The Bible Lands Study Tour

The Bible Lands Study Tour

Contextual Learning in the Land of Jesus

By Vixie Bailey

I must admit that I am guilty of breaking the 10th commandment: coveting the opportunity to go on the Bible Lands Study Tour.

Every other year the theology department hosts the Bible Lands Study Tour, an opportunity to earn eight religion credits while traveling to the places where the stories happened. Dr. Carl Cosaert, the current Dean of Theology here at Walla Walla University, not only leads this trip for the University, but also leads tours for the Upper Colombia Conference. The Bible Lands Tour costs about $8,100 for the credits, airfare, food, tours, and lodging—an insanely low price to pay.

As a theology student, I had several friends and professors who went on the trip. It was rough seeing all of their pictures on Facebook while working on campus as a custodial supervisor. This year’s tour started in Egypt with camel rides to the pyramids and then covered the modern countries of Jordan, Israel, and Turkey.

Specific sites that participants had an opportunity to visit included the temple in Petra, Jordan where part of Indiana Jones “The Last Crusade” was filmed, the Via Dolorosa, the Garden of Gethsemane, the home of the High Priest who condemned Jesus to death, and several famous early churches, including six of the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3.

Katie Wagner at the Dome of the Rock

Photo from Vixie Bailey

I talked with Katie Wagner, who has had the chance to go twice, about things she enjoyed on the 2019 tour:

Funniest Moment: “While in Israel, we went for a hike in the Judean Desert. We started to hear some strange noises coming from the ledge above our trail. As we kept walking, a large herd of goats emerged and began to run down the hill in our direction. As they came towards us, we realized that we were in the middle of their path. We had to quickly scramble off the path to avoid being run over by them. The funniest part is that the whole time they were screaming (think of the screaming goat video). I never imagined I’d have to run down a trail fast enough to avoid being trampled by screaming goats!”

A Highlight: “There were lots of amazing moments on this trip! One of the highlights was a Sabbath we spent in Israel. We had the opportunity to take a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. It was incredible to look around the shores of the sea and see many of the places where Jesus ministered. It was also really cool to be on the same body of water that Peter walked on towards Jesus. That experience helps make the Bible come to life in a really cool way.”

A Spiritual Moment: “One of the most spiritual moments was visiting the Jordan River where Jesus was baptized. We had the chance to get baptized in the Jordan, and it was special to see our friends and classmates commit their lives to Christ. It was incredible to be part of a moment full of so much spiritual support and encouragement.”

Group photo at the city of Petra

Photo from Vixie Bailey

If you want to be kissed by a camel in Jericho, have the chance to be baptized (or re-baptized) in the river Jordan, or see the temple from Indiana Jones “The Last Crusade” in person, then look for information for the next trip in 2021!