Tiyul to Sataf Park

by Erika Apel,       grade 10,       Ontario

 

our Jewish history class, Kitat Kinor, in the Sataf JNF park

1. What were the challenges the Israelites had to deal with entering Eretz Yisrael? During this period of time the Israelites were questioning their devotion to God. We know this because they practiced idol worship. This was a big challenge because God specifically says, in the 10 commandments, to not practice idolatry. The other big challenge was the other inhabitants of Eretz Yisrael. The Philistines, the Canaanites and more were already in Eretz Yisrael and the Israelite tribes had to reclaim their land that God had promised to them.

 

spectacular view from Sataf in the Judean mountains with some almond tress in bloom

2. How did the Israelites deal with these challenges?  The Jewish people have faced many challenges, and have overcome nearly all of them. When the Israelites overcame their challenges before entering Eretz Yisrael it deepened their connection to God. The Israelites two big problems mentioned earlier were solved by the Story of the battle of Jericho which appears in the Book of Joshua. In the story of Jericho, God instructs the Israelites to participate in a very specific ceremony in order to knock down the walls which prevent them from entering the city of Jericho. Joshua was told to march his troops around the city for six days, blowing rams horns (shofars), while priests carried the Torah at the head of this parade. On the seventh day, the sound of them shouting along with the call of the shofars caused the wall to collapse. This deepened the Israelites connection to God because they believed God listened to their cries and broke down the wall for them, letting them into the city and helping them reclaim the land the land that was promised to them.

 

my classmate Talia leading the way.

3. What form of leadership did we have? We had very strong leadership when entering Eretz Yisrael, in order to overcome our problems. The first strong leader we had was Joshua. His leadership was militaristic and very strong. He led the fight of Jericho and allocated the land to the tribes when they got into Eretz Yisrael. After Joshua passed we had a series of Judges. The first one was Devorah, she tells Barak, the military general of the time, to fight the battle against the Canaanites and give her credit for the victory. Barak defeats the Canaanites with Devorah’s help and becomes the Israelite tribes prosper in the land. Next is Gideon who was told by God to prepare an army to lead the Israelites to defeat the Mennonites. He creates an army of 32,000 people which God says is too many people so he instructs him to let all people who are scared to go home. He brings the remaining 10,000 people to the water and says drink, whoever goes on their knees like a dog and drinks is also sent home. Now remained only 300 people so they are arranged in three columns and given a pot and a shofar. Gideon then instructs people to surround the camp and blow their shofar and to throw down their pans. The sound of the shofar causes the Ammonites to fight each other. Yiftach is the third Judge, he makes a deal with God in order to win the battle. If God lets him win the battle, he will sacrifice the first person who opens the door when he gets home. God held up is side of the deal and the Israelites win, when Yiftach returns home he is greeted by his daughter. Yiftach could not sacrifice his daughter and instead banishes her to the hills to live out her life in solitude. The final Judge is Samson (Shimshon), who was instructed even before he was born to not cut his hair. He was known for his strength that he derived from his uncut hair. All of the Judges experienced something that we know as the “Judges cycle”. It starts with the Israelites going astray or praying to idols (avoda zara), then there is a cry for help, God listens and sends a new Judge to solve the issue. They then thank God by praying loyaly.

 

class activity at Sataf learning about the Biblical Book of Judges

4. How did we make the transition into a farmer’s society? The Israelites started as shepherds when going through the desert. Once they reached Eretz Yisrael they transitioned into a farming society to produce their food. In order to live they needed to grow crops and herd animals, and in order to do so they needed water. The Canaanites asked for water from their God Baal. To avoid praying to the Canaanite Gods the Israelites invented a new terrace agriculture. When the rain came the water fell from each level to evenly distribute it amongst the plants. In modern services we continue to pray to God for water. In the Amida prayer we pray for water with the line “morid hatal מוריד הטל” or “modid hageshem  מוריד הגשם” , but we make a point not to pray to other Gods or idols for the rain.

 

Marissa and Talia having fun with the olive trees at Sataf

5. What were the special sites we saw? An interesting thing we learned is the species of plants that are native to the land of Israel, the shivat haminim. They are a part of our history because they have always been the source of food for the Israelites, since the times of Joshua and the reclaiming of the promised land. The crops are: grapes, pomegranates, figs, dates, olives, barely, and wheat. The importance of these crops is simply that they are a holy food for the Israelites and supplied food for them throughout the years.

here are my classmates with some dates (tamar)