ONE OF OUR FAVORITES: ZIPPORI VILLAGE

I hope I will always be able to recapture the wonderful sense of peace and well-being I felt in Zippori Village. I loved sitting on the back porch in the morning looking through the morning glory blossoms that drape over the trellis. The scene before me seemed to be in lovely layers. The wind rustled through the palm trees and past the olive orchard to the peaceful valley below. Laughing doves crooned, tiny frogs in the pond greeted the morning with their deep chirrups, while the shy yellow vented bulbuls flew softly through the lemon trees. In the early morning mist, I could imagine Jesus and his disciples making their way up the hill. I think they would be laughing and talking or maybe singing one of the Psalms of praise.

Tradition says that Jesus’ grandparents lived in Zippori which is only four miles from Nazareth. Surely, as a young boy, He came many times to Zippori to visit them. There must have been pomegranate and fig trees, grape vines, and bee hives such as Mitch has today. Maybe a goat farm like the one up the road from Zippori Village. That’s where Mitch and his wife Suzy get tasty cheeses and yogurts to put in our breakfast basket every morning, along with tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, bread, and butter. There’s a box right beside the front door just for the basket filled with all the goodies. Fresh eggs are always available from the hen house.

The owner and overseer of this little corner of paradise, Mitch Pilcer, was enigmatically present whenever we stepped outside and yet never intrusive. He has the incredible ability to let you know he’s looking out for you without seeming to hover. Mitch and Suzy have developed their part of Zippori Moshav with loving care and respect for the land. They have built, decorated, and furnished four cottages for guests. More are under construction along with a nearly finished swimming pool.

We have been blessed to have stayed there several times this trip, taking all of our friends who came from Pensacola. Each time, the visit was a little longer than the last because they were reluctant to leave. We used it as a base to explore the sites around the Sea of Galilee. It’s only 25 minutes to Tiberias. How good it felt after a long day of sightseeing to “go back home” to Zippori.

We had supper several times at the Goat Farm. Yoav, whose parents own the goat farm, was our chef. Every dish - most of them featuring the delicious mild goat cheese - was better than the one before.

We always visit the wonderful ruins at Zippori National Park just over the hill. The ruins include an amphitheatre, an ancient Jewish section with micvahs, and the Cardo with many intact mosaics. My favorite is still the fancy Roman villa with the floor of detailed mosaic featuring the beautiful “Mona Lisa of the Galilee”. What other wonders await discovery by the archaeologists still at work in the Park today.

What else do I love about Zippori Village? Lying in the hammock in the shade of the palm trees, watching the birds flying overhead and listening to “The Garden Scene” from “Much Ado About Nothing”, on my I-Pod. An amazing experience. I had a feeling of nostalgia when we left Zippori for the last time. But, I will still be able to call it back to memory every time I listen to “The Garden Scene”.

Tommy Jones' Journey

When God called Abram out of Ur of the Chaldees, He gave him one simple command: “walk about the land through its length and breadth; for I will give it to you”.

Walk the land! What a joy I had for 2 weeks in literally “walking the land” of Israel with my Uncle Neal and Aunt Ruby. I had been to Israel previously on a tour.
The tour was fine but it seemed as if I spent more time waiting in a line or sitting in a bus than seeing the land and its biblical/historical sites.

This time, I was able to move about the land in freedom. It was one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life. I learned more about the Old City, the Walls and the layout of Jerusalem than I could have on a tour. The view from our apartment in Jerusalem was spectacular to say the least. I woke up every day with the sounds of swallows flitting here and there and the sun rising on the Dome of the Rock.

I could experience the sounds and sights of a people living in the city. I ate at the finest restaurants. The food was the best I’ve ever had…hands down.

I was able to put on my backpack and go into the city freely and take pictures, meet people, walk atop the walls---experience the life of Jerusalem. The quiet times in the Holy Sepulchre were special then and now. Visiting the sites without crowds was unbelievable. God must have set our agenda.

My time in Sepphoris was beyond description. We stayed in a quiet, country moshav. I had a room that overlooked the valleys heading to Nazareth. To think I was hanging out in Jesus’ backyard was surreal. I could imagine Him as a boy running around, climbing trees and playing games.

Sepphoris was a place of tranquility and rest. It was slow-paced, rural even. I loved getting a basket of food each morning with the best milk I’ve ever tasted, along with fresh goat’s milk yogurt. Sepphoris was our home base during our time in the Galilee.

My time in Dan was beyond description: the woods, the river, and the quiet. Uncle Neal was the best guide possible. He knows more than most guides do. I learned a great deal and was able to become part of the land.

