DAY FOURTEEN

7/23

Wednesday the 23rd, our fourteenth day, we set out for our trip to the Galilee.  In order to give us a complete look at the Jordan River Valley, from the Dead Sea all the way up to the Sea of Galilee, we began our journey at Qumran.  Qumran is located along the Northwest bank of the Dead Sea.  Today, the visitor sees the ancient archaeological remnants of a settlement of the Jewish religious sect the Essenes.  The lesser known of the ancient Jewish religious sects (the Sadducees and Pharisees being well known because of Biblical accounts), the Essenes were separatists, who have gained attention and recognition within the last several decades, for their accomplishments as scribes and for the preservation of Biblical documents due to the 1947 archaeological findings within caves at Qumran.  

In 1947 over 900 scrolls were found within eleven caves at

 Qumran; which led to the archaeological dig to unearth the settlement of the Essenes.  The scrolls, named the Dead Sea Scrolls are the oldest Biblical documents known to be in existence.  The complete book of Isaiah is included in the collection... word for word accurate with the book

 of Isaiah we find today within our

Bibles.  This extraordinary archaeological find was possible due in large part to the climactic conditions surrounding the Dead Sea.  The high amount of oxygen, the heat, and the lack of humidity combine to make ideal conditions fo storing parchment.  Many archaeologists continue to work in caves surrounding the Dead Sea in search of other such scrolls.  

The ride from the Dead Sea north to the Galilee, we took the most direct route, through the Jordan River Valley.  This area is beautiful.  Unfortunately, this is the area under much dispute between Palestine and Israel.  

Our first stop along the way to the Galilee was at Bet She'an.  Bet She'an is the ancient Roman capital of the Decapolis, the ten Roman cities scattered around the region surrounding the Sea of Galilee.  Bet She'an is impressive in the completeness of the remnants of an ancient Roman city.  A spectacular theatre, amphitheatre, cardo maximus, bath house, and even a public restroom with running water from a fresh stream are at Bet She'an.  In addition, temples shops and the bordello are also main attractions of the downtown portion of ancient Bet She'an.  Still yet to be excavated is the entire residential section of the ancient city.  

Next, we went to Bet Alpha.  At Bet Alpha are the remnants of a sixth century A.D. synagogue.  This is of particular note because of the unique mosaic floor.  Judaic law prohibits decoration with the human form.  Therefore, it is interesting that the floor of a synagogue from the sixth century has not only human figures represented but the zodiac and the Greek god of the sun, Helios.  These symbols on the floor of a synagogue show the extent to which the Greek culture had permeated the Jewish culture, even to the point of influencing Judaic religious art.  

Our last stop on the way to the Galilee was at a oasis to take a swim.  Gan Hashlosha national park is a series of ponds linked by waterfalls, fed by a natural spring.  It is ranked among the 20 most attractive parks in the world.  

Later in the afternoon we arrived to the Ma'agan Holiday Village, run as the profitable source of income for the Kibbutz Ma'agan.  They have single rooms, and small villas facing out toward the Sea of Galilee.  Paul, Pat and I shared one of the villas.  For dinner, we drove around to the Eastern side of the Sea to Kibbutz En Gev for a fish dinner of St. Peter's fish, a type of tilapia found within the Sea of Galilee; which would have been a main fishing catch of the time of Jesus.  We had a bottle of Chardonnay by one of the local wineries, Gamla; which I highly recommend.