A simple man from the holy land

Bible study is sometimes like building a jigsaw puzzle. You collect all the different parts and put them together into a clear picture. The diverse parts scattered in many sources of knowledge. Since many of those sources are available through the internet, maps, books, articles and so on, one thing you owe to do yourself – and it is to explore  the holy land on foot.

This is it, you can learn about the Jordan River, the Sea of Galilee , Jerusalem, know every detail, study the maps, read the books, but nothing can be compared to visiting the actual historic site. Only after you stroll Jerusalem alleys, visit the temple mount, you will understand what holiness is, and what a religious passion is. Only when you will climb the Snake Path to Messada, you will realize what siege and rebellion are. Only a visit in Qumran and the ancient sect Essenes site will tell what the Judea desert feels like and how devoted a believer can be.

I myself visited Israel in different occasions. A visit to this small country is nothing similar to anywhere else. Each stone, each rock, route and a person is connected to the bible story in some way or another. And since we are dealing with sources of knowledge – I wanted to recommend one source that made for me the difference –

In my first visit to Israel, which was the visit that I become passionate about bible study, I met an incredible personality that made my visit so interesting and resourceful. He connected the past with the present and provided intriguing knowledge about every step of the trip. His name is Miki Ermann he is a tour guide that provide guides in English and German. In my following visits I met different tour guides, most of them where very good – to some I connected and some less, but Miki was the one that opened the door to this important part of the puzzle.

Bible Study

When I am browsing after useful information on the internet, I often encounter religious sites.

In the past, I was discouraged to enter those websites, since I was drawn back from people that approach knowledge from the perspective of truth. Means that when I come to study the bible I want to discover what the truth is. The religious approach presents the truth and teaches us the bible in real light.

Today, as a grown up individual I really like these kind of sites. The religious enthusiasm that approaches the things on a spiritual level makes these sites an asset. As in any thing, things need to be correlated with different information, but surely there is valuable information at least to challenge the learner to find the correct information. One of those sites is biblestudy.org – a site with many articles that focus on the new testimony bible.

Bible Walks

Are you familiar with the notion that you are learning and researching and still feeling that something is missing? Something, that can connect all bits of information and be presented in a clearer and simpler way? That’s it! Yesterday I found this thing. You always find the diamonds when you are not searching for them.

Biblewalks.com is a great site that successfully gives an accurate picture on what’s going on in the Holy Land. The site enables anyone to get information on biblical sites (from all periods) and see how they look today. The updated images and the knowledge are surely helping understand the big picture. The bible research is beyond learning from maps and books. The bible is a living body, the art in it is part of the everyday landscape, the source of knowledge is the connection between the past and the present in the holy land…

The Bible on stage

I find it out that one of the best resources for new perspectives on the biblical world is art inspired by biblical events and figures. Call me old fashioned, but for me theater is the most enjoyable art out there. I love the intimacy, the whisperings in the crowd, and the fact that the artwork is being created on stage in front of my eyes.

Oh, And I  also have another weakness: Although I do not practice the Jewish religion, I love Jewish Theater- Jewish plays and performing arts have always something to do with the bible.  From interpretations of a biblical story to modern plays and art representing complex an radical ideas it is always an eye opening experience.

If you would like to learn more about the world of Jewish theater and Jewish performing arts I recommend a great site called Jewish Theater.  These guys put a lot of efforts in creating a well organized and updated portal. The name itself is a little bit misleading since you can find much more than theater in Their extensive documentation and reviewing- It’s a great recourse for all performing arts as well as eye opening books’ reviews.

As far as I’m concerned the real treat in the Jewish theater is the Bible on stage section, dedicated to Biblical inspired performing arts. Their trail project in cooperation with the Israeli ministry of education gives some excellent info about the story of Samson as it is shown in the eyes of Jewish art.

This pilot project offers a lot of reading material representing different views and angles , and although I haven’t read all off it yet, I find the post Transformations of Biblical Samson by Prof. David Fishelov very intriguing.

Hope you all find this recourse as useful as I have.

Bible Geography – It’s definitely Carta!

This is my First Post, which I would like to dedicate it to the one that I see as the Guru of the Geographic data of the Bible, and also the main cause and source of my great interest at Bible Geography which helped me start exploring …

When I was 10 years old I was acquainted with my first Bible Atlas, which was the Carta Bible Atlas. I remember taking this thick and heavy book off my grandpa’s bookshelf, there were so many sketches, drawings, maps, and the truth is that I couldn’t understand anything then, but at the same time I couldn’t take my eyes off it.

When my Grandpa entered the room, and found me browsing confusingly through the pages and sketches, he sat next to me and tried to help organizing the mess a bit. He taught me how to read a map, and made connection between the old bible stories and reality “here is where David came from”, he declared when viewing the Ayalon Valley’s map “Do you see Ur of the Chaldees? This little red dot, here is where Abraham came from”, he had whispered secretly, and something awaken inside of me. As a child I was always in love with Bible stories, but only at my Grandpa’s old apartment, with the Atlas placed on my laps, this love became an endless curiosity and excitement.

Carta Publishing is located at Jerusalem, the center of Bible studies, and continues to publish new books and updated editions of its extraordinary publications which became ‘Must’ to all the bible fans.

Where can I get the Carta Atlas?

Carta Publishing is running an active website, where it is possible to purchase the most up to date editions of it’s publications including the Atlases and books, modern maps of Israel, Jerusalem, field guidebooks for Pilgrims and travelers to the Holy Land, comprehensive Hebrew dictionaries and Hebrew script publications. Carta’s publications appeal to Bible enthusiasts, students and researches.

The real news about Carta’s new website is the Carta Map Bank section. Carta is now making available in digital formats it’s vast Biblical and Historical map collection accumulated through tens of years of research. The website offers the use any of the maps featured in the database in research papers and presentations, in Bible classes, sermons and for other educational purposes.