Heading South on Tuesday

This morning we got up very early to pack our bags. We ended our four days in the Nazareth and Galilee region to head south to the Dead Sea region. After dropping off our guide, Fr. Kamal for a business meeting outside of Jerusalem, we met our guide for the day, Joseph and headed for the ancient fortress of Masada. Originally built as a palace by King Herod the Great around 30 BCE, the mountain fortress is most famous for the Jewish rebels who holed up there in the face of a siege by more than 10,000 Roman soldiers. Finally, on a night in 73 CE (about three years after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple), the Romans set the garrison doors on fire and, with the fortress defenseless, decided to wait until the morning to attack. That night, however, seeing their fate as a choice between slavery to the Romans and a dignified end, they chose to murder their wives and children and then drew lots to see who among the ten leaders


would kill the other nine and then lay on his own sword. When the Romans entered the fortress the next morning, they were surprised to find everyone dead. There are three ways to get to the top of the mountain: by a modern cable car that was new when Debbie and I took it in 2009; by walking up the path that leads to the fortress, which takes about an hour and a half; or walking up the ramp built by the Romans, which takes about half an hour. Lest there be any doubt, we took the cable car.

Our next stop was to drive north along the Dead Sea to Qumran, site of the discovery of the
Dead Sea Scrolls in 1946. The scrolls were discovered when a Bedouin shepherd boy threw a rock to encourage a straying sheep to return, and when the rock went into a cave, he heard a strange sound. Investigation revealed the presence of scrolls stored in clay jars in what would be a series of 11 caves. Excavation of the caves has uncovered over 970 manuscripts or portions of manuscripts from the Hebrew Bible, the inter-testamental writings (known as the Apocrypha), and a number of documents that tell of the rules of life established by the Qumran community. Above is a picture of the ruins of the living quarters of the community.

We ate lunch at the cafeteria at Qumran and then took the 10-minute ride to the Dead Sea, where those who wished changed into bathing suits and floated in the Dead Sea. It is over 1300 feet below sea level, and at its deepest is another 1200 feet deep. You cannot swim in it because the water is 29% minerals. The water is so rich in minerals that it cannot support life (thus the name!), but at the bottom is a rich mud that is said to have healing qualities. So those of us who went in all rubbed ourselves with the mud, let it dry, and then washed it off. Your skin feels so smooth from all the minerals.


While I was floating in the Dead Sea, I had an important spiritual reflection. Even as the waves buffeted me ar0und a bit on the surface, I knew it was impossible for me to sink. It made me reflect on St. Peter's experience when he left the boat to meet Jesus on the Sea of Galilee -- he actually DID walk on the water until he perceived fear -- and then he started sinking. I had this wonderful image of God buoying me up through all of the struggles of life. What would happen if I really turned my life over to God? I guess that's why what we do is called "faith . . ."

Tomorrow is a free day for us, with an evening dinner party at the Jericho home of our tour operator, Iyad Qumri. I plan to hang out and read part of The Lemon Tree in preparation for dinner with Dalia Landau on Thursday evening. You are having much hotter weather than we are right now, and the evenings are always cool here with a nice breeze that always comes up around 3:15 or so. Stay cool! Shalom, Salaam and Peace, don

Walking and sailing with Jesus in Galilee

This is going to be a relatively skeletal blog today as we had a late evening tonight (we shared some fellowship down by the water after dinner under the beautiful crescent moon) and we have a very early start in the morning.

This morning we began our day with a celebration of the Eucharist on the lawn above the beach of the Sea of Galilee. Fr. Frank Kirkpatrick was the celebrant and preacher as the sun rose over the Golan Heights behind us and shone on the town of Tiberias across the water from us.

