Israel 1999: Galilee

We awoke on the morning of April 14, 1999, to a rain storm in Galilee. It was the only rain I saw in all of my time in Israel.

The storm has stopped by the time we reach our first destination of the day, the Dan Nature Preserve. It was this area in which the tribe of Dan was given to live, and now a beautiful forest has been set aside. It is here that the River Jordan runs wild. The waters of this and other brooks and streams come out of the ruins of the tribe of Dan, combine with the runoff from Mount Hermon, and flow into the Sea of Galilee.

The Hebrew word for "going down" is yored, and there are some who believe that the origin of the name Jordan is the term or expression yored-Dan. Though Joshua led the children of Israel across the River Jordan before the tribe of Dan settled in this area, perhaps the account of the crossing, written later, simply used the then-known word "Jordan." As we walk along in this forest I am struck that this is the last thing I would have expected to find in Israel.

Back on the bus we are now traveling north through the Hula Valley. When Jewish settlers arrived here in the 1940s and 50s they found nothing but stinking swamps. Undeterred, the settlers set to draining the swamps and making the land fruitful. They succeeded and several settlements dot the fertile countryside.

Metulla is the northernmost city in Israel. It is like an alpine ski village and there are two ski lifts on Mount Hermon, which rises to almost 10,000 feet. Nearby is Kibbutz Kfar Giladi, which was founded in 1916. It is a typical agricultural collective settlement, but it also has a popular hotel with tourist facilities. In Hebrew the word kfar means "small town" or "village," and a gentlemen named Gilad was one of the town's founders. Next to the Kibbutz is the city of Kiryat Shemona. Kiryat means "city" in Hebrew and Shemona means "eight." The City of Eight was named for eight men who defended this area during the 1948 War of Independence. Their Arab attackers were unaware that the eight men were mortally wounded. The eight fought so fiercely that the attackers fell back and abandoned the attack.

When Israel proclaimed statehood in 1948 many Arabs from northern Israel settled in southern Lebanon. Recently many thousands of these Moslems and Christians have come back across Israel's "Good Fence" for medical aid as well as to shop for basic necessities. Up to the year 2000 there were hundreds of Lebanese that regularly worked in Israel.

At the foot of Mount Hermon, by a huge rock escarpment, new excavations are revealing the once prominent Roman City of Caeserea Philippi. It was here that Jesus Christ asked of Peter and the apostles "Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?" (see Matthew 16:13-19)

We are now entering the Golan Heights. Here and on Mount Hermon there are several villages of Druze, a people claiming to be descendants of Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses. The Druze are an industrious, secretive, and colorful people. They are also an integral part of modern Israel, serving in the government and the military. Half of the Druze people live across the border in Syria. Israel has made repeated efforts to open the border for family reunification. This has slowly happened, but underneath the radar. Publicly the Druze proclaim Syria as their mentors, while hundreds of Druze have crossed back and forth across the border. There are annual protests that have prompted our guide to coin the term "Druze Ruse." All of this will probably continue as long as the media does not publicize the crossings.

During the first two decades of the modern state of Israel it became clear that the Syrians were using the Golan Heights as nothing but a gun platform for firing down on Israeli settlements in the Hula Valley and around the Sea of Galilee. The Six-Day War of 1967 was a preemptive counteroffensive launched by Israel, and during this conflict the Golan Heights were taken from Syria.

Since the war heights have become a peaceful place -- except for a few days in 1973. Israelis have cleared this rocky land and discovered great farming soil and new water sources. A unique combination of rich volcanic soil and modern farming techniques have produced outstanding agricultural yields, including award-winning grape and wine production.

As we drive across the Golan Heights our guide tells us of the surprise offensive of Syria in the Yom Kipur War of October 1973. As a military history buff I am enthralled by the story. Out of the windows we see beautiful, fertile fields, a few military installations, and tanks or tank turrets that have been turned into memorials.

We now descend back to the shores of Galilee and the ruins of Capernum.

In recent years the ruins of Capernaum have been uncovered by excavations. This toll city for Rome may have had ten thousand Jewish and Roman inhabitants. Carpernaum was also the place where Jesus Christ performed most of his miracles. Among them:

Peter finding a coin in the mouth of a fish big enough to pay the toll (see Matthew 17:25-27).

A palsied man being lowered on his bed through a roof and healed by Jesus (Mark 2:3-12).

The healing of a man with a withered hand (Matthew 12:10,12 & 13).

The healing of Peter's mother-in-law (Matthew 8:14-15).

After failing to catch fish all of one night Peter was instructed by Jesus to lower his nets, he did so and caught an unbelievable amount of fish (Luke 5:3-6, 9-11).

The healing of the Roman Centurion's servant from a distance (Luke 7:1-10).

A woman being healed by the simple act of touching Jesus' garment (Mark 5:21-34).

At the time Jesus was on his way to heal the daughter of the leader of the synagogue. Because he was delayed he arrived to find the child dead. Jesus sent all the mourners away and then entered the room where the child lay. He then took her hand and said "Talitha cumi." The endearing term Talitha may have been his way of saying "my little lamb," or "curly locks" and cumi means "get up" in Hebrew. The child arose and walked (Mark 5:40-42).

Returning to the story of the Centurian, this Roman had a great love for the Jewish people, so much so that he built them a synagogue in Capernaum. It is in the ruins of this meeting house that we sit and read about these many miracles.

Our guide also introduces us to a garment of wool called a Talith. It is a shawl-like garment worn by modern Jews, and the name seems to come from the Hebrew word meaning "lamb," taleh. The hem or the strings of the talith are customarily touched during Jewish religious services. The four sets of strings are knotted for a sum total of 613 strings and knots. There were 613 laws and covenants -- including the Ten Commandments -- given to Moses. Modern Jews touch the strings and knots to remind and commit themselves to keeping the laws.

Perhaps the woman who touched Jesus' garment and was healed, touched, or was trying to touch, his talith.

It is a short drive from Capernaum to the traditional site of the Mount of the Beattitudes, or the place where Jesus taught the Sermon on the Mount. This is on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee and it is a remarkably peaceful place. Even ancient travelers have written of the peaceful feeling of this Mount. Today a church designed by Italian architect Antonio Barlucci, sits on the hill overlooking the sea.

After a brief walk-through of the church we find a spot on the hill and read through the Sermon on the Mount. For me this is one of the main highlights of the trip. "What a place of sweet spirit," as many a traveler has written. Add to it the beautiful scenery, and it is an experience to be unmatched by any other. There are two places in Israel I most yearn to visit again, and this hill is one of them.

Down to Tiberias we go, enjoying more of the beauty of the land around the Sea of Galilee. We stop for lunch and are each served St. Peter's fish. In reference to the story where Peter found a coin in the mouth of a fish, one person at each table finds a coin in the mouth of their fish -- at my table it is my wife who finds the coin.

After lunch we enjoy a brief boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. The sea is 700 feet below sea with heights surrounding, including Mount Hermon which rises almost 10,000 feet. Because of this it is quite common for sudden storms to arise on the lake. We are lucky today as there are no storms, just a beautiful sunny day. Our short boat ride takes us to another part of Tiberias. At this place a Christian group has a store and theater where they present a slide show called "The Galilee Experience." The slide show covers 4,000 years of history.

After this we end the day of touring a little early, so that many in the group can return to the spa hotel for many of the massage therapies provided. My wife really enjoyed the aromatherapy she received.

The next day will see us on the Mediterranean coast before returning to Jerusalem.