Fr Eamon to the fore of first-century discovery

A NORTH Clare priest has been to the fore in the excavation and restoration of a major historical site in the Middle East.

Fr Eamon Kelly from Boston, Tubber, is based in Jerusalem and is the vice-director of a project in which a first-century synagogue was discovered last year.
Fr Kelly is also the vice-director of the Pontifical Institute Notre Dame of Jerusalem Centre, a Christian guesthouse, which accommodates  280 people.
Last August, while excavating land beside the Sea of Galilee to provide additional pilgrim accommodation, Fr Kelly and his team found the ruins of a synagogue dating back two millennia.
In 2009, Israel had between two and three million tourists while nearby Egypt hopes to attract 14 million to the country next year. The Holy Land, according to Fr Kelly, should be attracting more visitors.
“There is a need for creating more space to accommodate visitors or pilgrims. We are in the area of fostering pilgrimages. There is a lack of space for hosting these pilgrimages, so we began work on the Magdala Centre,” Fr Kelly said.
The institute began developing the Magdala Centre in 2005, a project on the Sea of Galilee incorporating a hotel for pilgrims, a multimedia centre, a basilica, an international centre on the dignity of women and an ecumenical centre. It is located in Migdal, Israel two hours by car North of Jerusalem.
When excavations began, workers discovered a particularly unusual ruin on the site earmarked for the ecumenical centre.
“Last August, we found the remains of a first-century synagogue. It is still being excavated but so far, we have found three layers of stone steps, which would have been seats, in a square formation. It is absolutely clear that it is a synagogue. We found 250 coins and different pottery showing that the site was inactive from AD67 onwards,” Fr Kelly outlined.
“This is only the seventh first-century synagogue ever discovered and it is so beautiful. It has mosaics and frescoes in bright colours. It is amazing that after 2,000 years that they are still in such good condition. It is the only first-century synagogue found in this area of Galilee,” he continued.
The ruins are currently being excavated and are not yet open to the public, however, work is continuing on their preservation and restoration and attempts are being made to integrate them into the overall project. According to Fr Kelly, this is likely to draw between 500,000 and one million people to the region each year and will be opened on July 22, 2012, the feast day of Mary Magdalene.
“The most important discovery was a small stone with legs and it is beautifully engraved. It features the menorah, a seven-branch candelabra, which has been a symbol of Judaism since ancient times. The nine-branch menorah would be familiar to a lot of people as it is used on the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. The oldest menorah ever recorded was on the Titus Arch in Rome. The one we found dates back to before AD67, making it the oldest menorah engraved in stone,” Fr Kelly explained.
As well as their historical importance, the ruins are significant in Christianity and Judaism.
The site, close to key locations in the New Testament, indicates that there is a high probability that the people from this synagogue were followers of Jesus and may have witnessed his miracles first hand. Fr Kelly also believes it is also possible Jesus visited this synagogue on his way to Tabgha, the location where many believe the miracle of the loaves and fishes took place.
“This discovery is very exciting. It is saying ‘bring the people together’. It is emphasising our common roots, our overall commonality and is a call to come together and build together,” he commented.
Fr Kelly was educated at Boston National School and Our Lady’s College in Gort, before joining the Legionnaires of Christ in 1974 and was ordained in 1987. His background is not in archaeology but he has volunteered on digs with some visitors to the institute. Indeed, it is this project that has cemented his interest in the subject.
Now Fr Kelly is looking for volunteers from the county to work on an archaeological dig on a strip of land sandwiched between the site of the Magdala Centre and another site where digs have revealed numerous historical artefacts.
“We have used the most advanced technology ever used for this sort of thing in Israel. Of course then when I came home and talked about it, I realised it is the same technology that was used to compile the flood report in South Galway back in the ’90s. We now have a good idea what is down there and it is very exciting. We have a 12-acre site to dig and we would love to see some Clare people come out and take part. It would be a great experience for history teachers or archaeology graduates or people with an interest in religion or art history or architecture. Imagine what it would mean for teachers of history or students to spend a month there digging. It is very attractive for them,” Fr Kelly stated. Anyone interested in taking part in the dig can visit the Magdala Centre website, www.magdalaisrael.wordpress.com/.
Fr Kelly recently completed a 10-city tour of the United States giving presentations in synagogues on the findings at the Magdala Centre. This weekend, he is giving a public presentation on the subject in the local hall in Tubber after 8pm mass.