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Mount Gilboa
Directly above the Jezreel Valley in Israel's northern region you will find the noble Mount Gilboa, best known for the iris flowers that cover its grounds every spring. Having its own species of Irises unique to this area, the spring bloom on Mount Gilboa attracts hundreds of visitors annually. The beauty of Mount Gilboa in full bloom has been the topic of many songs and poems, making it a prime destination for those on a Bar Mitzvah tour, a Bat Mitzvah tour, a Jewish heritage tour or a family tour to Israel.
Beyond Mount Gilboa's natural beauty, is its Biblical reference best known as the Battle of Gilboa. It is said in the first Book of Samuel that a battle ensued between David and Saul. The Biblical texts explains that David had made an alliance with the neighboring Philistines to attack Israel, and when King Saul heard of this he ordered the Israelites to meet their opponents on Mount Gilboa. Having consulted a seer about the potential outcome of the battle, King Saul was told that the Israelites will lose the battle against David and Saul shall lose his life. Of the many battles described in the scriptures, King Saul's defeat atop Mount Gilboa is perhaps one of the most descriptive of bloodsheds.
Other Biblical references to Mount Gilboa include that in the Book of Judges, where Ma'ayan Haron, a natural spring located at the feet of Mount Gilboa, is invoked. It is at Ma'ayan Harod that the Judge Gideon chose 300 warriors to participate in the Battle of Midiantines.
Mount Gilboa - A Panorama
Standing atop Mount Gilboa visitors will enjoy a panoramic view of the Jezreel Valley. With its many fishponds the valley attracts a variety of birds ranging from cormorants to pelicans, seagulls, storks and ducks. Also from atop the Gilboa visitors will witness the bloom of the purplish Gilboa Iris—seamless beds of purple Irises covering the mountain slopes.
Still on top of the Gilboa range, visitors can see the Beit She'an valley bellow and the cotton fields around it. The Beit She'an valley is known as Israel's largest cotton growing district, with many of the city of Beit She'an's residents working in cotton production factories.
Bright days on Mount Gilboa bring about an especially beautiful vista. With no clouds to block the view, visitors can see as far as the snow covered top of Mount Hermon.
Mount Gilboa - Kibbutz life
Despite the abundance of kibbutzim at the feet of Mount Gilboa, only two kibbutzim have made the mountain their home: Ma'ale Gilboa and Merav. Both are religious kibbutzim, founded in the 1960s by the religious kibbutzim movement.
The idea for a religious kibbutz seems counterintuitive at first, since the early history of kibbutz settlements was characteristically non-religious. In fact, early kibbutzim members wished to substitute Torah studies with working the land, believing as they did that Torah was not going to "build the country".
However, it was with the rise of religious kibbutzim, such as Ma'ale Gilboa and Michal, that farming and manual labor could be integrated into Torah studies. The settlers' vision was to introduce a new religious practice which incorporated the Zionist "working of the land" with Torah studies.
Being one of the first settlements of its kind, Ma'ale Gilboa proved that it was possible to be a different kind of religious Jew than the familiar city dweller. Unlike the Yeshiva men of the metropolitan area, these settlers set a new standard for Jewish thought and practice.
When on a tour to Israel be sure to visit the kibbutzim on Mount Gilboa for a view of this unique merge between agriculture and religion.
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