Day 9: Samaria / Ancient Israel

The sunset on the coast of Caesarea was breathtaking last night, but meant that we arrived at our hotel in Netanya in the dark.  I took a peek out our sliding glass door after we arrived and saw the lights of the city.  I didn’t think much more about it until Brent encouraged me to take a look this morning.  I had no idea that our hotel was right on the water!  We didn’t have time to explore but it sure was a nice way to start the day.  We got a picture with Bishara at breakfast.  He has been the one we have entrusted our lives and schedules to each day as he expertly drives our bus to each location.  I have no idea how he maneuvers that long bus through some of the tight places we have found ourselves in but he does it safely and confidently.  Bishara is an Arab Christian and truly a blessing to all of us.  We had a few stops along the way today before we made our entry into Jerusalem this evening.  We will be staying here for the rest of our time in Israel in a hotel in the Old City.  I couldn’t help but get excited as we walked through the Zion Gate to get to our “home” for these next 5 nights.

We followed the Via Maris and had to cross into the West Bank to get to Samaria.  This was not a typical stop for most tour groups and we were thankful to be able to visit.  We headed to the top of Mount Gerizim (Mount of Blessing) and took in the views and learned a bit more about the Samaritan people and their beliefs.  It was interesting to see a short movie from their perspective of the Bible.  They only accept the Torah (1st 5 books of the Bible) but do appreciate the New Testament story Christians know about the Good Samaritan and are welcoming to Christian visitors.  They had a fenced area and marker by a large rock that they claimed was the place where Abraham was going to sacrifice Isaac. They think Mt. Gerizim is the Mt. Moriah mentioned in the Bible. We had to do some sifting through it all as we watched a short movie about the history of the area from their point of view.

 We discovered that there are only about 900 Samaritans in the world.  We saw some of the ruins at the National Park (wine press, Byzantine church) as well as one of the new Samaritan villages established for them by the Israeli government.  They had been persecuted by the Muslims in the city of Nablus (Shechem) and the Israeli officials couldn’t protect them so they cleared an area for them on the mountainside, put in water, sewer and electricity and provided the land for free for Samaritans to make their home.  

Across from Mt. Gerizim was Mt. Ebal (Mount of Curses).  You can read more about that story in Deuteronomy 11:29.  It is important to note that Abraham came to the Shechem Valley, but what captured our group’s attention was the fact that Jesus had been in that area.  As we sat near the lookout onto the modern city of Nablus (Shechem), David read the account of the Woman at the Well from John 4:1-42.  Powerful story of barriers being broken down and this Samaritan woman, despised by Jews, being valued by Jesus.  She was so touched by that encounter with Jesus that she boldly shared it with her people, leading many others to become believers and declare, “...we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

We had hoped to visit Jacob’s Well as well as the Tomb of Joseph (son of Jacob), but due to some unrest from a terrorist group called the “Lion’s Den” in Nablus recently, it was unlikely.  There was a gun battle that ensued and seven were caught and the rest eventually surrendered. A visit today looked promising but a fresh incident this morning where a terrorist ran over an Israeli soldier making us reconsider those plans yet again.  The soldier is in the hospital and though injured seriously, was able to shoot the terrorist. Large hills of dirt blocked certain roads in Nablus and it was a blessing we hadn't tried to go.  

We stopped at a wonderful lookout point and David pointed things out from a distance. In the photo collage of the well and tomb, the pictures with the arrows show our view and then some close ups of the buildings shared from a previous tour group.  The Red Dome is the church where the well is housed and the white dome is part of Joseph’s tomb.  Joseph died in Egypt but had instructed his family to bring his bones to Shechem.  David said there was a “good chance” that the location is accurate but it can’t be proved.

We traveled on to Sebastia to visit a favorite restaurant of our tour leaders.  There weren’t any other tour groups there so we had the full attention of the owner of the Samaria Restaurant and enjoyed his warm welcome, a delicious Palestinian meal and shopping afterward.  His name is Mahmud Ghazal and his wife is Mona.  Mahmud is a graduate of the University of Alabama and had a Crimson Tide sign on the side of his building to show support.  

Menu:

Wheat Soup
Arab Bread (with several toppings including hummus, freshly harvested/pressed olive oil with herbs of Thyme, Sesame and Hyssop)
Greek Salad
Makloova (“Upside Down” - rice with spicy, roasted cauliflower)
Mussaka (pizza with herbs & slivered almonds)
Roasted Chicken
Knafe (pronounced Kuh-Nahfee) for dessert.  (It was from a place in Nablus and made out of shredded wheat, honey, cheese and ground pistachios & served warm along with Arab Coffee (boiled with Cardamom).  

It was a wonderful cultural experience and delicious.  He promised it would be the best meal we’ve had so far and it was.  There was time to shop in his adjoining store that had beautiful Phoenician and Roman glassware/pottery, scarves, jewelry, mosaic dishes, ancient coins and other trinkets.  Sara the Camel was outside with her caretaker hoping to take people for a ride.  We had “been there, done that” but were able to enjoy her lively grunting noises and funny faces.  We took a quick walk down the road after lunch and saw the ruins of a theater inauspiciously located on the side of the road.  We were in a hurry to get to our next site before it closed so didn’t delve into the possible history located there.  

Last stop before the hour drive to Jerusalem was at Shiloh, “The City of the Tabernacle”.  That park was closing soon so we got to watch the Hologram presentation on the Tabernacle and Ark of the Covenant which was outstanding and then took a quick look around.  A few interesting facts gleaned today:
  • ● The Tabernacle had been at Shiloh for 369 years
  • ● It was portable and the items it held were made at the beginning of the exodus
  • ● It was moved at least 9 times in their 40 years in the wilderness
  • ● We talked about the process of moving the Ark and that only a Levite priest could enter the Holy of Holies…and that was with care, minimal light to actually see and if it had to be moved, the veil detached and moved forward being laid over the Ark to avoid seeing it.  
  • ● The reason the Levites were in charge of this area was because they were the only tribe that didn’t worship the golden calf while Moses was on the mountain. 

After 369 years of the Tabernacle and Ark being at Shiloh, Israel was in a battle with the Philistines at Ebenezer and had lost thousands of men.  They decided to bring the Ark down to the battle site, hoping it would bring them success but they lost anyways and the Philistines took the Ark.  To their detriment they had trusted in the Ark instead of in God.  They faced consequences for their actions and the Philistines did as well for taking the Ark.  Eventually it was returned. (See account in 1 Samuel 4)

We had a quick, impromptu lesson on almonds from a tree near where we sat while David reviewed the history of Shiloh and he had people crack open almonds and try them.  He asked if they were bitter and it was only then that he told us that if they are bitter, they can be poisonous due to the cyanide contained.  That brought a flicker of concern and then laughter as he went on to explain that it took about 10 almonds for an adult to die from eating them and that our bodies are equipped to deal with them in small amounts.  He had us all laughing.

We passed by Bethel on our way to Jerusalem and I must admit that I must have zoned out by then and didn’t get any notes jotted down about that site as it was dark by then.  

We are now settled in and excited to explore the Old City tomorrow.

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