After breakfast we departed from Ein Gev kibbutz for our first stop at the Jordan River north of the Sea of Galilee. On the road heading north from the Kibbutz we saw the area where Jesus encountered the man living among the tombs, commonly known as the Gerasene Demoniac. Fr. Kamal provided a rich historical context for this story. There is a more commercial location south of the Sea of Galilee where groups can renew their baptismal vows, but we chose the road not taken to a secluded spot under a bridge where the Jordan enters a sort of rapids. It was a very moving experience for me to lead our group through a renewal of their baptismal covenant and to then sprinkle them with the water drawn from the river next to me.

Our next stop was high atop a mountain overlooking the sea of Galilee to the Church of the Beatitudes. This present structure is a 6th century construction which beautifully recalls Jesus words in the Gospel of Matthew in the Sermon on the Mount. The ruins of the original site are found closer to the water across the street from the Primacy of Peter church.

Following meditation and reflection we visited the church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes in Tabgha. Again, Fr. Kamal presented a challenging and moving reflection on the meaning of the biblical event recalled at this church. We then shared lunch at the Pilgerhouse, run by a Roman Catholic order which is also a residence guesthouse for pilgrims to the area.

Our next to the last stop for the day was in Capernaum, the town that served as Jesus' home after he was turned away from Nazareth. Here we see the remains of a neighborhood of Jesus' time, and the probable remains of the house that belonged to St. Peter's mother. In front of the altar in the church is the rock on which Jesus is said to have made his proclamation, "You are Peter, and upon this rock I will set my church . . ." Many of us spent some time praying while touching the rock. Outside the church is the location of the synagogue in which Jesus taught when he was in Capernaum. While the ruins of what is known as the "White Synagogue" are of the Byzantine era, one can see that it is built upon black rock, which is the rock used at the time of Jesus' ministry.

Then it was time for our boatride from Caperenaum to Tiberias, both on the Western shore of the Sea of Galilee. As we took off from Caperenaum, the crew hoisted an American flag next to the Israeli flag, and played the Star Spangled Banner. We read the two stories from the Gospels in which Jesus encounters his disiples on the water -- the one in which Jesus falls asleep on the back of the boat in stormy seas and the disciples are afraid; the second passage relating the event of Jesus walking toward the boat on the water and Peter's attempt to walk on the water. after the readings, a certain priest fell asleep in the back of the boat in choppy waters and high winds, leading many to take pictures that I am confident will find their way into the social media of the parish!

Upon our return to the kibbutz, we took a brief tour of the kibbuts where we were given a historical perspective as well as some working knowledge of the kibbutz at Ein Gev. Folloiwing dinner, many of us went down to the edge of the Sea of Galilee in front of my cottage. It is now time for me to gete some rest before a long day tomorrow, in which we drive south for approximately three hours before arriving at the fortress of Masada, then on to the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, and finally for a float in the Dead Sea before returning to Jerusalem at the end of the day.

Hope you are having a blessed day. don

Sunday in Shefa Amr and Sepphoris

This morning we traveled to Shefa Amr, a town of about 35,000 people situated to the west of the Sea of Galilee, about halfway between Tiberias and Haifa. The purpose of our visit was to worship with the Episcopal community of St. Paul's in the city. The pastor, The Rev. Fuad Dagher (who in addition to celebrating and preaching also serves as the organist -- he was a professional musician before ordination) is a dynamic young man who is active in interfaith dialogue in this city of many religions. Deacon Pat read the Gospel in English, and we were also privileged to be a part of the baptism of Hannah, a young girl whose family lives in Nazareth. Following the service, we attended a gathering in the church hall, where we met many of the parishioners and shared festive foods in honor of the baptism (no, it wasn't a cake from Stop and Shop!). After the reception, we visited a new Intercultural Center that the church has built with help from the Diocese of San Francisco, California. It is property adjacent to the original church property that was purchased and rehabilitated by the church. After its dedication next weekend, it will serve as a center for community education for all ages, enrichment classes, and interfaith dialogue.

