Power Adapter Problem

I have an Dell Inspiron 640m. I have received this error message for the second time:

65W AC Power Adapter has been determined. Your system will operate slower and the battery will not change.

Anyone know anything about this? Can you offer any help?

Thanks.

Global Warming? Seriously?

As London debates a global warming bill, they experience the first October snow since 1922 (read article here). At the same time, Switzerland - you know, home of the Swiss Alps - just got the most October snow since they began keeping records in 1931 (read article here).

Right now, 60% of Londoners "doubt the influence of humans on climate change." However, it seems that no one in the leadership is willing to doubt this as well, even as we have seen so much evidence that questions whether global warming is actually happening and shows that human impact on climate change is very difficult to prove. 

Check out another one of my posts on the topic and let me know what you think about all of the global warming hype. 

All Of Us Have To Come Together

My friend Sam Harrelson posted the video of Obama's speech in Canton, Ohio  from 2 days ago. No matter your affiliation, I think you should check it out here.

There was one line in particular that stood out to me above all the others:

Yes, we can argue and debate our positions passionately, but all of us must summon the strength and grace to bridge our differences and unite in common effort; black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, Democrat, Republican, young, old, rich, poor, gay, straight, disabled or not. All of us have to come together.

That is my sentiment exactly. I am tired of the division that both parties exhibit and the division that we as individuals exhibit and the superiority that we feel to those who have different views than we have or who express different religious beliefs. We do not all need to be the same, but we do need to work together. We need to grow in our understanding of each other and stop relying on stereotypes that are perpetuated by our ignorance and our lack of desire to search out the truth about other parties or other religions or other people. There are plenty of issues that we can and will differ on, but there are also plenty that we shouldn't. We need to "unite in common effort" against poverty and against genocide and against imperialism and against hunger. 

This is not a democratic issue or a republican issue. This is not a Christian issue or an Islamic issue. This is not an American issue or an European issue. This is a humanity issue. This is a issue that should resonate within each and every one of us because we are humans and there are fellow human beings that are suffering. We have fellow human beings who are not given the dignity that they deserve as a human. We have fellow human beings who are discriminated against because they have a certain skin color or because they have a certain belief system. 

Our world certainly is not perfect and we will never see it become perfect, but that is no excuse to resign ourselves to accepting the way it is. We must not sit by while injustices prosper. 

This is about you. This is about me. This is about us. All of us have to come together.

A Typical Day in a Swedish Office

Love it.

US Bombs Syria!

A few weeks ago a read an online news article that piqued my interest. I apologize that I cannot remember the exact source, but I do know that it was not an American-based website. The article basically said that another country (Belgium, if I remember correctly) had decided not to attack Syria because they had intel that the US was going to do it in a few weeks. Well, they were right, the US did just bomb Syria. You can read more about this incident on BBC, here. Specifically you should notice the last sentence:

One correspondent says the timing of the incident if curious, coming right at the end of the Bush Administration's period of office and at a moment when many of America's European allies - like Britain and France - are trying to broadent heir ties with Damascus.

Many have been saying that there was going to be a surprise just before the election and, folks, I think we have just seen it. I'll save some of my opinions for now, because I want to hear your reaction.

Soul-Baring

This morning in church my pastor made a comment that made me stop and think for a bit. He was talking about how a church should be a home for people and in the course of saying what a church should be he said, 

"The church should be a place where we can bare our souls."

As I thought about that more I began to wonder how true that was. Church has never really been a place that I felt like I could bare my soul. I then wondered if other people felt the same way, because I understand that I am a pretty private person and do not bare my soul to very many people. I am very protective of my soul.

My question to you: is church a place where you can bare your soul? If yes, why? If not, do you have a place or people with whom you can bare your soul. I'm very interested in hearing your responses.

JCRA: Day 2

Another fantastic day today. We began the day at the National Cathedral at 10:10 for the forum, where Thomas Cahill was the guest. Then we attended the service at 11:15. The service was beautiful as was the cathedral itslf. After the service, that went a bit longer than we expected, we had a private tour of the Cathedral and our guide spoke, on occassion, specifically to the work that the cathedral is doing in the interfaith community. Their work is varied and quite impressive. 

