Another full day, this time almost entirely in the region around Bethlehem.
We started the day first at the Israel Museum to see the scale model of 1st Century Jerusalem to gain perspective on what we will see later in the week. The museum is also the keeper of some of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and many of these were on display.
We first did a bit of shopping in a Arab Christian shop in Bethlehem, run by the family of the man who first recognized the significance of the Dead Sea Scrolls. They have many fine, hand carved olive wood pieces, jewelry, and certified antiquities.
We visited a cave in a park on the edge of town that has been preserved as an example of what a cave home looked like in the shepherds' fields.
And the long-awaited stop was the church of the Nativity, built over the cave long revered as the birthplace of Jesus. One must stoop low to enter the church, then descend into a cave beneath the church to see the rock floor where tradition since the 1st century holds Jesus was born, and the nearby manger hewn from the original rock. Cindy was quite moved by the experience. Later we listened to the Armenian Apostolic priests sing their prayers, one responding to the other.
Finally, we ascended Herodium, the man-made mountain for one of the palaces of Herod the Great, and also the location of his tomb. It is an active archaeological site, and it was fascinating to see the ruins and the views from the top - from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea.
As we headed down, we saw a mustard tree and were reminded of Jesus’ story on faith:
“I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” (Matthew 17:20)
So on the side of the man-made mountain built by a human king over looking the birthplace of the King of kings, we saw the symbol of the faith Jesus wants us to have.
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