Books

My pile of physical books.

Rick Steves says "Guidebooks are $25 tools for $4,000 experiences."  In my case, closer to a $12,000 or more experience.   As a devotee of Rick's method of travel, I'm doing a lot of preliminary research for a number of reasons.  One, of course, was to do sufficient research to make sure my numbers in the Lilly Endowment application were correct.

Another, and more important, is that I firmly believe, from my experience of travel, that the more prepared I am, the easier it is to understand and truly experience the places around me.   If I know, for example, what is authentic and what is traditional, but probably not authentic, allows me to place myself in the time of Jesus (this is what Jesus saw) or perhaps the time of later pilgrims (this was holy to later pilgrims, even if it was not was Jesus saw.)

So these are the books I've been looking at.   Kind of an annotated bibliography.   If you have done this kind of trip and have some recommendations, by all means add them!  I have seven months left to go!     If you are never planning to do such a trip, feel free to stop after the first set.    If you are interested in doing a pilgrimage of some sort yourself, please feel free to read the whole set!

In all cases I've listed the books in the order of my itinerary.

Hard Copy Books

Some of the books I have gotten as e-books, but there are many, especially those which I am using for preparation, which are either only available as hard copy books, or which I want as a hard copy book, because I don't want to be constantly staring at my phone.   These are the hard copy books.  I've done Amazon links, because those are usually convenient for people.  However, I do urge you to find them somewhere else, especially a small business if possible.   Hearts and Minds Bookstore in Dallastown, PA can order at least all of the religion books, and there are a variety of travel stores where you can order the travel guides.   Order Rick's guides directly from his site, or the Lonely Planet books from that site!  

>The most critical 5:

1. Chasing the Divine in the Holy Land by Ruth Eberhart (Amazon).   I picked this up from Hearts and Minds during a clergy convocation four or so years ago.   Its a memoir of Ruth and her pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and it was the book that most inspired me to want to go to the Holy Land myself.  It's a very easy read, and it is the book my church book group will read while I am on the road. 
2. Jesus> by James Martin, S. J. (Amazon).  Another memoir, this one has a lot more information about Galilee, which is a big draw for me, and a lot of connection to the biblical story.   Also an excellent read, but longer than Eberhart's  book.  My copy of this was lent me by a friend, and I need to get her a new copy  because Audrey got it one day. . . . .(Audrey is my granddaughter, who is almost 3 years old.)
3. Walking the Jesus Trail: Nazareth to the Sea of Galilee by Anna Dintaman and David Landis.  You can get this directly on the Jesus Trail Website.   This is the trail guide, and something I want to have with me as I walk.  It includes almost all the logistics for doing the Jesus Trail, and really detailed maps.   Some of the information is updated on the web site.  I think this book is likely to be badly dog eared before I leave.  
4. In the Steps of Jesus, by Peter Walker.  (Amazon) This book goes step by step through the life of Jesus, looking at the story in scripture (Peter is partial to Luke), then at the setting in the time of Jesus, then in the setting today.   A pretty big, heavy book, it is written by a scholar of classical and ancient history, and full of pictures.  It will NOT go with me on the plane, but has been great for prep.   Walker is a bit more traditional and takes the sights more at face value and scripture more literally than I do, but we've been able to figuratively walk together with these two books, which leads me to. . . 
5. In the Steps of St. Paul, by Peter Walker. (Amazon)  Same as the last, but following St. Paul into Turkey and Greece, and finally Malta and Rome.  This was essential for understanding the sights in Malta, and for feeling a little sad to be skipping Turkey (more on that in a later post.)  Again, this one is not a travel guide, and is large and heavy and full of pictures.   It would help any Christian feel closer to the places where the New Testament happened. 