We then met with Kendall Soulen to discuss his book. This meeting was great. Soulen was very gracious to take time out of his Sunday afternoon to lecture to us briefly and then field questions that we had about his book. His answers were not always the ones I would have given, but he answered very well on the spot and offered some great imagery that may prove to be very helpful to Jewish-Christian dialogue.

Some pictures from today at the National Cathedral:

JCRA: Day 1

Today has been a fantastic day. We drove from Boiling Springs, NC to Alexandria, VA and arrived at our hotel around 3:30pm. We then pretty much immediately got on the Metro, which is across the parking lot from our hotel, and headed into D.C. Before dinner we went to the National Air and Space Museum, where we saw the Wright Brothers' plane and a lot of cool stuff from the Apollo trips, and the Museum of Natural History, where we saw a lot, but the best was the exhibit on Richard Evans Schultes called The Lost Amazon.

We ate dinner at Thai Chili and it was actually pretty good. 

After dinner we talked around and saw the White House, the Vietnam Memorial, the WWII Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument. Seeing them all lit up at night was fanatastic. Sadly, my camera would not allow for most of the pictures to turn out.

I've posted a few pictures below of today's events. 

On the agenda for tomorrow: Attend National Cathedral; meet with Dr. Kendall Soulen

D.C., Charleston, Savannah in 6 days

Tomorrow morning I am leaving to embark on a journey with 9 fellow journey women and men. We are traveling to Washington, D.C.; Charleston, SC; and Savannah, GA. 

The purpose of our trip: Jewish-Christian Relations in America.

Our plans are: 

• Visit the Washington National Cathedral in D.C. 
  
• Meet with Dr. Kendall Soulen, author of The God of Israel and Christian Theology
  
• Visit The Holocaust Museum and with Dr. Victoria Barnett, Director of Church Relations for the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the Museum for a private lecture entitled, "American Churches' Response to the Holocaust"
  
• Meet with Rabbi Anthony Holz of Kahal Kadohs Beth Elohim, the fourth oldest Jewish congregation in the USA (est. 1749)
• Visit the Coming Street Cemetary in Charleston, SC, with a guided tour by Dr. Harlan Greene, Director of Archival and Reference Services at the College of Charleston
• Meet with Dr. Dale Rosengarten, Curator of the Jewish Heritage Collection in the Addlestone Library at the College of Charleston
• Meet with Rabbi Arnold Mark Belzer of Mickve Israel, the third oldest Jewish congregation in America
• Meet with Dr. John Finley, pastor of First Baptist Church Savannah, a church that has a rich history of relations with the Jewish community in Savannah
• Attend Sukkot service at Beth HaTephila in Asheville, NC

I hope to post updates and happenings throughout the week.

What Would You do with $700B? OR There's No Such Thing as Free Lunch

This is a pretty tough question. I mean I could spend maybe a billion dollars buying houses and cars and other stuff. With that I'd be pretty well set. After that I could easily give away billions and billions of dollrs to help people in need and people who are hungry and people who need wells dug so their communities can have safe drinking water and people who simply need $10 mosquito nets so they can sleep at night and not worry about getting Malaria. I could sponsor 182,291,666 kids through Compassion International for the next ten years. I can think of a lot of ways to spend a lot of money, but $700 billion? I just don't know that I could actually think of ways to spend that money wisely without buying golden toilet seats and making square circles. 

Apparently, Congress couldn't figure out how to do it either. That's why what was once a $700B plan morphed into a $810B plan before it went through the Senate and back to the House. What's with the extra $110B you ask? Good question. Well its what some have called "sweeteners." They are called sweeteners, because they do just that, they sweeten the bill up. So, the bill now includes $100 million for NASCAR. Seriously? I mean, I like NASCAR, but what is money for NASCAR doing in an economic bailout/recovery plan? Want to know what else was in the additions? $2 million for wooden arrows for children. Again, are you serious? A few other additions, or earmarks as they're known in Washington:

• $10 million in benefits for employers to offer employees who commute to work via bicycle
• Allowance for production companies to deduct the cost of producing their films from their taxes. This measure will cost taxpayers $478 million over the next 10 years.
• Tax break on rum from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. This tax break for them will cost the taxpayers $192 million.
• Extension of a measure that helps wool fabric makers and clothing manufacturers. This will cost taxpayers $148 million.

