New Discovery in Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh

On Rosh Chodesh, when my friends and I were walking from the entrance, coffee/souvenir shop to the site of the Mishkan, Tabernacle for prayers, we noticed a new, active section being dug by archaeologists.  We stopped by to chat with the archaeologist in charge, and he pointed to a stunning piece they had just dug up, the base of a pillar, with exquisitely detailed carvings. I tried hard to photograph it, but then was told that it wasn't to be publicized yet.

Then we continued on our way, prayed together, and then each of us continued our day.

Imagine my surprise when just a few hours later, Shiloh Hakeduma, Ancient Shiloh, the administrators of Tel Shiloh davka publicized the discovery:

photo by Batya Medad

photo by Batya Medad

To summarize:

It's believed that the pillar was part of a Byzantine church, the 6th discovered at Tel Shiloh. And one must remember that many holy sites to Judaism, like the Biblical Shiloh, were later adopted by other religions. We, the Jewish People, were in Shiloh before them and after them, too.

This is the perfect message and reminder as we Israelis and Jews celebrate seventy 70 years of modern statehood. We have returned to our Ancestral Homeland, the Land of Israel, the Land of the Bible, our Jewish Bible, the Tanach.

No other people ever had an independent country here, just the Jewish People.

Chag Sameach!