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The Ultra-Orthodox Western Wall

This editorial at Ynetnews gives one side’s perspective on how the Western Wall prayer plaza came to be controlled by the ultra-orthodox.

Here’s a snippet:

But then, for the first time in its history, iron barricades were placed in the forward part of the plaza, close to the Kotel itself. This was the first mehitzah, the first separation between men and women, in the history of the Kotel. There had already been such attempts in the past. At the end of Turkish rule and under the British Mandate attempts had been made to separate between the sexes in the area next to the Kotel, but they failed. During most of those years when Jews had access to the Western Wall and during those years when they did not, there was never a mehitzah at the Kotel. But now a mehitzah was put up, which put aside most of the area – and the best part thereof – for the use of the men; barricades were put up to mark the entrances; and ushers were placed to assure the separation and to distribute paper kippot to those men who wished to approach the Kotel itself.
[…]
The escalation of more recent years is due particularly to Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, known as the “Rabbi of the Kotel.” He did not invent anything, but he perfected the system: swearing-in ceremonies of the IDF became fewer and further between; an attempt was made to separate the sexes at the ceremony in which new immigrants received their identity cards; signs calling for modesty were posted in every corner; Israeli flags suddenly disappeared (and meanwhile were returned). Most of world Jewry is not Orthodox, but the rabbi of the holiest place in the world to the Jewish people is Orthodox – and not just ordinary Orthodox, but Haredi.

The full editorial is here.

HT: The Bible and Interpretation

Jews praying at Western Wall, early 1900s
Source: The American Colony and Eric Matson Collection: Jerusalem

Western Wall prayer area, April 1968
Source: Views That Have Vanished

Tagged Jerusalem, Temple Mount

Conserving the Dead Sea Scrolls

From Haaretz:

For the past two and a half months, Tania Treiger, a conservator with the Israel Antiquities Authority, has been pouring over a piece of parchment about 20 centimeters square. It began with a microscopic examination of the fragment to gauge its condition, and continued with the placement of special paper over the writing to very slowly remove the circa 1970s adhesive tape.
Treiger, whose tools include Q-tips, tweezers and lots of patience, is one of four “guardians” of the Dead Sea Scrolls. These four women, all from the former Soviet Union, are the only people in the world permitted to touch the scrolls.
The first of the Dead Sea Scrolls, among the most important archaeological finds in the world, were discovered in the mid-1940s in the Dead Sea area, and have been making headlines ever since. This week, the Hebrew daily Maariv reported that the IAA had decided to stop sending the scrolls abroad to exhibitions for fear of legal complications, after the Jordanian government demanded that Israel return scrolls to Jordan. In 1967 the Jordanians tried to remove the scrolls from the Rockefeller Museum in East Jerusalem to Jordan, but Israel took East Jerusalem before that could happen and found the scrolls in the museum storerooms.
[…]
The scrolls, dating from about 300 BCE to 70 CE, survived amazingly well in the dry conditions of the caves of Qumran, on the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea. The first scroll scholars, an international consortium of eight researchers, tried to piece together the fragments as best they could. “They were geniuses who did amazing work, but they were not aware of the physical needs of the material,” Shor says.
Using adhesive tape, they stuck together what they believed to be related fragments and laid them between two pieces of glass. The scholars created a total of 1276 such plates. But adhesive tape, an amazing invention in the 1950s, became a conservation catastrophe for the scrolls. The chemicals in the adhesive ate into the organic material, stained it and wiped out letters. Later scholars also did damage. In the 1970s, they began to piece together fragments using rice paper and plastic material, which caused additional damage. Luckily, this process was halted and most of the fragments remained within the glass plates.
[…]
The digitalizing of the scrolls, under preparation for three years, is to begin in about six months. The project, whose cost is estimated at more than $5 million, will use special photographic techniques, including infrared and full-spectrum photography, which are also expected to reveal hidden letters. The intent of the project, which will take five years, is to place everything on the Internet so scholars around the world can take part in the greatest puzzle of all – piecing together tens of thousands of fragments of some 900 different compositions.

The full article is here. The Hebrew version has two photographs.

HT: Joe Lauer

Tagged Dead Sea

Dead Sea Scroll Lectures in Milwaukee

There are a number of lectures here that look very good. From JSOnline:

The Milwaukee Public Museum and Mount Mary College are both holding lectures in connection with the museum’s “Dead Sea Scrolls and the Bible” exhibit opening Friday.

The museum’s 11-lecture series features an international panel of speakers covering different facets of the exhibition, from the scrolls’ application to the understanding of modern biblical texts to discoveries revealed through new technologies.

Individual lectures at the museum cost $25, $20 for members. To purchase seats for individual lectures, call (414) 223-4676 or register online at www.mpm.edu/peo. To purchase seats for a four- or six-lecture series, call (414) 223-4676.

The museum’s lectures:

• “An Introduction to the Dead Sea Scrolls and Bringing the Dead Sea Scrolls Back to Life: The Use of Imaging Technologies to Reclaim Ancient Texts.” Weston Fields, Dead Sea Scrolls Foundation, and Bruce Zuckerman, University of Southern California. 2 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. [Jan 22-23]

• “The Three Favorite Books at Qumran and the Biblical Text.” Peter Flint, Canada Research Chair in Dead Sea Scrolls Studies, Trinity Western University. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 4.