Call me crazy, but I fail to see just how these additions have anything to do with the current economic crisis. What got us into the situation that we're in now is the push by the federal government in the 1990's to make homeownership a real possibility for everyone. That meant loaning more money to people than they could afford. While I would love for everyone to be a homeowner, the fact of the matter is that not every can own a home. Some people simply can't afford it and some people can afford to own small homes, but not large homes. That's okay. I feel comfortable saying this because at this point in time I don't own a home. We were approved by a bank for a home loan that was more than we could afford, but we didn't take it. Hear that? Just because you're approved for a certain amount of money doesn't mean you have to take it all, especially if you know you can't afford the monthly payments, or what the monthly payments will be once the balloon inflates.

Implications for the Presidential Race

Remember those two guys who are running for president? Barack Obama and John McCain. Well, both of them have been saying that they are going to lower taxes. Obama has been saying that his plan would lower taxes for 95% of Americans (in actuality his plan will only lower taxes for about 80% of American households) and McCain says that he's going to lower taxes too. John McCain has been vehement about saying that he doesn't vote for earmarks and accusing Barack Obama of voting for millions of dollars in earmarks. Well, I think the playing field is pretty level now. Both Obama and McCain voted for this economic bailout plan, earmarks and all. Do either of them truly have what's best for the American people in their sights? I really wonder. 

Other Reservations

I know I seem to be being pretty hard on this economic bailout plan. Maybe you're wondering, "Thomas, would you be happier if the bill took out all the nonsense and simply helped the people in trouble?" Truthfully, no. I certainly think it's fine to help people in trouble, but have we forgotten that we live in a capitalist country? Well, we used to anyway. We are moving closer and closer to socialism. Before you hear me knocking socialism, I am not. I am actually a big fan of socialism, just not in this country. We are not and can never truly be a socialist country. If you want socialism, move to Sweden. It truly is wonderful there; I know. 

However, what the American people have to remember while basking in the glory of socialism is that socialism costs money. It is plain and simple. We cannot have universal healthcare without increasing taxes. We cannot make everyone a homeone without increasing taxes. We cannot make everyone even remotely close to equal without increasing taxes. So, before you start thinking how necessary this bailout plan was and how great universal healthcare would be (no matter who's proposing it), take a step back and think about it. My dad always says, "Son, nothing in life is free." You know the truth of this as well as I do. Just because money didn't come out of my pocket doesn't mean money didn't come out of anyone's pocket or that it won't come out of my pocket later. 

One last reservation I have. The bailout plan essentially gives Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson all the money to do with as he sees fit. The language throughout the bill says that the money should be used "at the Secretary's discretion" multiple times. Are we really okay with giving one person that much money, that much control over what happens with $810B in taxpayer dollars? I'm not. 

This issue isn't a Republican or Democrat issue; this is an American issue. At the heart of this is the question of what our American ideals are. Are we capitalist or are we socialist? Are we okay with Congress continuing to build Bridges to Nowhere or do we want them to finally singularly address the issue on the table without adding in money for everyone else and their grandmother except the average American citizen?

Remember, there's no such thing as free lunch.

The Tribe

This video was shared in my class on Jewish-Christian Relations in America. Thanks to Trevar for providing the link. It's a fantastic short video (17 min) on Jews, their history worldwide and in America and it also raises a great question at the end concerning how we view those around us.

Enjoy.

What I'm Reading

Thought I'd let you know of two books that I am reading right now for my class Jewish-Christian Relations in America.

