When SPC students visited Israel the last time in 2014, student Nicholas Taltos said:

“The dynamic [of this study abroad program] has had a synergistic effect–allowing us the combined benefits of scholarly expertise and experiential wisdom.”

In just 2 days another group of students, along with Professor Michael Jahosky, will depart the U.S. to travel to Israel. On their itinerary are many historic cities, one of them Jerusalem. Jerusalem is all about sacred space. Students will learn to dispel the illusion that “myths” are untrue stories that can be disproved by the empirical method in this class, which will help them better understand how the religious mind works. The word “real” is bigger than we think.

Professor Jahosky said that he is most excited about showing students the Haram al-Sharif (The Temple Mount), the Western Wall, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, as well as the hike through En Gedi and Masada.

“In the first few classes, I will be showing students how to think “Parabolically,” which combines what the ancient Greeks called “Logos” and “Mythos” as the best possible way to interact and understand with the sacred spaces of Jerusalem” said professor Jahosky, “students will also be learning about the history of Jerusalem and getting a thorough introduction to the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, as well as learning about how other civilizations interacted with the Jews.”

“My last minute tips to students would be to remember to be respectful and open-minded when traveling to Israel, and to remember that this is a very passionately religious country.”

The professor would also like to remind students to ask him as many questions as they can possibly think of while abroad, because he has much to share with them about the history of Israel and these three religions.