Actors' Equity's Open Access

 

[For decades, the only ways to gain membership in the professional stage actors’ and stage managers’ union in the United States has been to obtain work under an Actors’ Equity Association contract; work under a contract of one of Equity’s sister unions, such as SAG-AFTRA (or, before the merger, the Screen Actors Guild or the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists), the American Guild of Musical Artists [AGMA], or the American Guild of Variety Artists [AGVA]), and then “buy in” to Equity; or through the Equity Membership Candidate (EMC) Program in which actors may work in union productions for credits towards eventual membership, for which a candidate becomes eligible after 50 weeks of work at theaters that are a part of the EMC program. 

[Now the union has announced a major change in these membership requirements.  On Tuesday, 20 July, Actors’ Equity made the new eligibility requirements public, creating a flurry of reports in the theater press.  I’ve collected some of the coverage of the announcement and the union’s own publications on the change. 

[Below is one full article, from Playbill, and three pieces from Equity, including the press release.  Following those, I have excepted some of the individual commentary by the press outlets with a few opinions and interpretations some of the publications made.]

ACTORS’ EQUITY ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION OPENS UP ELIGIBILITY FOR WORKERS IN NON-EQUITY PRODUCTIONS
by Dan Meyer

[The following article was published on 21 July 2021 in Playbill, the national theater magazine.  It covers the announcement by Actors’ Equity Association of a significant change in the theatrical actors’ and stage managers’ union’s requirements for membership.]

The Open Access membership policy will also make it easier for former members of Equity to rejoin the union.

Actors’ Equity Association, the union for theatrical performers and stage managers, has opened up its eligibility with a new membership policy titled Open Access. Moving forward, theatre workers who can demonstrate they have worked professionally as an actor or stage manager within Equity’s geographical jurisdiction can join the union, effective immediately.

Open Access also opens the door for former members of Equity to rejoin the union without having to secure a new Equity contract, as required under previous policy. Former members and former applicants for membership who choose to join Equity under this policy may also apply previously paid initiation fees toward their current application. Eligibility will extend for two years, with application and down payment of applicable fees required by May 1, 2023.

“The old system had a significant flaw: It made employers the gatekeepers of Equity membership, with almost no other pathways to joining,” said Kate Shindle, president of Actors’ Equity Association. “The entertainment industry is disproportionately white, including and especially theatrical leadership. The union has inadvertently contributed to the systemic exclusion of BIPOC [Black, Indigenous and People of Color] artists and others with marginalized identities by maintaining a system in which being hired to work those contracts was a prerequisite of membership. We hope that artists from all backgrounds will join us in building a union that uplifts the entire theatre community, especially those who have not felt included or welcome in the past.”

Open Access is part of AEA’s Diversity & Inclusion Retrofit, the union’s efforts to re-examine its own systems, structure, and processes through an anti-racist lens.

*  *  *  *

[AEA’s own press release on the subject of the new membership qualifications, as published on its website, https://www.actorsequity.org/news/PR/OpenAccess/, on 21 July.]

ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES ‘OPEN ACCESS,’ EXPANDING ELIGIBILITY FOR UNION MEMBERSHIP

New York – As the live arts industry begins to restart, and work increases as the pandemic diminishes, Actors’ Equity Association, the national union representing more than 51,000 professional actors and stage managers in live theatre, has announced a new Open Access membership policy, allowing any theatre worker who can demonstrate they have worked professionally as an actor or stage manager within Equity’s geographical jurisdiction to join the union.

Previously, eligibility for union membership had been limited to those working for an Equity employer – whether by direct contract offer or through the Equity Membership Candidate program – or to members of a sibling union. Now, Equity is broadening access to union jobs that offer living wages, benefits and important workplace safety provisions.

“The old system had a significant flaw: It made employers the gatekeepers of Equity membership, with almost no other pathways to joining,” said Kate Shindle, president of Actors’ Equity Association. “The entertainment industry is disproportionately white, including and especially theatrical leadership. The union has inadvertently contributed to the systemic exclusion of BIPOC artists and others with marginalized identities by maintaining a system in which being hired to work those contracts was a prerequisite of membership. We hope that artists from all backgrounds will join us in building a union that uplifts the entire theatre community, especially those who have not felt included or welcome in the past.”

Additionally, the Open Access policy invites former members of Equity to rejoin the union without having to secure a new Equity contract, as required under previous policy. Former members and former applicants for membership who choose to join Equity under this policy may also apply previously paid initiation fees toward their current application. 

Open Access is effective immediately for actors and stage managers who wish to join or rejoin Equity, regardless of country of origin or residence. Eligibility will extend for two years, with application and down payment of applicable fees required by May 1, 2023. Further details about the policy are available on Equity’s website.

Background: Open Access is one of the pillars of the union’s Diversity & Inclusion Retrofit, Equity’s strategic framework for re-examining its own systems, structures and processes from the ground up to move Equity toward becoming an antiracist organization.

*  *  *  *

[Further details and the answers to some questions were provided in another AEA post, undated but available at https://www.actorsequity.org/join/openaccess/.]

OPEN ACCESS

IT’S EASIER THAN EVER TO JOIN EQUITY!

And it’s more important than ever for actors and stage managers to stand together in solidarity to make theatre a safer, more equitable industry. Are you ready to become a union member? Begin your application here.

WHAT IS OPEN ACCESS?

Put simply, Equity membership is now open to any stage manager or actor who has worked professionally on a theatre production in the United States. We’ve also made it easier for former Equity members to rejoin the union. 

WHY IS EQUITY OPENING ACCESS?

For many years, eligibility to join Actors’ Equity Association has been limited to those who are working for an Equity employer – either by direct contract offer or through the Equity Membership Candidate program – or to members of a sibling union. 

But Equity theatres, like all entertainment industry employers, are disproportionately run by white people, and their programming and hiring decisions show that they often hold biases in favor of people from similar demographics. In fact, recent hiring studies demonstrate that Equity contracts are disproportionately offered to white people, and the majority of new members join via a contract.  Because our membership rules until now have left access to membership in employers’ hands, they have implicitly created a disproportionately high barrier to access for actors and stage managers of marginalized identities. We have inadvertently contributed to the systemic exclusion of people of color and people of other marginalized identities from the benefits of union membership.

