LIFE IN PALESTINE AT TIME OF JESUS

“HOUSE PLANS” How many rooms are in most houses

today? What weather conditions affect the way

homes are built in this country? Do houses today have religious

symbols? What religious symbols could they have?

What type of animals do families have today?Are animals left inside or outside the house?

HOME LIFE The village house was a

small one roomed building with one window and one door.

The walls of the house were built of clay and bricks and stone and were white-washed to reflect the heat of the sun. The window was small to keep the house cool inside. The roof of the house was flat and thatched with reeds and covered in clay.

A mezuzah was fixed to the doorframe of all Jewish homes. It was a small wooden or leather box containing a tiny scroll on which a Jewish prayer is written. The mezuzah was touched prayerfully by Jews entering and leaving the home.

HOME LIFE Ordinary families would have had

a goat, a donkey and a few chickens. They were all brought in at night to keep them safe, and their feed put in a manger. In the morning, the animals were led outside again.

CEILING OF ROOF MADE OF TIMBER AND LEAVES

MEALTIMES IN A JEWISH HOMEAll the family came together for the evening meal. After washing their hands, they sat around a mat on the floor. The meal began with a blessing, then everyone took food from a large dish. They dipped the fingers of their right hand into the dish to take out the food, no cutlery was used. Fresh bread was eaten with the meal. The bread was broken and divided amongst everyone. During the meal the father of a devout family would tell stories from Jewish scripture. The meals always ended with a blessing.

A village house at the time of Jesus normally had 3-4 rooms.

A mezuzah was a small wooden or leather box containing a tiny scroll on which a Jewish prayer is written.

The walls of the house were painted a dark colour to attract the heat of the sun.

The animals would have never been left in the Jewish house.

In some way, Jesus mealtimes were a holy time.

A rabbi is the name of the teacher in the synagogue.

At school, girls learn to read and write while boys stayed at home and learned the trade of their fathers.