War and Peace: Experiencing Jerusalem's Past and Present

Our first full day in Israel had arrived. Preparing, planning and packing were over. We were all ready to apply our pre-course work in the field and experience Israel. Our day was broken up between time in the classroom and time in the field. In class we met our instructor Aubrey. Aubrey ended up being an amazing instructor. Interestingly enough she was a music major turned scholar. Her passion for historical geography ignited the class and made it intriguing. She packed us with information and I loved it. We were informed that we would be graded on our 2 tests, 1 final, mapwork (completed before traveling) and impression reports. We were required to write up a 1-page impression report that detailed each days adventures, what we experienced, learned and our reflections of it all. So I added excerpts from my first impression report. They are italicized below.

The first field experience was spent touring the Old City. We visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Dormition Abbey, the Zion Gate and saw our first glimpse of the Western Wall. Some may not be surprised however that I began my first impression report by noting the food. For dinner tonight I was pleasantly surprised with chicken stuffed pita. The chicken was marinated in some kind of peanut sauce. We were served roasted tomatoes shish kabobs. There was a bowl of mushrooms, fresh green salad with bright red peppers and juicy cucumbers. In addition corn, pickles and olives. The food they serve is full of vegetables and fruits and very enjoyable!

Today we began our journey in Jerusalem and then were given a tour of the college grounds. … the scenery and views are amazing. From one section of the building the Hinnom Valley separates us from the more modern part of Jerusalem, including the notable King David Hotel, which is located on the Watershed Ridge. In the back of the college is a nicely landscaped area with great views of Jerusalem. In a few months the pomegranate, lemon, oranges, olive trees will ripen. The college is the only Protestant academic college in Jerusalem, therefore not as well known as perhaps Hebrew University. In Jerusalem, the Protestants are the minority.  We are about a 3 minute walk from Jaffa Gate. Within the old city there are four quarters: Jewish, Christian, Armenian and Muslim. However, these people are not bound by these quarters. 

View from the rooftop of JUC
Hinnom Valley below and the King David Hotel building in the middle of picture

An interesting story about the history of the premise of the college: Following the 6-day War in 1967, the grounds were acquired after serving as the front of battle between the Jordanians and Israeli soldiers as well as being consistently occupied by soldiers since the Independence War in 1948. The buildings that comprise the school were in reality the property of the Armenian Church. JUC began their lease on the property in 1967 and a few weeks ago secured an additional 25-year lease. Due to the location of this place the Israelis had a difficult time receiving supplies and armaments to the premise, so they constructed a cable care that is still attached to the side of the building and went across the valley to the Mt. Zion Hotel - I believe it is called. We saw the cable and its extensions to the car at the other side of the valley. Apparently that story is very well known in Jewish history and schools. The man who toured us around the school said that it is similar to Paul Rever's ride to various cities in the colonies warning that the British were coming. There is also a cemetery close to the grounds, which can only be accessed through JUC. The cemetery is dedicated to Protestants who were coming to Jerusalem in the middle of the 19th century and were dying for various reasons. Because there were no protestant connections in Jerusalem and each religious community is very tight-nit and private there was no place these bodies were being buried. A fund therefore was taken up and sponsored by various parties to build the cemetery. One notable figure buried in the cemetery is the man who wrote the hymn "It is Well with My Soul" his name was Horatio Spafford. 

We walked a ton today in the "old city" of Jerusalem and Aubrey stopped often to lecture. Probably the most memorable, intriguing and exciting thing we experienced today was visiting the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This is the supposed site of Jesus` crucifixion as well as his buriel. Aubrey stated that the church had not been well preserved or kept up, however I didn’t feel that way when I walked inside. The architecture fascinated me and there was paintings that adorned some of the walls. There are various chapels inside.

Outside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

It seems very peaceful right now and it has been for a while. We were told that Jerusalem is the New York of news and media. Thus if a boy throws a rock - it makes headlines. While thousands are murdered in the US and coverage shown to each of those incidents pales in comparison to some of the events the media chooses to highlight in Jerusalem. He jokingly said they "have to prove their existence in Jerusalem somehow". In fact the relative peacefulness that drapes over the land is going to allow us to visit Samaria in the West Bank. This somewhat surprised me. I was confident I was going to a safe region in Israel, but have witnessed Jews, Arabs (cannot for sure say they are all Muslims) and other religious people interacting, walking, driving and living together in relative peace - granted I have been here less than 2 days. 

The Zion Gate: riddled with bullet holes that were made during Israel's War of Independence in 1948.

Dormition Abbey