We are taking steps to change that. Open Access is one major step.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

If you are an EMC [Equity Membership Candidate] or a former member, or if you have previously worked in an Equity theater, we may already have the information needed to confirm your eligibility to join Equity. Otherwise, if you have worked professionally as a stage manager or actor in the United States, you will need to provide proof of that work and proof of payment for that work (e.g. pay stub, W2, 1099, etc.). Your application and a $600 down payment toward the initiation fee are required by May 1, 2023. Learn more about Dues & Fees.

Former members and former applicants to Equity membership can have previous initiation fee payments credited towards the amount owed for joining or rejoining. All members now have three years to pay off their initiation fee.

Open Access is currently in effect until May 1, 2023. In the meantime, Equity will be developing a permanent gateway to membership that addresses racial inequities in accessing membership in the union. 

FAQ

Why should I become a member of Equity?

Actors and stage managers are workers, and unions like Equity provide important workplace protections for workers. As a union member, you will have the strength of more than 51,000 fellow members standing beside you, as well as a professional staff enforcing your contracts. This means fair pay, safer workplaces and the opportunity to make a real living in the theatre. Equity also provides a wide range of benefits that enhance both the professional and personal lives of members, from negotiated minimum salaries to a pension plan and supplemental workers’ compensation. Learn more.

How much does it cost to join the union?

Initiation fees are currently $1700, which can be paid over the three years following application. Once you become a member, you will pay annual dues in May and November, as well as working dues (a percentage of your paycheck) that help Equity function and serve its members. Learn more about Dues & Fees.

I’m an EMC. Do I need to finish my candidacy to join the union?

EMCs are welcome to continue along their path to Equity membership. However, they can also become members immediately, and any fees they have paid to the union will go towards the initiation fee.

I'd love to join, but I have a non-union job booked. Can I still join?

You must complete any non-union theatrical acting or stage managing jobs before joining the union, but once your gig is over, you can join!

I used to be a member, and my membership lapsed. Can I rejoin under this program?

Any former member can rejoin through Open Access, with the exception of those who left Equity to work on a non-union production. Former members and former applicants to Equity membership can have previous initiation fee payments credited towards the amount owed for joining or rejoining.

What if I am not a citizen, or currently living abroad?

As long as you have worked professionally as an actor or stage manager in a theatrical production the United States, you are eligible for membership, regardless of residence, country of origin or citizenship status.

How exactly does this address racial inequality?

Equity theatres, and indeed all entertainment industry employers, are disproportionately led by and populated by white people. Our membership rule has created a disproportionately high barrier to access for actors and stage managers of marginalized identities. Open Access is one of the pillars of our Diversity & Inclusion Retrofit, and there is still plenty of work to be done to transform Equity into an anti-racist organization. There is more to be done to ensure that all stage managers and actors – whether longstanding Equity members or newly eligible – can expect safe working environments free of bias and prejudice. But opening membership can't wait until we’ve finished the Diversity & Inclusion Retrofit. Every stage manager and actor deserves access to the protections of union membership immediately.

I understand this is about removing barriers to access for people with marginalized identities. If I don't believe that applies to me, can I still enroll under Open Access?

Yes! This is about increasing access to the all the union has to offer, and building solidarity with fellow theatre workers of all backgrounds. The union needs everyone who wants to be a part of building a better industry— the labor movement means we are all stronger together. The time has come for Equity, not employers, to invite workers into the union.

How will this affect auditions held exclusively for Equity members?

Auditions may get more crowded. During the transition from one model of union membership eligibility to the other, new and unpredictable concerns will arise. And still: stage managers and actors deserve access to the protections of union membership immediately. 

How did Open Access happen?

The union is the members, and the members made their voices heard!

Members began serious conversations about changing this policy prior to the pandemic. A working group was formed under our Diversity & Inclusion Retrofit, where the details were hammered out. While this work was ongoing, elected delegates crafted a resolution in support of broadening access to membership, which convention passed enthusiastically. Council overwhelming voted in favor of the new policy.

And now here we are, putting these members’ visions into action.

What else is Equity doing to address inequality in the union and the theatre industry?

Equity is currently undertaking the Diversity & Inclusion Retrofit, a process aimed at remaking our union from the ground up as an antiracist organization. Open Access is just one important piece of the Retrofit; you can learn more on the website, along with other diversity and inclusion initiatives.

What if I have other questions that aren’t listed here?

If you have any other questions, please contact membership@actorsequity.org. And you can join our webinar on August 31st (registration and more information coming soon).

*  *  *  *

OPEN ACCESS

On Tuesday, May 18th, 2021, council approved the Open Access resolution to enact a series of recommendations to eliminate barriers to Equity membership, making our union stronger and more inclusive. Central Principal Councilor and Open Access Action Team Leader Bear Bellinger, who helped develop those recommendations, shares his experience with the process of creating this ground-breaking change.

Joining Equity

The first thing I noticed when I decided to join Actors’ Equity Association was how difficult it was to join Actors’ Equity Association.

I had been steadily working in Chicago for years, mixing in union theatres with a few non-union houses – serving my time, as some folks like to put it.

I was committed; I was driven; I was focused; but I was not protected. I found myself in a cycle of non-union abuse: long days extended without notice, skin parts washed only once a week if we were lucky, artistic directors leading by demanding and demeaning rather than collaborating. This is just to name a few.

Non-union artists are barely protected in this profession, and I had done more than enough to “prove” my dedication to the craft and thereby “earn” protection. It was time to seek protections of my own.

I added up my EMC weeks and realized that there was no path to union membership that did not go directly through our employers. I could prove time and again, with dedication and artistry, that I was a professional actor, but until an employer decided to grant me a contract, I was basically left to fend for myself, even in union houses.

Why wasn’t I protected?

Isn’t the point of union membership to stand strong with other professionals to ensure fair pay and safe working conditions? Doesn’t a larger professional membership mean more leverage? Why should people who benefit from keeping me non-union be the judge of whether I deserve a minimum standard of working conditions?

I got my contract.

I joined the union.

I became a councilor.

That’s when I realized: We can change this.

So we did.

Last August, Bliss Griffin, Equity’s diversity and inclusion strategist, began the process of researching, developing and implementing a Diversity and Inclusion Retrofit for our union. With the blessing of our national council, she compiled feedback from hundreds of members to define the eight areas this organization must restructure to become a more diverse, inclusive and equitable Actors’ Equity Association.

One of the pillars of that retrofit is “Opening Access.”

Opening Access

How do we diversify our union if marginalized people do not have access to join? Looking at our employers’ hiring statistics, how do we create a more diverse union when our employers disproportionately offer contracts to white men? What are the barriers we are imposing upon ourselves? Over the course of nine meetings, a diverse working group of members combed through these questions. We began by asking: why should we offer more access?

