Summer Training Program in Israel

Tuesday, Aug. 17

Flight from Japan via Europe to Israel:
KLM 868 (Osaka) 10:30 – (Amsterdam) 15:15
KLM 461 (Amsterdam) 19:50 – (Tel-Aviv) 1:20
Arrival is on August 18

 

Wednesday, Aug. 18

Arrive at Ben Gurion Airport early in the morning. Transfer by minibus to the Mount Zion Hotel in Jerusalem.
A few hours of rest.

09:00
A guided tour of the major holy sites of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism in East Jerusalem: A view from the Mount of Olives; Temple Mount (Haram A-Sharif), including Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dom of the Rock; Western and Southern Wall excavations; computer simulation of the Second Temple at the Davidson Center.

Lunch at the Jewish Quarter.

Afternoon: walk the Via Dolorosa and visit the Holy Sepulcher Church, which commemorates the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Visit to the model of Jerusalem in the Second Temple Priod at the Holy Land Hotel (West Jerusalem).

Tour guide (for this day and for August 21 & 24): Halvor Roning (Yochanan Ronen).

Dinner near the hotel.

 

Thursday Aug. 19

A day of study at the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies (Affiliated with the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, the main school of the Conservative Movement)
Host: Rabbi Dr. Harvey Meirovich, Dean of the Rabbinical School
Organizer: Rabbi Dr. Einat Ramon

Topic: "Religious Leadership in the Modern World"
From 8:30 – 17:00

Three sessions will be held, each devoted to one of the three religions. Each session will include a lecture, the reading of original texts, and discussion.

The session on Judaism will be led by Rabbi Dr. Alex Even-Chen (Dean of Graduate School of the Schechter Institute), under the title: "The concept of 'the prophet' according to Abraham Joshua Heschel, and its implications to modern understanding of leadership".

Coffee break.

The session on Christianity will be led by Prof. Kohara of Doshisha, under the title: "Uchimura Kanzo and leadership in Japan of today".

Lunch break

The session on Islam will be led by Mr. Muhammad Abu-Samra of Tel Aviv University, under the title: "Orthodox Islamic Responses to Critical Readings of the Qur'an: The Case of Nasr Hamed Abu Zayed".

Coffee break, and a concluding discussion of the day.

17:30
A visit to the Shrine of the Book at the Israel Museum, where the Dead Sea Scrolls and other biblical documents are kept. A guided tour by the curator, Dr. Adolfo Roitman.

Dinner.

 

Friday Aug. 20

08:00
A visit to the Separation Fence constructed by Israel, in the vicinity of Jerusalem. The tour will be guided by a representative of Rabbis for Human Rights, an organization that intervenes on behalf of Palestinians, to protect their human rights. (http://www.rhr.israel.net/)

Later

A visit to the area west of Jerusalem, where Jews, Christians, and Moslems live in close proximity, including:
Yad-Hashmona, a village established by Christians from Finland, where Messianic Jews also live.
Abu-Ghosh, a Moslem village with Christian churches, where we will meet a Benedictine monk and a Moslem-Arab woman, who will also serve an authentic Arab lunch.

Ein-Karem – a historic village with churches and monasteries, including the Church of the Visitation (Magnificat).

If time allows: a visit to the House for Bible Translators.

Around 17:30: drive to a Conservative synagogue in Jerusalem to join a Sabbath-eve prayer with the people of the Schechter Institute.

Later, a Sabbath dinner at the homes of members of the Conservative community, including Mrs. Nurit Novis (who was at the CISMOR conference in February, 2004).

 

Saturday Aug. 21

A trip to the Dead Sea:
Drive down in the direction of Jericho, to visit the full-scale replica of the Wilderness Tabernacle beside Kibbutz Kalia, near the Dead Sea. A dip in the Dead Sea, at one of its public beaches.
Drive on to Qumran to see the introductory video and museum, and to visit the ruins of the Dead Sea Scroll Community settlement.

Lunch at the Qumran self service cafeteria.

Return to Jerusalem to visit the Israel Museum's Archeological and Judaica sections.

Dinner.

 

Sunday Aug. 22

A seminar at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem on Mount Scopus.
Organized by Prof. Reuven Amitai, Head of the Institute of Asian and African Studies.
Lectures from 9:00 to 12:30, including a coffee break.
Lunch and tour of the campus.
Lectures between 14:00 to 16:00
A coffee break with members of the Departments of East Asian Studies (including Prof. Ben-Ami Shilloni, Mrs. Mariko Tsujita) and Biblical Studies.

18:00
A drive to the old city of Jaffa next to Tel-Aviv. A dinner at Dan Hotel, and a short tour of Tel Aviv before returning to Jerusalem.

 

Monday Aug. 23

Leave Jerusalem in the morning, and drive to Zichron Yaacov for a study day organized by the Department of History, Philosophy, and Judaic studies of the Open University. The study day will take place at Beit-Daniel, the guesthouse of the Open University.

RELIGION, IDENTITY AND INTERFAITH ENCOUNTERS
Hosts: Prof. Ora Limor, Head of the Research Authority
Dr. Ram Ben-Shalom, Head of the Department
Organizer: Dr. Avriel Bar-Levav

10:30 Reception and Morning Session
Presentation of the participants
Presentation of The Open University of Israel
Presentation of Doshisha University

Scholarly Presentations – 20 minutes each, followed by a discussion of 10 minutes
11:00 Dr. Rivka Nir – The Origins of Apocalyptic Literature: Judaism or Christianity
11:30 Prof. Ora Limor – Holy Places Shared by Three Religions
12:00 Dr. Ram Ben-Shalom – Jewish Martyrology in Spain
12:30 Dr. Avriel Bar-Levav – Jewish Rituals in a Social Context
13:00 Lunch

14:30 Afternoon Session
Dr. Daphna Ephrat – Disseminating the Sufi "path" in Medieval Islamic Societies: Content and Practice
15:00 Prof. Miura- Mathematics in Medieval Islam
15:30 Prof. Henry Wassermann – Religion and Nationalism or the Invention of Tradition
16:00 Dr. Aviva Halamish – Jerusalem and the Three Religions
Coffee

17:00 Tour of Zikhron Yaakov
18:30 Dinner
20:00 Musical Performance and social evening

Night at Beit-Daniel

 

Tuesday Aug. 24

(Early morning)
Drive to the Haifa and Mount Carmel to see the view.

Drive to Nazareth for an extended two hour visit of a full-scale replica of a 2000 year old farm village, with such items as grain fields, vineyard, threshing floor, wine press, olive press, carpenter shop, weaving center, animal stall, dwellings, and synagogue – with live actors dressed in biblical garb involved in some of the activities according to the season.

St. Peter's Fish Lunch by the Sea of Galilee.

Visit the ruins of Capernaum, residence of Jesus during most of his public ministry. See its ancient synagogue and study facilities, and earliest Byzantine church. Return across the Armageddon Plains, through the Carmel Hills via the Megiddo Pass, and on to the Sharon Plains.

Dinner.

Arrival at the Avia Hotel near the airport for a short rest.

 

Wednesday, Aug. 25

02:00-departure to the airport

KLM 462 (Tel Aviv) 05:30 – (Amsterdam) 09:35
KLM 867 (Amsterdam) 14:25 – (Osaka) 08:35 (Aug. 26)