Coursework

New Testament/Old Testament:

We start with Old Testament and work through New Testament, augmenting our studies with fieldtrips to relevant geographic sites (see Field Trip course below). I'm amazed that, as exotic and sacred as the Holy Land is, it is still the Spirit that endows my experience with meaning. I love being in the city and looking out on the scenery, but my best insights this week came when I was alone with the Book of Genesis, with the Holy Ghost as a guide. I'm thankful that when this experience is all over, I will still have the Spirit as my companion and teacher to help me feel close to God.

Ancient Near Eastern Studies:

With the illustrious archaeological scholar Professor Jeffrey Chadwick as our guide, we are pummelling through a rather intensive course about the region's archaeology, geography, and history. Our flamboyant professor is teeming over with facts about the Holy Land, and it is a treat to have him along on fieldtrips to spout wisdom about the places and practices that we see. As a sidenote, I noticed this evening that Professor Chadwick is friend to the scruffy local felines. He greeted one at dinner by "Nicole," which endeared me to him. Our largest assignment in his class is to visit dozens of sites within the city, ranging from the Temple Mount to the Holocaust museum to the open market for fresh falafel. It's definitely my favorite assignment, and it will take all semester to complete.

Modern Near Eastern Studies:

This course is designed to provide us with various viewpoints about the current issues of the Middle East, so we have a Jewish professor and a Palestinian professor, each presenting the modern regional history from their own perspective. Bashir Bashir, my Palestinian professor, was described to us as "a fiery young leftist," and I am not at all disappointed by his lectures. He is a political theorist, so our discussions have great theoretical undercurrents. Today we discussed how Palestine and nationalism are relatively new constructions, and what sort of ramifications this has for the identity of Palestinians and the region as a whole. Ophir Yarden, my Jewish professor, compliments the Arabic viewpoint with Hebrew history and current affairs.

Hebrew:

Shalom! Introductory Hebrew is very introductory, but that is precisely the level I need. Our instructor told us that Hebrew is an incredibly sensible language, (thanks to Ben Yehuda for renewing it) and I am delighted to find that she is correct! We learn several letters, a vowel, and a handful of phrases every day. We also sing Hebrew songs, talk about an item (like "show and tell"), and discuss the culture. We will be visiting Mt. Herzl and the Holocaust museum as part of the course.

Field Trip:

Our first fieldtrip was to five or six observatory sights throughout the area. The land is full of tels (hills) and wadis (valleys), so you can see a vast distance from any height. We learned to recognize the tribal lands of Ephraim (our homeland, as our professors tell us) and Benjamin, as well as the site of King Saul's palace, Gibeah (a number of battles occurred there), Bethlehem (we sang "Silent night" as we looked out over Bethlehem), Mount Moriah, etc, etc. Next week we are visiting Jericho and the surrounding areas. We also enjoy impressive weekly forums. This week we heard from Yigal Palmor, the spokesman for Israili foreign affairs. He was surprisingly personable and humorous (for a diplomat), and it was neat to hear the state of affairs from one who knows them well. It was, of course, a very one-sided take on the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and I look forward to hearing the opposing viewpoint in future forums.