Israel travel study a hit so far

Posted by admin on Feb 17, 2010 in News | 0 comments

This summer, Israel will be a first-time destination for a TWU travel study, and have one of the greatest amount of participation. For the travel study’s 27 students, two instructors and one coordinator, a pilgrimage to the Holy Land will not only be an educational experience but also a spiritual one.

“This trip is like a capstone on my degree,” said Ryan Schutt, a fourth year Christianity and Culture major. “I want to experience, feel, touch, see, hear, and maybe taste, the places where the biblical narrative took place. I hope that my three-weeks in Israel will give even the slightest experience of that.”

From May 3-19, the group will be in Israel visiting places such as Nazareth, Galilee, the Jordan River, Jerusalem, the Holocaust museum, and Qumran – where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found.
“Traveling gives one an education that they just cannot get in the classroom,” says Schutt.

“Professrs can talk about and show pictures of different places from the Old Testament and New Testament. But those pictures don’t bring the stories of the Bible to life in the same way that being there can. It’s for this very reason that I think the travel study has filled up.”

TWU religious studies professors, Kent Clarke and Ivan De Silva, will be offering four courses over the travel study: Introduction to Old and New Testament, Biblical Archaeology, and The Life and Teaching of Jesus.

In addition, Schutt will be the only student bringing his dad along. “I’ve taken many trips with my dad on family vacations and a mission trip but nothing like this,” said Schutt. “I’ve described this trip as a ‘pilgrimage’ to people. I think experiencing [this] with someone I love will be wonderful. What’s more is that I will experience that with someone who is the one who passed on the faith to me.”

For Schutt, his dad’s company on this travel study is a bonus to the experience he is about to take part of in Israel. “Hearing the Torah read at synagogue, smelling the incense wafting through one of ancient churches in Jerusalem, walking on the dusty roads of Nazareth and Galilee where Jesus walked, it all sounds rather charming; but in truth, it’s those little things that I hope will help me to have a deeper understanding and appreciation for what I have just spent the last four years studying,” said Schutt.

The Israel travel study still has some openings, so if you are interested contact Lucy Gerbrandt at lucy.gerbrandt@twu.ca.