A rabbi's well wishes from Israel

Rabbi Ronald Androphy, the spiritual leader of the East Meadow Jewish Center, is leading a congregational trip to Israel. During their stay, Androphy has submitted daily reports of their travel experiences.

Tuesday, May 12

Shalom from Jerusalem!

Wow!  What a full and exhausting day we spent today! I think we were underground as much, if not more, than we were above ground!

Today our guide, Itzik, led us in peeling back layer after layer of ancient Jerusalem like an onion in reverse because we actually started in the oldest section of ancient Jerusalem, in the “Ir David – David’s City.”  In reality, we started by viewing remains of the ancient Canaanite city that pre-dates David’s conquest.  We explored the Canaanite walls and the remains of what may have been David’s palace; we climbed down Warren’s shaft (a part of the  Canaanite water system that may have been the route David took to conquer Jerusalem), and many of us walked through Hezekiah’s tunnel, referenced twice in the Bible. 

Starting on two ends and working towards the middle, Hezekiah’s workmen cut through bedrock, eventually meeting each other; we still do not understand how they were able to accomplish this feat!  Hezekiah had the tunnel built to bring the water from outside Jerusalem’s walls to inside the city, especially necessary in the face of an imminent Assyrian attack.  Water still runs through the pitch black tunnel (we brought flashlights), and we trekked through it.  Another example of our experiencing Biblical history first hand! 

All of us wondered:  here was Hezekiah and his workers, who lived 2,750 years ago, successfully digging a tunnel through bedrock using primitive equipment; fast forward to 2015 and we are still waiting for the completion of the LIRR East River tunnel and the Second Avenue Subway whose workers are using the most modern and sophisticated equipment!  By the way, don’t think that those of our group who did not walk through the waters of Hezekiah’s tunnel escaped scott-free:  they walked through a recently discovered Canaanite tunnel that is now dry.

We then proceeded to explore other First Temple- and Second Temple- period excavations, including a Hasmonean (Maccabean) and Herodian tunnel, which was discovered and opened only recently.  I must say that it has been six years since our last EMJC Israel pilgrimage, and the extent of the archeological progress in uncovering ancient Jerusalem is astounding.