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By: Keren Cassuto Teacher: Melissa Weglein School: Neve Chana Date Submitted: 04/06/2009

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= = =Rationale = = = In my project I've decided to focus on the historical-geographical aspect of the land of Israel which, here, goes hand in hand with archaeology. It is a well known fact that Israel contents many different "faces", but I believe that out of all of them this subject is one of the most important aspects if not the most important. Archaeology helps us understand and know our country's past. In my opinion, it is important to __know__ Israel rather than just love it as a birthplace, or as part of some "strange" old tradition. This gives greater meaning as to __why__ you love it, strengthening the relationship between the individual and the State. Ironically, another reason to explain the importance of archaeology seems to, at times, contradict the first one: archaeology, like almost every other science, examines the veracity of the events in the bible, time and time again. Can they be proven true by the finds in the field? Can they be proven to be false? One step back and probably even more important- can archaeologists base their research on the holy book? Must they do so? Mustn't they? I figured, that to be able to answer these questions and learn about Israel through an archaeologist's eye, I must interview one. I've decided to interview Prof. Hanan Eshel who specializes in the Dead Sea Scrolls. I have little idea of what they are, but I know they seem to have great importance to the world and created an uproar throughout the public when they were published way back when. Of Hanan Eshel, I know that he is a fascinating person who has enchanting lectures. A promising start, it would seem, with much to expect and without any clear direction. Even so, I believe this project can make one look beyond one's personal connection to Israel, to the connection of others before, and through that we may earn a deeper love and understanding of where we live.

= = =The Exclusive Interview With Prof. Hanan Eshel =

Walking into the National Library at the Hebrew University Campus I find Prof. Hanan Eshel working beside his wife in his own natural habitat. After silent greetings (the library at the Hebrew University, unlike most libraries I know of, is actually //quiet//) we go out of the room to where he unfolds to me the "story of his life".

"The years of my childhood (4th to 11th grade) were those between //Milhemet Shshet HaYamim// and //Milhemet Yom HaKippurim//." That, as we all know, was a time of "Euphoria". "To grow up during that time came out very successful", Eshel testifies, "though being in 11th grade at the time of //Milhemet Yom HaKippurim// wasn't easy. People who were only two years older than us were already fighting and we didn't know what to do. We searched for ways to volunteer, to help. We heard a lot of reports about the number of people who were killed. It wasn’t easy…" Living in //Rehovot//, Hanan Eshel didn't endure the offensive behavior that was directed towards the religious sector at the time in Israel. His explanation to that is that //Rehovot// was mostly an academic community, thanks to the Weitzman Institute. According to Eshel, he lived at the time when the attitude towards the religious sector started to change for the better.

Even then, being a religious archaeologist wasn't easy. Out of a class of 70 students in the archaeology institute at //Har// //HaTzofim// University, only three were religious. Between professors who insist on saying //Hashem//'s explicit name and discouragements such as "there never were religious archaeologists and there never will be", the three paved their way into becoming teachers and lecturers, each in his own territory. As we can see, being a religious archaeologist is not such an obvious concept. Wouldn’t that mean that archaeology contradicts religion? To this question Hanan replies: "On the contrary. Torah and science must be learnt together. You see," he explains, "science answers **'How'** and the Torah answers **'Why'**. Sometimes I get criticized for my choice of job from both religious and secular sectors. All you have to do is think outside the box, because people who think I live in a contradiction just don’t know or understand". Not only that, but the more time passes, the more Eshel finds himself thinking about //Hashem// and his belief is a lot stronger than it was. Every day, davening becomes more enjoyable than before. For Hanan Eshel, the stubbornness was worth it.

Hearing how revolutionary and difficult the process was, I can't help but wonder what drew Eshel to archaeology in the first place. "Archaeology was a trend when I was a child. There were many TV shows about it and stories. As it turns out, my father influenced my choice as well. He always wanted to learn archaeology but he ended up learning agriculture for the reason that it is more Zionistic". Seeing as how history and geography are not my strongest subjects, I try to understand what is so compelling about a job like archaeology which involves both (aside for the field work, of course, which is obviously a lot of fun). "Archaeology is fascinating. The field work is exciting- never knowing what you may find, the feeling that you're stepping on the same soil that people did 2 thousand years ago… but also the work in the lab and the research in the library are interesting. It's like a puzzle, discovering new details about what happened and adding up the facts into a whole picture that suddenly becomes clear. Finding out **what happened**."