·   Organizing: The more members we have, the better positioned we are as a union to advocate for stage managers and actors across the nation while reducing the ease with which producers can undercut our contracts by going non-union.

·   Financial: The more members in a union, the more dues coming in, and the better positioned we are to hire the staff necessary to protect and support our membership.

·   Education: We live in a nation that has purposefully weakened union influence and ingrained anti-union bias in much of our population to the detriment of workers everywhere. The larger our membership, the bigger the opportunity to ensure our colleagues have a strong respect for unions and a clear understanding of the importance of unions in our labor history.

·   Social Justice: With the nation in the throes of reckoning with its racist foundations and the effects of that past on our present, we recognized that we cannot continue to uphold barriers that have disproportionately negative effects on communities who have been systemically discriminated against.

·   Fairness: We, as a union, should not be in the business of preventing professionals from receiving protections.

With these ideas in mind, over more than 20 hours of meetings, we came to a series of recommendations which were then approved by our national council on May 18, including:

Open Access Immediately:

1. Council temporarily opens eligibility to join Actors’ Equity Association to any actor or stage manager who can demonstrate they have worked professionally (i.e., received compensation) for work as an actor or stage manager at a theatre within Equity’s geographical jurisdiction.

2. This eligibility will extend for two years, with application and down payment of initiation fee and any applicable reinstatement fee required by May 1, 2023.

Open Access Fairly:

1. Upon a Convention vote to revise Article 2 of the Equity Constitution restricting membership of international actors and stage managers, corresponding Bylaws (Art. 9 Sec. 9) and policies shall be immediately voided. Council refers to the International Actors Committee a charge to recommend changes in collective bargaining agreement language regarding international actors/stage managers.

2. Former members and former applicants to Equity membership (with “Out of Benefits,” “Terminated Applicant Member” or “Terminated Active Member” membership status) who apply to join Equity shall have previous initiation fee payments credited towards the amount owed for renewing membership.

3. Effective immediately, Equity will allow up to three years for full payment of initiation fees.

Our Working Group also proposed changes to Open Access Permanently, including establishment of a new gateway to Equity membership. Further details and implementation plans for those permanent changes will roll out in the months to come.

What does all this mean?

Actors’ Equity Association is committing to allow any professional stage manager or actor to join our union. We are removing the ability for employers to pick and choose who deserves fair protections under a union contract. Most importantly, we are doing so in a way that will allow us to move forward together with a more informed and activated membership.

Equity members have historically seen membership as a privilege to be earned. We see better salaries, health insurance, pension and expanded audition access as just a few of the rights that we have achieved over time: The result of hard work, determination and ability.

While these things may be true, we have all experienced how much luck and nepotism can play a large role in our ability to land jobs in our field. Knowing that there are plenty of hard-working, determined, professional stage managers and actors out there who have never hit that lucky combination, we are now deciding to stop hoarding workplace protections for ourselves. We are extending them to any who can claim a professional status.

We, in solidarity,

We, as a work force,

We, as human beings, are collectively admitting that minimum workplace protections should be extended to all of our peers and that we will no longer be the barrier that prevents them from receiving them.

We all have friends and loved ones who haven’t yet been able to secure that final contract to join Equity; I don’t believe any of us feel comfortable leaving those people less protected even as we may work side-by-side. Now they won’t have to.

If you, a professional stage manager or actor, want to join the union, come on in.

We’re stronger when we stand together.

We’re proud to stand with you.

What’s Next?

This will require more organizing. This will require our producing counterparts to commit to placing people first. More than anything, it requires all of us to stop accepting the devaluation of our fellow stage managers and actors.

Our union has a lot of work to do moving forward to ensure we are creating safe workspaces, and a safe union, for each of our members. If we want to live up to the ideals of solidarity, if we want to walk together towards a safer, fairer and stronger theatrical landscape, this is a strong first step. There are many steps yet to come. For the moment, however, I am excited to extend the rights and privileges current members enjoy to all our fellow stage managers and actors as we work to better this industry together.

Yours in solidarity,

Bear Bellinger

Central Principal Councilor

*  *  *  *

EXCERPTS

“Equity Opens Membership to Any Actor or Stage Manager Who's Been Paid for Work in the USA” by David Gordon, 21 July 2021, TheaterMania:

Open Access will also remove any restrictions on membership for international stage managers and actors, and will also allow former members and former applications to join or rejoin, with their previous initiation fee credited toward the new fees. In addition, all members will have three years to pay off the initiation fee.

“Actors’ Equity Announces ‘Open Access’ to Membership” by American Theatre Editors, 21 July 2021, American Theatre:

Changes within the actor and stage manager union follow a year of unrest from its membership base, which rallied against inconsistent and at times frustrating COVID-19 restrictions limiting work (and resulting in difficulty for members reaching their required work weeks for health insurance) and pushed for greater racial equity within the industry. The latter point was part of an April march on Broadway, during which theatremakers protested the inaction against Broadway producer Scott Rudin as well as shortcomings by the union to protect its membership from the racism, sexism, and unsafe work environments many had experienced. As Backstage reported back in April, the fallout saw some actors withholding their dues from the union.

 

This result, as well as the general lack of work (and thus, dues payments) for Equity members over the last year, has led some on Twitter to speculating the access move may have a dual purpose: to expand access to the union and to open the door for an influx of money from a flood of new members. In an interview with Backstage, Shindle rebuffed that sentiment, saying, “I am telling you the God’s honest truth when I say that no part of this has felt like any kind of cash grab.”

 

The full fallout from this industry-shaking decision is yet to be seen, with major non-Equity markets like Chicago sure to be rocked by the decision and some actors concerned about more crowded union auditions. Importantly, many are seeing hope in exactly what Shindle pointed to in her statement: Opening access in this way has the potential to remove the hiring barrier between actors and stage managers and the protections of the union.

“Actors’ Equity Expands Eligibility for Membership In Diversity & Inclusion Effort” by Greg Evans, 21 July 2021, Deadline:

The new policy comes at a critical time for the theater industry, as theaters begin the process of reopening following both the Covid pandemic shutdown and the intense scrutiny of the industry’s barriers to inclusion and diversity that came in the wake of last summer’s Black Lives Matter nationwide protests.