The first book is A New Promised Land: A History of Jews in America

The Second is Irreconcilable Differences?: A Learning Resource for Jews and Christians

Check them out in your free time, that I know you have so much of. Both are easy reads and good introductions to the field of Jewish-Christian Relations. I will be traveling to Washington, D.C.; Charleston, SC; and Savannah, SC in a few weeks to explore and study JCR in America even more. Stay tuned for updates from that trip.

Worship On Your Face

I've just added a new blog to my blogroll: Worship On Your Face: The Prostrate Chronicles. 

A Friend of mine has started it as a resource to worship leaders to be a place to share ideas, resources, links, etc. So, if you, or anyone you know is a worship leader, check it out. If not, check it out anyway, because it may do you some good.

A Date with Don Cheadle

My friend Michael wrote the other day about anticipating a date night with his wife Lauren. I somehow missed that it was Friday night so me and my wife, wolfpack whitley, invited them to go to the drive-in with us. Alas, they decided to keep their ever-important plans of dinner and a movie. We, however, pressed on; thus, having a date night of our own...without all the foreplanning and anticipation. I dare say, it was just as good though. 

The two movies we saw were The Longshots and Traitor. Both good movies. The Longshots was a great story of unexpected success and redemption. Traitor, while also being a good movie, had a bit of a different message. Without giving all of the story away, I will talk about one part that I particularly liked. 

Don Cheadle was the star and played Samir Horn. Cheadle is one of my favorite actors, but gets much less press than he deserves. Moving on, though to the scene I want to reference. One  detective is particularly turned off by Muslim extremists and his partner responds (as my  memory serves me anyway): "Where I grew up, the KKK burned crosses in black people's yards and my dad would go over and put them out. Seems that all religions have some evil

 in them." While that may not have been his exact words (I have searched for the full script, but been unable to find it. If anyone can find it please point me in the right direction) the sentiment is clear, nonetheless. Often times Christians, myself being one, label Islam as a whole a terrorist religion and conveniently forget our own past: the Crusades, the Salem Witch Trials, The Ku Klux Klan, Christians bombing abortion clinics. 

Have we forgotten what some guy said a long time ago that we should remove the log from our own eye before we point out the speck in someone else's? All religions do have elements of evil in them. Is that to say that evil is inherent in religion? Not necessarily, but all religions do contain humans and humans have potential for great evil. Thus, we recognize that Islam has extremists, but so does Christianity. We can no longer point our blame fingers at others; we must also point them at ourselves.

"Change" Video

Some while back I posted the lyrics to "Change" by Tracy Chapman here. I decided to post the video as well so that you can put the music with the lyrics. While the lyrics are stand out on their own, songs are meant to be heard.

I love Tracy Chapman's lyrics, but think I love her voice even more. See for yourself.

Lance is Back!

The rumors are true: Lance Armstrong is returning to professional cycling. 

Lance Armstrong celebrates his 7th Tour de France win.

True, I am a few days late with "breaking" this news, but I still felt I needed to mention it. The reasons for his return are twofold. The obvious reason is to win the Tour de France again, which would be a record 8th time (He already holds the record for winning it 7 times). Also, in doing so he wants to prove that he wasn't doping and isn't doping and that he can win without drugs. With how laden professional cycling has been with doping charges, this is very welcomed. Rumors are that he will post his drug tests online so that everyone can view them. This is a very positive step in professional cycling, especially when considering what Team Slipstream (now Team Garmin/Chipotle) has been doing this year already.

Well, enough of my talking about it. To find out more about it from Lance himself, check out his Livestrong blog.

Beer Baby

You've gotta check this out. My wife posted pictures of our neice this week at the beach. Quite enjoyable.

Check out her post here.

wolfpack whitley

My wife has started a new blog since we've been on vacation. Check it out and enjoy her reads and pictures.

Check it out here.

Grace Nichole Couturier

Weighing in at 8lbs and 5oz and measuring 20.75" longs we have the newest member of our family, Grace Nichole. She was born at 11:38pm on 3 September 2008.

Testing the Test

I am back in classes and read this from G. K. Chesterton from his work The Common Man last night, so I'm sharing it with you to get your thoughts.