We then had lunch at the Panda Restaurant which, to the surprise of many of us, is NOT a Chinese restaurant but is owned by parishioners of St. Paul's. We had a wonderful meal with a variety of Middle Eastern salads, followed by some wonderful cheesy things in filo dough, ground lamb meatballs, and grilled chicken breast as the main course. There was a wonderful stuffed cookie for dessert. I fear that despite the fact that we are walking between 5 and 8 miles per day, not to mention climbing up mountains to monasteries and the like, our eating habits are making all of our clothes a bit tight notwithstanding that most of what we are eating is healthy. Maybe we will sweat it off in the desert on Tuesday!

After lunch we traveled south to the ancient city of Sepphoris / Tsipori. Destroyed by the Romans around 4 BCE as a result of a Jewish insurrection against the Romans, it was built up under Herod the Great's successor, his son Herod Antipas, and rebuilt. It is thought that Joseph, Jesus' father, and Jesus himself in his younger years, would likely have assisted in the rebuilding of the city. Historical and a parsing of the Greek words indicates that Joseph and Jesus were in fact builders in the sense of contractors, and not primarily carpenters working in a wood shop. And we had to come to Israel to learn this . . . There are amazing mosaics dating back from Jesus' time that say a lot about the history of the city and what was going on culturally and politically at the time. It was also in Sepphoris that the Mishnah, the commentary and explanation of the Torah, was compiled. We walked the original Roman roads -- with the evidence of chariot wheels carved into their surface -- and toured the synagogue on the site.

We then returned to our cottages at Ein Gev Kibbutz on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee in time to do our Skype video call to the Sunday Adult Forum at Trinity. All of us who participated thought it was very meaningful to share what we have experienced so far on this trip. It was also good to see so many friendly faces and realized that we could stay connected even halfway around the world. By the way -- the people you saw holding coffee cups over here were not drinking coffee!! We hope you enjoyed the beautiful views of the Sea of Galilee taken right outside the door to the cottage Al and I are sharing. Supper tonight was at the famous Ein Gev fish restaurant (outside on the shore of the Sea of Galilee) where most of us had St. Peter's Fish -- which is a whole Tilapia grilled to perfection. Following dinner, some of us went to our rooms, while Mark and Linda MacGougan, Sandy Kissel, Kathy Steinwedell, Carlene McDonald, Percy Williamson and I went for an evening swim under the crescent room. It was a wonderful birthday present for Mark.

Tomorrow we will celebrate the Eucharist on the beach at 6:30 am with Fr. Frank celebrating and preaching, followed by a day of visiting sites of Jesus' ministry around the Sea of Galilee. Have a blessed day! Talk to you tomorrow! Shalom, Salaam, and Peace! don+

Saturday and North to Caesarea and The Galilee

This morning we packed up our bags for four days out of Jerusalem and away from St. George’s Guesthouse. Driving northwest from Jerusalem, we went up to the Mediterranean coast to the Roman Empire city of Caesarea Maratima, built by King Herod the Great and named in honor of his Roman patron, Augustus Caesar. Built on the site of a former Phoenician port, its history has included periods of prosperity and decline as it was successively overrun by crusaders, the Mamelukes and others. Its history was reclaimed in the 1940s and now one can visit the former amphitheater, hippodrome where chariot races occurred in Roman times, a Byzantine street, the crusader wall and citadel, and the Roman aqueduct which was a wonder of its time, bringing fresh water from miles away.

From Caesarea on the coast we went eastward toward Nazareth, Jesus’ hometown, where we had lunch at the Holy Land Restaurant, starting with a variety of Middle Eastern salads and pita bread, a main course of that Middle Eastern original, spaghetti with Bolognese sauce, and wonderfully rich macaroons and coffee or tea for dessert. It was good to sit down in a cool place and relax after our long morning of walking and sunshine.

