Day 3: Masada, Dead Sea, En Gedi, Qumron

Although this day of our field study seemed like a lot of "exploration time" there were some things brought to my attention that I had never known. The first, at Masada, is concerning Josephus and his writings, spefically about the sechari (radical zealots) at Masada. The story is always told about the Jews who committed suicide just before the Romans could break in an take the fort. Usually we take this to be a courageous act, because they did not want to be subjected to slavery. Until the day we were on Masada, I had never heard anyone really question the validity or historicity of the story. Partially due to lack of knowledge about the origin of the story and knowledge of Josephus, and partially due to my own tendancy to take things at face value, I had never thought much of it. But that day when we heard about Josephus' lack of involvement and his own personal story, combined with the lack of evidence of dead men women and children on top of Masada, it seems to make sense that this story would not be (at least completely) true. Josephus was a Jewish general who fled to the Romans and cowardly switched sides, becoming a Roman officer, and saving his own life. He could have written the story about Masada thinking that he should have done what these men did, instead of running away. He could be living vicariously through these men's story.

It makes me wonder, though, about what becomes "history" and how it happens. Who gets to write it? How do certain stories become popular/common belief? We can be really naive a lot of the time, I suppose.

Qumron was another quite interesting place. Since I don't know much about the Dead Sea Scrolls or Qumron itself, it was helpful to hear some background information on what many people believe the community was like. I did not know that it was supposedly a place where men lived and copied b hand the scrolls, as the one room seems to indicate. Archaeological finds uncovered three ink wells in the same room, implying that it was where the scribes would write.

The whole day in Dead Sea area was amazing, filled with new sites and things I had never seen. The differences in landscape from one place to the next never cease to amaze me. The Dead Sea proved to be the only thing of its kind. It seemed like something unreal how much you are forced to float. The lines on the shore of where the water used to be just 10 years ago made me think--if the Sea was that much larger just 10 years ago, what must it have looked like 33 years ago when my parents were here? And if there is that big of a difference between what they saw and what I see now, what will the next generation see in 30 years? How much (or little) will be left? I know what that means for the environment, too. If the sea dries up, the chemicals from all the salt will blow over the soil to the west, and make it unuseable for cultivation. What will happen if all the soil is no longer good for bearing crops? Is there a way to stop the process by bringing more water into the Sea? For the first time, I found myself intensely concerned for the future of this environment, probably because the evidence of what will be is already there on the coast line...

The Dead Sea, and En Gedi are especially beautiful places to visit. We hiked through the Kind Daivd Wadi at En Gedi, which has a few waterfalls and pools in which you can swim. It was such a beautiful day for some cool refreshing springs after a hike. We also found some black Dead Sea mud in a pit next to the water. It smells horrible but after you put it on your skin for 15 minutes and rinse it, your skin is cleansed and softened very well. :) We also climbed in a cave at Qumron, although not one of the caves in which a scroll was found. It was fun anyway.

...Thinking about all the things we learn about the land, about history, about the culture here, I find myself continuously wishing there were more time to spend here, to learn more. How can anyone possibly understand all the complexities of this place? I find myself pitying the tourist groups who come for a week or two, see the sites, and leave thinking what a beautiful place! Wasn't that a nice trip! But how much they are missing! I wonder, are most places in the world like this? Or can you go visit, tour for 2 weeks in other countries and leave satisfied with the adequate knowledge you have of the place? Is it so complex here because of the religious background and history that took place here (i.e. Because God chose this land to use)? I'm not sure what the answer is, partly because I haven't been on tours through other places, and partly because I'm just not sure how to answer that question theologically.