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| Two summers recently, 2005 & 2007, Malcolm volunteered to help on an archeological dig in Israel |
| The particular site where he was digging, Tel Rehov, goes back to at least the 12th century B. C. , and they've not yet "hit bottom" on the dig, so who knows? |
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| He got to see a lot of old sites in Israel & attended lectures from top Israeli archaeologists and historians |
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| One day as Malcolm chipped away at the floor under his feet, he felt a ring that went under BOTH his feet. He stopped to investigate. |
| When the Israeli archeologist in charge of the site was called over he exclaimed, "It's an oven ! And it appears to be intact - I've never seen anything like this in 40 years of digging !" |
| For the next week, Malcolm and a colleague carefully removed layer after layer of ceramic debris with which the oven had been covered, apparently to protect it. |
| The ceramics themselves were quite valuable, but the oven underneath establishes the floor level, & the organic material inside (cooked food, & firewood) can be carbon-dated to determine exactly how old this layer of the dig is. |
| When all the careful chipping away is completed, what is revealed is a perfectly intact 11th century wood oven that by its very nature will reveal much about the people who used it |
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| In 2007, Malcolm traveled around the nation a lot more (& into neighboring Jordan) interacting with the people who live there now. |
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| Malcolm found a wonderful Israeli congregation of Russian- and English-speaking believers |
| Their pastor invited Malcolm to accompany him as he reaches out widely, generously, with the good news of the gospel in the local church, street preaching, and in homes, to immigrants, Israelis, Arabs, Palestinians, Bedouins, . . . and even Samaritans, |
| Once you get outside the well-watered loveliness of Jerusalem, you never know what you may find roaming the desert |
| with whose chief priest he shares the Word |
| Some of the most beautiful places are pretty remote but well worth the effort to get there |
| The Monastery on top of the mountain under which Petra hides |
| Update: Malcolm returned to Wheaton in September '07 and lived with us through January '08, working nights outdoors in the cold ! But he missed Israel so much, and wished he could be there instead of Chicago. Then his dreams and prayers were answered and he was offered a stipend to study Hebrew in Jerusalem. He currently lives there, becoming more fluent in Hebrew, and writing articles about Israel for the European press. |