2026 Solidarity Tour

Ron Jackson wrote a wonderful, heartfelt article about his experiences on our recent Solidarity Tour, which ended May 26, 2026. He and I felt that I should fill in a few additional things about our trip, including the introduction below. Our hope is that you will read both articles together and be blessed and inspired.

Border of Lebanon – Winery

Introduction:

One of the purposes of this Solidarity Tour is to be with the Jewish people and let them know that we love and support them. We also look for ways to bless the Jewish people in a tangible way when there is an opportunity, such as spending money in their stores at a time when there are very few tourists. The first day of the tour at the border of Lebanon is an example. The restaurant and winery (where we could also purchase grape juice) we visited is run by the local kibbutz, which has suffered greatly due to the Hezbollah rocket attacks. They could hardly believe we came and were so excited to see us. They talked to us about what it is like to live on the border, the struggles of working between rocket attacks, having to leave their homes with their families, and then being allowed to return to their kibbutz. We found it fascinating that she said more people are living at their kibbutz on the border with Lebanon now than before the war started. She was passionate about the determination of the Jewish people to live in the land God gave to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their descendants.

Ron’s article describing his experiences on this tour starts with Friday, May 15th.

City of David Wednesday, May 20: 

Shira Allen, Guide for City of David Tour

As Ron wrote, the excavation at the City of David is very large, and they told us that only about 5% of the city is excavated so far. But what they are finding is very exciting evidence of the scriptural truth that occurred right at this location. Near the top of the City of David, Shira Allen, our guide, showed the archeological evidence of the probable location of the palace of King David. She took us into an ancient water cistern dating back to the time of the Kings of Judah. It was fascinating how this cistern fit the description of the cistern that the prophet Jeremiah was lowered into by the palace officials, Jeremiah 38:6.
She also showed us the royal seals they have found in the City of David, demonstrating how this was the location of the royal palace for the kings of Judah. These seals date back to the time of Jeremiah and show the names of men who worked in the palace, Jeremiah 36:10, 37:3, 38:1.

The Shuk, Mahane Yehuda open market

Thursday, May 21:  Today, we went to Mea Shearim (in Hebrew, this means 100 gates), an ultra-orthodox Jewish community, and went to various shops. Then we went to Mahane Yehuda open market in Jerusalem, simply referred to as the Shuk (market). This open market has perhaps over a hundred shops selling vegetables, fruits, and many other local products. It is a wonderful place to experience the local life in Jerusalem. The market was full of families buying food and supplies for Shavuot (Feast of Weeks) and for Shabbat. It was another great opportunity to talk with local merchants and show our support by buying the food we needed for the next two days.

Friday, May 22:  Today is the Feast of Weeks or Shavuot, which, of course, begins on Thursday evening. In their synagogues, the Jewish people study the Torah all night starting Thursday night and continuing into Friday morning.

We were invited to join a number of these all-night Torah readings. At 3:30 am, Friday morning, I left the AMI Center to walk to the Kotel (Western Wall) to participate in the Torah reading and study there. Thousands upon thousands of Jewish people participate in this Torah study at the Kotel, and it was an amazing experience to be with them. Seeing their love and hunger for God’s word as the night blended into the sunrise was a special time I will never forget.

According to the scriptures, this feast is a Shabbat, and later that day, our Solidarity group came together with the food we had bought at the Shuk the previous day. We enjoyed an entire evening eating dinner together and had a wonderful time sharing from our hearts many scriptures.

Home of Ben Yehudah

Ethiopian church

Saturday May 23:  We again walked the streets of Jerusalem. We went to the Ethiopian church that we used to visit with Shlomo. Then we went to the home of Eliezer Ben Yehudah (the father of modern Hebrew) and read how he was instrumental in the revival of the Hebrew language from a language of the Bible into a modern language, complete with modern words such as the Hebrew word for computer. From Ben Yehudah’s home, we walked through New Gate into the Christian quarter, the Arab quarter, and walked through the old city of Jerusalem again to the Kotel.

This was followed by another wonderful Shabbat dinner together. These Shabbat dinners felt much like a special family time together, sharing the scriptures and what the scriptures meant to each of us in our personal lives.