• “The Ever-Alive Dead Sea Scrolls and Their Significance for Understanding the Bible, Early Judaism, and the Birth of Christianity.” Shalom Paul, Hebrew University. 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. Feb.18.

• “Israel at the Time of the Dead Sea Scrolls.” Larry Schiffman, Skirball Department of Hebrew and Judaic Studies, New York University. 7:30 p.m. March 4.

• “The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls.” Jodi Magness, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. 7:30 p.m. March 18.

• “The Stories of the Milwaukee Public Museum Dead Sea Scrolls.” Marty Abegg, director, Dead Sea Scrolls Institute, Trinity Western University. 7:30 p.m. March 25.

• “God Among the Gods: Divine Plurality in the Qur’an in the Light of Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Mythic Tradition.” Wesley Williams, Michigan State University. 7:30 p.m. April 15.

• “In Search of the Holy Grail: How Much Difference Would It Make If We Found the Original Handwritten Copies of New Testament Books?” Brent Sandy, Grace College. 7:30 p.m. April 29.

• “The Scriptures and Their Interpretation in the Dead Sea Scrolls.” Andrew Teeter, Harvard University. 7:30 p.m. May 6.

• “The Scribes of the Dead Sea Scrolls.” Emanuel Tov, Hebrew University. 5:30, 7:30 p.m. May 27.

• “The Dead Sea Scrolls and Current Bible Translations.” Deirdre Dempsey, Marquette University. 7:30 p.m. June 3.

Meanwhile, Mount Mary will present “The Dead Sea Scrolls 101: An Evening of Introduction” at 7 p.m. Feb 4 at 2900 N. Menomonee River Parkway. The lecture will be presented by Donald Rappe, associate professor at the college’s department of theology, and Helga Kisler, an adjunct theology instructor at Mount Mary.

HT: Joe Lauer

Tagged Dead Sea, Lectures

Thursday Roundup

Dr. Zvi Greenhut, Deputy Director of Survey & Excavations, Israel Antiquities Authority is interviewed on Arutz-7 Radio about his excavations of Moza (Emmaus?). A summary of his Iron Age finds is given at the IAA website.

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas has purchased three fragments of Dead Sea Scrolls, with verses from Exodus, Leviticus, and Daniel.

The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel lists 93 threats to open spaces in their annual report, with the largest number falling in the north.

Richard Jones of Lee University will give a lecture entitled “Biblical Archaeology on the Karak Plateau, Jordan” on Jan. 23 at 10:30 at the Museum Center at Five Points in Cleveland, Tennessee.

Professor Emeritus Abraham Malamat of the Hebrew University passed away today at the age of 87.

HT: Joe Lauer and the Yehuda Group

Tagged Excavations, Jordan, Lectures, Weekend Roundup

Thieves Loot Theft Exhibit

From Haaretz:

In a display of what might be called ironic chutzpah, burglars broke into an Ashdod museum this week and stole silver coins from the Hellenistic period and other archaeological finds that were part of an exhibit called “Antiquities Thieves in Israel.”
The exhibit, at the Korin Maman Museum, displayed artifacts that the Israel Antiquities Authority had previously recovered from antiquities thieves. Now it seems the authority will have to begin its hunt all over again.
The burglars neutralized the alarm system Tuesday night and stole a bronze spear, two gold earrings, some pottery and the silver coins, which feature the image of Alexander the Great.
“It’s one of the weirdest things that ever happened here,” said a museum employee. “Someone actually went and stole the robbers display.”

The complete story is here. The Jerusalem Post story is here.

HT: Joe Lauer

Tagged Museums, New Exhibits

Baptismal Site to Open on Israeli Side

From Haaretz:

In the winter of 2003, Saar Kfir, director of the Qasr al-Yahud site, stood not far from the swelling Jordan River. It was indeed beautiful, but the rising waters caused considerable damage to the comprehensive plan for upgrading and expanding the site, located east of the town of Jericho, where John the Baptist is said to have baptized Jesus. The project, which was originally approved in advance of the millennium celebrations – and was delayed because of the intifada and, later, by the 2003 floods – is now in its final phases.
When it is completed, hopefully before Passover, it will be possible for pilgrims to visit the third-most-important Christian site in Israel at their convenience: any day of the week, without advance coordination and without a military escort, as were necessary in the past.
Qasr al-Yahud, or “the Jews’ fortress” (a corruption of the Arabic meaning, “the Jews’ break”), is traditionally the place where the Israelites crossed over (that is, “broke”) the Jordan River and where Elijah the Prophet ascended to heaven, as well as where Jesus was baptized.
On January 18 and 19, the Orthodox Churches will celebrate Epiphany at the site, marking the “revelation” of Jesus to the three kings from the East. “This is one of the only authentic celebrations that remain in this country,” says Udi Izak, director of the school system in the Megillot regional council, in the Dead Sea region.

Read the whole article for a history of celebrations since 1967.

Jordan River, Ceremony of Epiphany, mat06788

Epiphany celebration at Jordan River, early 1900s

This photo is taken from the Southern Palestine volume of The American Colony and Eric Matson Collection (Library of Congress, LC-matpc-06788).

Tagged American Colony Photos, Tourism