The Dead Sea

March 1 

Susanne has asked me to write a bit about my tour with 28 other participants of the Sabeel Conference of the holy sites in the region of Galilee and Nazareth.   We traveled on a bus furnished by the Aluna Bus Company, a Palestinian owned firm.  (Most of the tourist buses used in the large Israeli tour business which travel to see the holy sites, largely located in the West Bank, are Israeli owned.)  First we headed out towards the Dead Sea southeast of Jerusalem.

Between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea we went through the Judean Hills which is largely uninhabited except for an occasional Beduoin group or  Israeli Settlement s located near the main highway.  A walk to the top of the hill brought us a view looking east towards Jordan as well as an encounter with Beduoins anxious to sell things to tourists.

Judean Hill Country Looking East Towards Jordan

Bedouin with his camel

There are two significant tourist sites in the southern end of the Jordan Valley which we toured.  Both are in the West Bank but control of them is maintained by the Israelis.  The first is the Dead Sea—the lowest point on the earth.  We stopped and some of our group went “floating” on the Sea, but I was content to just observe.

Dead Sea Looking Towards Jordan

The second is the site of the Dead Sea Scrolls—the ruins of the Essene Community-- which is also has a huge concession complex including a restaurant.  It was fascinating to see the ruins of this community and to have a close-up look at the sites where members of the Essene Community made copies of the Old Testament Scriptures.  One of the popular yet unconfirmed rumors is that John the Baptist may have been part of the community for a short time.

Escavations of Khirbet Qumran:  Site of Dead Sea Scrolls

None of our group bought any of the products sold in the store which mainly features soaps and cosmetics made with salts and chemicals from the Dead Sea.  It has become a very large international business, the main brand of which is AHAVA.  Of course, the Palestinians receive nothing from this business as they are forbidden commercial access to the Dead Sea.

Obed