Knowing that Hanan Eshel really **does** like his job, I find myself interested in what he likes most, what he specializes in. The answer to that is the Dead Sea Scrolls. The scrolls were found in natural caves that face the Dead Sea. The caves were occupied 2 thousand year ago by the Jews who today are believed to have been part of the cult called the Essenes. They moved into the caves and transferred with them provisions, military equipment, documents, etc. The caves were abandoned when their occupants were killed during a rebellion against the Roman Empire. While the eastern scrolls and papyri were preserved, thanks to the dry air, the western scrolls and papyri's, which are in more humid caves, some of them even having stalactites, were almost completely destroyed. Though Eshel himself never found a scroll, he did find a few papyri's. Being as ignorant as I am, I couldn't figure out what the difference is between a scroll and a papyrus. "A scroll is religious texts written on parchment," Hanan Eshel explains, "papyri are legal certificates or letters." To conclude all this, Eshel adds that as a matter of fact, the Dead Sea Scrolls are the greatest discovery ever found and to be found in Israel.

"The Dead Sea Scrolls are a true Jewish-Christian project. The Jews are happy because they can learn about the //Halachas//, Hebrew, Aramaic, interpretations of the Torah at the time, prayers- and in short, about Judaism. The Christians are happy because they can learn a lot about the beginning of Christianity, about Jesus, Paul and Peter, etc." Finding the Dead Sea scrolls contributed towards a Jewish-Christian academic cooperation and understanding. They were found first, right at the end of WW2, which, according to Eshel, was the best time in which they could be found, since the Christian world was rethinking it's relation to the Jews. "I, too, enjoy the fruits of this discovery. Aside for the advancement of my career and being invited to many conferences, I met other scroll researchers, who all make up a warm and friendly 'community' (unlike the archaeologists in Israel who always compete with one another)."

Speaking of the Israeli archaeologists ‘politics’, we relate to an incident that happened in 2004, when Hanan Eshel bought a scroll from Bedouin antiquity robbers. Israel Antiquities Authority accused Hanan of supporting antiquities robbery. Hanan objected to the accusations, saying that his only purpose was to save the scrolls, which were disintegrating (apparently the Bedouins attached them together with some cheap glue). This scroll was written in 135 C.E. (the of The Bar Kokhba revolt) What’s so special about it is that it contains 4 parts out of //Parashat Emor// from the book of Leviticus of which we don’t have many scrolls of, on account of it not being read at the time that the rebels were hiding in the caves. Thanks to that, we can tell when the rebels escaped from the caves (these chapters were read at the end of the summer-the beginning of autumn, and the parts where the scrolls were open survived better than the parts that were rolled up, therefore, they were the last ones read). “I’m happy with what I did,” he tells me, “if I hadn't bought the scroll it would have crumbled completely. I am glad the commotion calmed eventually.”

After learning about his childhood, his difficulties in unifying two sides of what was thought of as a contradiction up to then, hearing what makes archaeology so special, and the Dead Sea Scrolls even more so, I had just one more question to ask. “A motto?” he says with a smile, “I always tell my students that ‘complicated questions have simple answers that are wrong’. It’s a Murphy’s Law. One of the things that really bothers me is that historical research today tries to give simple answers to complicated questions. I explain to my students that they must check the matters from every direction, look at the whole complex picture at all times.” With this piece of advice I thanked him for his time and left him there to get back to his work while I myself had new thoughts to ponder.

=The Dead Sea Scrolls =

“The Dead Sea Scrolls are the most significant discovery ever to be found in Israel”, says Prof. Hanan Eshel. Hearing this, in the certain manner it was said, can make you suddenly think that there is more to these old-and-torn-apart scrolls. And there is. What is so special about the Dead Sea Scrolls? To understand that, there is need in examining their discovery, their historical background, the influence they have on science and other aspects in our world and of course, looking into the most interesting scrolls in the collection. The commotion over the Dead Sea Scrolls has only continued to increase since their discovery…

In 1947, Bedouin shepherds looking for a stray goat (or, as is less politically correct to say, for a treasure), stumbled upon a G-D forsaken cave which contained jars filled with ancient manuscripts. Only a year later did the scrolls come to scholarly attention, after passing through more than one pair of hands, and it took a whole other year until they finely identified the site where they were found in the first place. One excavation leading to the other, by 1956 ten more caves were found. Add Qumran (a complex of structures found near by) to that, and a site of heaven-on-earth has been found for any archaeologist around the world. Aside for the pottery, cloth, and wood that were found, several more scrolls and fragments of approximately **800** scrolls were revealed, all ranging, more or less, from the year 200 B.C.E. to 68 C.E. If you think that is amazing, then you'll flip over this site: [] The scrolls aforementioned contained Biblical books in Hebrew, Aramaic and even a few in Greek (!), prayers, hymns and other religious texts that seem to represent the beliefs of the Jews who lived there.

