Back from Israel

Well Friday, February 5th, 2010 will always be a milestone in my life. Got out of bed 1am (local time) in Jerusalem and went to bed 11pm (local time) in Portland. That’s quite a day.

I’m glad to be back. It was good to go and good to come home. I traveled well, jet lag, digestion and the various other things that plague travelers were mild to nonexistant for me. I only lost a couple of things (Dang! I loved that hat!) I was reasonably comfortable the whole time and slept well. Good companions, good food and reasonably good weather (it was midwinter there). My family was safe and sound and other than Jess being worn out from doing 100% of the taxiing, they survived my absence without distress.

I really can’t summarize the experience at this point. It will take a while for things to sink in and I look forward to experiencing new meaning for years to come. What I can say right now is, I’ll share for an evening at church in the near future, stay tuned for details.

Anticipating the trip I wrote: “I want to soak in the sense of space. The isolation of Masada, the wind and the waves of the Sea of Galilee, the heat of the desert, the feel of going ‘up to Jerusalem’, the view from Mt. Carmel, the weight of the Dead Sea. Imagination can only take you so far. To experience the walk, the view, the feel of these places — that’s what I’m after. I want the template of the space stamped on my consciousness. Then, whether reading about Joshua or David or Elisha or Jesus, there’ll be a physical orientation reinforcing the sympathetic understanding of their experience. It may sound a little airy-fairy, but that’s what I’m looking for. Of course, God is God, so I may be surprised.”

Re: The Template of the Space
I’m very satisfied on this account. Apart from a few one night stands, three times we spent four nights in one place. First at the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee, the kibbutz of Ma Agan (good food). Second on the shores of the Dead Sea at kibbutz En Gedi (great food). Third in Jerusalem, about a mile away from the Old City at the Dan Boutique (good food but charged $25 a day for wireless access! I made do at a little cafe across the street – the strongest espresso I’ve ever encountered.) In this sense I covered the whole, Galilee in the north, the desert in the south and Jerusalem in the center (traveled the coastal plane but only stayed there the night we arrived). It’s small with roads and cars. Plenty big on foot or horseback. Some examples of orientation gained: Nazareth overlooks the valley of armageddon (I didn’t know that!). The sea of Galilee is a lake (“Is that the WHOLE thing?”) Mt. Carmel, like many of the ‘mountains’ there, is a ridge rather than a distinct peak (No clear identification of the site of Elijah’s battle with the prophets of Baal). I loved the Dead Sea area (probably because we were staying at the oasis of En Gedi, in general it’s pretty inhospitable). It’s the lowest place on earth. The sky is cobalt blue, you can feel the weight of the air with the barren mountains looming above you. You literally float in the water! The hot springs pool for men had the sign “Silence.” Floating in warm water in silence is my idea of a good time! Virtually an out of body experience.

I also talked about walking to Emmaus. I ended up not taking the walk. It turns out the identification of Emmaus is less than certain and whichever way I chose, most of the walk would have been through modern Jerusalem and its suburbs.

There were only two things I would have been severely disappointed if I hadn’t been able to do. One was to walk through Hezikah’s tunnel and the other was to be on Temple Mount. I made it through Hezikah’s tunnel (I got to be in the lead). There’s a great sense of history there. No ‘traditional’ identification involved. This is it baby!. Ironically, we had seen the actual stone inscription put up where the tunnelers (working from different directions) met in the Museum in Istanbul! It was also a personal accomplishment for me. I don’t know if I’m technically claustrophobic, but I sure don’t like enclosed places (Are there people who do?). Anyway this is about as enclosed as you can get. It’s a third of a mile long, 2 feet wide (sometimes narrower) and mostly 7 feet high (with parts as low as 4 feet and as high at 40). I almost balked at the entrance which is at most 4 feet high with the water rushing through it in an ominous manner. But I figured if the mighty men of Hezikah could dig it (2 Chron. 32:2-4), I could at least manage to walk it. What a blast!

I made it onto Temple Mount, though my Bible didn’t (you can’t take one up there). I touched the bedrock under the dome of the Tablets/Spirits which is quite probably the site of the Holy of Holies (long story). But oddly enough, my most significant ‘God moment’ came not on the Mount but below it on the southeast corner. Standing there you can see (and touch) the stones that were thrown down by the Romans in 70 AD. They are left ‘in situ’ which is archeologist speak for ‘as they were found’. There they are, beneath them foot thick marble pavement stones shattered like glass from the impact, off to your right the Mt. of Olives where Jesus gave the Olivet discourse (Mt. 24-25). “I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down (Mt. 24:2).” It was like being there the day after it happened. And to think of all that will soon happen there! Amen. Come Lord Jesus!

My deepest gratitude to all who provided the funds and prayed for me and my family. Special thanks to Swede Workentine whose own love for the experience drove him to make the way for me to know it as well. You’ll be hearing about it for years to come.

Shalom,
Chris