Ellen and Keith: Thursday, 30 October

Right after breakfast, we spent over and hour with a Palestinian journalist. He was educated at the U of North Carolina and after living in New York for a while, returned to Jerusalem. He explained the current situation from the Palestinian view point. He is a ‘moderate’ Arab. He lives in East Jerusalem, (which is part of the West Bank and home to the recent riots) so he only has an ‘identity card’ as opposed to a passport. They have to pay Israeli taxes but they have no vote or representation in the government. He was ‘for’ the Oslo Peace Accords, but after Rabin’s assassination in 1995, Israel never followed through on the treaty. He’s very knowledgeable of the intricate politics involved between the US, Israel, Egypt, Syria, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and even Iran. He described the situation as a plate of spaghetti, so that what ever you try to move causes the whole plate to change. It’s very complicated with ‘hot heads’ on both sides causing the unrest. He doesn’t hold much hope for a ‘quick’ solution but he does believe that over time, pressure on Israel will force them to do something. His opinion is that the ‘Two State” solution would be fine. The West Bank and Gaza would become a recognized Palestinian Nation and a place for those Arabs and Christians to call home. If Israel insists on maintaining the current annexed borders but grants citizenship to the Palestinian people, then they will very shortly out number the Israeli Jews and have control of the government. During the day we did hear gun fire in the Arab section of Jerusalem. Our guide assumed it was the police firing rubber bullets or tear gas for crowd/riot control.

An informative lecture from the West Bank
point of view.....

We boarded the bus and travelled south, past Bethlehem to Herodian, which is where King Herod the Great is buried. He had originally started to build a small palace there, but when he found that he could not see Jerusalem from that site, he had the mountain made higher….. When he decided to build his own mausoleum there, he had the rest of the mountain covered up so it would emphasize his own tomb. He was considered a ‘great’ builder from his works at Caesarea, Jerusalem, and other places but he was a ruthless politician. He had his favorite wife, Miriam, and his children and grandchildren murdered because they were Maccabees. His son was the Herod Antipas who had all the newborn male children killed after Jesus’ birth and was the King when Jesus was crucified.

Some of the areas still under control of the Palestinian Authority

View from the top of Herodian overlooking the Judaean Dessert

We have class all day.....

One of the three cisterns that held rain water

Young girls in the Israeli Army with their purses,
handbags and automatic weapons.......

We had lunch at Mt Elias (Elijah), which used to be a Monastery. The portions were huge.

After lunch we drove to Ain Karem, which is the home of St. John, the Baptist. We first visited St. John the Baptist Church, which is built over the site where he was born.

The altar in the Church

Down in the grotto where John wss born

The actual birthplace

A Spanish Franciscan monk, with Ellen and
our traveling companion, Flat Stanley.

We then climbed the hill to the Church of the Visitation, which commemorates the meeting of Mary and Elizabeth, who was the mother of John. That was where Mary recited the “Magnificat”.