Leaving the restaurant, we walked up the hill to the Orthodox Basilica of the Annunciation, built in honor of the Virgin Mary and the visitation by the Angel to announce her conception by the Holy Spirit. The present, modern church is built above and around a crypt marking the place where the Angel is said to have visited her. Fr. Kamal pointed out and deciphered all of the symbolism on the front of the basilica. Above the basilica, a garden leads to the church of St. Joseph, rebuilt early in the 20^th century on the site of what is believed to have been Joseph’s home and workshop. This is also the site of Mary’s well, where we again drank the water and refilled our water bottles.

Finally, because the Kibbutz asked us to arrive a little later due to it’s being the Sabbath, we make a side trip (planned for tomorrow) to the church at Cana in Galilee, according to St. John’s Gospel the site of Jesus’ first miracle – turning stone jars of water into wine when the wedding party ran out. In one of the chapels, I was privileged to officiate a service in which the married couples in our group were able to renew their marriage vows, and now have a certificate from the church commemorating that moment. It was a particularly inclusive service in that it also included those whose spouses were not present with us, as well as those who spouses are deceased. Those persons not in married relationships served as the unofficial witnesses, supporting those renewing their vows.

We then headed south along the western bank of the Sea of Galilee to make our way to the Ein Gev resort kibbutz, which sits on the eastern shore. As I am typing this late on Saturday evening, I am looking across the water to the crescent moon and the lights of Tiberias. On our way down the mountain, we stopped to take a photo looking from west that I can’t seem to fit into this. Will try again tomorrow.

Tomorrow we get to sleep past 7 a.m. for the first time since we have been on the trip. We will be worshipping with the Arabic congregation of St. Paul’s in Shefa – Amr, west of Galilee. Have a blessed day – and don’t forget we will be skyping live to the Trinity Church library tomorrow morning at 11:30 a.m. Shalom, Salaam, Peace, don+

Friday: A Desert Experience

This morning we set our alarms for a 5:30 a.m. departure from St. George's Guesthouse to experience sunrise in the desert. It was truly amazing - the vast expanse of seemingly endless desert peaks, consisting of sandy rock. Off in the distance we could see settlements on the hillsides, and in the valleys below, green where the occasional spring provides life-giving water.

On arrival at a lookout area, Mother Beth Hoffmann celebrated the Eucharist and preached about desert experiences, including Jesus' forty days and forty nights in the wilderness during which he was tempted by the devil. We then spent some time in silence, contemplating three questions: Why the desert? Why did the early contemplatives go to the desert to live? What are we looking for in the desert? And finally, Where is the desert for us? We continued to ponder these questions throughout the day.

A short way from where we celebrated the Eucharist, we went to another overlook to see off in the valley St. George's Monastery, one of the only monasteries in this area that allows women -- a practice which resulted from a miraculous healing that took place there long ago.

We then traveled to Jericho, where we enjoyed a wonderful outdoor breakfast in a beautiful garden area. We are all getting used to Middle Eastern breakfasts, which at St. George's always include a pita, tuna salad, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, smoked meats and cheese, hummus and yogurt, herbs, eggs and smoked sausages and, of course, cereal. This morning's was slightly different, but many have us have commente4d on the fact that we have eaten combinations of food that we wold never think of eating when at home. Ahh, the benefits of exploring and experiencing the "other."

Jereicho is about 10 miles north of the Dead Sea, and about four miles to the west of the Jordan River at the spot where John the Baptist was baptizing. It is more than 800 feet below sea level, so nearly 3,000 feet lower than where we are staying in Jerusalem. There was a lot of ear popping this morning! Jericho is also the site to which Joshua led the Israelite on their return from bondage. It is believed to be the lowest level in the world of continuous habitation by humans, and perhaps the oldest continually inhabited city in the world.

After breakfast we went to take the cable car up to the top of Mount of Temptation, the mountain on which Satan tempted Jesus with the third temptation -- that all that is seen below and all the world would be given to Jesus if he would but bow down to the Devil. This is one of those spots where you can just feel yourself in Jesus place as you look down to the fertile valley below, the city and surrounding towns, the sheer expanse before you. It is an incredible sight.

