Oh, Jerusalem, my happy home…when shall I come to thee? We spent several days exploring the Old City of Jerusalem, Temple Mount, the Mount of Olives, and the City of David. We sang, “Prince of Peace” as we humbly walked the Palm Sunday Road to the Garden of Gethsemane. Remembering the heartache that Jesus felt, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want” (Mark 14: 36) and the accounts of his weeping over Jerusalem. We remembered Jesus’ journey along the Via Dolorosa, traditionally believed to be the path Jesus carried his cross and ending at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where we were able to touch a stone fragment, traditionally believed to be from the tomb Jesus was buried. My spiritual experience of the Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday readings have been greatly enhanced by the experience of walking in remembrance of the life, death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. For me, this trip has brought a level of reality to the Bible that is not available in the classroom, but can only be experienced.
World of the Bible
Oh, Jerusalem, my happy home…when shall I come to thee? We spent several days exploring the Old City of Jerusalem, Temple Mount, the Mount of Olives, and the City of David. We sang, “Prince of Peace” as we humbly walked the Palm Sunday Road to the Garden of Gethsemane. Remembering the heartache that Jesus felt, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want” (Mark 14: 36) and the accounts of his weeping over Jerusalem. We remembered Jesus’ journey along the Via Dolorosa, traditionally believed to be the path Jesus carried his cross and ending at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where we were able to touch a stone fragment, traditionally believed to be from the tomb Jesus was buried. My spiritual experience of the Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday readings have been greatly enhanced by the experience of walking in remembrance of the life, death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. For me, this trip has brought a level of reality to the Bible that is not available in the classroom, but can only be experienced.
Ancient Sites in the Holy Land
It was amazing to see the influences of Roman civilization preserved through archeology at sites such as Caesarea Maritima and Sepphoris. I thought about how the Roman influence affected the lives of Jesus, Paul and the early Church. The Roman Empire was vast and mighty. Standing in front of a once great Roman city brought alive the radicalness and political tones of Jesus’ message. Jesus boldly proclaimed the “Kingdom of God” is near. “Blessed are the poor in Spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of God.” Our visit with the Archbishop Elias Chacour of the Melkite Catholic Church, enlightened my understanding of the radicalness of the Sermon on the Mount. Chacour shared with us that the word for “blessed” in Aramaic (Jesus’ native tongue) also means to ‘stand up’. Stand up, rise-up, move, all you who are poor in spirit for yours is the kingdom of God! Chacour emphasized the Sermon on the Mount as being a call to action…a call to be peacemakers and workers for justice. After seeing the Roman archeological sites one thing became clearer to me…Jesus’ radical good news spoke truth to the power. Visiting the ancient sites and researching one site in particular I feel has given me a new appreciation for archeology, history, biblical studies.
Current Struggles in the Holy Land
Jewish Tradition: We had several experiences of Jewish faith and culture. In the early few days of our trip we stayed at a Jewish Kibbutz in Ein Gev. We learned about life on a kibbutz, a particular form of Jewish communal living in which resources are shared communally…a concept that our group became very in touch with due to a few lost luggage bags…oh, the perils of travel. We were surprised and blessed to join Catholic Theological Union (seminary in Hyde Park, Chicago) and Rabbi Sandmel (professor at CTU and friend of LSTC) for a lecture on Jewish life, Shabbat (Sabbath), and expressions of various Jewish groups and politics. Who could have guessed several thousand miles away from Chicago we would see people we knew! Rabbi Sandmel’s lecture was helpful for understanding our later visits to the Western Wall/Wailing Wall, the most sacred site in Judaism, as a remnant of the Holy Temple that was destroyed by Rome in 70 CE.
