Beth Sha'arim Necropolis
Necropolis of Beth Sha'arim located in the Lower Western Galilee was declared in 2015 as an official World Heritage Site. This ancient Jewish burial site (necropolis) from ~1750 years ago invites visitors to enter the extensive catacombs of what was an exclusive revered cemetery. At the end of the 2nd century CE the Sanhedrin which was serving as Jewish government in exile dealing with religious and civil matters had been moved to Beth Sha'arim. It's Nasi (president) was the extremely well respected Rabbi Yehudah HaNassi who had facilitated this move. HaNassi was involved at this time in coordinating the compilation and sealing of the oral law. This is what became known as the Mishnah. The oral law (Mishnah) just like the written law (Torah) is believed by orthodox Jews to have been given to Moses at Mt Sinai. The oral law of course was not written and depended on word of mouth from one generation to the next to preserve. The enormous effort to compile the oral law was done at a time when fear of the extermination of the Jewish people would have put the oral law in danger of being lost. In addition the rise of Christianity and the spread of the Gospels was thought to be putting the oral law in danger as well. Hanassi was the man behind this mega-compilation. He would be buried here in Beth Sha'arim and this would transform the cities necropolis into a super desired burial ground replacing the off limits Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. After all Jews believed that when the Messiah came the most righteous would be resurrected and Hasnasi was thought to be indeed the most righteous. Those buried near him would likely be among the first to be resurrected as well. This brought a magnetic avalanche of wealthy Jews that came from near and far to be buried here in the proximity of the Nasi. Carved into the soft limestone rock are a web of some thirty subterranean catacombs that have been identified but not all have been fully dug and revealed. Inside are 100's of awesome sarcophagi (stone caskets whose appropriate Greek meaning is flesh eating) that are decorated with many Jewish and Pagan artistic motifs; eagles, lions, bulls, masks, menorahs, wreaths, and geometric designs. There are also a multitude of inscriptions in Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic. Not surprisingly the sarcophagi all show evidence of greedy robbers breaking into them. These wealthy deceased Jews were believed to have been buried with their valuables and this invited the looting. The architectural designed entrances to the different catacombs were designed to look like the entrance to a dwelling. They have carved stone doors that simulate wooden doors, highlighting the belief that the burial cave represented a sort of home. Lastly a very important point to remember is that on a hot scorching day similar to the day I visited, the temperatures inside the caves drop significantly. This splendid natural air conditioning provide a welcome respite from that hot Mediterranean mid-day sun.