But wait, there's more. We continue our climb on foot up to the monastery at the very top of the mountain -- a physical challenge for even the most fit among us. The monastery is completely hewn out of rock, and we prayed in the chapel area, before many beautiful icons, for God to empty our hearts of earthly temptations so that we might make room to deeply breathe in God's spirit in their place.

Before leaving the Mount of Temptation, we had time for coffee on the top of the mountain and, of course, there were vendors ready to provide us with opportunities for memorials of our time on the mountain.

Safely at the bottom of the mountain, we then walked over to Elisha's Spring, referred to in 2 Kings 2:19-22--the waters which Elisha healed by throwing salt into them. Ever since, they have provided sufficient water for the whole Judean Valley.

We then visited a store which is owned by a family from Hebron, where we were able to purchase the famous Hebron glass and ceramics, along with cosmetics from the Dead Sea. This was an opportunity for us to obtain some of the Hebron products in the event we do not make it to Hebron upon our return to the Jerusalem area next week.

We were all reminded of what a small world it is when I discovered this evening that I am rooming next door to two professors from Drew University who are leading a group of students on an interfaith tour through Israel for a period of 3 weeks. The small world part is the Professor Yehezkel Landau of Hartford Seminary is also on the faculty at Drew, and that he would have been a part of this tour were it not for a personal scheduling conflict. Meanwhile, Yehezkel was e-mailing all three of us for different reasons. This evening, I also spoke with Dalia Landau, co-founder of Open House, a place where Arab and Israeli children learn the art of peaceful coexistence. Dalia lives in Jerusalem and we are hoping she will be able to join our group next week to discuss the book, The Lemon Tree, which is about Open House. We are also hoping that some of us will be able to visit Open House to see its work first hand.

Tomorrow we leave for the Galilee Region to the north, the place where Jesus conducted most of his active ministry. While up there, we will be staying on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee at Ein Gev Resort Kibbutz. Please remember to join us at 11:30 on Sunday morning in the library of Trinity Church, immediately following the 10 a.m. service, for our live Skype broadcast from Ein Gev.

Have a question? Want to comment? Please post it on the comments section. Salaam, Shabbat Shalom, Peace, Don

Ascension Day in the Holy Land

Grace and peace to all from your Trinity pilgrims on this Ascension Day.

Today we traveled to the north of Jerusalem to two cities that are way off the beaten track for most visitors to this area. But then again, as Fr. Kamal keeps reminding us, we are pilgrims, not tourists, and we are traveling to areas that are spiritually significant to our journey of faith. Our first stop today was to visit the town of Sychar outside the city of Nablus and the Greek Orthodox monastery built over the site of Jacob's well.

Unlike yesterday, when we took our regular bus into Bethlehem, today we transfer from our own bus to a Palestinian bus, identifiable by its white and blue license plate and not the yellow of Israeli vehicles. Our tour operator has done this out of an abundance of caution, since until several years ago the area around Nablus had banned Israeli vehicles from entering. So, at a prearranged spot, our regular driver Jihad dropped us on the side of the highway where we transferred into our Palestinian bus.

As we arrive at our destination, we are greeted by the Orthodox priest who oversaw much of the renovation and restoration of the church and surroundings. After touring the church, we descend the circular stone stairs 15 or 20 feet below ground level to a vaulted room, floored with stone mosaics and decorated in Greek Orthodox style. Looking around the small chamber to the side opposite the stairs, we see it. This is Jacob's Well -- Bir Ya'qub -- where Jesus encountered a Samaritan woman and discussed the spiritual "water" which quenches forever the soul's deepest thirst (John 4:1-42).

Liz Kirkpatrick turns the hand-crank and lowers the bucket into the soft limestone well. The well bottom has varied in depth through the centuries, from 240 feet in A.D. 670 to 67 feet in A.D. 1881. It was "very deep" in Jesus' day (John 4:11). She feeds out the rope to the very end, then begins the arduous task of raising the bucket back to the surface. We were all then invited to drink from two common cups, and some of us filled our water bottles. This well, from which Jesus once asked a drink, is fed by underground springs, and its water is fresh and cool. Because the water is moving and not from a cistern, the ancients called it "living water" -- a term to which Jesus gave a new and special meaning. (Acknowledgement and thanks to edwardfudge.com for picture and basis for narrative.)