“EXCLUSIVE: Joining Actors’ Equity Is About to Get Easier” by Diep Tran 21 July 2021, Backstage:

“We’ve spent a lot of time over the last several years doing diversity and inclusion studies and analyzing contract data, we know that the industry is overwhelmingly white, disappointingly so,” says [Equity president Kate] Shindle. “And we know that the hiring practices of our employers provide barriers to access for people with marginalized identities. So when we put that all together—through a process that was led by a working group, and our diversity and inclusion strategist—Open Access was born out of that: Ways for people to join the union without having to be hired to work on an Equity contract first.” Shindle sees Open Access as a way of streamlining membership, especially because many Equity employers tend to only hire Equity actors, so it posed an additional hurdle for nonunion actors.

“Actors Equity Expands Access And There Are Plenty Of Opinions,” n.d., The Broadway Blog:

[After reporting the basics of the Equity announcement, The Broadway Blog published several Tweets from “theater professionals.”]

You get a card and you get a card! #comedy #theatre #musictheatre #actor  —Katie Claire

 

Open Membership to #ActorsEquity is going to strengthen our union, solidify our health & pension and make us a more equitable workforce.

 

Solidarity is a beautiful thing.  —Nick Westrate

 

Just a friendly reminder, union status does not equal talent. #actorsequity #AEA  —T.J. Newton

 

When I was a theatre student, we were taught not to rush to get your equity card as it would limit your job prospects. That implied that until we’d spent 3+ years building our resume we were expected to work in houses with minimal regulation, poor pay, and no accountability.

 

The changes announced by #actorsequity mean that they can finally act like a TRUE UNION for theatre artists. Representation should not require years of work experience. Worker representation is a right.  —MissMicae

 

I just saw #ActorsEquity’s news about membership! I’m crying! (Happy tears!) Lost my Equity status years ago when I couldn’t afford the initiation fee & though I’ve worked so often since then, I’ve never had an Equity job so I could never get back in the union. Now I can!?!?  —Tzena

 

If #actorsequity has open access for the next two years, what’s the policy on current members rescinding their member status to do well-paying nonunion work and rejoining in 18 months?  —Ryan DeNardo 

[I interrupted the publication of my travel journal for my 1982 trip to Israel and Egypt to cover this timely and important announcement from Actors’ Equity.  “Travel Journal: Israel & Egypt, 1982 – Part 5,” was posted on 23 July, and I will post Part 6, the final installment for the Israeli portion of the trip, on Monday, 2 August.

[If you haven’t been keeping up with the chronicle of my journey, this would be a good time to go back and pick up the first five sections.  Parts 1-4 were posted on 11, 14, 17, and 20 July.

[Part 6 covers our visit to the Old City of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, sites in the Negev Desert, and my departure for Cairo, Egypt.  Barring another interruption of the series, I expect to publish the remainder of the journal installments on the three-day schedule with which I started.  (That means that Part 7, the start of my travel through Egypt, will appear on Thursday, 5 August.)]

Travel Journal: Israel & Egypt, 1982 – Part 5

 

[This is the penultimate installment of the Israeli portion of my account of my travels in Israel and Egypt.  It comprises a single day’s sightseeing and covers only modern-day Israeli sights in the Jerusalem vicinity. 

[A contrast with the Egyptian part of the trip, where the places we visited were all historical, either part of Egypt’s ancient times or the early Muslim and Ottoman eras, was that a good deal of what made visiting Israel interesting encompassed its 20th-century accomplishments.  Part 5 of “Travel Journal: Israel & Egypt, 1982” shows some of why this is so.

[Once again, I recommend that any reader who’s just joining this thread go back to Parts 1 through 4 (11, 14, 17, and 20 July, respectively) and catch up.  Things will make a lot more sense if you read what went before.]

Jerusalem – Sunday, 19 December

This morning, we got a better look around Jerusalem’s New City, the western part of the city.  As I said earlier, the modern city is as hyper-modern as was Tel Aviv, but the buildings seemed to have more character.  (I’m not sure if this was real or a projection of my imagination because we were in Jerusalem, the ancient capital of biblical Judea.  I think it was true, but I wouldn’t swear to it!)

Israel's government buildings are mostly located in Givat Ram, a neighborhood of Jerusalem built on one of the city’s highest elevations (givat is Hebrew for ‘hill’).  It’s home to many of Israel’s most important institutions, including several government buildings such as the Knesset, the Ministries of Finance and Interior, and the Prime Minister’s Office.  The Supreme Court is also situated here [though a new building was constructed in 1992, after I visited Jerusalem]. 

Also in this quarter is the Israel Museum, which includes the Shrine of the Book, which we visited on this outing, and a campus of Hebrew University, Israel’s second-oldest university (the Technion is older by six years; see Part 2) and its highest-ranked.

On 14 May 1948, David Ben-Gurion declared the State of Israel and became the new nation’s first prime minister.  A year-and-a-half later, 5 December 1949, he proclaimed Jerusalem as Israel’s “eternal” and “sacred” capital.

Though virtually no other nation recognized the status of Jerusalem at the time, establishing their embassies and missions in Tel Aviv (which had been Israel’s capital during the Arab-Israeli War [May 1948-March 1949]), the offices of all the branches of the Israeli government are here, except, as I reported earlier, the Ministry of Defense, which is headquartered in Tel Aviv, 42 miles west, an hour’s drive away.

At the time of Ben-Gurion’s declaration, Jerusalem was divided between Israel in the west and Jordan in the east, and thus the proclamation only applied to West Jerusalem.  The Palestinian National Authority claims East Jerusalem as the capital of the future state of Palestine.  In the meantime, its administrative headquarters is Ramallah in the central West Bank located six miles north of Jerusalem.

The Knesset building, which one architect-cum-tour guide dubbed “modest” and characterized as a “thoroughly modernistic building, an appropriate style to represent the rebirth of Israel,” was dedicated in 1966.  For the preceding 17 years, the Knesset (the name applies to both the legislature and its home) met in several alternate locations in Jerusalem and in Tel Aviv, including the Kessem Cinema (Tel Aviv; 1948-49). 

(As I noted earlier, knesset is Hebrew for ‘assembly.’  The name for the modern state’s legislature was chosen as a reference to the Great Assembly [Knesset Hagedolah] described in the Book of Nehemiah, chapters 8, 9, and 10, in which the priest Ezra speaks of such a gathering in the 5th century BCE.

