Day 1 in Tel Dan
P.S. I know updates have been slow so far. We're dealing with some language barrier issues from our support team. Expect a ton of new videos up in the next two days.
-Jeremy
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Aish.com features Bradley this week
Bradley Cohen, 30, has ascended the Nepalese Himalayas, camped in the dangerous wilderness of the Chinese Northern Korean border, and weathered summer typhoons during his hike across a Japanese island. But today he climbs the peaks of an even more arduous, unmapped terrain -- seeking his own Jewish identity in the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem...
Read more at http://www.aish.com/spirituality/odysseys/All_for_the_Kids1.asp
The Night Before
A brief update on our status before the hike. Includes a beautiful view from atop Tzfat.
Antiquity and Middle Ages
Safed is not mentioned in the Bible. The Canaanite city of Zephath (Judges 1:17) is located in southern, rather than northern, Israel. There is a legend that Safed was founded by a son of Noah after the great flood. Safed is sometimes identified with Sepph, a fortified Jewish town in the Upper Galilee mentioned in the writings of the Roman Jewish historian Josephus (Wars 2:573). It was mentioned in the Jerusalem Talmud as one of five elevated spots where fires were lit to announce the New Moon and festivals during the period of the Second Temple. [2]
In 1289, it is said that the chief rabbi of Safed, Moses ben Judah ha-Cohen, went to Tiberias to pay homage to Rambam.
In the early 16th century, the Ottoman Empire under Selim I conquered Palestine. Under the Ottomans, Safed was part of the vilayet of Sidon.
In 1491, mention is made that the rabbi in the town had to supplement his income through a grocery market. After the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492, many prominent rabbis found their way to Safed, which became the key center for Jewish mysticism, known as Kabbalah. Among the prominent kabbalists who made their home in Safed were Isaac Luria (Arizal) and Moshe Kordovero. Besides the kabbalists, Safed also attracted numerous other Jewish scholars and spirtualists, including Joseph Caro, the author of the Shulchan Aruch and Shlomo Halevi Alkabetz, composer of the Sabbath hymn Lecha Dodi. The influx of Sephardi Jews made Safed a global center for Jewish learning and a regional center for trade throughout 15th and 16th centuries.
A Hebrew printing press is established in Safed in 1577 by Eliezer Ashkenazi and his son, Isaac of Prague. [3] It was the first press in Palestine and the whole of the Ottoman Empire.[4] It was also the first printing press of any kind in Asia.
The 8,000 or 10,000 Jews in Safed in 1555 grew to 20,000 or 30,000 by the end of the century
Modern era
Prior to 1948, about 10,000 of Safed's 12,000 residents were Arabs,[5] most of whom left in 1948. Among the residents who became refugees are Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and his family.[6][7]
In 1974, 102 teenagers from Safed on a school trip were taken hostage by Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine while sleeping in a school in Maalot. Twenty-one of the hostages were killed.
Antiquity and Middle Ages
Safed is not mentioned in the Bible. The Canaanite city of Zephath (Judges 1:17) is located in southern, rather than northern, Israel. There is a legend that Safed was founded by a son of Noah after the great flood. Safed is sometimes identified with Sepph, a fortified Jewish town in the Upper Galilee mentioned in the writings of the Roman Jewish historian Josephus (Wars 2:573). It was mentioned in the Jerusalem Talmud as one of five elevated spots where fires were lit to announce the New Moon and festivals during the period of the Second Temple. [2]
In 1289, it is said that the chief rabbi of Safed, Moses ben Judah ha-Cohen, went to Tiberias to pay homage to Rambam.
In the early 16th century, the Ottoman Empire under Selim I conquered Palestine. Under the Ottomans, Safed was part of the vilayet of Sidon.
In 1491, mention is made that the rabbi in the town had to supplement his income through a grocery market. After the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492, many prominent rabbis found their way to Safed, which became the key center for Jewish mysticism, known as Kabbalah. Among the prominent kabbalists who made their home in Safed were Isaac Luria (Arizal) and Moshe Kordovero. Besides the kabbalists, Safed also attracted numerous other Jewish scholars and spirtualists, including Joseph Caro, the author of the Shulchan Aruch and Shlomo Halevi Alkabetz, composer of the Sabbath hymn Lecha Dodi. The influx of Sephardi Jews made Safed a global center for Jewish learning and a regional center for trade throughout 15th and 16th centuries.
A Hebrew printing press is established in Safed in 1577 by Eliezer Ashkenazi and his son, Isaac of Prague. [3] It was the first press in Palestine and the whole of the Ottoman Empire.[4] It was also the first printing press of any kind in Asia.
The 8,000 or 10,000 Jews in Safed in 1555 grew to 20,000 or 30,000 by the end of the century
Modern era
Prior to 1948, about 10,000 of Safed's 12,000 residents were Arabs,[5] most of whom left in 1948. Among the residents who became refugees are Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and his family.[6][7]
In 1974, 102 teenagers from Safed on a school trip were taken hostage by Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine while sleeping in a school in Maalot. Twenty-one of the hostages were killed.