After some shopping time at the gift shop, we emerged from the church and sang a stanza of "Fill My Cup:"

Like the woman at the well I was seeking for gifts that do not satisfy. But then I heard my savior speaking, 'Draw from my well that never will run dry.' Fill my cup, Lord. I lift it up, Lord. Come and quench this thirsting of my soul. Bread of Heaven, feed me 'till I want no more; fill my cup, fill me up and make me whole.

We then continued north to the town of Zababde, which, I confess, I had never heard of before planning this trip. Zababde is one of the few communities in which christians constitute a majority of the population, and we were hosted by the Rev. Nael Abu Rahmoun, rector of St. Matthew's church in the town. I was privileged to celebrate the Ascension Day Eucharist and to preach in the church for our group, following which Fr. Nael made a brief presentation about the ministries carried out by St. Matthews. All of us were impressed with the energy and entrepreneurial spirit which Fr. Nael brings to his ministry. Under his leadership, the church has acquired and renovated an adjacent dwelling that now houses a library -- a library which will be the beneficiary of over 50 "early English reader" books brought by our pilgrims. The church, on behalf of the diocese of Jerusalem, also houses the Penman Clinic, named in honor of a former bishop of Australia who helped to inaugurate it. The clinic serves all of the people of Zababde, irrespective of religion, and provides both general and specialized health and dental services. He has also just started an afternoon music program for the children and adults in the town, and they have just started a Sunday choir as well. In addition to these ministries, Fr. Nael also runs a summer camp for several hundred children, again without regard to religion or other limitations. It was energizing and inspiring just to be in his company.And everyone fell in love with his wife and his six-month old daughter.

Lunch was a new treat for all of us -- a Palestinian delight known as Musakhan. It consists of a barbecued chicken quarter on a bed of pine nuts, onions, olive oil and chamomile, with a healthy addition of a tomato salad and yogurt, and all served on a freshly baked taboori (think giant pita bread sprinkled with sumac). It was to die for -- although we all needed to wash up to our elbows when we were done!

Following a tour of the clinic and the library, we bid our farewells to Nael and his family and made our way back toward Jerusalem, stopping along the way in Nablus at a roadside cafe with more shopping opportunities nearby. The cafe is located on the site of a spring, and a number of the tables are actually situated IN the stream so diners can take off their sandals and cool their tired feet in the running water underneath the tables. We have pictures!

Following our return to St. Georges, a number of us took a stroll down to Saladin Street, the Arabic shopping strip, before dinner at the guesthouse. We closed our evening as we do each day with Compline in the cathedral chapel, tonight led by Kirk Baker, John Hinkston's friend (and now the friend of all of us) from Denver.

Early night tonight, for tomorrow we begin at 5:30 a.m. to see sunrise in the desert followed by Holy Eucharist and an hour of meditation time in the desert before breakfast. Shalom, Salaam, and Peace, Don

Wednesday - Shepherd's Field and Bethlehem

This morning was another busy day as we went to the south of Jerusalem to visit one of the Shepherd's Field sites in Beit Sahour, several miles outside of Bethlehem. There are actually three separate fields -- one Roman Catholic, under the supervision of the Franciscans (the one Debbie and I visited two years ago), one Orthodox and one under the supervision of the YMCA in Beit Sahour. As we descend down a tree-lined path, we come to a grotto, now supported by cement columns, much like those still used by shepherds today to shelter their sheep from the sun or inclement weather. As you look across the valley, you see the city of Bethlehem off in the distance. It is easy to conceive the scene described in the second chapter of Luke when the angel appears to the shepherd's announcing Jesus' birth.