When we arrived at the Western Wall there were many praying…praying with scriptures, rocking back and forth in a weeping fashion…calling upon the Lord. In Jewish tradition it is believed that at this place God is most present (standing before the wall one is closest to the Holy of Holies) and whatever is prayed from here shall be granted. Many of us navigated through people to have our moment of prayer at the wall. I observed some praying silently, others aloud, and some left wrote prayers on paper tucked in the walls cracks (In the Holy Land sticking paper in walls is a common form of prayer). While at the Western Wall I could feel the feel the sacredness of that space. It was holy ground. In addition, we observed a Shabbat (Sabbath) celebration at the wall. Many Jewish communities worshiped, prayed, danced, and sang. The area was packed with people. Then later that evening, we experienced a Jewish Shabbat complete with Kosher wine and food which was led by Dalia Landau, an Israeli Jew and interfaith peace worker. We learned about the various elements and meaning of Shabbat ritual. It was a delightful evening and a great learning experience hearing about Dalia’s life and faith.
Christian Tradition: Lutheran Interfaith Ministries: Back to the Mount of Olives we go! Hey, that could be a song. Augusta Victoria Hospital is a ministry of the Lutheran World Federation providing quality healthcare in the West Bank. Augusta Victoria is an excellent example of the Lutheran presence in the Holy Land working for the life and welfare of all people regardless of ethnicity, race, gender, or religion. Like any good hospital…health and wellness are essential. LSTC along with the ELCA have been promoting health and wellness…on this part of the tour in particular we felt “the burn” of health and wellness. That is, the burn of leg muscles working hard. We climbed the bell tower of Augusta Victoria…all 200+ stairs, one way! I am pretty sure I earned at least three days of couch sitting and a bowl of ice cream after that! Though the views from the tower were fantastic!
Because I am from the Southeast Michigan Synod and our partner church is the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land it was very exciting to have the privilege of meeting with Bishop Munib Younan and Rev. Mitri Raheb, Christmas Lutheran Church, Pastor. Both shared personal life stories as Palestinians as well as stories representing the realities of an occupied people. For both, ecumenical and interfaith dialogue combined with faith-in-action is a regular part of their ministries. The ELCJHL works very closely with Palestinian Muslims. Their work is a testimony to the possibilities and the need for Christian-Muslim interreligious dialogue. The need for Christian-Jewish dialogue was also emphasized. It was interesting to hear Younan speak of the role of the Church/Christians as helping to balance interreligious conversation. Though Christians account for a small portion of the population in the region the witness of the Church is essential to the interfaith conversation and peace process. When I think of why the church should engage in interreligious dialogue I think of 1 John 4:20-21, how can you love God of whom you cannot see, if you do not love your neighbor of whom you can see? I greatly enjoyed learning about the ministries of the ELCJHL and of Christmas Lutheran Church. This trip really brought to light the world’s great need for building bridges of understanding with persons of other religious/faith traditions for the sake of peace in the world.
Islamic Tradition: In Bethlehem we met with the Mufti of Bethlehem, visited the Omar Mosque and observed evening prayer. This was not my first time attending mosque but for many the group it was. It was exciting for me to see our group look to this experince with great excitment, anticipation and interest. The Mufti (a scholar/overseer of Islamic Law) shared with us various aspects of the Muslim faith, the five pillars of Islam, and most notably that Islam is a religion of peace. He shared with us the meaning of Jihad. Jihad is an Arabic word which literally means “to struggle”…to struggle with one’s faith…to struggle spiritually…to struggle with the realities of oppression, etc. I learned that central to Islam is living the will of God. As the Mufti said, “In Islam we strive in the way of Allah or to live the will of Allah.” I greatly enjoyed observing evening prayer at the mosque. We observed prayer repetitions (like the Catholic use of the Rosary) to God…giving thanks to God/Allah and asking God/Allah to help them live their lives according to God/Allah’s will. We observed the participants prostrate so that their knees and foreheads were touching the floor, in total humility and submission to God. I thought it was interesting to experience how common language can be a bridge for different faiths. For example, in my experience it is often thought that Muslims and Christians worship a different God. The Muslim God is Allah. When we worshiped at Christmas Lutheran Church, an Arabic speaking congregation, God is referred to as Allah. When they pray it is to Allah. That is because the word for God in Arabic is Allah. Whether Muslim, Christian, or Jew we worship the same, one God and we are all part of the same family…the Abrahamic family. It was a great experience to have the opportunity to attend a mosque and learn more about the Muslim faith.