(Together, Ezra [fl. 480-440 BCE] and Nehemiah [fl. mid-5th century BCE] returned the Torah to Jerusalem and rebuilt the city after the Babylonian Exile [597-539 BCE]; the men of the Great Assembly—the precise term isn’t used in the Bible—were 120 Jewish leaders who ruled Judea from the dedication of the Second Temple in 516 BCE to the invasion of Judea by the Greeks under Alexander the Great [356-323 BCE] in 332 BCE.

(There are 120 Members of Knesset, known as MK’s, in today’s parliament and the majority of Israel’s citizens are Jews who’ve “returned” from the worldwide diaspora that began after the destruction of the Second Temple and the collapse of the short-lived Jewish state with the Roman victory in the Jewish-Roman War of 66-73 CE.)

Plans for the legislature’s new home began in 1957 with a design competition.  The land is leased from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, making Israel the only nation whose legislature sits on land its government doesn’t own.  The building was subsidized by a gift from Baron James de Rothschild (1878-1957).

The structure is basically a square (symbolizing that all “sides” are equal) made of concrete, steel, and glass—in keeping with my description of present-day Israeli architecture as hyper-modern.  Overall, the Knesset is replete with works of art—which is all also distinctly contemporary. 

I’ve already mentioned the Knesset Menorah (Part 3), designed by British sculptor Benno Elkan (1877-1960), a Jew born in Germany.  It was a gift from the British Parliament to the Knesset in 1956.  Originally installed at the temporary seat of the Knesset in Jerusalem, the sculpture was reinstalled in its current location, the small plaza across from the main entrance to the Knesset, in 1966.

Standing about 15 feet tall, the Knesset Menorah was modeled by the artist on the golden candelabrum that stood in the Second Temple—as depicted on the Arch of Titus outside the Colosseum in Rome, which shows the ruination of the Temple and the menorah and other Temple treasures being carried away by the Romans. 

(Titus, the son and second-in-command to Roman General-then-Emperor Vespasian, sacked Jerusalem and burned the Temple in 70 CE.  Titus himself became Emperor of Rome from his father’s death in 79 CE to his own in 81.  See Part 4.)

Scenes of some 30 important events, idioms, characters, and terms from Jewish history are shown in relief on each of the seven branches of the menorah.  It’s viewed as a “visual textbook” of Jewish history.

Nearby are the wrought-iron entrance gates with abstract depictions of the destruction of European Jewry in WWII (1966), created by Turkish-born Israeli sculptor David Palombo (1920-66). 

Within the building is a great deal more art, from the likes of Israeli multidisciplinary artist Eliezer Weishoff (b. 1938), Romanian-born Israeli painter Reuven Rubin (1893-1974), Irish-born Israeli sculptor Dan Ben-Shmuel (b. 1927), and Argentinean-born Israeli ceramicist Hava Kaufman (b. 1957), among many others.

The most memorable, at least for me, was the Reception Hall, known as the Chagall State Hall.  The hall is entirely adorned with art by the Russian-born Jewish artist, Marc Chagall (1887-1985), one of my all-time favorites. 

(Anyone who doesn’t know Chagall’s work will recognize it from the Chagall-inspired covers created by veteran American commercial artist Tom Morrow [1928-94] for the original cast album or the 1964 Playbill for the première Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof.  Not only was the play’s title suggested by Chagall’s 1912 painting The Fiddler, but Boris Aronson [1898-1980], the show’s original set designer, wrote the book Marc Chagall in German in 1924.)

The French artist’s works in the hall, including three tapestries entitled The Vision of the Final Redemption, Exodus, and Return to Zion, designed to represent the story of the Jewish people with symbols ranging from biblical images to the Holocaust, as well as a wall mosaic and a dozen floor mosaics, were all his gifts.  The “cartoons” (full-scale painted models) for the three weavings were completed in the mid-1960s and the monumental (15¾' x 18' to 15¾' x 31⅕') tapestries were hung in 1969.

If, like me, you’re a devotee of modern art, especially the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists, and a fan of Chagall, the Reception Hall might well be the most memorable part of a visit to the Knesset.  If that had been all I saw, I would have been well satisfied!

One time when I was in Florence, Italy—I’d been there before so I didn’t need to see the city—I went to “watch” Michelangelo’s David.  That’s how I feel about that statue, because Michelangelo’s sculptures are alive—they move. 

I spent a couple of hours at the Accademia watching the most remarkable piece of carved marble ever created, and I could have sat in the Chagall Hall the same way and just absorbed those magnificent hangings and been blissfully happy.

As it was, though, I was part of a group and we had more places to go.  (I had made them all wait for me in Safed, if you recall, and I couldn’t do that again; see Part 2.)  So off we went, a half mile south in Givat Ram and a few minutes’ drive to the Israel Museum and the Shrine of the Book.

Constructed in 1965, the Shrine of the Book houses the Dead Sea Scrolls.  I guess it’s self-evident that “the book” in question is the Bible, principally the Old Testament—otherwise known as the Hebrew Bible.  But by extension, the Shrine celebrates all the scriptures of all the Abrahamic faiths, like the New Testament and the Koran, which were at least partially derived from—and whose existence was inspired by—the Torah, which, in turn, is descended from the writings in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The scrolls, which, as I pointed out earlier (Part 4), were first discovered in 1946, date from as early as the 8th century BCE to as late as the 11th century CE (which is just about the time of the First Crusade, 1096-99).  Researchers have assembled a collection of 981 different manuscripts from 11 caves.  The texts are written on a variety of media, including parchment, papyrus, and even one on copper.

[The copper was alloyed with a small amount of tin, probably to give it increased malleability to create the metal sheets on which the scrolls were written.  The copper was hammered so thin that it could be rolled up but, due to corrosion from age and weather, it had to be specially handled to unroll it.  After being beaten into sheets, the text of the scroll was carved into the copper with an engraving tool. 

[Since ancient Judeans couldn’t make anything remotely approaching an endless sheet, small sheets were riveted together to create a long scroll.  The Copper Scroll of the Dead Sea collection is made of three sheets.

[The Copper Scroll, which consists of two rolls, was discovered in one of the Qumran caves in 1952 by an archaeologist on an expedition sponsored by the Jordan Department of Antiquities.  It’s believed to date from about 50-100 CE, among the latest of the Qumran finds.  In addition to its medium, the Copper Scroll bears a number of differences with the other parchment and papyrus scrolls. 

[The Copper Scroll isn’t on reposit at the Shrine of the Book.  Since 2013, the Copper Scroll has been on display at the Jordan Museum in Amman after being moved from the Jordan Archaeological Museum in Jordan’s capital.]