From the field we took the bus up to the Church of the Nativity in Manger Square. Although there was already a crowd there, Fr. Kamal schmoozed his way through it to gain us easy access to the interior. The first thing one notices when approaching the Church is the small door -- which was made smaller during the Ottoman period to prevent merchants and local citizens from riding their horses or carts through the large entrance. Once inside, there are beautiful mosaic floors dating from the sixth century which feature circles and squares -- circles representing the eternal nature of God, the squares representing the finite nature of God in Jesus Christ. There are actually two main churches in one here: A very ornate Armenian one with hundreds of lamps, lanterens, chandeliers and ornaments hanging from the ceilings, and the much simpler Franciscan Church of St. Catherine attached to the left. In the crypt below are several tombs, including the tomb that formerly held the remains of St. Jerome, who first translated the entire Bible into the Latin version known as the Vulgate.

One accesses the grotto where Jesus is said to have been born by descending a steep flight of steps from the Armenian section of the church. A large star marks the place where Jesus is thought to have been born, and across the aisle is the area where the rest of the manger is thought to have been located. In the small chapel just above the grotto, Deacon Pat proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Birth from Luke 2 and we ended our time there with a prayer. It was a very moving experience for all of us.

After our visit to the church we went back to Beit Sahour where we enjoyed lunch at a local restaurant named Ruth's (she obviously delegates well as all of those working there that I saw were men). We had an amazing array of middle eastern vegetable dishes, wonderful fresh flat bread that was about the size of a small pizza, hummus, olives and the like. Then it was back to the Bethlehem shopping district for a time of "temptation." It is perhaps a sign of the desperation of the economy in the Palestinian territory that there seemed even more of an urgency in making sales than when I was here two years ago. It almost bordered on assault, offering strings of beads and embroidered tote bags at 5 for $10. In a certain indication that the apocalypse is drawing near, Bud Hoffman and Al Shuckra each bought a Khafiyeh (think scarf over the head with hoops holding it onto the head, like Laurence of Arabia).

On our way back to Jerusalem we traveled through a Palestinian refugee area outside of Bethlehem and then went on to the site of Solomon's pools, four massive stone reservoir areas that until several years ago were filled with potable spring water, used by local farmers for irrigation as well as for daily living purposes. Unfortunately for the local population, within the past few years the Israeli government has appropriated that water supply and redirected it for use in Jerusalem, leaving the locals with enough water to survive but not enough for agricultural purposes. Across from the first of Solomon's pools is a beautiful, half-completed structure which was sponsored by a number of nations to serve as a convention center in the West Bank. For a variety of reasons (fraud, corruption, incompetence among others) the project has now been stopped and remains unusable for anything.

Today is the day the Israeli's celebrate what they consider to be the reunification of Jerusalem following the Six-Day War in 1967. The celebration took place on the East Jerusalem side of what was formerly known as the Green Line pre-1967. Thousands of Israeli's lined the eastern side of the street joined by bands, vendors and speakers. Unfortunately it was a nightmare for anyone traveling in or around East Jerusalem between 4 and 8 p.m. -- we had to park our bus across the Green Line and walk the two blocks to the Guesthouse.

Our evening concluded with a wonderful speaker who is a friend of Yehezkel Landau from Hartford Seminary. Dr. Ophir is originally from Boston and, having lived in Middletown for a number of years while at Wesleyan University, moved to Israel. He provided a contemporary Israeli perspective on issues relating to peace and relationships with the Palestinians. He reviewed for us the extreme positions and then painstakingly explored the nuances and difficult issues that always seem to stand in the way of peace.

Certainly one of the reflections on the day would be the irony that even as our group of pilgrims were reflecting on ways toward peace, our speaker himself was delayed in arriving by a demonstration where thousands of people celebrated as fact a "unification of Jerusalem" that is neither acceptable to the Palestinians nor recognized by the international community. Let us continue to pray for peace in Jerusalem and throughout this region. Faithfully, Don