A day in Jerusalem

One day in Jerusalem is not nearly enough, but we made the most of the time we had.  I was so excited to see the city, and our first sighting was the wall that surrounds the old city.  Walls and fences are not my favorite thing but one must get used to them if he is to spend much time in Israel.  Another familiar sight are armed guards, especially around Jerusalem.  In spite of all this defence, we never felt we were in danger and everything around us looked  peaceful and ancient.                                  

None the less we felt compelled to comply with the admonition on this sign.

Our first  stop certainly seemed peaceful and brought close to us the happenings of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday morning.   As we walked through the Garden of Gethsemane the memories of these Holy Days were more precious to us than ever.

This small grove of very old olive trees was near the place where Jesus prayed the night he was betrayed and led to His death.  There is a church built over a large flat rock.  I remember the church of my childhood had a great picture of Jesus praying by/on a huge rock, my mind immediately envisioned that picture that covered the space behind the pulpit in that church.   Inside the church on the rock in Gethsemane they were holding a mass in a foreign language.

I loved this Muriel of the ancient temple grounds.

Our next stop was the wailing wall. I never knew, but should have guessed, that there is a side for men and a side for women.  It was a very solemn moment for me as I stood near this wall that dates back thousands of years.

As we were leaving I spotted two young women sitting near the back, they were dressed in black robes and I figured them to be Jewish.  I thought here is my chance to talk with some local Israelites.  I went up to them and asked them if they spoke English.  The answer was yes and so I proceeded with the question of could I talk with them for a minute.

It took only a few moments into our conversation to discover that they were two Jewish girls from New Jersey studying in Jerusalem for a year.  So much for local Israelis.  They asked me if I were Jewish.  I said No, that I was a  Christian, but I held great love and respect for the Jewish people and counted it a privilege to be there.  They said it was also a privilege for them.

From there our guide is calling “Quickly, Quickly come, we must go to the next place.”  “Yella yella!” he shouts. When we arrive at the Upper Room there is all kinds of praise and worship going on, and our guide can’t talk over it, so he calls us out, just as I was getting into the music.

Then we went over to the house of Caiaphas where we saw this monument to the cock crowing after the denial from Peter.

The realness sets in as we continue to see places where Jesus walked, was tried and later to the garden tomb.

Reflections of the Passion of Christ.

Praise God for the empty tomb!

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE !!