Where the restoration of modern-day Israel began

Just 35 kilometers south of Haifa, still on Mount Carmel, is a town of great importance: Zichron Ya'akov, "Jacob's Memorial".

It was founded in 1882 with 100 Jewish pioneers from Romania came to Israel in what later became known as the 1st Aliyah. Unfortunately, the difficulty of trying to grow grapes, wheat, and olives in the rocky soil and the presence of malaria led many to give up and leave within a year. Every family lost a child that year. To this day, the founders are still buried in the cemetery.

A year later, Baron Edmond James de Rothschild became the patron of the settlement, helped establish it as a winemaking town, and gave it the name it still holds today.

By 1903, it was the most prosperous place in all of Israel. 

Zichron Ya'akov didn't appear to be much in 1882, and there are definitely bigger, more populated, and also important cities in all of Israel. But it alone has this distinction: it is where the restoration of modern-day Israel began.

Today, you can go to Zichron Ya'achov and tour the town. The original main street is there with its original buildings, as well as the cemetery and the synagogue. It's a cool tourist destination with some museums to learn about the moshave and then enjoy the local culture. 

(a photo of what the main street looked like)

the main street today

a pottery studio!

another museum, this time telling the heroic story of the Nili spy ring during WWII.

The cemetery

the synagogue. 

This beautiful town is an important place in Israel's history. I definitely recommend spending time here if you get the chance!

Can a nation be built in a day?

Isaiah 66:8 asks the impossible question: "Can a country be born in a day, or a nation be brought forth in a moment?"

On May 14, 1948, that's what happened when the nation of Israel was re-born in the Land.

While definitely the most clear example, that's not the only way this impossible question was answered by the rebirth of Israel. 

Beside Gan HaShlosha is the park of Tel Amal, which is an exact replica of the first Stockade and Tower Settlement of Tel Amal, which was built December 1936.

According to this site, Tel Amal was the first settlement of its kind. It was literally raised in a day, and became a model for 57 other settlements throughout Israel between 1936-1939.

The element of surprise was crucial, so that they couldn't be stopped. Everything was pre-fabricated and then constructed on-site in 1 day. The walls were filled with gravel that would stop bullets. And you can see from the map above, that these literally helped form the modern boundaries of Israel, as they were built along the borders, in Jewish areas.

Today, at Tel Amal, you can tour the settlement. Visitors go on a journey with characters in a film (based on the original settlers) as they prepare and then build the settlement.

Then, you can walk around and see:

The living quarters

The office

kitchen/laundry

You can also climb the tower and look around. It's an incredible view, with the kibbutz Nir David and the Amal stream on one side, Gan HaShlosha on another, and Mount Gilboa alongside.

Finally, have you ever heard the term, "Sabra"? It's the fruit of a cactus, and is a nation for Israelis who were born in the Land. It's hard and spiny on the outisde, but the inside is sweet. Here is some sabra growing alongside Tel Amal.

What do you think? Is this an additional meaning to the question if a nation can be born in a day? While I believe it was pointing to May 14, 1948, how amazing that these settlements literally went up on a day and formed the boundaries of modern day Israel? I definitely see a connection there as well!

Did the Ark of the Covenant rest here?

The thing about being in Israel is that you never know when you will see or learn something that will take your breath away. Tel Beit Shemesh definitely was one of those places!

In 1 Samuel, the Ark of the Covenant was stolen from Shiloh by the Philistines, where it began a tour of the major Philistine cities, as crazy things happened wherever the Ark was: statues of false gods fell over face first, decapitated and missing limbs, and all the people broke out in tumors to name a few. Eventually, the Ark was put on a cart led by two nursing cows, and they carried it out of Philistine territory to Beit Shemesh, where the Ark was eventually placed on a large stone.

Then, more tragedy struck. Because some Levites peered into the Ark, people died. Different versions of 1 Samuel 6 are unclear; some say it was 70 people and some say it was 50,070. The text also doesn't say how long the Ark was actually in Beit Shemesh, which means "House of the Sun". Either way, it was a hard-learned lesson.

Modern day Tel Beit Shemesh isn’t a national park; we literally parked on the side of the road and walked up, where we could see the modern city (below), and

and even glimpse Samson’s hometown (the far right peak in the distance).

There are ruins of a monastery, an amazing view towards the ancient Philistine territory, and a massive, cross-shaped cistern dating back to the Assyrian invasion.