The Jews in Qumran and the caves are attributed to one of the three main religious groups among the Jews, as described by the historian Josephus Flavius, the Essenes. His division is based on the different philosophies of each group (based on proofs from the Pharisees prayers and the Dead Sea Scrolls, it is said that the Jews, too, divided themselves into these groups). The only philosophy that survived after the destruction of the Tempe is that of the Pharisees, which is still used by the Jews today. They fulfilled the oral laws as well as the written ones and were flexible enough to adapt the laws to different circumstances. They also believe in angels, the afterlife and the resurrection of the dead. The Pharisees were the most popular among the common people. The Sadducees were the top of society, the priests and the wealthiest families. They interpreted the Torah literally and didn’t believe in the oral laws. They were rationalists, and therefore believed only in this world. They also reduced personal providence, saying that after G-D gave us the Torah, he left us to survive on our own and we could succeed or fail, depending on how smart we were. The period of their government was aggressive, and they considered the Pharisees spineless. Finally, the Essenes were a separatist group which believed in full purity to all of its followers (unlike the Pharisees who didn’t demand that of the common people). They compared the Jews then to the 12 tribes, calling themselves the Judeans, the Pharisees Ephraim and the Sadducees Menashe. Their sect was communal, sharing material possessions and eating their meals together. They participated in the rebellion against the Romans and died as heroes in the Romans’ torturing hands. In the article "Scroll from the Dead Sea" from the site of the "Library of Congress" it is said: Qumran fell to the Roman legions 68 C.E., the Temple in 70 C.E., and Mesada in 73 C.E.". The occupants of Qumran, which are identified with the Essenes, wrote a lot about the Messiah and the Day of Revenge and though they never had the chance to see it, they died believing that he would come.  The "Educational Site" of WSRP (West Semitic Research Project) tells of a few scrolls that were found. One of the scrolls that was found contains a few verses from Isaiah about a great disaster or punishments which, according to scholars, were directed at the priests and religious leaders in Jerusalem. Another scroll found is filled with quotations from the Bible, all relating to the Messiah. Scholars call it Testimonia after the Christian literature around that time which was written in the same way. The rising of Moses is also mentioned in the scroll. Interestingly enough, one of the manuscripts found is written as Moses last words, his Farewell Discourse. Basically, the people of Qumran base this literary piece on the Bible. Moses predicts that the people will abandon G-D, tells them to pick people to interpret the law and to be very careful following it. As a community, the people of Qumran had their own laws. The rules documented consist of the order in which they enter to eat, or how they ran a meeting, their ideals etc. Another unique trait that was found is the calendar. It appears to have 364 days, as apposed to the Jewish lunar calendar today that has 354. The festivals always fell on the same day of the week (there are 52 weeks in that year, 13 in every season). The most intriguing scroll, though, is the Copper Scroll. Found in 1952 by the archaeologists (unlike most scrolls at the time which were found by Bedouins) it was rolled up and too fragile to open, a mystery. Eventually, the scholars decided to cut it into small section (23 strips) and attach them back together. Archaeologists work around treasures. Every artifact they find is like a bucket of gold. No-one would have thought that they had actually found a treasure //literarily//! Well, //nearly// at least. What they found was a cliché right out of a mystery book- direction to a treasure! … Sadly, though, many of the places mentioned do not exist any more, nor have they ever been heard of. In addition, scholars cannot translate many of the words, on account of them being day-to-day words and phrases, while most of the ancient Hebrew that they base their translations on is from religious texts and the Bible…

The mystery of the Copper Scroll aside, studying the scrolls and their texts has been known to shed light on the boiling atmosphere in Judea at the time and the origin of early Christianity. The Jews were not divided into only three groups, each filled with hatred and loathing for the other, but every faction was divided into many more political parties and religious sects. For example, two of the Pharisees factions most known to be in almost constant disagreement between them are Bet Hillel and Bet Shamai. Another group amongst the Pharisees is the Zealots, which formed out of Bet Shamai. While the Jewish scholars occupy themselves mainly with that information, Christians also find great interest in the fact that many of the beliefs, the rituals of baptism, the idea of commutal meals and the attitude towards property that are described in the scrolls are very similar to those in early Christianity. Seeing as both Jew and Christians are fascinated by the Dead Sea Scrolls, each for their own reasons, they work cooperatively to discover as much as they can out of Qumran and the caves overlooking the Dead Sea. Exactly like Prof. Hanan Eshel says, the Dead Sea Scrolls had contributed greatly towards a Jewish-Christian understanding.

