Prickly Pear, Yearbook of Abilene Christian University, 1996 Page: 74
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1996 Pr i c kly P e a r
Uncoveringf history in Israeli soil
l ave you ever wanted to bring the Bible to
life? Traveling on the ACU-sponsored trip to
Banias, Israel, students uncovered artifacts
from Bible times.
The students' adventure focused on an archeological
dig uncovering relics from the First Century.
"Our dig was centered in Banias, the modern name
for Caesarea, Philippi, near the foot of Mount
Hermon, the tallest mountain in Israel," said Dr. John
Willis, graduate Bible professor.
Many students uncovered lamps, whole pots,
weights used to measure grain, horseshoes and nails.
"The most interesting relic we found was an Apse,
which is a semicircle used at the front of a church,
maybe the earliest church that has been found in
Palestine, probably second century," Willis said.
Along with uncovering history, the group toured the
towns of Galilee, Nazareth and Capernaum, and
swam in the Sea of Galilee. They toured the Garden
of Gethsemane, Mount of Olives and waded through
Hezekiah's mile-long tunnel.
The students experienced different cultures while
building friendships with students from other universities.Students participating in the program represented
Pepperdine University, Hardin-Simmons University,
Southwest Missouri University, Avertt College,
Midwestern Baptist University, Howard Paine
University and the University of Athens.
Nine ACU students traveled on the trip and have
many memories to keep for a lifetime.
Laura Barker, junior English major from Dallas, said,
"It was interesting seeing what you read about, realizing
how different it is from what I pictured."
"The Old City is the closest you can get to what it
was really like then," Laura said. "But it was so different
than what I thought because we were in the mountains
and beautiful trees."AHajime Tateno signals a successful excavation- a Herodian lamp dated to the second
century A.D. rests in the dirt to his left. (Photos courtesy of John Willis)Jennifer Riddle
a AcaJFthf: Archaeology in Israel
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Abilene Christian University. Prickly Pear, Yearbook of Abilene Christian University, 1996, yearbook, 1996; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth39892/m1/77/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.