Bible Lands

The Bible Lands program is an educational travel experience that is open to learners of all ages. Our goal is to offer a rich learning experience that will fill your imagination with visions of the past by providing a geographical and historical context for the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. This can be a complicated affair, since the Bible spans several thousand years and just as many miles - from Italy to Iran, Turkey to Ethiopia, and everywhere in between.

While participants will not visit all of the lands mentioned in the Bible during one trip - just imagine how long that would take! - the program offers travel opportunities to many biblically-significant sites and historical locations in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Past programs have included visits to Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Greece, and Italy. Participants who join one of our programs will visit some of the most significant sites recorded in the Bible.

The Bible Lands program is currently suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we intend to resume operations when it is safe and feasible to do so. Below are examples of itineraries and informational brochures for Bible Lands trips that were planned for 2020.

Western Wall

2020 BIBLE LANDS PROGRAMS

January 2020: Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Sinai

Monday, January 6 - Friday, January 17

March 2020: Turkey, Patmos

Friday, March 20 - Saturday, March 28

May 2020: Israel, Palestine, London

Tuesday, May 19 - Thursday, May 28

Josh Barber, B.A., M.A.
 Office of International Education

Joy Simon McDaniel House, Room 4
 731-989-6174
 jbarber@fhu.edu

Mark Blackwelder, B.A., M.Min, Ph.D
 Dean of the College of Biblical Studies

GC 108E
 731-989-6624
 mblackwelder@fhu.edu

January 2020: Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Sinai

Click here to download the informational brochure for the January 2020 Bible Lands programs.

Monday, January 6 – Depart U.S. for Amman, Jordan

Tuesday, January 7 – Arrive in Amman
Overnight in Amman

Wednesday, January 8 – Jerash, Madaba, Mount Nebo, Ain Musa
Overnight in Petra

Thursday, January 9 – Petra, Wadi Rum, transfer to Taba via Aqaba and Eilat
Overnight in Taba

Friday, January 10 – St. Catherine’s Monastery, Mount Sinai, transfer to Dead Sea
Overnight at Dead Sea

Saturday, January 11 – Ein Gedi, Qumran, Jericho, Jordan River, Nazareth Village
Overnight in Nazareth

Sunday, January 12 – Worship with Nazareth Church of Christ, Tabgha, Banias/Caesarea Philippi, Tel Dan
Overnight in Tiberias

Monday, January 13 – Sea of Galilee: Yigal Allon Museum, boat ride on Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Mount of Beatitudes
Overnight in Tiberias

Tuesday, January 14 – Caesarea Maritima, Bethlehem, Israel Museum
Overnight in Jerusalem

Wednesday, January 15 – Jerusalem: Pool of Siloam, Hezekiah's Tunnel, Western Wall, Temple Mount, shopping in Old City
Overnight in Jerusalem

Thursday, January 16 – Jerusalem: Mount of Olives, Gethsemane, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Garden Tomb
Overnight in Jerusalem

Friday, January 17 – Transfer to Tel Aviv for flight back to U.S.

March 2020: Turkey, Patmos

Click here to download the informational brochure for the March 2020 Bible Lands programs.

Friday, March 20 – Depart U.S. for Istanbul

Saturday, March 21 – Arrive in Istanbul
Overnight in Istanbul

Sunday, March 22 – Istanbul: Hagia Sofia, Hippodrome, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Spice Market, worship at hotel
Overnight in Istanbul

Monday, March 23 – Truva/Troy, Bergama/Pergamum
Overnight in Pergamum

Tuesday, March 24 – Pergamum (Acropolis, Asklepieion, Altar of Zeus, Red Basilica), Akhisar/Thyatira, Izmir/Smyrna
Overnight in Smyrna

Wednesday, March 25 – Sart/Sardis (Synagogue, Gymnasium, Temple of Artemis), Alaşehir/Philadelphia, Laodicea, Pamukkale/Hierapolis (Martyrium, Gate of Domitian, Arcadian Way, Nymphaion, Temple of Apollo, Plutonium, Necropolis)
Overnight in Hierapolis

Thursday, March 26 – Ephesus (Baths of Scholastica, Library of Celsus, Temple of Hadrian), Kusadasi
Overnight inKusadasi

Friday, March 27 –  Private ferry to Patmos, bus to Chora (Monastery of St. John, Grotto of the Apocalypse), free time in Skala, return to Kusadasi

Saturday, March 28 – Transfer to Izmir airport for return to U.S. via Istanbul

May 2020: Israel, Palestine, London

Click here to download the informational brochure for the May 2020 Bible Lands programs.

Tuesday, May 19 – Depart Nashville for London

Wednesday, May 20 – Arrive in London, tour British Museum
Overnight in London

Thursday, May 21 – Fly to Tel Aviv, Valley of Elah
Overnight at Dead Sea

Friday, May 22 – Masada, Ein Gedi, Qumran, Jericho, Jordan River
Overnight in Tiberias

Saturday, May 23 – Sea of Galilee: Yigal Allon Museum, boat ride on Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Magdala synagogue, Mount of Beatitudes
Overnight in Nazareth

Sunday, May 24 – Worship with Nazareth Church of Christ, Tabgha, Banias/Caesarea Philippi, Tel Dan, Mount Tabor
Overnight in Tiberias

Monday, May 25 – Nazareth Village, Megiddo, Mount Carmel, Caesarea Maritima
Overnight inJerusalem

Tuesday, May 26 – Jerusalem: Western Wall, Temple Mount, Pool of Bethesda, Pool of Siloam, Hezekiah's Tunnel, shopping in Old City
Overnight in Jerusalem

Wednesday, May 27 – Bethlehem, Israel Museum (Shrine of the Book, Pilate Stone, Model of Jerusalem)
Overnight in Jerusalem

Thursday, May 28 – Jerusalem: Mount of Olives, Gethsemane, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Garden Tomb
Overnight in Jerusalem

Friday, May 29 – Transfer to Tel Aviv for flight back to U.S.