From the moment they were released to public knowledge the scrolls from the Dead Sea created a commotion all around the world. Their study is fascinating, their contribution profound and the finds are amazing and significant. Though they answer many questions about a time of great importance, a turning point in history, for which we did not have much information, they started many more. Scholars still argue amongst themselves over queries such as, who really wrote the scrolls? Why were they in the caves? Who did they belong to? Maybe, if we’re lucky and patient, one day some wanderer or another will just happen to have the answer pop right in front of his face, in the form of new scrolls. Or maybe, we are just never meant to know…

=Literary Connection =

rtl
 * מרדף **

ביצוע: חוה אלברשטיין מילים: ירון לונדון לחן: נחום (נחצ'ה) היימן עיבוד: נחום היימן

אך דם בנחליה כמים נוזל ארץ אשר הרריה נחושת אבל עצביה ברזל ארץ אשר מרדפים קורותיה אלפיים דפים ועוד דף עד שנשרף עוד מעט כל חמצן ריאותיה בגלל מרוצת המרדף.
 * ארץ טובה שהדבש בעורקיה

ארץ אשר ירדפוה אויביה והיא את אויביה תרדוף במרדף היא את אויביה תשיג, אך אויביה הם לא ילכדוה בכף זו הרואה את חייה מנגד תלויים כעלה הנידף היא יראה אבל כמו לא היתה כלל מודאגת תמתין עד לתום המרדף.

תום המרדף מסתתר בנקיק ומצפין את פניו במחבוא, במחבוא אך לסופו הוא יבוא כמו השמש אשר ממזרח היא תבוא. אז לא יותר אמהות תקוננה ולא על בניהם האבות כן הוא יבוא ורגלינו עד אז לא תלאינה לרדוף בעקבי התקוות. ** rtl Translation: Singer: Hava Alberstein Writer: Yaron London Compositor: Nahum Haiman
 * // Pursuit //**

//A good land that honey flows in its veins// //But blood drips like water in its rivers// //A land that its mountains are made out of copper// //But its nerves are made out of iron// //A land with a history of pursuits// //2000 papers and a page// //Until the air in her lungs is near burning// //Because of the run of pursuit//

//A land that its foes will pursuie// //And she, in return, will chase in pursuit// //She will catch up with her enemies, but they// //They will not capture her easily// //She who is watching her life from afar// //Hanging as a scattered leaf// //She's gripped in terror// //But as if she is not at all concerned// //She shall wait until the end of the chase//

//The end of the chase is concealed in a crevice// //And secretes its face in the hideout// //But to its completion it will come like the sun// //That will come from the east// //Mothers will no more mourn by that time// //And neither will the fathers on their sons// //Yes it will come// //And until then our feet will not tire// //To chase the trails of hopes//

The song "Pursuit" was written about the War of Attrition (1967-1970). 127 civilians and 594 soldiers were killed in that war. El Nasser, Egypt's president, gave the war its name to clarify the purpose of the war- to break us. As it turned out, though, the Egyptians were the ones who ended up shattered. The song talks about the constant chase the Israeli nation has had to endure, not only in this specific war, but during its history, time and time again, the many people who have had to sacrifice themselves for it, even when we have our own land. The song says that though the chase is not over yet, we believe it will be and for the better. We hope for that day to come and we will not tire before it does. We want peace to come and are willing to pay the price for it. According to the song, that is our essence.
 * Analysis: **

In the first verse, Yaron London describes the land, which symbolizes the nation. He gives it two dimensions- the outside, the landscape, and the inside: the veins and nerves. He humanizes it. It is not just a scrape of land, but a living creature. The description the writer gives the land makes it that of a "femme fatal", beautiful and good (copper hills, veins of honey), but also destructive and emotionless (rivers of blood, nerves of iron). She appears as a damsel in distress, being chased and out of breath. In the second verse, she is more indignant and noble. She may be chased by her enemies, but she chases them as well and they will not catch her easily. Even though she in petrified, she is composed enough not to let it show. The third verse does not talk of the land, of the nation, like the first two, but of the individuals, because the chase and the troubles, are for the nation to handle as a whole, but the peace is for every individual to celebrate for himself or with his close ones.

