Walking the Via Dolorosa

April 4, 2015

Last June, when our tour group was in Israel, we spent an entire day within the Old City. We started the day with a visit to the Temple Mount. Upon exiting the Temple Mount near the Lions Gate, we visited the ancient Pool of Bethesda.

Before leaving the area of the pool, I gathered our group together and explained to them that we were about to walk the Via Dolorosa. But, before we did that I wanted them to understand three things:

1) The Via Dolorosa makes the assumption that the Praetorium (John 18:28) was located in the Antonia Fortress, just outside the Temple Mount on the northwest corner. It also makes the assumption that Golgotha was located in the vicinity of the Church of the Holy Sepulture. 2) Even if those two assumptions are true, keep in mind that the original, first century Roman roads were located several feet under the current roads. 3) My current belief is that Golgotha was probably located in the vicinity of the Church of the Holy Sepulture. However, I was not as convinced in the location of the Praetorium being at the Antonia Fortress.

After giving them this information, I encouraged them to enjoy the walk through the Old City, consider the things that they are seeing and to study the matter for themselves.

This week, PBS released a short video about the Via Dolorosa. Recent archaeological findings are casting additional doubt on the current path that it follows. I encourage you to watch it. I tend to agree with the path that it proposes.

There is one other thing that I told my tour group last June. I told them that, in reality, our ability to walk the exact path that Jesus walked isn't really that important. What is really important was that Jesus walked it for all of us.

New Geography Book

March 30, 2015

As I have mentioned a number of times in this blog, I love good maps. Along with that, I love good drawings and illustrations that aid others in learning about the Bible. Therefore, I was thrilled when I received Leen and Kathleen Ritmeyer's latest book "Jerusalem - The Temple Mount" in the mail this past week. I learned about the book six months ago, when the publisher put a temporary hold on it. However, due to many factors including the response from avid fans who wanted the book published, the hold was recently lifted. I ordered it immediately and it arrived last week. (Full Disclosure: I was one of those avid fans!)

Readers of Leen Ritmeyer's blog will recognize the amount of interest and knowledge that he has for the area of the Temple Mount. His posts and drawings of that area are fantastic. Visitors to that area now are often confused by what they see and by what they can no longer see. This book helps cut through all of the confusion and creates accurate representations of that famous hill throughout history.

The book contains three primary chapters entitled "A Brief History of the Temple Mount", "A Walk Around the Temple Mount Walls" and "A Tour of the Temple Mount Platform". Each chapter is well illustrated and are easy reads for even those that are not well-versed in the area. I would love to take this book with me the next time I am there and use it as a personal guide as I walk around. (NOTE: Using it on the Temple Mount platform could prove difficult. Outside of the Koran, very few, if any, books are allowed there.)

For those of you who are looking for a great, hand-held book on this area, I highly recommend adding this to your library. My cost was $31, which included shipping from Israel to the United States.

To Leen & Kathleen Ritmeyer: Well done. Thank you for taking the time to do this.

Region Near Banias

March 27, 2015

We know that King Herod built three temples to Caesar Augustus. One was at Caesarea Maritima, the second was at Sabaste and the third was in the region near Banias (Caesarea Philippi). Recent digs in this area have focused on this site at Omrit. Some archaeologists are considering the possibility that these ruins near Banias could be the foundation of the temple which King Herod built.

Walls of the Temple Mount

March 26, 2015

King Herod was a terrible man. He did not even trust members of his own family and had them executed. But, he was a visionary and had very large construction projects. Even two thousand years later, his thumbprint is all over the country. This view of the southern wall of the Temple Mount still contains many Herodian stones. The Mount of Olives sits in the background.

Crucifixion

March 25, 2015

The Romans were experts at crucifixion. A few years ago, a first century ossuary was found in Jerusalem. Upon opening it up, they found the bones of a crucified man. This picture, of a nail through an ankle bone, is a vivid reminder of how terrible of an ordeal it was.

Sycamore Figs

March 24, 2015

There is hardly anyone that has not heard the story of the "wee little man" Zacchaeus and how he climbed up in the sycamore tree to see Jesus. However, most people in the United States associate a different type of tree with that story. The sycamore trees in the United States are different than the ones in Israel. Those trees are actually sycamore fig trees. Every year, their fruit is harvested and can be purchased throughout the land.

The Elah Brook

March 23, 2015

As told in 1 Samuel 17, David went down into the brook in the Valley of Elah to gather stones to battle against the Philistine giant Goliath. In an ironic twist of fate, that same brook winds its way directly past the Philistine city of Gath (Goliath's hometown) about five miles to the west of the battlefield. It is a legitimate possibility that, as a boy, Goliath played in the exact stream where, many years later, his foe would gather ammunition which would eventually be used to kill him. This picture is of the dry river Elah wadi adjacent to the tel at Gath.

Gennesaret

March 20, 2015

In contrast to yesterday's picture of the Judean Wilderness, the northern area of Israel is covered in lush vegetation as evidenced by this picture of the Gennesaret. The Gospels tell us that Jesus and His disciples traveled across the Sea of Galilee and landed in this region. Once Jesus was recognized, all of the people in the villages came to him to bring Him their sick to be healed.

Judean Wilderness

March 19, 2015

Although a large portion of the country of Israel is green and covered with vegetation, some of it is not. This view of the southern Judean Wilderness provides a wonderful example of the terrain that the Israelites would have encountered as they made their way to the Promised Land.

Mount Nebo

March 18, 2015

This view of Mount Nebo was taken from the the kibbutz at Qumran looking east across the Dead Sea. The hotels in the distance are in the modern kingdom of Jordan. From Mount Nebo, Moses was provided with a view of the promised land of Canaan.

Ashkelon

March 17, 2015

The city of Asheklon was one of the most important cities of the Philistine pentapolis. Although it was located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, its elevated position provided the inhabitants a strategic advantage over any incoming invaders.

Podcast #5 - Little Town of Bethany

March 16, 2015

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/195891660" params="auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%" height="450" iframe="true" /] During the ministry of Jesus, He would often be surrounded by people. Consequently, at the end of a day, He would often look for the opportunity to step away from the crowds and spend some time in meditation and prayer. When He visited Jerusalem, He still tried to get away from the city and usually found Himself in Bethany. And that is what we will be discussing in today's program.

NOTE: If you are reading this blog post from an email, you will probably need to go to the Podcast Page on my website to listen to the audio.

Beit She'an

March 13, 2015

Sitting at the intersection of the Harod and Jordan valleys, the nation that controlled Beit She'an controlled all travel through those areas. Consequently, the city changed hands many times throughout history. During the first century, the city was named Scythopolis and was the only city of the Decapolis located west of the Jordan River.