Trinity Pilgrims Return Home

So, I have to say it: WE'RE BAA - ACK! Our flight actually arrived at Newark Airport this morning 40 minutes early, and our driver from Kelley Transit Services had checked the website and was there waiting for us after we picked up our baggage. We arrived home in Hartford around 8 a.m. this morning.

Our last day in the Holy Land was a very long one, starting with a walk down to the Old City at 6 a.m. to retrace Jesus steps to the stations of the cross. The early start was to be able to have some level of quiet before the merchants and "commuters" began crowding the narrow streets. Deacon Pat and I led the reflections beginning with a scripture passage at each station, and we concluded the service with a visit inside the Church of the Resurrection, also known as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was a very moving experience for all of us.

We then walked back to St. George's guesthouse (logging, by one persons pedometer, 4900 steps before 9 a.m.!) where we enjoyed our last breakfast. While the breakfast buffet at St. George's is basically the same offering each day, there is a remarkable variety to choose from. There are typically two types of deli meat along with sliced cheese; fresh sliced cucumbers and tomatoes; yogurt; hummus; pita bread (the last three being staples at every meal in the Middle East); toast and selection of jellies and jams and honey; granola and corn flakes with milk; a cold tuna salad with celery and other vegetables mixed in; hard boiled eggs; two different blends of Middle Eastern spices; scrambled eggs and smoked sausage (which, if it was in America, would look remarkably like Hebrew National kosher hot dogs). None of us went hungry.

At 9:30 our bus picked us up for the short ride to the Trappist monastery at Latur, not far from on the Jerusalem road, one of the four possible present-day sites of the Biblical city of Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35). There we celebrated the Holy Eucharist in the chapel, pictured below, with a brief introduction by Fr. Kamal setting up the spiritual and historical setting for the passage from Luke. This was my second opportunity to celebrate the Eucharist on our trip, the first being at St. Matthew's church in Zababde the previous week, and both are memories I will hold in my heart as very special privileges.



We then returned to St. George's, where several of us took a ride with Fr. Kamal back to Beit Sahour to visit one of the small workshops to see houw the craftsmen make all of the olive wood religious articles that are such popular gifts from the Holy Land. There we met Ashraf Jarayseh who owns the Holy Family Factory and Shop. He showed us the production area and, while we were watching, created a tiny nativity scene using only his jig saw on a piece of raw wood.

Then it was back to St. George's for final packing (using a sort of reverse Loaves and Fishes technique wherein we tried to fit 10 times as much stuff as we had brought back into the same suitcases). Then we had a farewell barbecue put on by the staff at St. George's, featuring several Mediterranean salads, baked potatoes, and barbecued chicken and lamb kebobs, all of which were fabulous. And all washed down with some wine which we had purchased at the Trappist monastery earlier in the morning.

At 7 p.m. sharp we were boarding the bus for our trip to the Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv. Our Palestinian bus driver (with Israeli plates on his bus) for some reason drew the attention of a couple of Israeli police who were patroling the highway on this quiet Sabbath eve, and our bus was pulled over at the checkpoint for inspection. The driver's license was taken for review, and I was asked, as the leader of the group, to get off the bus and explain to the security guard the nature of our group, where we had been, what buses we had been on, did I know the driver, did I know everyone on the bus, how long had they been with me, etc., etc., etc. All ended well, and we were permitted to continue on our journey to the airport. The experience, however, highlighted the extent to which issues of security are always floating to the top in the daily life of the people who live in this area.

In the days to come, there will be opportunities to share more of our pilgrimage story and reflections, but for now, after being awake basically for 35 hours, I am going to grab a quick nap. It was a wonderful pilgrimage with a wonderful group of people, but it is always good to be home. Shabbat Shalom, Salaam, Peace, don+

Bethphage, Mt. of Olives and St. Peter Gallicantu

We started our morning with a group photograph taken outside of St George's Cathedral. From the cathedral we took our bus to the top of the Mount of Olives -- the area east of Jerusalem where it is thought Jesus was staying at the time he asked his disciples to go and find a donkey for his ride into Jerusalem on what we celebrate as Palm Sunday. We started by visiting the French Benedictine convent at the top of the mount. We then proceeded down the Mount of Olives, on roads far too narrow for a bus to negotiate.

