JUC Community Celebrates the Fall Olive Harvest in Jerusalem

The Jerusalem University College community gathered in October 2026 for a fall olive harvest, continuing a seasonal tradition that connects campus life with the agricultural landscape of the biblical world.

Throughout the year, JUC students and staff experience the changing seasons through the plants and trees growing on campus. In the spring, wheat covered portions of the grounds, while the summer brought grapes, figs, and pomegranates from the campus trees.

The fall season provided another opportunity to experience the agricultural imagery found throughout Scripture.

Deuteronomy 8:8 describes the land as “a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey.” For the JUC community, these descriptions are not simply historical references but part of the environment in which they live and study.

The 2026 olive harvest was particularly abundant. Unlike the previous fall, when the trees produced too little fruit to harvest, this year’s crop provided more olives than the community could process.

Students and staff spent hours picking, washing, and crushing olives, yet substantial quantities remained on the trees.

Perry helped lead the effort to preserve the harvested olives through proper canning methods, while Nicole successfully produced olive oil from the crop.

The harvest offered an opportunity for community participation and hands-on engagement with an agricultural practice deeply rooted in the history and culture of the Mediterranean region.

Experiences like the olive harvest reflect a distinctive aspect of studying at JUC, where the natural environment and rhythms of daily life provide opportunities to connect biblical learning with firsthand experience.