Thoughts On [insert religious topic(s) here]

How nice it is to pass out on a bed after being up for about 40 hours. I woke up in the morning VERY refreshed and ready to go for the day. Breakfast was an interesting buffet; smoked herring, carrot pie, porridge were just a few of the odd dishes. I’m getting a bit more adventurous with the food. I tried some smoke herring, and Ann Waite convinced me to try some porridge. Both were… interesting…

After meeting for breakfast, we boarded the bus and headed for Nazareth, out to the west. The drive took about an hour. Along the way, I did the morning devotional on Joshua 1:1-9, God’s promise to Joshua following Moses’ death. Jac’line had asked me to try to a Derashu (I’ll check the Hebrew on that later). A Derashu is a technique of reading the text where the reader only says one or two sentences after reading a large passage of scripture. The point of this method is to highlight the text and not the speaker. I spoke about verse 9, “Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” This particular passage gave me support when last semester was winding down and I was terribly behind on my thesis, having to isolate myself in my room and write the thesis only to have to rewrite it a week before it was due. Jordan Stout, if you’re reading this, my conversations with you were the foundation for the entire paper. Thanks brah.

When we arrived in Nazareth we went straight to a re-created Nazarene village, meant to replicate the setting and way of life in which Jesus grew up. The village-and the guides running it-made the entire experience feel like a trip to “Disney Does Nazareth”. When we got to the replicated synagogue, Jac’line reminded us that it was in a synagogue much like the one we were in that Jesus read from the scroll of Isaiah in Luke 4:16-21. That moment made Nazareth meaningful to me despite the hokiness.

***You might wonder how I manage to get these blogs (this is the 4^th) written with all that is going on. Well, we have 15-20 minute bus rides between most sites and I use that time to write the blog on the bus. If I had a MacBook Pro, I could edit my photos on the bus as well. Thankfully, my shooting has gotten a bit better and my pictures don’t need as much correction.***

From Nazareth we made our way to Mount Precipice, the mountain that Jesus was almost thrown off of when he aggravated the people of Nazareth. The mountain offered a spectacular view of the valley below. I’ll try and determine what the cities were when I get in front of a map, but for now, I’m assuming that one of them is Nazareth given how short the drive was between the two places. As we were on the mountain, we heard the Muslim call to prayer coming from the city to the north. They broadcasted the prayer from the mosque in the town to let all the Muslims in the city know that it was time to face towards Mecca and pray.

***For the photo-geeks reading this, Mt. Precipice was the first time that I tried out the Lowepro Street and Field belt with my lenses on it in Lowepro cases. The system worked pretty well. I worried that the belt would slip down my legs, but the belt is practically a back-brace and offered great support. I hardly felt it going up the mountain. I think it will offer my shoulders a nice break from the backpack over the next month. Also, I’ll post a picture soon so you all can see how I look with all this gear on.***

A picture of me on Mt Precipice (taken by Jeremy Herrington)

We headed to Sepphoris after Mt Precipice, the town where Mary (Jesus’ mother) was born. This site is an active archaeological dig. When you approach it, you see the plots where scientists have been digging, trying to find the old city under the centuries of sand and rock.

Parts of the city have been successfully excavated; you can walk on the main road of the town with the ruts from wagons and chariots under your feet; you can look at mosaics of Roman gods and mythical imagery such as the Nile Mosaic.

The Nile Mosaic at Sepphoris

After dinner at the hotel, we had an evening devotional and many of us spent some time together in the lobby. I managed to get 15 minutes of wifi for $2 so I put up a few blogs. I got to bed around midnight after talking with Jac’line for a couple of hours. It’s going to be a great trip, one of a lifetime (though hopefully not my only one to Israel). I’m beginning to let my age not be a factor here even though everyone else is well over 40.

Shalom,

Mat