Jerusalem Overload

Well, I didn’t think it could happen, but I feel “maxed out” on Jesus, and not necessarily in a good way! Today was incredibly busy. We started the day on the Mount of Olives, and the view was gorgeous!



Then we hiked down the side of the mountain, following the route of Palm Sunday, and went to the Church of the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. What a beautiful church! The guide said that they have done core samples and some of the olive trees in the garden are 2,000 years old. Maybe Jesus sat under that very one! The church is built with the altar over the rock upon which Jesus is supposed to have sweated blood. It has a very interesting architecture, with blue windows so it is always gloomy, like the night Jesus spent in the garden, and the iron fence around the altar is shaped like the crown of thorns.

Then we walked back up the hill to the Lion Gate, also called the Sheep Gate which leads to the Muslim Quarter and just inside the gate is the Church of St. Anne, who was Mary’s mother, Jesus’ grandmother. It is built right by the pool of Bethesda, where Jesus healed the crippled man. It also is the beginning of the Via Dolorosa, or the Stations of the Cross, which is the path Jesus took from his trial, bearing the cross, to Golgotha where he was crucified. Every day pilgrims just like us follow (literally) in his footsteps.





The path ends at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which is where Jesus died and was buried. There was a long line to get into the tomb, so we didn’t go in. The place is full of chapels and altars over special spots like the place where the cross was supposed to have been put in the ground. You can stand in line and put your hand in the hole. There is a place where you can touch the stone upon which Jesus’ body was supposedly laid out for burial. I did go and touch that. Plus a dozen other chapels and churches all under one roof. Whew! After lunch, a few of us took a little time off and went souvenir shopping.

In our reflection time, some of the folks felt like I did; that we were not so much pilgrims to see the holy sites as we were a sort of religious tourist, checking everything out and taking a jillion photos. So we kind of wondered out loud what the difference is, exactly. I don’t know that we solved any great issues, but for me the difference is personal involvement. A tourist (religious or otherwise) is someone who goes to see, not to do; a pilgrim is a person who goes to a church and doesn’t just take pictures, but sits a while to worship, to experience the God whose relics we have come to see. Maybe I didn’t do it perfectly, but I did feel that at least a few times I managed to worship, but it was tough with all the hubbub.

One thing many of us felt as we walked through the city, and that is that we were perfectly safe. Thanks to all who are praying for us! So far we really have seen nothing to be alarmed about, and that’s a good thing. Tomorrow we go to the Temple, the Wailing Wall, and the Garden Tomb. Another busy day!

Grace and peace to you all!