The Western Wall

I have been home for 5 days now but my body still feels like it is somewhere over the Atlantic. But after spending a week in such an amazing and sacred land I shouldn't expect to arrive home and go right back to life as I know it. So I continue to "unpack" my experience in Israel.

One of the special moments was praying at the Western Wall. The Western Wall is the only part of Herod's Temple that is still standing. The Temple was built on the sacred site where Abraham nearly offered his son Isaac as a sacrifice (Genesis 22). It was the place where heaven and earth met; where the presence of the Lord came to earth. It should come as no surprise that this location is revered by the Jewish people.

Before I entered the area I stopped to wash my hands (ritual of purification) and said a prayer: "Lord, as I clean my hands, so cleanse my heart of all impurity." I then picked up a skull cap to wear as a sign of respect, recognizing that "the divine presence is always over my head" (Rabbi Hunah ben Joshua).

I respectfully and prayerfully came to the Wall, put my hands on the cool, rough stone, and lifted my heart in prayer to God. All around me other men prayed (women pray on the other side of a screen, separate from the men). Some people write their prayers on small pieces of paper and insert their them in between the stones and in cracks in the wall. I saw hundreds of pieces of wadded paper. If they fall out they are swept up and buried in a sacred place.

My visit to the Western Wall has caused my to think about sacred places, sacred acts, and sacred things. God often told his people to set aside certain items and to regard certain events as sacred. Here in the USA we rarely treat anything as sacred. Sacred things are meant to point to The Sacred One: The Lord Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth. I wonder how I could invest my everyday life with more sacred meaning that points to the God of creation? In this regard I envy the Jewish people who have a sacred wall full of history and meaning; a special place to pray and to offer themselves to the Lord.

The Western Wall

Scott in Prayer at the Western Wall. Notice the pieces of paper in the cracks.

Via Delorosa

I write about my last day in Jerusalem from home because there was no time to blog before I had to go to the airport. We spent most of the day visiting the famous places along the Via Delarosa - the "Road of Suffering". This is the traditional path that Jesus took on his last day; the day of his crucifixion. This day helped to deepen my understand of what Jesus experienced on his last day...

Crowds, crowds, crowds. There are people everywhere along this path: pilgrims seeking a blessing, shopkeepers hawking their wares, pickpockets working the crowd, doubters, believers, sceptics, sinners, saints, Jews, Muslims, Christians, people from every tribe and nation. Everyone is there. All of humanity gathers on the streets of the Old City. At times I wanted to escape from this mass of humanity, from the marketers of religion and the manipulaters of seekers. But is it really any different than it was in Jesus' time? I think not. This is the same crowd that Jesus saw in his time, the same money changers whose tables were overturned, the same seekers who questioned him, that same beggars who had their hands out. These are the same people that Jesus had compassion on and the same people whom Jesus asked his Father to forgive for they do not know what they are doing. I am one of those people.

The crowds in the Old City.

There is no place that is more religous than right here in the Old City. I use the word "religious" in its broadest sense - people who have a religion, a belief, and it permeates the place. Five times a day the Muslim call for prayer goes out on the loadspeaker and you hear the sing song chant go on for some time. People walk around in religious dress, wearing religous symbols, phalacteries, cross, headcoverings, and so on. My group is the least look religous people in the crowd, we look very secular. Makes me wonder...

Religious people walking by me in my secular "Trailblazer" shirt.

There are two places that have been identified as possible sites of the crucifixion and burial. We know that Golgotha (the place of the skull) had to be outside the city wall  because executions were not allowed in the city. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is the tradition site of the crucufixion and burial of Jesus. It a church built on top of a cave that is said to the burial place of Jesus, and a rocky hill that could have been the place of crucifixion. Pilgrims flood this place like no other looking for a blessing, kissing the stone where Jesus' body may have been laid to be anointed prior to burial, and touching the rocky entrance to the cave. The crowd was so big and the line so long to see the cave that we decided to leave after seeing the site where the cross was to have been.

