Last week I shared a few things about our recent trip to Israel. We were there for 8 days and during that time visited Jerusalem twice.
Jerusalem is an interesting city. A modern city it also envelopes a small "Old City" that existed in Biblical days. The city is full of contrasting life: Modern & Old, Strongly Religious and Humanistically secular.
When I took this first picture we had stopped to have a bite to eat at one of the many market stands that dot the streets. In the background is an Orthodox Jewish man reading and praying.
Orthodox Jewish are plentiful. Usually dressed in familiar attire, men usually wear hats, and women head coverings. Men and boys have long locks of hair hanging on the side...all of which is based on traditions handed down through the centuries of teachings by the Rabbis and made into Law.
We began our tour of Jerusalem the first day by going to the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives have biblical significance in several ways: David went up the Mount to escape Absalom's rebellion. Zechariah, the prophet, prophesies the Messiah coming to the Mount, splitting it in half.
Jesus used that prophesy while on this Mount to teach his disciples about his second coming. Jesus came to the foot of the Mount and entered the Garden of Gethsemane to pray.
The Mountain side today is full of graves; but one can still get a panoramic shot of the whole of Jerusalem where you can get the geography of the Old City, the Kidron Valley, the Hinnom Valley and the Muslim Dome of the Rock that dominates the Eastern side.
Beyond the Dome is the Western Wall of the Jewish faith - the only bit of the Jewish Temple left after the Roman destructions in the first and second centuries.
The Old City is a bustling set of small alley way streets that are full of small markets selling everything one can imagine.
It is crowded, noisy, and fascinating to walk through.
We entered the Old City through the Damascus Gate - the current entrance that dates itself back to the 16th century, but dates back to the 2nd century.
Eventually we arrived at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a church built over the site reportedly to be the place where Jesus was crucified and eventually buried. There is another site that is outside of this area that might be a better alternative for where Jesus died...we'll look at that another day.
The thing about Israel is that are many "holy" sites where such and such happened...and of course the various churches (Roman Catholic, Orthodox Christian, Armenian Orthodox, etc..) claim a certain amount of authority in "running" the tourists through. We tried to avoid the normal tourist places and keep our walks going to look for the "other" things.
One of the interesting "finds" of this first visit was
Hezekiah's Wall...and 8th century B.C. structure that formed the ancient wall of the Old City.
2 Chronicles 32:1-8
1 After these things and these acts of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah and encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them for himself.
2 And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem,
3 he planned with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that were outside the city; and they helped him.
4 A great many people were gathered, and they stopped all the springs and the brook that flowed through the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?”
5 He set to work resolutely and built up all the wall that was broken down and raised towers upon it, and outside it he built another wall, and he strengthened the Millo in the city of David. He also made weapons and shields in abundance.
6 And he set combat commanders over the people and gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke encouragingly to them, saying,
7 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.
8 With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.
We ended our first day with a walk to a roof top cafe and a final shot at the Old City from on high.
Jerusalem is an interesting city. A modern city it also envelopes a small "Old City" that existed in Biblical days. The city is full of contrasting life: Modern & Old, Strongly Religious and Humanistically secular.
When I took this first picture we had stopped to have a bite to eat at one of the many market stands that dot the streets. In the background is an Orthodox Jewish man reading and praying.
Orthodox Jewish are plentiful. Usually dressed in familiar attire, men usually wear hats, and women head coverings. Men and boys have long locks of hair hanging on the side...all of which is based on traditions handed down through the centuries of teachings by the Rabbis and made into Law.
We began our tour of Jerusalem the first day by going to the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives have biblical significance in several ways: David went up the Mount to escape Absalom's rebellion. Zechariah, the prophet, prophesies the Messiah coming to the Mount, splitting it in half. Jesus used that prophesy while on this Mount to teach his disciples about his second coming. Jesus came to the foot of the Mount and entered the Garden of Gethsemane to pray.
The Mountain side today is full of graves; but one can still get a panoramic shot of the whole of Jerusalem where you can get the geography of the Old City, the Kidron Valley, the Hinnom Valley and the Muslim Dome of the Rock that dominates the Eastern side.
Beyond the Dome is the Western Wall of the Jewish faith - the only bit of the Jewish Temple left after the Roman destructions in the first and second centuries.
The Old City is a bustling set of small alley way streets that are full of small markets selling everything one can imagine.
It is crowded, noisy, and fascinating to walk through.
We entered the Old City through the Damascus Gate - the current entrance that dates itself back to the 16th century, but dates back to the 2nd century.
The thing about Israel is that are many "holy" sites where such and such happened...and of course the various churches (Roman Catholic, Orthodox Christian, Armenian Orthodox, etc..) claim a certain amount of authority in "running" the tourists through. We tried to avoid the normal tourist places and keep our walks going to look for the "other" things.
One of the interesting "finds" of this first visit was
2 Chronicles 32:1-8
1 After these things and these acts of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah and encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them for himself.
2 And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem,
3 he planned with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that were outside the city; and they helped him.
4 A great many people were gathered, and they stopped all the springs and the brook that flowed through the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?”
5 He set to work resolutely and built up all the wall that was broken down and raised towers upon it, and outside it he built another wall, and he strengthened the Millo in the city of David. He also made weapons and shields in abundance.
6 And he set combat commanders over the people and gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke encouragingly to them, saying,
7 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.
8 With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.
We ended our first day with a walk to a roof top cafe and a final shot at the Old City from on high.
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