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Why Does Joseph's Tomb Continue to Attract Jewish Pilgrims Despite the Dangers?
(JNS) David Isaac - Joseph's Tomb was once again vandalized by a Palestinian mob on April 9. Under the Oslo agreements, the tomb remained in Israeli hands despite being located in Area A of Judea and Samaria. Why does Joseph's Tomb continue to attract Jewish pilgrims? Jeffrey Woolf, professor of Talmud at Bar-Ilan University, cited three main reasons: 1) Jewish tradition considers it one of three sites in ancient Israel in which "the nations of the world cannot defraud Israel, saying that we stole them"; 2) a written record stretching back 1,700 years identifies the current site as Joseph's Tomb, and, Woolf says, "we can assume an oral tradition that goes back even further"; and 3) Joseph's story symbolizes the Jewish people's longing to return to their homeland. Woolf said there are three places in the Bible in which a land purchase is described. The first is the Cave of Machpelah, purchased by Abraham as a burial place for his wife Sarah (Genesis 23). Second is the purchase of a threshing floor by King David to build an altar to the Lord, which became the Temple Mount (II Samuel 24 18-25). Third is the burial place of Joseph at a site purchased by his father, Jacob, for a hundred pieces of silver (Genesis 33:18-20 and Joshua 24:32).