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The day has arrived and we depart OMA on an overnight journey to Israel.
Today we arrive at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, where we are met by our guide. Time permitting, we visit the ancient town of Jaffa where Peter had his vision on the roof top of the house of Simon the Tanner telling him that all God’s creation is clean and worthy to receive salvation through Jesus.
Overnight Tel Aviv area. Daniel Herzeliya or similar. D.
We travel towards Caesarea Maritima (entrance included), where we will have a brief visit to the magnificent city with Roman, Byzantine, and Crusader ruins. Here we will elaborate on the story of the baptism of Cornelius, the first gentile convert to Christianity, and on the travels of Paul — those events that led Caesarea Maritima to become the springboard of Christianity to the West. We continue to Mount Carmel (entrance included) and consider the contest between the Prophet Elijah and the false prophets of Baal, discussing the reasons why the Prophet chose that place for the contest, and the lessons we learn from the story. We travel to Nazareth where we climb the Mount of Precipice, the brow of the hill on which the city was built. There we will reflect on the rejection of Jesus by his family and friends in Nazareth. While there overlooking the Armageddon Valley, we will also discuss the reasons why we believe this will be the setting for the final battle between good and evil mentioned in Revelation 16:16. We depart to the Sea of Galilee area, passing Cana of Galilee where Jesus performed his first miracle.
Overnight Sea of Galilee area. Leonardo Club or similar. B, L, D.
This morning we drive to the Golan Heights before moving on to Magdala (entrance included) the hometown of Miriam Magdalena. We visit the Mt. of Beatitudes and discuss the sermon on the Mount. We proceed to Capernaum (entrance included), Jesus’ Galilean ministry base. We drive to Tabgha and see the Primacy of Peter where Jesus appeared to the disciples for the third time after the resurrection. Our last stop of the day will be to the Jordan River where you will get a chance to be baptized.
Overnight Sea of Galilee area. Leonardo Club or similar. B, L, D.
We visit the ancient boat museum containing a recently-discovered 2000-year-old fishing boat (entrance included). We sail on the Sea of Galilee on a replica of that boat (included). We then leave the area of Galilee, following the Jordan Valley Road south to Bet Arabah where John the Baptist was baptizing on the Jordan River. After lunch we visit the Tel of Jericho (entrance included) with its ancient ruins, pointing out what possibly could be the foundations of the ramparts that Joshua and the Israelites brought down. This afternoon we visit Qumran (entrance included), the location where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found by a Bedouin boy 1947. There we will see the caves and other buildings where the Essenes, the group of Jews who wrote the scrolls, lived.
Overnight Jerusalem. Vert or similar. B, L, D.
We begin our day visiting Masada (entrance and cable car included), the fortress built by King Herod the Great and made famous by the Zealots in 73/74 AD with the standoff against the Romans. We visit the fortress and see the ruins that are considered a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO. We then continue to En Gedi, the oasis in the desert where the meeting between David and King Saul took places and where many of the psalms were written by David. In the afternoon free time will be given at one of the Dead Sea beaches.
Overnight Jerusalem. Vert or similar. B, L, D.
We begin our day entering the Old City and with a visit to the Western Wall, a section of the Western retaining wall of the Temple Mount, and Judaism’s holiest site. We will ascend the Temple Mount, discussing its connection to both the Old and New Testaments. We move on to visit St Anne’s church (entrance included) and the nearby Pools of Bethesda where the healing at the pool took place. We walk the Via Dolorosa, the traditional path that Jesus walked from the Antonia Fortress to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This afternoon we travel to the Israel Museum (entrance included), where we will visit the Second Temple Period Model of Jerusalem, a 1:50 scaled model of the city from the 1st century AD, followed by a visit the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scrolls are on exhibit, in addition to the archeological section where many artifacts are displayed. We will play special attention to those items that relate to Bible history.
Overnight in Jerusalem. Vert or similar. B, L, D.
We begin our day with an orientation over the holy city from the Mount of Olives, pointing out important locations within the Old City, connecting them with Biblical stories and prophecies about the return of Jesus. We walk down the Palm Sunday Procession Road to the Garden of Gethsemane, where the passion of Jesus began. We visit the Southern Wall excavations (entrance included) where ruins of the retaining walls of the Temple Mount are still visible. We then gather at the teaching steps, the main entrance to the Temple where Rabbis met and taught their disciples. We travel to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus. We begin with a visit to the Shepherds’ fields where the angels appeared to the shepherds and announced the birth of Jesus. These fields are also the setting of some of the events of the Book of Ruth.
Overnight in Jerusalem. Vert or similar. B, L, D.
We begin our day with a visit to the Upper Room, the place of the Last Supper, followed by a visit to the nearby location of the home of the High Priest, Caiaphas (entrance included). We visit the Garden Tomb (entrance included), where we worship together and celebrate communion. The rest of the day will be spent at leisure in Jerusalem. Your flight home may depart either tonight or the following day.
Your flight home may depart either tonight or the next day. If an overnight is required, overnight Jerusalem. Vert or similar. B, L, D.
Your flight home may depart either the previous night or today. If today and time allow, breakfast is included. Either way, today we arrive back at OMA.