But the coolest part is this place in the oldest part of the ruins dating to the Canaanite era, with the fields just beyond them. There are 3 flat, smooth rocks partially covered by grass in the photo below. They look a lot like places where sacrifices have been made, and tests of the ground around it reveal the remains of kosher animals used in sacrifices.

the 3 flat stones with the groove are in the center below, partially hidden by grass:

Behind those 3 stones is an unnatural wall, called “fill”. It was left after digging around it and now it acts as a wall, showing what the earth absorbed over the past millennia. On the edge of the “wall”, a bone is sticking out. Can you see it?

Can you see it?

We even found an animal bone lying just off the path where we were staying (bonus).

And behind that fill “wall”, is an even larger stone, also partially hidden in long grass. It’s flat, smooth, and almost the exact shape and size of what the stone holding the Ark needed to be.

Could that be where the Ark rested after returning from the Philistines?

I was pretty much speechless at that point, to be standing in this unprotected place, looking at a place that likely held the presence of God (as if He can be contained). Then it struck me, as incredible as that was, and is, even more so is that those of us who know Him have His Holy Spirit inside of us.

What a special place! The end of 1 Samuel says that after this, the Ark went to Kiriath Jearim, where it stayed in the house of Abinadab for 20 years.

He is Risen!

"He is not here; He is risen, just as He said. Come see the place where He lay.” Matthew 28:6

Praise the Lord, the tomb is empty!

📷from the Garden Tomb, 2017 #bestdayever

The wine press just in front of the Garden Tomb: proof it was in a garden!

Have a wonderful Easter! 

Where did Jesus stand trial before Pilate?

From Caiaphus' house, Jesus was taken to stand before Pilate at his residence at the Antonia Fortress.

Built by Herod and named for Mark Antony, some of the Roman troops lived here, and the priestly vestments were likely stored here. The fortress was one of the final strongholds of Jerusalem to fall in AD 70. 

Tradition holds that Pilate lived here, so this is where Jesus was taken to stand trial (again), where He was beaten and whipped and fitted with a cross to begin His walk to Golgatha. 

Today, where the Antonia Fortress is now a bunch of buildings. But there are hints at what used to be there. Check out these half-arches:

This is a clue that something much older was here before.

Nearby is the Church of the Flagellation, which commemorates Him being beaten. One of the chapels has a crown of thorns adorning the basilica, and in the other, there is an ancient Roman gameboard carved into the stone:

Then, a few doors down, a convent with ruins below it. (This place could be a blog post in and of itself, there was so much here. The ruins were converted many times and used in different ways, like a giant room being a cistern): 

But what is the most important for Jesus' final night is here:

another Roman game board, and 

The remains of an ancient Roman road, stones worn smooth from age. It's likely Jesus could have walked on this road, or that this is even the stone pavement mentioned in John 19:13.

Wow... this spot takes a few moment to take it in.

And finally, a few doors down is Church of the Condemnation, with a prison in its dungeon:

From here, you'd turn left to keep going down the Via Dolorosa and then right into an alley, all the way to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This is the last spot in this blog series until Sunday, the best day of all. It's hard to see; a lot to take in. But take heart, because Thursday is almost over.

Sunday is just a few days away.

The House of Caiaphus: Where Peter Denied Christ

From the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was taken before the Sanhedrin at the house of Caiaphus, the High Priest.

Somehow, I had no idea that the ruins of his house could actually still exist and there's (of course) a church on top of it, built on the ruins of the Byzantine church.

Below it is a dungeon where it's claimed Jesus was held. It's possible Peter and John were also held here at some point after Jesus' ascension back to Heaven.

Outside the church are ruins from Caiaphus' house, as well as ruins from other eras as well.

this area is likely from the Byzantine church.

Caiaphus' house

And then, the stairs.... stairs the Jesus and His disciples might have walked down on the way to the Garden and then on the way back on the way to the trial before the Sanhedrin:

The view of the Mount of Olives from the top of the steps.

Like the church at the Garden of Gethsemane, the modern church, The Church of Saint Peter Gallincatu ("the rooster's crow" in Latin) is one of my favorite churches in Israel.

If the one at Gethsemane is the night, this one is the sunrise.

Which makes sense, because it was built memorializing not only the trial before the Sanhedrin but also Peter's denial of Jesus.

I've never been inside a church that was these colors. It was gorgeous!

The next time I go, I hope to get a tour of the property so I can understand it all better. It was breathtaking to be there and realize this was likely where Peter denied Christ. 

Eventually, the sun rose on that dark night, just as the rooster crowed. Jesus met Peter's eyes, and he realized that he'd done.

Judas hung himself nearby (apparently the field purchased by the 30 pieces of silver is not far). 

And then Jesus was taken to Pilate.

**a tour guide has told me recently that from an archeological standpoint, it's unlikely this was actually the site of Caiaphus' house. So I now look at this place as a remembrance of these events.