Masada

After a hearty breakfast we got onto the bus for the long drive down to Masada. The ride is about 2 hours long and you really feel it in your ears, as you are traveling below sea level. Along the way we noticed many Bedouin camps. Bedwa is the Arabic word for desert. The Bedouins are Muslim Arab nomadic tribes, who do not believe in nations and borders and they spread out and live in the desert.

Bedouins consider themselves children of Ibrahim (Avrohom) and just like their ancestor hospitality is very important to them. Here are some tips for you if you ever find yourself at a Bedouin camp. First off, no speaking. You will be served 3 cups of real coffee, not instant. The 1^st is to show you are under their protection. The 2^nd cup is to boost your spirits from your long travels. The 3^rd one is the most important. If they serve you a full cup, then we suggest you leave now, since you are no longer welcome. If they serve you a ½ a cup, please stay as long as you like, since the ½ a cup means they want to serve you more.

We made it to Masada and fortified ourselves with water bottles and took off our sweaters. It was a beautiful 70 degrees. Perfect weather for a hike up a very big mountain. We started our trek full of vigor and cheer and for the most part it continued that way. We passed many people walking down and some of us were passed by many people going up a bit faster than some of our group. Each step we took brought us closer to our destination.

What a sense of accomplishment we all felt when we reached the top. It helped to know we would be going down on the cable car. Ezra and Mendel were the 1^st ones up and they finished the climb in 38 minutes. Those of us pulling in the rear with Morah Kosofsky completed the hike in under 55 minutes. Way to go!!! Yoni told us that on a scale from 1-10 he places this hike at a level 6. We are not sure we agree.

Masada is a mountain that was named by the Chashmonaim. About 100 years before the destruction of the Second Temple King Herod built up Masada. You might remember Herod from our post about the Kotel tunnels. Let’s talk a bit about Herod. He was the ruler of Judea appointed by the Romans. It is questionable if he was actually Jewish. Herod was brought up in Rome and shared their values. He was a madman who had many people, including Jews murdered. He was not very well liked either, as you can imagine and on top of that was paranoid that someone was out to get him.

Herod decided to have a place of refuge built for himself where he could escape to. Now a desert is a wonderful place to hide. One would think that if you were hiding, you would travel light. Not Herod. He had his workers build him not just one palace, but a 2^nd one for entertaining. He had a pool and a banquet hall built for all those parties he would throw for his pals while in hiding. Herod did not want to worry about shipping in the food, so he had storage building made for oil, dried fruit, dried meat, wheat, wine, rice and honey. There was a commandant whose job it was to keep the store houses filled.

Now, remember Masada is in the desert. Water could prove to be a problem. Not for Herod. He had 24 (yes 24) cisterns built for collecting rain water. Wow, Herod must have really enjoyed his beautiful home. Actually, Herod never used it. But Masada was used by 960 Jewish men, women and children who escaped there after the 2nd Temple destruction.

When they arrived they found plenty of rooms, plenty of food and plenty of water. These Jews set out to live on Masada as Jews. That is very important. More than 12 mikvaot where found there. That is very important, since it means that Family Purity was important to them. A shul was found with parchment with quotes from Yechezkel, a prophet from the days after the First Temple. Yechezkel prophesized about the dry bones that come back to life. This is a prophecy of inspiration for Moshiach.

Yes, we know about the tragic ending on Masada and that these Jews chose death rather than be captured by the Romans, who eventually came to find them. We are focusing on the mitzvot these Jews chose to keep. As Yoni shared with us in the shul.

“You are a fulfillment of this prophecy. You are the promise of the future. Remember, we are the only group of people in the world to be exiled and to return to our land, not once but twice! There is nothing like the Jewish people. I am so proud to be a part of it!”