...man is always influenced by thought of some kind, his own or somebody else's; that of somebody he trusts or that of somebody he never heard of, thought at first, second or third hand; thought from exploded legends or unverified rumours; but always something with the shadow of a system of values and a reason for preference. A man does test everything by something. The question here is whether he has ever tested the test.

Intriguing question indeed. 

Do I think for myself? 

What is my test?

Do I test the test?

Do you test the test?

Jewish Apocalypticism in the Second Temple Period: Literature, Sociology and Theology

I have just finished my paper on Second Temple Jewish Apocalypticism. It is a bit of a broad overview of the topic. I have published it to GoogleDocs for anyone who is interested.

The paper can be found here.

Fantasy Cycling: Final Update

So, for those of you who have been checking back incessantly, so as to find out how my fantasy cycling team did...well, I'll give you a hint: I got beasted. Yep, that's pretty much how it went down, Trinity even did better than me. I had a few good stages, but nothing spectacular and overall in my league of 3 I was last place.

Next year will be better though. Next year...

Fantasy Cycling: Update 2

So, the first 4 stages of Le Tour de France are now done. Today was the individual time trial (ITT) and it shook things up quite a bit. I did much better today, though, earning 247 points by having 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 9th place as starters on my team today (you only get points when riders place in the top 15 riders on any particular stage).

After today's stage, though, the rosters get locked in everyone is reset to zero. In case anyone is wondering, my 15 riders are:

David Millar

Fabian Cancellara

Denis Menchov

George Hincapie

Damiano Cunego

Alejandro Valverde

Filippo Pozzato

Yaroslav Popovych

Robbie McEwen

Jens Voigt

Jose Ivan Gutierrez

Christopher Froome

Egoi Martinez

Inaki Isasi

David De La Fuente

It's not too late to join the fantasy cycling challenge. Just go here. However, you do need to put your team together before midnight tonight, as that's when it gets all locked up.

Fantasy Cycling: Update 1

So, after the first stage of the Tour de France I racked up a woping 46 points. You may be thinking, "Thomas, that doesn't sound too bad." Well, I would think that too, if the first place team didn't have 529 points and I weren't in 617th place.

Oh well, the first 4 stages are practice rounds. I'm trying to work out the kinks and be ready for stage 5.

More updates to come.

Fantasy Cycling?

That's right, there really is such a thing as fantasy cycling. I guess it was only a matter of time.

I've never done any other fantasy leagues before, but am stoked about this one. I've put my team together for the 2008 Tour de France, which starts Saturday. 

2008 Tour de France Route

You can check out the fantasy cycling challenge here. 

I've created a league, so if you're interested leave a comment with your name and e-mail address and I'll send you the league name and password.

For more Tour information check out the Versus website.

Who is your favorite for this year's Tour?

Energy Crisis, Or Lack Thereof

As some of you know, I try to stay up on environmental issues like global warming and the like. Though this is not exactly an environmental issue, it falls in the same part of my brain for some reason. I was sent a link to a video 2 days ago of a lecture by Lindsey Williams on what he calls the Energy Non-Crisis. I have my opinions of it, but wanted to see what you thought. 

Williams essentially says that there is a group of men who determine how much oil can be used and how much it is going to cost. He also says that they have found probably the largest oil field in the world on the Alaskan North Coast, but that the government isn't letting them pump oil out of it, but instead making us buy oil from the Middle East because of a deal made in the 60s or 70s.

Anyway, the video can be found here.

It is a long video, 1 hour and 15 minutes, but please watch it and share your thoughts.

Still Alive

That's right...I haven't died, even though my blog seems as if I have. I have been out of town for the past two weeks and have been catching back up on sleep and work since I've been back.

Hopefully my life will have some blog-worthy events soon.

Until then enjoy these pics from last week in Charleston.

Jeremy Curtis, worship leader

The track group I was in. We painted this house.

New Photo Album: Egyptian, Israeli and Jordanian Fun All in One

Egyptian, Israeli and Jordanian Fun All in One

Back in the USA

I apologize for the lack of posting while I was in Egypt and Israel, but paying to use the Internet was not at the top of my list of things to do every day. I did do it some, of course, but usually not for long enough to post.