Because of their extreme age and the fragility of the materials from which the scrolls are made, it’s not safe to display all of them continuously.  So a system of rotation has been devised in which once a scroll has been exhibited for three to six months, it’s swapped out and placed in a special storeroom to "recover" from exposure to light, temperature changes, and other damaging conditions.

The shrine is built two-thirds below ground-level, covered by a white dome surrounded by a reflecting pool that vaguely resembles a landed flying saucer like the one depicted in the original 1951 version of The Day the Earth Stood Still.  It’s meant to evoke the lids of the jars in which the first scrolls were found.

Across from the white dome is a black basalt wall which brings to mind the monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).  The contrast between the white dome and the black wall alongside it refers to the images in the Scroll of the War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness of the spiritual struggle of the “Sons of Light” and the “Sons of Darkness.”

Because the shrine holds a collection of extremely ancient documents and those documents are among the oldest known texts of the monotheistic faiths followed by over half the world’s people, it felt a little ethereal—not like a museum but like a . . . well, shrine.  I’m not an especially religious person, however I felt I was in the presence not so much of divine objects, but something immensely venerable. 

From the Shrine of the Book and the Givat Ram neighborhood of central West Jerusalem, we drove further west to the big Holyland Hotel [no longer operating] to see the Holyland Model of Jerusalem.

Located on the grounds of the hotel in the Bayit Vagan neighborhood in southwest Jerusalem, the open-air model was built between 1962 and 1966 on a 1:50 scale.  (That’s roughly ¼ inch to the foot; a human figure would be about 1⅖ inches tall.)  [The model was moved to the Israel Museum in 2006.]  It’s probably the largest model in the world depicting Jerusalem in around 66 CE (the year the Jewish-Roman War started, before the holy city was sacked) and one of the most accurate reconstructions of the city at that time. 

The model, which covers an area of about 445 acres (that’s a little over 336 American football fields, representing 35 square miles in real life), was used as a surrogate means of study when Israelis had no access to the Old City of Jerusalem, which was controlled by Jordan until 1967.  The scale replica was designed based on the writings of Josephus as well as other historical sources. 

Under the supervision of Israeli archeologists, the model was built by craftsman.  They used the same materials for the miniatures as were used for the actual structures 1,900 years ago: Jerusalem stone and marble for the buildings, ceramic tile for the roofs, actual gold leaf for the ornamentation of the Temple and palaces. 

The aim of the builders and sponsors of the Holyland model is historical accuracy, so over the years, the miniature city has been modified, refined, and renewed as new archeological facts are uncovered.  [For example, the Hippodrome, built by Herod I, was found to have been located outside the city walls and was removed from the model when it was transferred to the Israel Museum.]  Some sites that are “traditional,” that is, not archeologically verified, are also indicated on the model, such as the hill west of the Temple which is identified as the site of Jesus’ crucifixion some three decades before the date of the model’s setting.

I must add that the Holyland Model of Jerusalem reminded me of nothing so much as the Panorama of the City of New York in the Queens Museum, a 9,335-square-foot, 1:1200-scale replica of my city built for the 1964 World’s Fair showing every building that existed then (it’s been updated periodically to keep it relatively current).  One big difference, of course (aside from the fact that New York City isn’t holy—except to those of us who live here): the panorama doesn’t require archeology to be accurate as the Holyland Model does.

Our last stop of the day was Yad Vashem, Israel’s official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, located west of Jerusalem’s center on Mount Herzl, also known as the Mount of Remembrance.  It’s located near Israel’s national cemetery, also on Mount Herzl (named for Theodor Herzl [1860-1904], the founder of modern Zionism who was reburied here in 1949).

About 10 minutes from the center of Jerusalem, Yad Vashem was established in 1953.  The next year, the cornerstone for the Yad Vashem building, which was opened to the public in 1957, was laid.  [In 1993, plans were laid for a larger, more technologically advanced museum to replace the original building; the new museum opened in 2005.]

Yad Vashem was called a museum as well as a memorial site, but it wasn’t a true museum.  It contained almost no actual artifacts or documents, for instance.  It was a place of honor and remembrance.  The Hebrew name, Yad Vashem, means ‘a memorial and a name’ (or, as my mother’s 1917 translation of the Hebrew Bible has it: ‘a monument and a memorial’) and comes from the Book of Isaiah, chapter 56 (4):

Even unto them will I give in My house and within My walls a monument and a memorial (yad vashem) . . . that shall not be cut off.

In other words, it was meant to be a place where the deeds of those lost to the Holocaust will be memorialized and their names never forgotten.  And Yad Vashem makes a point of honoring Jews who fought the Nazis (Pillar of Heroism [1970]) and non-Jews who risked their lives to save threatened Jews (Avenue of the Righteous Among the Nations [dedicated, 1962]).

Now, Yad Vashem is a really big deal in Israel.  It’s either second or third on everybody’s list of places in the country to visit.  But I have a serious problem with Holocaust stories and memorials.  I can’t even look at a collection of Holocaust-related photographs without getting so angry that I come close to losing control.  

I don’t like feeling that way—it actually scares me—so I seldom watch those movies or TV shows anymore and I don’t go to those places.  [I’m a native Washingtonian and my parents still lived there until their deaths.  I visited them often—but I’ve still never been to the Holocaust Memorial Museum.]  I actually had to leave Yad Vashem because I was beginning to shake with anger.

[When I next pick up this chronicle, we’ll be visiting the West Bank and the Negev Desert.  That’ll be Part 6, now scheduled for 31 July, the last installment of the account before I travel on to Cairo, Egypt.  I hope readers will continue to join me in my recollections of this fascinating journey into worlds that date back to the earliest days of human history.

[ROTters should note, however, that I have decided to interrupt the publication of my Israel-Egypt chronicle to accommodate a topical post.  On Tuesday, 20 July, Actors’ Equity announced “Open Access,” a significant change in the union’ s membership requirements.  I'll be publishing a post on this announcement on the 28th and return to “Travel Journal: Israel & Egypt, 1982” on the 31st.  Be sure to come back for the rest of the current post.]

Travel Journal: Israel & Egypt, 1982 – Part 4

 

[My visit to Israel was chock-a-block full of amazing sights and experiences, including natural phenomena, biblical sites and ancient history, and modern accomplishments.  This day, we caught a little of all of those—as you’ll read in Part 4 below.