Next we come to the Dominus Flevit chapel, the name being Latin for "God weeps." It's altar faces east with a huge window behind it, giving a panoramic view of the Old City, with the Islamic Dome of the Rock Mosque centered over the altar and the cross. It is easy to envision Jesus weeping over the fate of the beautiful city of Jerusalem -- both in his own day and in ours. While Fr. Kamal is used to running into all sorts of people he knows, it was highly unusual for me; however, I did see Fr. James Koester, of the Society of St. John the Evangelist, of which I am a Fellow, leading a group of about 30 while we were at this site. It was good to chat for a few moments.

Moving further down the Mount of Olives (our now distressed knees and quads forced to their limits down this steep incline), we pass the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Mary Magdalene with its beautiful gold onion domes and mosaics, which was closed today. We then went into the grotto which Fr. Kamal tells us is generally agreed to be the site where Jesus was betrayed by Judas. Fr. Kamal pointed out to us the striking differences in the way the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) treat this event and the way in which the Gospel of John deals with it. In the former three, Jesus appears to fear death or at least hoping this event will go away. In the Gospel of John, he appears to take it head-on, asking the band that comes to arrest him not once, but twice, "Whom are you looking for?" In this case, it is the soldiers and those with them who fall backwards. It's an interesting perspective.

Next door to the grotto of Gethsemane is the locally-accepted place of burial of the Virgin Mary. There is another site in Turkey that claims to be that burial place, but Fr. Kamal says a combination of local custom and archaeological research tend to support the legitimacy of this site as the probably resting place of Mary.

Our next and final stop of the morning is across the street to the Church of All Nations, a collaborative effort of 12 nations to build this church in 1924. This church is also known as the Church of the Agony because it is built over the rock where it is believed Jesus would have prayed his prayer to God recounted in the Synoptics. There are twelve domes within the church, each one decorated by one of the twelve countries providing the majority of the funding for the project, which is built over the ruins of prior Byzantine and Crusader churches. Outside is what remains of the original "garden" of Gethsemane, with olive trees that are centuries old.

After returning from lunch back at St. George's, a group of us joined Fr. Kamal in visiting the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu, which commemorates Jesus' prediction that Peter would deny him and Peter's fulfillment of that prediction. The church is actually quite modern, having been built in 1931 and renovated since that time. It is to me, however, one of the most beautiful churches in and around Jerusalem (like the Mount of Olives, St. Peter's is located outside of the Old City). The historical interest comes in the widespread belief that this was the site of the High Priest's House and that Jesus spent his last night in the prison/grotto underneath. Fr. Kamal gave us a wonderful tour of these undergrounds tunnels along with a history and archaeological lesson as well.

This is our last night at St. George's. Tomorrow we begin our day at 5:30 by walking and praying the Stations of the Cross in the Old City. Debbie and I also did this on Good Friday when we were here two years ago. We will then travel to Emmaus to retrace the path of the disciples who dejectedly returned home from Jerusalem after Jesus' resurrection, only to discover that he has been their traveling companion along the way home.

I am having some problems with connectivity to the internet at this point, and not sure when I will have an opportunity to write tomorrow given that we will be in transit a good deal of the day. We leave at 7 p.m. for the airport with a 12 midnight departure scheduled. If I don't connect tomorrow, will do so on Saturday morning. Grace and peace to all! don

Wednesday - A free day

Today was a free day on our schedule. There were limited choices for what we could do because of the Jewish holiday of Shavvuot, or the Jewish Pentecost, so public transportation was not running, post offices were closed and Jewish shops were by and large closed. Some of us -- including yours truly -- took advantage of the free day to sleep in a little later and catch up on much-needed rest. some of us went to restaurants that we had been eyeing all week. Most of us did some shopping for folks back home. For myself, I walked to the top of the Mount of Olives to the Church of the Pater Noster where I knew they had some gifts I wanted to buy. The church is one spot where it is believed Jesus might have taught the disciples the Lord's prayer. It is a grueling walk -- especially in today's 90 degree heat -- but there was a nice breeze all day as well.

This evening we were all invited to the home of Iyad Qumri, the operator of the tour company we are using. Iyad and his lovely wife,Simone and their son hosted a wonderful dinner of Palestinian foods with some fellowship and refreshments beforehand. A highlight of the evening was each of us sharing who our secret prayer partner has been during the pilgrimage and presenting that person with a token gift that reflected our understanding of what they would enjoy. It was great fun and quite moving for some people, especially if they had not known each other well before the trip. In the irony of ironies, Frank Kirkpatrick and I learned that we had drawn each other's names.

Tomorrow: Bethphage, Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gethsemane. Have a blessed day! don