Joppa blew me away. The beautiful blue waters of the Mediterranean stretched out beyond the horizon. Visiting Simon the Tanner’s home was special. The food was even better. It is a beach resort town and the pace winds down to leisurely strolls.

I saw more than I ever did on a tour. I experienced more than I ever did on a tour. What a trip. It’s residue hangs on me still. I may never get to go on that type of trip again.

I think the one experience that still sticks with me is my time on the Southern steps of the Temple. I was there when the Jews were celebrating the Feast of Weeks or Shavuot. For me, it was the time of Pentecost. I believe that I was in the general area of Peter’s first sermon on Pentecost.

To look out and see where Peter had wept after his denial of knowing Jesus, and to see where Judas hung himself was so moving. I could write for hours. I could talk about every place, every site, etc. Thanks Uncle Neal and Aunt Ruby! I love you for making this possible for me.

PRAY FOR THE PEACE OF JERUSALEM

It all happened on Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath, when the greeting is “Shabbat shalom” (Sabbath peace). Jewish worshipers from all over the city make their way to the Western wall to pray and welcome in the Sabbath. We love to watch them from our condo high above the Old City as they go back and forth, dressed in their antique finery.

The haredim, who are the ultra-orthodox branch of Judaism, are some of the most elegantly dressed. The ladies wear long black skirts, with jackets of black, gray, or white, or dresses of soft muted colors. Who could guess that there could be such a variety of styles and ways to wear black and white? Their heads are crowned with scarves wrapped in ingenuous ways or lovely hats.

The husbands are dressed even more elegantly in their knee-length black or gold or white brocade coats and tall fur hats. Their children are usually dressed to match: the boys in black trousers and vests, white shirts, and small round black kipas on their heads; the little girls in matching dresses of black and white, often heavily embroidered. Usually, there is a baby in a stroller. With prayer books in their hands and the husband wearing his prayer shawl or carrying it in a special sack, they make a beautiful picture of piety, peace, and holiness. As I said, we love watching them and this past Shabbat was no different.

WHAT I HEARD: It was early afternoon and, from the direction of Safra Square, we heard the roar of a crowd. To Neal, it sounded like a demonstration. But to my ears, it sounded like a soccer game in progress. We had heard the same kind of sound in Rome when a giant-screen TV was set up in a piazza and the Italians gathered to cheer on their national team. The rise and fall of the noise sounded just like that. And, so in an effort to explain the unexplainable, I declared it a soccer game: either being broadcast at Safra Square or being played there in the big concrete piazza surrounded by the municipal buildings.

On Shabbat, in downtown Jerusalem, the streets are deserted except for a few tourists looking for a place to eat. All the shops are closed. All is quiet. The roar went on for hours. I wondered why someone would desecrate the Sabbath like that and why they were allowed to.

WHAT I SAW: I had gone out on the balcony several times to listen to the cacophony, but now there were things happening in the street behind our Condo. The haredim men and boys were congregating in little groups, looking up the street toward Safra Square, gesticulating and obviously upset. Paradoxically, in the little playground just below our balcony, Jewish mothers were sitting peacefully together watching their children at play.

All of a sudden, a crowd of men began running down the street and into the alleyway beside our Condo. They were running as though someone were chasing them. They waited a few moments and then made their way back up the street toward Safra Square. In a few moments, they ran back, this time it was a stampede. I wondered aloud, “Who in the world would be chasing these religious Jews on their holy day, and why would they desecrate the Sabbath in such a way?” It was almost dark before the street finally emptied and was quiet again.

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED: From the Jerusalem Post, June 7, 2009
Haredim riot in Jerusalem over Shabbat opening of parking lot

“In a violent new flare-up of haredi-secular tensions in Jerusalem, thousands of haredim rioted on Saturday at the entrance to city hall over the city’s decision to open a parking lot under the municipality buildings at Kikar Safra for visitors on Shabbat.”

“A non-Jew was used to operate the lot in accordance with Jewish religious law.”

The haredim threw rocks, food, and diapers at the policemen (who were trying to quell the riot). One policeman was hospitalized. The article goes on to explain that the lots near the Old City had been closed on Shabbat due to pressure from the haredim and that this was an effort by the city to make parking available for the visitors who come to Jerusalem on Shabbat. It would be free of charge (so no money would change hands). The mayor had consulted with haredim representatives before announcing his decision to open the parking lot. Yet more such demonstrations are promised.

So, the haredim desecrated the Sabbath they bound themselves to keep. How to explain the unexplainable? Jesus said, “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye …” (Luke 6:41, 42)