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The day has arrived and we depart OMA on an overnight journey to Israel.
Today we arrive in Israel 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.
Overnight Tel Aviv area. Nyx Herzliya or similar. D.
Today 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 a 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 for the Sea of Galilee, passing Cana of Galilee where Jesus preformed his first miracle.
Overnight Sea of Galilee area. Caesar or similar. B, L, D.
After a buffet breakfast we will drive to the Golan Heights, to Peace Vista, for an outstanding view of Galilee. Afterwards, we will drive to Capernaum (entrance included), Jesus’ Galilean ministry base, followed by visit of the Mount of Beatitudes where we will discuss the Sermon on the Mount. We drive to Tabgha and see the Primacy of Peter, where Jesus appeared to the disciples for the third time after the resurrection. This afternoon we visit Magdala (entrance included), the hometown of Mary Magdalene. 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. Caesar 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. Olive Tree 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. Olive Tree or similar. B, L, D.
This morning we begin the day by entering the Old City, and with a visit the Temple Mount. We visit the Western Wall, or “Wailing Wall,” a section of the Western retaining wall of the Temple Mount, and Judaism’s holiest site. Then it’s on to the Southern Wall Excavations (entrance included) where ruins of the retaining walls of the Temple Mount are still visible. We will gather at the teaching steps, the main entrance to the Temple where Rabbis met and taught their disciples. 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 the afternoon we travel to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus. We visit the Shepherds’ Field where the angels appeared to the shepherds and announced the birth of Our Lord. These fields are also the setting of some of the events of the Book of Ruth.
Overnight in Jerusalem. Olive Tree 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 then walk down the Palm Sunday Procession Road to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus agonized on the night before his crucifixion. This afternoon we visit St. Anne’s Church and the Pools of Bethesda, where Jesus healed the paralytic. We proceed along the Via Dolorosa, ending at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, a potential site of Jesus’ burial and resurrection.
Overnight in Jerusalem. Olive Tree or similar. B, L, D.
After a buffet breakfast, we begin our day with a visit to the Upper Room, the traditional place of the Last Supper, followed by a visit to nearby location of the home of the High Priest, Caiaphas (entrance included). We visit the Garden Tomb (entrance included), another potential site of Jesus burial and resurrection, where we will worship together and celebrate communion. The balance of the day will be spent at leisure in Jerusalem.
Your flight home may depart either tonight or the next day. If an overnight is required, overnight Jerusalem. Olive Tree or similar. B, L, D.
Your flight home may depart either the previous night or today. If today, and time allows, breakfast is included today. Either way, today we arrive back at OMA.