[If you haven’t read Parts 1 through 3 of “Travel Journal: Israel & Egypt, 1982,” I strongly recommend going back to pick them up before getting into Part 4.  (The previous installments of the journal were posted on 11, 14, and 17 July.)]

Jericho, Dead Sea, & Masada – Friday, 17 December

The next day, we drove north and east to Jericho, a city in the West Bank that was occupied by Israel in the Six-Day War.  [The city gained limited self-rule under the Palestinian Authority in 1994.] 

Believed to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Jericho has revealed settlements dating back to 9000 BCE.  Archaeologists have excavated more than 20 successive layers of civilization.  What’s believed to be the oldest protective wall in the world, made famous in the African-American spiritual that goes back to the early 19th century (not to mention the Old Testament story of its fall in Joshua 6:1-27), the city wall was built in approximately 8000 BCE.

Jericho was first excavated in 1868 and has been explored archeologically continuously ever since, each dig making significant discoveries.  An Italian-Palestinian expedition conducted a dig for over 20 years from 1997 to 2017. 

Archeologists from the 1950s on have put the battle of Jericho at around 1500 BCE, based on examination of a network of collapsed walls unearthed in the 1930s.  The biblical account, however, dates only from the 6th century BCE, with earlier versions composed between the 8th and 7th centuries BCE.

Jericho is the fifth site in Israel of archeological excavation I’ve mentioned.  Of course, there are many more—the whole country is an active, former, or prospective archeological site.  Jericho is arguably the granddaddy of them all in a sense.

There’s such a thing as the Jerusalem Syndrome.  It strikes visitors to the Holy Land who are overwhelmed by the religious significance of so much of the surroundings.  In its mildest form, the syndrome can cause ordinary people—usually those with strong religious backgrounds or beliefs—to hear the voices of angels or wander the Old City in robes fashioned from the bedsheets from their hotel rooms.

Well, I developed an even milder form of the phenomenon.  The trigger wasn’t the religiosity surrounding me or the echoes of the Bible—it was the ancientness of various sites.  I first experienced this shadow of the syndrome at Stonehenge in 1963, when I was 17.  Visitors were allowed to walk around and in the stone circle then and standing before those primeval megaliths, which were already ancient when the Romans were in Britain, suffused me with a sense of being in the presence of things immensely old.

[Stonehenge wasn’t only old.  It was also mysterious.  We know—or think we know—more about the ancient stone monument today than we did 58 years ago, but it’s still a powerful mystery after more than 5,000 years.]

Of course, you can’t move in Israel without coming into contact with something really old, so it was hard not to feel that sense of age and history over and over again.  I wasn’t tempted to wrap myself in a sheet, don sandals, and carry a staff—but standing before the wall of Jericho . . . well, it was Stonehenge times 10.  I just stood there in honest-to-God (not a bad description in this instance) awe for seconds without moving.  Though I hope not, my mouth might have been open as well.  In my mind, it was.

[I would feel this sensation again here in the U.S. when I visited New Mexico in 2002—specifically in Taos.  We went to the Taos Pueblo, and though the present-day structures are only a few years old because the adobe needs to be replaced periodically, the village as a whole has stood on the same spot since as early as the 14th century—700 years ago.  (See my two-part post “Taos & Taos Pueblo,” 24 and 27 May 2012.)]

After seeing the ruins of ancient Jericho—we didn’t spend any time in the modern town—we drove south to the Dead Sea.  The deepest salt lake in the world at 997 feet, its shores are also the lowest elevation on Earth of any place on land at 1,412 feet below sea level.  (By comparison, Death Valley, the point of lowest elevation in North America, is 282 feet below sea level.)  On a list of the saltiest bodies of water around the world, the Dead Sea is seventh—9½ times as salty as the ocean. 

The lake’s hypersalinity and its high mineral content make it impossible for any living creature to survive in its waters except for bacteria and a few other microscopic life forms.  That’s why it’s called the Dead Sea—nothing lives in it.  (If the salinity and mineral content are diluted, say after a particularly rainy period, some sea plants, principally algaes will grow for a time.)

The lake’s water is so dense that it’s virtually impossible to sink—but very easy to float.  Simon invited anyone in our group who wanted to to jump in and try to sink under the surface—but I don’t recall anyone taking him up on his challenge.  No one had brought a swim suit, of course, and going in dressed, even partially, would have meant spending the rest of the day in wet clothing.

Besides, anyone who did get wet from the Dead Sea’s water, with its salt and minerals, would have been pretty stinky for the rest of the day as well.  Mineral baths are not what you’d call fresh-smelling!

The Dead Sea, by the way, is a mineral spa.  In fact, it’s one of the world’s first health resorts (for Herod I and his court).  At least one nearby kibbutz was set up as a health spa for visitors to the Dead Sea (another example of a non-agricultural kibbutz).  It also marketed products made from the lake’s waters, salts, minerals, and mud sold to promote various health benefits.

(The Dead Sea and the other sights on this outing are all in the Judean Desert, which lies in Israel and the West Bank east of Jerusalem and south to the lake.  Later, we’d drive into the Negev, further south.  Israel, save for the coastlines of the Mediterranean and Galilean Seas, the Gulf of Eilat [Gulf of Aqaba] of the Red Sea, and the banks of the River Jordan, is largely a desert country—as is most of the region. 

(Unlike the Sahara—which I’d be seeing later when my trip moved west to Egypt—which is sand, the Israeli deserts are dirt and rocks, more like the U.S. deserts such as the Mojave in California and Nevada.  Simon liked to joke that in most countries, tourists and visitors are admonished not to take anything they didn’t buy away with them . . . but in Israel it was different.  If you see a rock you like, he’d plead, please—take it with you!

(Israel was still in the process of reclaiming desert land for agriculture and homesites.  It was almost an obsession with the first modern Zionists who came to Palestine in the late 19th century, and it had been a pursuit of the new State of Israel, to make the desert bloom. 

(It was one of the most astonishing phenomena of modern Israel to see how fields of growing vegetation have taken hold of what had been for centuries barren, brown, lifeless wasteland.  It’s truly a remarkable accomplishment—even as it’s precariously artificial in that it can all disappear in a flash if the man-made and man-assisted irrigation systems are removed—say, by war or sabotage, or natural disaster.)

It’s hard to talk about the Dead Sea and not at least mention the scrolls.  The famous Dead Sea Scrolls are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts that were found in the Qumran Caves near the northern end of the lake. 

