Jordan, July 12, 2013

This morning I got up early, got washed and dressed and then walked down to the Dead Sea shore to take photos. Nobody was about, and it was very quiet and peaceful, with a beautiful pink haze situated and hovering over the lake and a few birds overhead. The only people stirring were a few grounds people of the hotel and one middle-aged husband and wife who bobbed up and down in the buoyant water. Eventually, I sat down with the "Jordan Times" and had breakfast by myself, then contined reading the paper in the lobby until everyone congregated, and we left at 8:30 for the Jordan River. This, Israel's major river, is more like a large creek. Its entire distance from its headwaters north of Lake Galilee to the Dead Sea is only about 120 mikes. But it falls rapidly, descending about 1500 feet to the lowest point on the earth's surface at the Dead Sea. The river has so many twists and turns that it logs more than 200 miles along its course. Too swift and shallow to be a navigable waterway, it is only about 25 feet wide in most places. Our objective today was Bethany, but not the Bethany in Israel, near Jerusalem, but the Bethany in Jordan. This was where John the Baptist was preaching east of the Jordan just before Jesus arrived to ask John to baptize him. John protested that Jesus, sinless, did not need him, but Jesus insisted he baptize Him in the nearby Jordan River. The nation of Jordan insists that the baptismal place is on their side of the Jordan about six miles north of the Dead Sea. Jordanian officials have been conducting extensive archaeological excavations in the area to develop it into a major tourist destination for pilgrimage visitors. In a starkly lunar landscape, a path leads to the river, only a few feet wide. A baptismal area is cordoned off by a wooden slat, and beyond that you cannot go if you are on the Jordanian side. The same goes for those on the Israeli side. On the other side from us were Italian pilgrims, and they waved and said hello to us. All around us were chapels and churches of various faiths--Catholic, Armenian, Greek Orthodox. Father Houk took some holy water, blessed it, and then conducted an impromptu service at the shore. We all renewed our baptismal vows, and the service was very poignant to me. Afterwards, we were off to Mt. Nebo, which arises to an elevation of about 2700 feet in S Jordan. For more than 1600 years, Christians and Jews have recognized this as the site where Moses died after he was not allowed to enter Canaan. Excavations have turned up evidence that a Christian church was built on this mountain as early as 394 A.D. On the site today is a modern church building known as the Memorial Church of Moses and an active monastery of the Franciscan Order. However, it was under refurbishment, and we were not able to enter it. From a platform on the summit of Mt. Nebo, pilgrims like us enjoy the same view God granted Moses before he died. On this platform is a modern snakelike sculpture in the form of a cross that represents the pole Moses held up in the wilderness. He used the representation of a snake on a pole to cure the snake bites that God had inflicted upon the Israelites because of their disobedience. Underneath are the words of Jesus to Nicodemus: "As Moses lifted up the bronze snake...in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up." Also standing on the grounds was a beautiful olive tree which John Paul II had planted when he had visited Mt. Nebo. The look at the Pisgah Range, The Dead Sea and the Promised Land, which neither Moses nor his pre-deceased brother Aaron could enter must have been a heartbroken moment. No one knows where Moses was buried, but we do know that he lived to the ripe age of 120, with his eyesight clear and as strong as ever (see Deuteronomy for verification). From there we drove to lunch in Madaba, and again had a fabulous buffet where I tried many new dishes and of course enjoyed hummus, which I am eating at almost every meal these days, with olive oil. One of my favorite new desserts is a type of flan-like offering called "Mohalabegah." It is a type of milk pudding made with milk powder, sugar, corn starch, and rose water, topped with honey. To die for, and Marthe and I spoke to the owner of the restaurant and learned more about its preparation. Fabulous! Madaba is the "City of Mosaics." The chief attraction is a church we visited--the contemporary Greek Orthodox Church of St. George. It contains a wonderfully vivid, 6th c. Byzantine mosaic map showing Jerusalem and other holy sites such as Bethlehem, the Dead Sea, the Jordan River, Jericho, Jacob's Well, the Mediterranean Sea, Mt. Sinai, the Nile Delta, St. Lot's Monastery, Karak, and Hebron. With two million pieces of colored stone and 25 x 5 meters in its original state, most of which can still be seen today, the map depicts hills and valleys, villages and towns as far away as the Nile Delta. A fabulous work, and it was profoundly poignant to be hearing a recording of men's voices singing the Greek Orthodox liturgy while walking around looking at some of the beautiful icons and wall paintings gracing this church. Afterwards we stopped at an actual enamel workshop to watch young men and women putting together the most intricate mosaic patterns. I bought a cup and saucer which will be wonderful to drink out of when I return to Dallas. Also found a beautiful pashmina for Alexandra which will set off her fiery red hair to perfection. And now we are back at our resort at the Dead Sea, and we are going to be meeting in a few minutes, before going on to dinner. Continuing to have the most stupendous time. Tomorrow it's off to Petra! Bye to all!