. Once the Romans defeated them, the men could expect to be sold off as slaves, the women as slaves and prostitutes. “Elazar ordered that all the Jews’ possessions, except food, be destroyed, for the food will be a testimonial when we are dead that we were not subdued for want of necessaries’ but according to our original resolution, we have preferred death before slavery.”
The site of Masada was identified in 1842 and extensively excavated between 1963 and 1965 by an expedition led by Israeli archeologist Yigael Yadin. Due to the remoteness from human habitation and its arid environment, the site has remained largely untouched by humans or nature during the past two millennia. The Roman ramp still stands on the western side and can be climbed by foot. Many of the ancient buildings have been restored from their remains, as have the wall-paintings of Herod's two main palaces, and the Roman-style bathhouses that he built. The synagogue, storehouses, and houses of the Jewish rebels have also been identified and restored. Inside the synagogue, an ostracon bearing the inscription Me'aser Kohen (title for the priest) was found, as were fragments of two scrolls.
Archaeologist Yigael Yadin's excavations have so far uncovered the remains of 28 people at Masada. The remains of three people, a male 20-22 years of age, a female 17-18 and a child approximately 12 years old, were found in the palace and the remains of 25 people were found in a cave at the base of the cliff. Carbon dating of textiles found with the remains in the cave indicate that they are contemporaneous with the period of the Revolt. All the remains were reburied at Masada with full military honours on July 7, 1969.
Today Masada is one of the Jewish people's greatest symbols. Israeli soldiers take an oath there: 'Masada shall not fall again.' Next to Jerusalem, it is the most popular destination of Jewish tourists visiting Israel
Listening to the story of Masada, on Masada, is an exhilerating experience; you could almost hear the battering rams of the Tenth Legion and feel the desperation of the Zealots. The excavations are unbelievable---it’s definitely worth a trip to the top for anyone visiting Israel, regardless of religious beliefs.
We left Masada in the early afternoon for our drive to Jerusalem. Join me next week as we tour Jerusalem and get ready for Heather and Rob’s wedding.
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