Crowd of Pilgrims waiting to see the traditional site of Jesus' burial at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The second place, preferred by most Protestants, is the Garden Tomb. This is a more recent place that was identifed after people began to question the veracity of the Holy Sepulchre. The Garden Tomb is located outside the Damascus gate, just off the famous Road to Damascus. It would have been a likely place for Romans to crucify a criminal and the hill that is there has caves in it that make it look like a skull (Golgotha). There is an ancient cistern there, so a garden is likely to have been located here. The place of crucifixtion is on a flat area in front of the steep embankment with the skull looking caves (the bible does NOT say that Jesus was crucified on a hill). Today, in front Golgotha, where Jesus would have been crucified, is a parking lot for tourist buses. When you visit you look out at the caves and down on the parking lot. It seems strange that Jesus could have been crucified here, right where a bus is parked. Then again, Roman crucifixions always took place along a highway, where travelers walked, so that everyone could see the gruesome event. Maybe it is not so strange that a bus should be sitting on the site of the cross.

About 100 feet away from Golgatha is an ancient tomb, carved into a rocky hillside. It is clearly a rich man's tomb. the tomb is big with two separate room; one form preparing the body and mourning, and one to lay the body. Outside the tomb is a groove where a stone could be rolled across the entrance. Here is what Matthew writes about the tomb:

"⁵⁷ As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. ⁵⁸ Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. ⁵⁹ Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, ⁶⁰ and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away." Matthew 27:57-60

I got in line and waited my turn to go into the tomb. It was empty. Could this have been what Mary and the others saw when they came to the tomb? " ⁵The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay." Matthew 28:5-6.

Was I looking on the place where Jesus had lain?

After going into the tomb our group went into the garden and had a worship service that included the Lord's Supper. We sang "Were You There?" and "Beneath the Cross of Jesus." It was a special time that I will never forget because in that garden, even though it may not have been the actual place of his death, burial, and resurrection, nevertheless, I experience the resurrected Christ in that place.

Picture of "The Skull"

Bus sitting on the possible site of the Crucifixion.

Scott entering the tomb.

The Western Wall from above

 The Western Wall

 Scott on the Teaching Steps outside the Temple area.

I spent most of today at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, which now has the Muslim Dome of the Rock situated there. What a fascinating day it was! We went on to the Temple Mount, the location of the Dome of the Rock. We were not allowed to take a bible, pray, or hold a religious service, since it is in control of Muslims. The Dome of the Rock is situated atop of Mount Moriah, the place where Abraham nearly sacrificed his son Isaac, and the location of the Holy of Holies within the Jewish Temple.

After the Temple Mount we went down to the Western Wall, also known as the Wailing Wall. First ZI followed custom by washing my hands, to present myself as clean before the Lord, then put on the head covering, and went to the only part of the ancient Jewish Temple that is left standing, and prayed to the Lord. It was a sacred time and I felt grateful to God that I could be so near to the place that held so many sacred memories of God’s action in the world.

My favorite site of the day was the Teaching Steps, outside the southern part of the Temple Mount. It was here, on the Teaching Steps where boy Jesus was found by his parents listening to the Rabbi’s and asking them questions (everyone was amazed by his understanding) when Joseph and Mary thought that he was lost (Luke 2:41-52). It was also here that Jesus did his teaching when he was in Jerusalem the days before his arrest and crucifixion. I sat on the steps and imagined Jesus standing in front, telling parables and describing the Kingdom of Heaven.

Our day ended at the Davidson Center, a museum that has built a model ancient Jerusalem, using stone and sand. It was fascinating to see the city laid out before us and hear Lillian, our guide, explain each part of the city, including the location of Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified, and the tomb where he was buried. Tomorrow we will go to both of these places and end our time here with a communion service at site of the resurrection.

Galilee

The Sea of Galilee from Mount Beatitudes.

Scott on the shore of the Sea of Galilee where the resurrected Jesus appeared to the disciples in John 21.