I am going to upload my photo album so that you see how fantastic of a trip we had and I might do some retracking of our adventures while we were there. We'll just have to see how much time I end up having...especially since I am leaving on Thursday to go fishing for a few days.

Here are a few pics to whet your appetite.

In Cairo

We have arrived in Cairo with a phone card that doesn’t work and expensive internet access. So, updates will likely be few and far between. 

Our hotel is literally at the base of the pyramids and we are going to visit them tomorrow and go for a camel ride as well. We are excited. Maybe I can update more once we get into Israel.

Until then...

Out of Egypt into the Holyland

That's right folks. It is now less than 24 hours until Trinity and I, along with quite a few other people, hop on a plane to Cairo, Egypt. We are going to spend 12 days between Egypt, Israel and Jordan. I am extremely excited about this trip, as I have never been to this part of the world before. 

Check out the trip information I posted the other day that has our flight times, hotel info (you should google some of the hotels and check them out) and our tentative day to day schedule.

I will attempt to post while we're gone, but don't know how my internet access will be. So, if I can't I will surely post about it when we get back. Until then...

Countdown

Countdown

Out of Egypt Into the Holyland Trip Information

Flight Itinerary

Monday May, 12, 2008

Depart	Charlotte	1:25 pm	US Air Flight 2622
Arrive	NY, JFK	3:24 pm
Depart	NY JFK	6:30 pm	Egypt Air Flight #986
Arrive	Cairo	12:30 pm (Tuesday)

Friday, May 23, 2008

Depart	Amman	8:25 pm	Egypt Air Flight 702
Arrive	Cairo	8:45 pm

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Depart	Cairo	10:15 am	Egypt Air Flight 985
Arrive	NY, JFK	3:15 am
Depart	NY, JFK	6:55 pm	US Air Flight 805
Arrive	Charlotte	9:05 pm

________________________________________________________

HOTELS

Tuesday, May 13, 2008 – Friday, May 16, 2008

LE MERIDIEN PYRAMIDS

El Remaya Square

P.O. Box 25 Pyramids

Pyramids, Giza, Cairo, Egypt

Tel: 011 20 2 3377 3388

Fax: 011 20 2 3377 1730

 

Friday, May 16, 2008 – Saturday, May 17, 2008

INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL

Jericho Main Road

P.O. Box 150

Jericho

Tel: 011 970 2 231 1200

Fax: 011 970 2 231 1222

 

Saturday, May 17, 2008 – Monday, May 19, 2008

GAI BEACH HOTEL

Derech Hamerchatzaot

Tiberias, Israel

Tel: 011 972 4 670 0700

Fax: 011 972 4 679 2776

 

Monday, May 19, 2008 – Friday, May 23, 2008

GRAND COURT HOTEL

Saint George Street Number 15

Jerusalem, Israel

Tel: 011 972 2 591 7777

Fax: 011 972 2 591 7778

 

Friday, May 23, 2008 – Saturday, May 24, 2008

CONCORDE EL SALAM HOTEL

Abdel Hamid Badawi Street

Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt

Tel: 011 20 2 2622 6000

Fax: 011 20 2 2622 6037

________________________________________________________

Day to Day

MON. May 12: Depart New York JFK International Airport via Egypt Air@6:30 PM Non Stop jet service to Cairo, Egypt.

TUES. May 13: Arrive in Cairo, 12:30 PM . Balance of day at leisure.

WED. May 14: Visit the Egyptian Museum. The Museum contains the world’s most important collection of Egyptian antiquities, dating from the earliest times to about 6th century AD. Collection includes some of the artistic masterpieces of the world, including the treasures of Tut-Ankh-Amon. Proceed to the Giza Plateau to see the Pyramids & the Sphinx. Stop at one of Egypt’s famous carpet factories & visit a papyrus shop.

THURS. May 15: Morning tour to Memphis and Sakkara. Located 20 miles SW of Cairo, Memphis was once the capital of Egypt. Sakkara’s Step Pyramids are the world’s first stone tombs. This afternoon visit the Mosque of Sultan Hassan built in the 14th century, the Citadel of Salah-El Din & the Alabaster Mosque.

