Information AboutBethel |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT BETHEL | |
| ancient israel and judah | |
| hebrew language | |
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SEMITIC ROOT A Semitic, possibly Phonecian word meaning 'sacred stone/pillar" was the etymological root of the Greek Baetylus .
HEBREW In this Semitic language of the Jew ish people, ''bethel'' means " House Of El ")
Bible Bethel (Israel) is a City in ancient Israel , about 10 miles north of Jerusalem . It is identified with the modern Palestinian village of Beitun in the West Bank , near the modern Israel i settlement of Beit El .
According to Biblical scripture, running from the wrath of his brother Esau , the patriarch Jacob rests and falls asleep on a stone for a pillow in this exact spot. In the dream that follows, Jacob sees a Ladder leading up to Heaven, with Angels going up and down on the ladder to and from Heaven. Jacob awakes, and realizes that God's presence is in this exact spot. He anoints his "Pillar Stone" here and later God commands him to build an Altar here. Much later, the first king of the Northern Kingdom Of Israel ( Jeroboam ) set up a Golden Calf here, (and another one in Dan), along with changing the Feast of Tabernacles to the eighth month instead of the seventh, and appointed non-Levites (or at least not the elder Levites) as priests in an attempt to keep Israelites from moving back down south to Jerusalem, thus losing tax money. A Bethel is the name given to the meeting place as well as the local group that meets in each city. GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES United States Several places in the United States Of America are named Bethel:
Bethel also appears in the name of the following locations: Canada Several exist in Ontario , Canada :
South Africa There is a Bethel, South Africa RELIGION In english, the word Bethel can refer to a meeting place. The name is also used in the name of some denominations. In the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses , a ''Bethel'' is an adminstrative office. It is the head office in each country where they have significant members where religious literature such as The Watchtower and the Awake is dispersed. The head Bethel is in Brooklyn, New York. The international office of Jehovah's Witnesses are located in the United States. Here the Governing Body is seated. There are Branch Offices of Jehovah's Witnesses in about 110 countries. At these locations, volunteers help to print and ship Bible literature as well as other works. They are known as the ''Bethel family''. The Branch Office may include a translation department, a legal department, a hospital information services department, as well as printing facilities in larger branches. Each branch has a ''Service Department'' that corresponds with the congregations and supervises the work of Circuit and District Overseers. In each branch, a committee of three or more persons serve as a Branch Committee, appointed by the Governing Body. FREEMASONRY In Freemasonry , a Bethel is a local chapter of the Masonic girls' organization International Order Of Job's Daughters . SOURCES AND REFERENCES Encyclopaedia Britannica, 196, vol. 2 |
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