Heritage sites connect and strengthen the identity of an ethnic group.
For Jews, it’s Judea. To find the Jewish heritage, one doesn’t have to look far; there are hundreds of sites in Israel. There are three main ways to determine an archaeological site: 1. Historical texts and references of geographic and topographical locations; 2. The name of the current place; 3. An artifact discovered that directly links us to the place.
The fertile heartland of Judea was where the capital cities were, hence their strategic locations. For a city to be successful, it’s important to establish it close to a water source, connecting roads, land to feed the city’s inhabitants, and in a secure area. So, when the ancient Israelites entered the land of Canaan over 3,200 years ago, they looked for those characteristics.
Our ancient biblical texts mention some sites more than others, since major events happened there due to their strategic locations, such as Hebron, Shechem, Megiddo, Bethlehem, Jericho, and others.
These sites are strategic places to develop a city, due to the layout of the land and the elements of advantage there.
I open my Bible and read that Jericho was the first city that Joshua conquered. Shechem was where Joshua visited when the tribes entered the land, becoming a nation with a set of rules and the choice to follow them or not. These are reminders of the basis of my understanding of the great importance and foundational development of Judaism happening here.
Recently, I considered going to those places, not only because they are holy to me, but because they are directly connected to my identity. It’s an identity that is constantly being challenged.
Most recently, it has been challenged by England.
This hurts. I think of all the struggles the Jewish people have been through in the past 2,000 years; now to be attacked on an identity level is devastating, especially when I am so close, geographically, to these places.
On a visit to some of the sites, I noticed that they are devoid of any mention of their biblical roots. A narrative that Jews never lived there is being pushed proactively.
For example, when I went to Shechem (Tel Balata), I viewed a video made by the local Arabs and Dutch archaeologists. In it, there is no mention that it was a biblical site. Though it’s even called “Shechem” in the introductory video, it nevertheless claims that the name of the place is “Shikmu.” While mentioning the Samaritans, it fails to mention any biblical connection.
When mentioning the German scholar Herman Thiersch, who had excavated the site in 1903 and was sure he found the biblical site, the video purposefully adds, “although there was no scientific evidence…”
While visiting the original Beitar (today Battir), where the Bar-Kochba revolt took place, a local who claimed it was his land said that all the ruins are Roman and that the Jews were in a different place.
Furthermore, he mentioned that some youths had recently destroyed much of the site. In fact, when I walked through the site, I noticed holes that the antiquities thieves made to take artifacts and sell them on the black market.
Even the Temple Mount, the most sacred site in biblical history, is constantly being contested. Here, as with all of these sites I mentioned, access to the places are restricted for Jews, and we are unable to worship our God freely.
The Question rises: Why am I being oppressed as a Jew in Israel? Why can’t I pray at my holy sites?
These physical restrictions are being imposed by the Israeli government and army for reasons of “keeping the peace,” yet evidently it’s not keeping any peace.
Trying to avoid conflict seems to come at almost any cost, including strangling Jewish identity. There is a huge gap that must be bridged.
How can Jewish people have a strong and proud identity while being restricted from seeing our heritage sites on which our identity is built?
How can Jewish people feel strong when narratives and actions are being pushed to destroy our connection to Judea?
These are critical obstacles to the safety of the Jewish people in Israel and around the world.
The writer is a licensed tour guide in Israel who has served over 400 days in the reserves since the Hamas-led terrorist attacks on October 7, 2023. As an independent researcher and writer based in Israel, he focuses on ancient archaeology, biblical history, and the preservation of heritage sites in Judea and Samaria.