The site is also mentioned in the Jerusalem Talmud as one of three sites where a fair took place. Referred to as Botnah, the sages warned against attending the fair due to idolatrous rituals that took place there, performed by pre-Christian groups. The book Abodah Zarah: A Preliminary Translation and Explanation Talmud of the Land of Israel translated by Jacob Neusner, 1982 quotes the Jerusalem Talmud, Avodah Zarah 1:4, 39d in the name of Rabbi Yohanan:
(PHOTO: Hebron, including the Constantine church at Mamre cicled in red. Reproduction of the Madaba Map discovered in Saint George Church in Madaba, Jordan. Credit: Bernard Gagnon / Wiki Commons.)
Elonei Mamre is one of four holy sites that are currently inaccessible, except in rare circumstances. Section 6 of the 1997 Hebron Accords reads as follows:
Paragraphs 2 and 3(a) of Article 32 of Appendix 1 to Annex III of the Interim Agreement will be applicable to the following Holy Sites in Area H-1:
1. The Cave of Othniel Ben Knaz/El-Khalil;
2. Elonei Mamre/Haram Er-Rameh;
3. Eshel Avraham/Balotat Ibrahim; and
4. Maayan Sarah/Ein Sarah.
The Palestinian Police will be responsible for the protection of the above Jewish Holy Sites. Without derogating from the above responsibility of the Palestinian Police, visits to the above Holy Sites by worshipers or other visitors shall be accompanied by a Joint Mobile Unit, which will ensure free, unimpeded and secure access to the Holy Sites, as well as their peaceful use.
“Among the oaks of Mamre, at a distance from there, dwelled an old man, who was near death when Rabbi Petachia arrived there, and he told his son to show Rabbi Petachia the tree under which the angels rested. He also showed him a fine olive tree cleft into three parts with a stone in the middle. They have a tradition that when the angels sat down the tree was cleft into three parts each resting under one tree whilst sitting on the stone . The fruits of the tree are very sweet. By the tree is the well of Sarah; its waters are clear and sweet. By the well is the tent of Sarah. Close by Mamre is a plain and on the other side there are about a hundred cubits from the well of Sarah to the well of Abraham its water is very agreeable. They also showed him a stone of twenty-eight cubits, upon which Abraham, our father, was circumcised.” Pages 65-67.
The 1537 book Yihus HaAvot also describes the oak of Abraham as a holy site for the Jewish community. The 1866 book The Comparative Geography of Palestine and the Sinaitic Peninsula by Carl Ritter translates some of those references to the Oak of Mamre and the stone of Abraham’s circumcision. Page 300 states,
“The anonymous Jewish author of the Jichus ha-Abot [usually pronounced Yichus HaAvot], written in 1537, seems to have taken the ground that this place is correctly supposed to have been the site of Abraham’s tent. After describing the sepulchres of Hebron in which the patriarchs were buried, he speaks of the place where Jesse the father of David was interred, outside of the city, and passes to speak of the graves of other Israelites to whom he wishes peace. He then goes on to say, that in the neighbourhood of the city, between the vineyards, are the oaks of Mamre, where Abraham pitched his tent, and the stone on which he sat during the circumcision. This stone, which was regarded as a sacred memorial of the covenant with the Jews (Gen. xvii. 8, 9, 23-27), was visited three hundred years earlier (1210) by the Jewish pilgrim Samuel bar Simson, who tells us that it was held in great reverence by the Arabs, i.e. the Ishmaelites. Benjamin of Tudela visited the place in 1160, but his description is very indefinite.”
To arrange a guided tour of Hebron contact us:
United States contact info:
http://www.hebronfund.org
1760 Ocean Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11230
718-677-6886
info@hebronfund.org
In Israel contact the offices of the Jewish Community of Hebron at:
http://en.hebron.org.il/
02-996-5333
office@hebron.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hebronofficial
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