Jerusalem archeologist visits Alberta
by John Syratt

A group of pastors and leaders from Central and Southern Alberta gathered in Calgary recently to listen to one of the world’s leading archeologists speak about Jerusalem in the time of Christ.

Dr. Dan Bahat, bearing a Lanny McDonald-like moustache, is the senior lecturer at Bar Ilan University in Tel Aviv, Israel and was, for many years, the District Archeologist for Jerusalem. He’s been studying the antiquities of the city for over 45 years.

Dr Dan. Bahat

"Every building permit in Jerusalem had to have my signature," Bahat explained. "It’s a matter of knowledge of where the sites are." If a property was considered a possible archeological site, Bahat’s team would dig a trial trench down to natural bedrock to find out whether it was worth working on. "In some situations we’d just record everything we found," Bahat continued, "but in other cases it’s so important we have to take the land. Officials come and assess the land to buy it from the owners. It would then go to the director of the department, the Minister of Culture, because the government has to decide what to do with it." "Why have an archeologist talk about tourism?" Bahat asked the Christian group. "Governments don’t like to invest money in culture, but tourism is very important to our country. When you come to Israel you’re not a tourist, you’re a pilgrim."

"Israel can afford one thing – holy places," Bahat admitted, "and by digging and exploring archeological sites, the more you do that, the more tourists. The government sees that and invests money for more digs."

In the year 2000 Israel enjoyed three million visitors. "The investment in archeological research paid for itself," Bahat revealed, "now there’s more work being done throughout the country."

The luncheon, sponsored by the Israel Ministry of Tourism, also featured several travel groups promoting church tours to Israel. The aim of the event was to reassure Canadians that the many historical sites in Jerusalem are still safe to visit, even with the current violent clashes.

When asked how acts of terrorism have affected tourism in his country, Bahat answered, "It’s true we have terror events in Israel, but in the news it’s out of proportion."

Bahat spoke about the Ark of the Covenant, the digs around the Western Wall of the old city and the role of the New Testament in archeological studies of Jerusalem at the time of Christ.

"No one was interested in the Ark of the Covenant before the Indiana Jones movies," joked Bahat. "The Ark of the Covenant is like the Holy Grail of Christianity."

"In the second Temple there was no Ark of the Covenant," Bahat observed. He then told the story of a man who died while looking for the Ark. "It’s obvious God doesn’t want it to be found," he said. "Don’t expect me to endanger my head looking for it."

Using a large screen PowerPoint presentation, Bahat revealed serious findings unearthed in Jerusalem’s Western Wall Tunnel. These findings have substantiated what has been written in Scripture. Bahat displayed a photograph of steps found in the Temple Mount area where he’s convinced Jesus, as a boy, listened to and questioned the teachers as recorded in the sixth chapter of Luke’s Gospel.

"For students of theology, it’s important to get the archeological, geographical and historical background," Bahat insisted. "You cannot study Jerusalem at the time of Christ without reading the Gospels."

"When we work in Jerusalem," Bahat concluded, "we have millions of people looking over our shoulder. I didn’t leave you any alternative but to pack your suitcases and come to visit us in Jerusalem."