Study Trip to the Moab Excavation Site

A team of students and faculty members from Friedensau Adventist University (FAU) has been in Jordan since July 5, 2026, specifically on a study trip to the Moab excavation site at Khirbet al Balu’a, a site originally discovered by Prof. Udo Worschech and Prof. Friedbert Ninow. In collaboration with LaSierra University, four students from Friedensau (Marie Kolwe, Jemima Klingbeil, Johannes Hofmann, and Stefan Rebein) and three faculty members (Dr. Wernfried Rieckmann, Prof. Martin Klingbeil, and Thandi Klingbeil) are excavating at various sites within the 16-hectare city, which controlled access from the Dead Sea to the Moabite Highlands in the Ancient Near East. “For the students, it’s a new experience to have breakfast at 4 a.m. and head out to the excavation sites at sunrise at 5:30 a.m. to spend the next seven hours excavating pottery, examining new artifacts, and discovering ancient buildings, some of which date back to the Late Bronze Age (1500 to 1200 B.C.E.).” The study trips to Moab, which take place at regular intervals during the semester breaks, are an integral part of the work of the Institute for Biblical Archaeology at FAU.

“Surrounded by wheat fields on the verge of harvest, we recall the time when Ruth, the Moabite, left Moab with Naomi to follow her mother-in-law to Judah and start a new life there.” “Surrounded by wheat fields on the verge of harvest, we recall the time when Ruth, the Moabite, left Moab with Naomi to follow her mother-in-law to Judah, where she began a new life, married Boaz, and became David’s great-grandmother and, ultimately, an ancestor of the Messiah. A visit to the Nabataean city of Petra, featuring a spontaneous worship service in the colorful sandstone caves and exciting encounters with Jordanians and Bedouins, makes this trip an unforgettable experience,” wrote Prof. Martin Klingbeil in his report.