Special Sub-Topic: The Upper Galilee Authored by: dovbear Sub-topic of: Israel

What village was founded in 1896 and is the most northerly located in Galilee?

Metula. This city certainly has an international flair! The land was bought from Druze farmers by Baron Rothschild in France. The first settlers were primarily Russian Jews who escaped the pogroms of their former homeland and today there sits the Canada Center a gift from that country hoping to inspire peace. What's unique about the Canada Center is that it house both a giant indoor pool along with an indoor ice skating rink.

What mountain is the site of the LaG B'Omer ceremony every year?

Mount Meron. It is due to the legend of Rabbi Simeon bar Yochai that this early spring holiday is celebrated at Mount Meron. Legend has it that he died on this particular day and buried on this mountain. Sorting out fact from fiction is never easy in these cases. One such point regarding R'Yochai is his penning the mystical work entitled The Zohar. More probably done by the Spanish Rabbi Moses de Leon one thousand years later, R' Yochai remains a favorite of many and is celebrated as hero of Jewish learning.

If you were going to the nucleus of Kabbalistic learning, to which city would you be headed?

Tzfat. One of the many problems with transliteration of names is consistency of spelling them. Tzfat as I spelled it is only one of several varieties that you can come across in the city alone! Other forms are Safed and Zefat and the unlimited ways it's pronounced too. But good news is on the way, the Knesset [Israel's government body] has put into effect a measure that will make naming places uniform throughout the land so that tourists are better able to navigate the roads.

What city was the center of Jewish learning, including the compilation of the Mishna, for a period of 800 years?

Tiberias. Sad to say Tiberias is a bit run down and leaves a person wanting to leave rather quickly. It has the honor of being one of the four holy cities in Israel and buried here are such Jewish greats like Rambam [Rabbi Moses Maimonides], Rabbi Akiva the lively figure of the Talmud and Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai also a famous figure from the Talmudic Period.

What is the name of the village that Jesus Christ reportedly lived in and was located on the Sea of Galilee?

Capernaum. Capernaum is a bastardization of the actual name Kefar Nahum. Many have made the connection with the Old Testament prophet of the same name but there is no connection.

Six cities of refuge are mentioned in the Old Testament, but only one is in the Galilee. Which one is it?

Kedesh. From the passage in Numbers 35:1-34 we learn that the six cities were commanded to exist for the purpose of allowing accidental murderers flee from avenging families. Deuteronomy 4:41-43 gives us three of the names Bezer, Ramoth,Golan in Bashan,and Joshua 20:7-8 for the remaining three: Kedesh,Shechem,and Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron).

The word Galilee means in Hebrew green covered hills?

false. Although it sure does fit the description for a few months of the year, the term Galilee or in Hebrew HaGalil means circle or circuit. The name is ancient and who named it is unknown. Today Galilee covers one third of the State of Israel and ,true to its name, it is a circuit of sorts with all the places it rolls between as a region.

What national park, only three kilometers from the Lebanese border, boasts a magnificent synagogue from the Mishnaic period and the ruins of a Maronite village?

Bar Am. One of the interesting facts concerning this synagogue is that its doors were orientated to the direction of Jerusalem. This was a development in the building of synagogues in the third century CE. This trait of orientating towards Jerusalem became a standard of synagogue building around the world.

The northern border of the Galilee region is the Litani River in Lebanon?

true. Are you surprised? Well just remember that geographical features and regions are not bothered by politics like people are.

The fortress I want to know the name of, is close to the Montfort Fortress. It was used as a stronghold during the War of Independence in 1948, Now the kibbutz, that it is located in, carries the fortress' name. What is this name?

Yehiam Fortress. Probably the most interesting fact about this fortress is the not knowing when it was built. Like the fortress in Montfort it was occupied by the Crusaders but the majority of the standing portion that can be seen today is from the 1760's.