The initial find was seven scrolls found in 1946 and ’47 by three Bedouin shepherds; many more were discovered in the years to come in other locations in the Judean Desert.  [The most recent discoveries were made in March 2021, but newly uncovered fragments have been found continuously since the first finds.]

I won’t say any more about the scrolls now because coming up shortly was our visit to the Shrine of the Book in Jerusalem (see Part 5), where some of the scrolls and fragments were on display.

From the Dead Sea, we drove further south along the western shore of the lake to the ruin of Masada, the site of perhaps the most famous Jewish revolt against the Roman occupiers of Judea.  According to Josephus (37-ca. 100 CE), the Roman-Jewish historian, the siege of Masada took place from late 73 to early 74 CE.  (The actual dates are debated among historians.)

Masada had taken on a mythic aura less because of history or archeology, but because of the television miniseries that had just aired on ABC in the United States in April 1981.  (Airing over four nights with stars like Peter O’Toole, Peter Strauss, Anthony Quayle, and David Warner, Masada attracted a lot of attention.  Furthermore, shortly before I left on this tour, I participated in a reading of a musical on Masada, Grains of Sand by Lois W. Gunsberg, William Garvin, and Donna G. Lerner.)

The miniseries had been filmed on location in Masada itself, which was another reason this visit was impressive to many of us American tourists.  As Jews, standing in the ruins of the ancient fortress atop a plateau [much like the mesas of the U.S. southwest that I saw in 2002] in the Judean Desert, my companions and I felt a frisson.  

For those who don’t already know this bit of history, I’ll summarize: The First Jewish-Roman War, a Jewish rebellion against Roman rule in Judea, was the result of a series of clashes in which small groups of Jews offered sporadic resistance to the Romans.  The Romans, in turn, responded with severe reprisals.  

In the fall of 66 CE, the Jewish insurrectionists expelled the Romans from Jerusalem.  King Herod Agrippa II (27/28-ca. 92 or 100 CE; reigned: 50-92/100 CE), who was pro-Roman, fled Jerusalem.

One rebel faction launched a surprise attack on the garrison at Masada and took the fortress.  A Roman force under a general from neighboring Syria marched on Jerusalem and retook the city, but foolishly withdrew and was ambushed and destroyed by the insurgents.

The Jews controlled the capital again and established a provisional government which extended its influence throughout the whole territory.

Emperor Nero (37-68 CE; reigned: 54-68 CE) dispatched Vespasian (9-79 CE) to crush the rebellion.  Under his command, the Roman legions entered Galilee, where Josephus (then a rebel leader known as Yosef ben Matityahu) commanded the Jewish forces.  Josephus’ army was confronted by Vespasian’s legions and fled and Josephus surrendered.

The Roman forces swept the country—but back in Rome, Nero committed suicide on 9 June 68.  In July 69, Vespasian was named emperor (reigned until 79) by his own legions and returned to Rome, leaving his son and second-in-command, Titus (39-81 CE), in Judea to finish the war.

Titus laid siege to fortified Jerusalem and on Tisha B’Av (literally, the ninth of the month of Av) in 70 CE (29 August), Jerusalem fell; the Temple, also fortified and one of the last bastions to fall, was burned. 

(Known as the saddest day of the Jewish year, Tisha B’Av, a fast day in the Jewish calendar, is observed as a day of mourning for the destruction of Solomon’s Temple and the Second Temple, as well as other disasters that have befallen the Jewish people throughout their history from the murders by the Romans of the Ten Martyrs [ten rabbis executed on the order of the Roman emperor in the period after the destruction of the Second Temple], massacres in several Jewish communities during the Crusades [1095-1291], and the European Holocaust during the 1940s.  Tisha B’Av is observed between mid-July and early August on the modern Western calendar.)

The Jewish state collapsed, although the fortress of Masada was not conquered by the Romans until April 73. 

The rebel faction that had taken the fortress at Masada in 66 had been joined by other rebels who’d been expelled from Jerusalem between 67 and 68 during the period of internecine struggles.  Later, after the destruction of the Temple in 70, more Jerusalem refugees and their families fled to Masada.

The insurgent faction that held Masada were radical and extremist in their drive to rid Judea of the Roman occupiers; they even saw other Jewish groups as enemies if they didn’t oppose the Roman rule vehemently enough.  Known as the Sicarii, a splinter group of the Zealots, these radicals used Masada as a base to raid and terrorize the surrounding countryside.

In 71 CE, the Roman governor of Judea laid siege to Masada with an estimated force of 8,000 to 9,000 fighting men.  (Josephus, the only historian to chronicle the Jewish revolt and the siege of Masada, recorded that the fortress held 960 people, though archeologists have found no evidence to support such a large figure.)

The Sicarii defenders had made some alterations to the original fortress, including cisterns for capturing rainwater carved into the rock on which Masada was built and a tunnel to the spring or well that provided water to the fortress.  The storehouses had been filled with food, much of it obtained in raids on the nearby towns and villages.

A long siege by the Romans was inadvisable as the Masada defenders could hold out for many months, if not years.  So the Romans built an earthen ramp, completed in the spring of 73 CE, to the fortress.  The Romans pushed a siege tower equipped with a ram up the ramp and battered a breach in the wall on 16 April 73. 

When they entered the fortress, however, the legionaries discovered its 960 inhabitants all dead.  Witnesses—Josephus claimed to have gotten an account of the siege from two survivors who hid inside a drain—claimed that, because suicide was against Jewish belief but preferring death at their own hands to slavery or execution, the Sicarii had drawn lots to kill each other, with the last man the only one to take his own life.

The siege of Masada has become controversial in modern times.  Some Jews regard Masada as a place of reverence, commemorating ancestors who fell fighting heroically against oppression.  Others, several of my traveling companions among them, see it as a paradigm of extremism and a refusal to compromise.

Masada was the last act of the Jewish war.  The Jews became scattered into areas around the Mediterranean with many thousands being sold into slavery.  Though a Jewish diaspora had existed for centuries as merchants and travelers moved around the known world and resettled beyond Palestine, the sack of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Second Temple was really the beginning of the dispersal of Jews around the globe, with no homeland of their own.

[Part 5 of “Travel Journal” will come out on 23 July.  I hope you’ll come back to Rick On Theater for glimpses of the Israeli Knesset (parliament), the Shrine of Book, Yad Vashem, and more. 

[That’ll be the next-to-last entry of the Israeli portion of my trip.  After Part 6, I move on the Egypt.]