“It has been said that for everything you wish to learn or want to become, there is a road to follow.”
Thus begins the documentary “Route 60: The Biblical Highway,” in theaters as a Fathom Event release Sept. 18 and 19.
Narrated by David Friedman, former U.S. ambassador to Israel, and Mike Pompeo, former U.S. secretary of state, this film visits historic biblical sites in Israel along Route 60.
Also called the “Road of the Patriarchs,” it’s now a paved highway that spans 146 miles from Nazareth to Beersheba. According to the film, it “could be called the original Bible Belt.”
After watching it in a theater for the first time, director Bob Fopma said, “I really was struck with this. It shows so much of the truth of the Bible. Those stories that we heard, some of us for decades — you can see the proof of those stories right there.”
Logistics
Exact locations aren’t known for locations of many biblical events, but that isn’t the case for some stops on Route 60.
Citing one example, Fopma said, “Mount Ebal — that was actually the altar that Joshua built. It’s not a ‘could’ve been,’ ‘maybe’ or ‘maybe it was close to here.’ That was it.”
It was only through connections by Pompeo that they got clearance.
“It’s in a very sensitive area. It’s in what a lot of the world calls the West Bank; Israel calls it Judea and Samaria. That we were able to go there and go on top of that mountain where very few people have ever been, at least recently, was just amazing,” Fopma said.
However, as helpful as it was for Pompeo to be involved, logistically it was difficult since Pompeo was still under State Department security.
Though Israel supported the project, they wanted to “make sure [Pompeo] was okay,” Fopma explained, resulting in a team of 80 security guards and occasionally additional Israeli police or army.
Furthermore, Pompeo’s schedule was really tight. Fopma had to arrange one crew to set up at a site and while shooting there, another crew was setting up at the next site. The crews leapfrogged through all of the narrated sites over three hectic days.
Reverent attitude
The reverent attitude necessary in certain areas also made shooting difficult.
“We actually shot in the Western Wall overlook first,” Fopma said. “Then we said, ‘We’re going to try to walk down to the Wall.’
“Now, I’ve been to Israel a lot of times, and anyone can walk down to the Western Wall — it’s no problem at all. However, if you start taking a lot of pictures or shooting video, a lot of the people there get very unhappy about that because they just feel it’s a sacred, holy place.”
They decided to try, planning to go only part of the way and cutting the crew down to just three cameras, audio and security.
But at the halfway point, Pompeo and Friedman continued walking. Surprisingly, no one got upset.
Then Fopma felt a tap on his shoulder.
It was the Chief Rabbi of Israel, giving his blessing to the project. Surprised and pleased, Fopma knew this meant that the entire area could be shown to the world.
“The amazing thing [the Chief Rabbi] said at the wall, which is in the film, was, ‘This is a place for Christians to come also and pray.’ It reminded me of the Bible [verse] that said the temple will be a place for people of all nations. He was kind of reflecting that,” Fopma said.
‘Amazing moment’
Another unplanned moment was when, at the Garden of Gethsemane, Pompeo and Friedman were asked to discuss difficult challenges.
Pompeo shared a personal account of his involvement in a 2018 release of American hostages from North Korea.
“That was just an amazing moment also,” Fopma said.
“Route 60” isn’t simply for Christians and Bible scholars.
“I think [another] group is anyone interested in archeology,” Fopma said. “You saw Joshua’s Altar. You saw where the tabernacle was at Shiloh. You saw the remains of an older temple at Bethel. You saw the building that Herod built. There’s a lot of archeology there.”
History and travel
History lovers and travel buffs would enjoy watching, Fopma said, as well as those who want to learn more about Israel.
“I think having a former ambassador to Israel and a former secretary of state who were very involved in moving the embassy to Jerusalem and the Abraham Accords — you learn about that,” Fopma said.
Mike Huckabee, Baptist minister, political commentator and former politician, said that this film is “visually stunning and [has] compelling storytelling.”
Footage of the holy places is intermingled with graphics that are reminiscent of the huge coffee-table Bibles within many Christian homes in the past. The richly descriptive narratives overlay a Middle Eastern style of music.
Originally, “Route 60” was planned to be a docuseries with four one-hour episodes. There are plans to develop this in-depth series, as well as related Bible study materials and a devotional. The DVD should be released in late 2023.
To learn more about “Route 60” and to get tickets, go to route60.movie.
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