Other hardcopy Books

1. Jesus Trail and Jerusalem, by Jacob Saar. (Amazon) Another guide to the Jesus trail, this one with really detailed topographical maps.  It takes you by foot to Jerusalem on the Israeli National Trail and has a lot of detail on the Old City in Jerusalem.  This one will go with me as a secondary resource for the hike. 
2. A Pilgrim's Guide to The Lands of St. Paul by Raymond Goodburn and David Housefly. (Amazon) - Great for Greece, and especially Malta, this provided more detail of locations and travel information than the Walker books did, though it is a bit dryer.    A second edition came out in March, but is unavailable, so I am waiting with the first Edition.
3. Streetwise Jerusalem by Michelin. (Amazon) I like Streetwise maps when I'm going to be in a city for a while.  I have 7 nights in Jerusalem's old city, so I expect this clear map to be helpful. 
4. The Story of the Holy Land by Peter Walker.  Walker does for the entire biblical history what he does for Jesus and Paul in his other books, with drop dead gorgeous photos.    This was great to connect with the story in the TaNaKh, which of course, was THE Bible for Jesus and Paul. 
5. Atlas of the Bible, by Jean-Pierre Isbouts.  (Amazon) This special edition of National Geographic is great for the story and for maps.  It also focuses on the time before Jesus more than the time of Jesus, and is a bit bulky to carry. 

E-Books

So, most of the books I'll be carrying with me will be e-books.    Indeed some of the most critical books for this journey will be on the kindle app on my phone.   I'm even considering buying a low end kindle, just for guidebooks!   These are the ones I'm working with:

1. Israel and the Palestinian Territories - Lonely Planet (here) - exhaustive travel guide for Israel and the Palestinian territories, includes all the logistics for my first three weeks.
2. The Holy Land: An Oxford Archaeological Guide, by Jerome Murphy-O'Connor.  James Martin recommends this exhaustive Archeological guide in his book, and having gotten it I can agree.   It is a bit dry, but has helped me find a lot of little things.  It's pretty much limited to places where there is archeological evidence and ruins to visit (so things like the Bay of Parables is not on it) but it is exceptionally helpful.   I will be glad to have this on my phone, and it is a book I am spending a LOT of time with.  One neat thing is that it is written from the point of view of archeology, not necessarily religion, which is a fresh break from most of the books on this list. 
3. The Christian Traveler's Guide to the Holy Land, by by Charles H. Dyer and Gregory A. Hatteberg.   I knew as soon as I opened this book that I would struggle with it, since it is published by Moody Press, and I'm a fairly progressive Christian.    And I did.   It takes far too seriously ANY site that might be traditional (the archeological guide is very good about saying, this tradition is from, say, the 11th century and therefore not very likely) and it takes scripture way too literally for me.   Also, there was nothing new in it.   I can't recommend it.  (And therefore did not give you a link!)
4. The Holy Land for Christian Travelers: An Illustrated Guide to Israel by John A. Beck, (Amazon) by comparison, has a lot to offer.   It lists more obscure sights and identifies when they are probably authentic as opposed to traditional (and most likely not so authentic.)  It was the first book in which I read the controversy over which of three or four sites was Emmaus, for example.   A highlight of this are great illustrations, which are simple enough to navigate on my phone, and which really give me a feel for things like the setup of churches, or a neighborhood.

Then and Now Bible Maps.  Eh.  What you would expect.  I think that Google Maps and other apps will be just as useful. But it's on my phone just in case. 

A Guide to Biblical Sites in Greece and Turkey, by Clyde E. Fant and Mitchell G. Reddish.  (Amazon) I'm just getting started with this one, but it's particularly helpful for Patmos, which was not in the St. Paul Books. 

Greece:Athens and the Peloponnese, Italy, France, Germany all by Rick Steves et. al.   (here)  I wasn't kidding. He's my travel hero.     In addition to the books, there is media, but I'll do a separate post on media at some point.  

A Pilgrim's Guide to Italy: A Guide to the Saints, by James Heater. (Amazon) A VERY quirky book, it helped me clarify what I'd do for the period between the death of Paul and the Reformation.  Originally I thought to go visit the sites of the great counsels of the church, but they are in Turkey, which I am skipping.  So I settled on Rome and a couple of saints that mean something to me.  Benedict, who defined monasticism can be studied in a day trip from Rome to Subiaco, and a couple days in Assisi, where Francis and Claire were centered.  

I continue prepping and reading.   Some of my inspiration (especially for Reformation and Puritan sites) came from other sources.   I will write shortly on Footsteps, on Media, and on Turkey.