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Day 1: Tel Dan
Before we start the walk on Monday, here's a little Wikipedia info on our first day. Video of the site to come soon:
Tel Dan ("Mound of Dan" תל דן in Hebrew) is an archaeological site in Israel in the upper Galilee next to the Golan Heights. The site is quite securely identified with the Biblical city of Dan, the northernmost city in the Kingdom of Israel, which the Book of Judges states was known as Laish prior to its conquest by the Tribe of Dan. Due to its location close to the border with Lebanon and at the far north of the territory which fell under the British Mandate of Palestine, Tel Dan has had a long and often bitterly contested modern history, most recently during the 1967 Six-Day War.
Finds at the site date back to the Neolithic era c4500 BCE; from the remains found, which include 0.8m wide walls, and pottery shards, it appears that the site was occupied in Neolithic times for several centuries before being abandoned for up to about 1000 years.
Within the remains of the city wall, close to the entrance of the outer gate, was found a fragment which seemingly was originally from a stele. This basalt fragment, the Tel Dan Stele, contains an Aramaic inscription, referring to one of the Aramaean kings of Damascus; most scholars believe that the king it refers to is Hazael (c 840BCE), though a minority argue that it instead refers to Ben-Hadad (c 802 BCE). Very little of the inscription remains, but the text appears to contain the letters 'ביתד וד' (BETD WD; the "WD" is at a slight angle, with a sizable gap from the "BETD"), which most archaeologists agree refers to House of David (Beth David in Hebrew; Hebrew script from the era is vowel-less), which would make the inscription the first time that the name David has been found in any archaeological site dating before 500BC.
-Jeremy
Tel Dan ("Mound of Dan" תל דן in Hebrew) is an archaeological site in Israel in the upper Galilee next to the Golan Heights. The site is quite securely identified with the Biblical city of Dan, the northernmost city in the Kingdom of Israel, which the Book of Judges states was known as Laish prior to its conquest by the Tribe of Dan. Due to its location close to the border with Lebanon and at the far north of the territory which fell under the British Mandate of Palestine, Tel Dan has had a long and often bitterly contested modern history, most recently during the 1967 Six-Day War.
Finds at the site date back to the Neolithic era c4500 BCE; from the remains found, which include 0.8m wide walls, and pottery shards, it appears that the site was occupied in Neolithic times for several centuries before being abandoned for up to about 1000 years.
Within the remains of the city wall, close to the entrance of the outer gate, was found a fragment which seemingly was originally from a stele. This basalt fragment, the Tel Dan Stele, contains an Aramaic inscription, referring to one of the Aramaean kings of Damascus; most scholars believe that the king it refers to is Hazael (c 840BCE), though a minority argue that it instead refers to Ben-Hadad (c 802 BCE). Very little of the inscription remains, but the text appears to contain the letters 'ביתד וד' (BETD WD; the "WD" is at a slight angle, with a sizable gap from the "BETD"), which most archaeologists agree refers to House of David (Beth David in Hebrew; Hebrew script from the era is vowel-less), which would make the inscription the first time that the name David has been found in any archaeological site dating before 500BC.
-Jeremy
Moment of Truth
So this is it. It's the night before and Bradley and I are putting the finishing touches on packing and making final arrangements with the support driver. It's been a marathon for Bradley but more like a sprint for me having come on board only about a month ago.
With everyone's support we've been able to raise about $6000 so far which is definitely an excellent start. As we continue the walk I'm sure things will pick up even more, what with all of the pictures and videos we'll be jamming this thing with over the next 40 days.
On a personal note, this walk will be the culmination of a tremendous spiritual journey that I've undertaken over the last 9 months. My yeshiva, Aish HaTorah, has armed me with the tools necessary to live a truly fulfilling life, and for that I'm most certainly grateful. The quiet solitude of the trail will hopefully give me the chance to reflect on the direction my life is heading in the near future. This experience in the Old City of Jerusalem has included devastating lows, but it's in these moments of pain that I've been able to grow the most as a Jew and as a human being.
With that, we're off to raise some money, walk the same land our ancestors did thousands of years ago, forge friendships, and experience Judaism in a totally new way.
Shelachem B'Ahava,
Jeremy
With everyone's support we've been able to raise about $6000 so far which is definitely an excellent start. As we continue the walk I'm sure things will pick up even more, what with all of the pictures and videos we'll be jamming this thing with over the next 40 days.
On a personal note, this walk will be the culmination of a tremendous spiritual journey that I've undertaken over the last 9 months. My yeshiva, Aish HaTorah, has armed me with the tools necessary to live a truly fulfilling life, and for that I'm most certainly grateful. The quiet solitude of the trail will hopefully give me the chance to reflect on the direction my life is heading in the near future. This experience in the Old City of Jerusalem has included devastating lows, but it's in these moments of pain that I've been able to grow the most as a Jew and as a human being.
With that, we're off to raise some money, walk the same land our ancestors did thousands of years ago, forge friendships, and experience Judaism in a totally new way.
Shelachem B'Ahava,
Jeremy
In the Newspaper Again!
This time Bradley has been labeled a missionary in an issue of North London News. Who knew we were converting people along the way?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)