FRI. May 16: Depart Cairo. Visit the remarkable ruins of the Fortress built by Herod the Great and destroyed by Flavius Silva in 73 AD. Drive along the shores of the Dead Sea to Qumran, the site where the Scrolls of the Dead Sea were found by a shepherd boy & stop for a swim in the Dead Sea. Proceed to Jericho for overnight.

SAT. May 17: Tour Jericho & visit Tel El Sultan, ruins of one of the oldest cities in the world. View the Mount of Temptation, where Jesus fasted for 40 days & 40 nights. Drive through the Jordan Valley to Megiddo or Armageddon, the strategic point on the Via Maris, connecting Egypt & Damascus. Proceed to Nazareth to see the Basilica of the Annunciation, one of the few Christian shrines in Israel. See Mary’s Well with its arched wall. Visit the Baptist Church & School of Nazareth driving through Cana to Tiberias for overnight.

SUN. May 18: This morning board a boat on the Sea of Galilee for Sunday morning worship & cruise to Capernaum. Upon landing, visit the site where Jesus began His Ministry & the site of the Synagogue where He taught. Proceed to Tabgha, the site of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fish. Visit the 4th century mosaics. Drive to the top of the Mount of Beatitudes

for an outstanding view of the Sea of Galilee & the surrounding area. End the day at the exit of the Jordan River near the Sea of Galilee for a baptismal service. Overnight in Tiberias.

MON. May 19:  This morning drive to the Valley of the Winds & on to Haifa, see Elijah’s Cave and enjoy the view of the city from Mt. Carmel. Drive along the Mediterranean to Caesarea by the Sea to visit the spectacular city of Herod the Great, see the ruins of the Crusader’s city, and stand in the Roman Theater. Drive to Jerusalem for overnight.

TUES. May 20: Drive to Mount of Olives. Visit the Church of Pater Noster, the Garden of Gethsemane, & Church of All Nations. View the Kidron Valley. Visit Mt. Zion & the Upper Room where Jesus accomplished his Ministry. Spend afternoon in Bethlehem visiting the Church of the Nativity, the Shepherds Fields, & the Fields of Boaz & Ruth. Return to hotel for overnight in Jerusalem.

WED. May 21: Visit the House of Caiaphas, the Dungeon, & Gallicantu. Proceed to the Church of Saint Anne, the Pool of Bethesda, the Lithostrotos, Pilate’s Judgment Hall & walk along the Via Dolorosa leading to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Return to hotel for overnight.

THURS. May 22: Proceed toward the city walls built by Solomon the Magnificent enclosing the most Holy Sites. Walk into the old city through the Damascus Gate & through the picturesque colorful bazaars to the superb Temple Area, where Solomon’s Temple was built on Mt. Moriah. Visit the Dome of the Rock enclosing the Rock of Sacrifice. See the Mosque of Al Aska, further south, the Pinnacle of the Temple & the Wailing Wall. Visit the Garden Tomb & Gordon’s Calvary, the site where Jesus was crucified,  buried & resurrected. Celebrate  Communion at the Garden Tomb.

FRI. May 23: Depart from Jerusalem to cross into Jordan via Allemby Bridge. Drive to Mount Nebo commemorating the site where Moses saw the Promised Land & died, continue to the biblical Medeba, for a visit to the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George which houses the 6th century mosaics showing the entire region from Jordan & Palestine in the north, to Egypt in the South. This map includes a fascinating plan of Jerusalem showing the Holy Sepulcher. Continue to Jerash, the “Pompeii of the Middle East”. Visit the most beautifully preserved Greco-Roman city in existence, the grand ruins - temples to Artemis and Zeus, a vast Roman Forum, Hadrian’s Triumphal Arch & a mile long Street of Whispering Columns. Transfer to Amman International airport for return flight to Cairo.

SAT. May 24: Transfer to Cairo airport in time for non-stop return flight to New York. Arrive New York approximately 3:15 in the afternoon local time.