This song does not only connect to Israel, but it also connects to the subject of my project. The people in the caves facing the Dead Sea and Qumran lived at the time of the Roman conquest and their residence in that area ended with their rebellion being crushed, the temple burning and the Judeans being exiled from their land. Even with that blow, we did not tire of chasing "the trails of hope". "2000 papers and a page" later of chases and pursuits, we are back in our land, still "watching our life from afar" and yet, still not captured.

Link to the song: []

= = =Creative Connection =

<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Based on my interview with Prof. Hanan Eshel, I realized that Israel's different faces, such as Torah and science, cannot be separated from one another. I tried to understand, though, what makes Israel different from any other country in the world? Israel is definitely not the only country in the world that has varied. For example, the U.S.A. is known to contain many different kinds of people having a high percentage of pilgrims. That is part of its ideal, an open democratic country without any discrimination based on religion, race or gender. Just like America, Israel also ideals, and that's when the big difference comes in. Here, the variety alone is not enough. It may be the goal in the U.S., but here it is only the means by which we may achieve our purpose. What purpose? Survival, perhaps. Expanding G-D's name in the world. Scientific research. The binding of history to this land. The feeling of "neighborhood" with our nation's people. The special natural traits in Israel. It could be all of the above. There are many reasons one can come up with, and behind every face you can site in the street there is a mixture of reasons and purposes just for the simple act of living in this land. So why am **I** here? What goal do I promote? I guess I realize that the answer may change over the years, just as I will. In addition, I don't think I'll ever know everything there is to know about any face I'll choose to live by…

=<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Reflection =

<span style="display: block; font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; text-align: left;">I have to admit that when I started with the project I had no idea what to expect. I always thought that if you don’t expect anything, you don't get disappointed. As wonderful as not expecting any thing is, my situation was worse than that since I had no idea what I was doing. "Israel-Faces" was just some vague idea that was mentioned in class, and I strongly dislike doing projects that don't have every practical detail laid out in advance. I guess that's why it was easier to work once I started. For one thing, I knew the interviewee I picked was going to be interesting, but you wouldn't believe how nervous I was about meeting him. Once I was done with the interview it was time for the writing. I always like writing, once I know what I'm writing about, of course. It gives a sort of satisfaction and a place to learn and express myself. Interestingly, I found out that much of what I write does not come across the way I want it to when someone else reads it. They never seem to put the emphasis in the right places. Luckily, I found it out in time to fix it. I don't have many complaints about the project, but it would have been better if it wasn't done so late in the year therefore creating a lot of pressure. I guess, though, that that wasn't intentional and so it probably won't happen again. There is a good side to it being now, though. I believe I have matured in the past year and maybe I would not have come to the conclusions that I did if it had been earlier. For example, this was the first time I had to really think of what Israel means to me. As I wrote in the "Creative Connection", I finally understood that Israel is not a goal, it's merely a method to receive our goals. In addition, I realized that one idea that kept coming throughout the project is that we're not meant to know everything. Who would have imagined that this would occupy my thoughts so much? What I mean is that we should always seek the answers to our questions while keeping in mind that we shouldn't get disappointed when we don't get an answer to everyone of our questions. I, myself, have learnt a lot during the course of this project. The Dead Sea Scrolls are a fascinating subject and they reflect much of the atmosphere in Judea at the time. To conclude the project in one sentence- it gave me immense satisfaction and the opportunity to learn and express myself.

=<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bibliography =


 * "25 Fascinating Facts About the Dead Sea Scrolls @ Century One Bookstore." __Archaeology | Biblical Studies | Dead Sea Scrolls | Religion | Century One Bookstore__. 1 May 2009 [].
 * "Educational Site: Dead Sea Scrolls." __USC - University of Southern California__. 1 May 2009 [].
 * Prof. Eshel, Hanan. Personal Interview. 25 Apr. 2009.
 * "Scrolls from the Dead Sea (Library of Congress Exhibition)." __Library of Congress Home__. 1 May 2009 [].
 * "YouTube - ‫חוה אלברשטיין - מרדף‬‎." __YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.__. 1 June 2009 [].
 * "שירונט - מילים לשירים." __שירונט - מילים לשירים__. 14 May 2009 [].