Destination: Dead Sea

Today’s pace was much more relaxed than yesterday’s. Our first stop was the Judean desert—I took some pictures, but they don’t begin to capture the vast expanse of the hills of sand and scrub.  We were on a hill looking down on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho—the road Jesus used in his Good Samaritan illustration. I stood in one place and could see Jerusalem on a hill in the distance to my left and Jericho Down below sea level on my right. We celebrated Eucharist together while we were there—true food in the wilderness.

Our next stop was the Jordan River. We renewed our Baptismal vows there and had a chance to put our feet in that very special place. There were crowds of people there—one full immersion baptism happened while we were there—It reminded me of the scene in the Gospel with John baptizing in the Jordan. Though today there were no Pharisees muttering in the background…

From there, we went to see the Mount of Temptation. A pretty sere place. There’s a large monastery built into the side of the hill—the current one was built in the 17th century. 2 monks live the now. You can see caves tucked into the wall of the cliffs. I certainly wouldn’t want to spent 40 days and 40 nights there. At the end of our visit, I drank some delicious cold, freshly squeezed pomegranate juice. I’ve gotten kinda hooked on the stuff. They squeeze it for you right there.

It was time for lunch then, so we headed into Jericho.  The restaurant was wonderful—and it was warm enough to sit outside.  

Magluba

The main dish was Magluba—meat, rice, fried vegetables and yummy spices are placed in a pot. It’s baked, and then flipped over to serve—a dramatic presentation. And it was good! Actually, all the food we’ve eaten has been good and healthy! Every meal (even breakfast) Begins with vegetables, hummus, pita bread…  Today’s lunch ended with a Jericho specialty—bananas—and a small cup of Turkish coffee.

Qumran was our next stop—this was a settlement of Essenes—a Jewish sect that stressed purity and kept themselves apart m the rest. The Dead Sea Scrolls which have influenced biblical studies since their discovery were found in caves here. The settlement is located right on the shore of the Dead Sea—the lowest point on earth’s surface—close to 1500 feet below sea level.

Of course, since we were right there, we needed to go to the nearby beach, where some of us went swimming. I was one of the intrepid ones, and took the plunge. The water was much warmer than I expected. It was an odd experience to simply float with no effort. You have to be careful not to get water in your eyes—with a salinity of about 34%, it stings! The hardest thing for me was getting out of the water. I couldn’t get my feet to go where I wanted them to go. A couple of strangers had to help get me up! 

It was a long day, but a good one—I treasured Eucharist in the desert and I will always remember this particular reaffirmation of my baptismal promises to love and serve others and to seek justice and peace. I still haven’t found time to get pictures organized, but ha posted a few on FaceBook. I’m going to bed now. Tomorrow, we’ll be going to church in Jerusalem at St. George’s Anglican Cathedral, with lunch at the American Colony Hotel….