Ruins of the 5th century synagogue in Capernaum, which was build on top of the original synagogue.

What a difference 50 miles makes! Today we traveled back down to the Dead Sea, but then traveled north, following the Jordan River, to the Sea of Galilee. In Galilee the hills are green and there is a refreshing beauty to the area.

We went to see the ruins of the city of Capernaum where Jesus did so much of his ministry. The most interesting part was seeing the synagogue ruins where Jesus cast an evil spirit out of a man and people were amazed at his teaching and authority. We then went to the place where Jesus fed 5000 with two loaves and five fish. There is a church built there that has memorialized this event since the year 28 A.D. This means that this miracle was recognized and remembered among the local people since the day it happened! That blew me away!

The next stop was Mount Beatitudes, the location where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount. From there I was able to look down and see a beautiful view of the Sea of Galilee.

The favorite part of my day was when we went down to the Sea of Galilee to the place where Jesus appeared to the disciples after the resurrection in John 21. The disciples had been fishing all night and hadn’t caught anything. As they were rowing the boat to the shore Jesus called out to them and instructed them to put their nets back in on the other side of the boat. They did not recognize Jesus but they reluctantly agreed to do as he told them. Immediately they caught so many fish that they could not bring their nets into the boat. Then Peter recognized Jesus and jumped in the water and swam ashore where Jesus had fish roasting on a fire for them to eat. As I stood on the shore and put my hands in the water I could imagine the events unfold and could see crazy Peter leap out of the boat and thrash ashore and come out and give Jesus a dripping hug.

I walked around and thought, “Jesus walked on this beach, probably on these rocks and this sand.” I picked up a couple of stones to bring home. They will be my prayer stones and serve as reminders of my time on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.

En Gedi

Judean Hills

Caves at En Gedi

Pool and waterfall at En Gedi

Pastor Scott at En Gedi

“After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, ‘David is in the Desert of En Gedi.’ So Saul took three thousand chosen men and set out to look for David among the crags of the wild goats.” 1 Samuel 24:1-2. The rest of the chapter describes how Saul wanted to kill David and pursued him to En Gedi, where David and his men were hiding in a cave. Saul entered the cave alone to relieve himself but did not see David and his men. David’s men urged David to kill Saul, but David refused, and snuck up and cut off the hem of Saul’s robe. After Saul left the cave, David came out and appeared to Saul, telling him how God had delivered Saul into his hands, but that David refused to kill him. Saul repented of his murderous intent and left David unharmed.

We left the hotel this morning with the sun shining and the promise of a beautiful day ahead of us. We traveled east out of Jerusalem and descended the steep road through the Judean wilderness, and what a wilderness it is. I have never seen a more stark and desolate place. Almost nothing grows on this very steep, mountainous terrain. I thought of Jesus living in this wilderness for 40 days and wondered how on earth he did it? There is no water to be seen for miles! I could not imagine surviving for a few days, so how did he survive 40 days?

We kept descending down passed the Bedouin camps, and then to the Dead Sea where we turned south and drove another 30 minutes past the stunningly steep and mountainous terrain of the Judean hills as they descend from 3000 feet above sea level to 1300 feet below sea level. Words cannot explain how rugged and imposing this land is. The steep slopes are pockmarked with caves; every time I looked up I saw more caves embedded in the cliffs.

We finally pulled off at the entrance to En Gedi, the stage for Saul and David’s showdown. En Gedi is a diamond in the rough, a beautiful rift in the hills with a series of waterfalls making this place a green spot of life in the otherwise barren landscape. We got out of the bus and began our hike up along the wadi, climbing up rocks and coming up one beautiful spot after another, each one with a waterfall pouring its life into a refreshing pool surrounding with green vegetation. Each one of these proclaimed the victory of life over barrenness. I felt energized and refreshed, full of strength and I made my way up to the last waterfall and pool. All along the hillsides were caves, some big enough to hold a small a band of men.

Then we arrived at the last pool and felt the cool spray of the water. I read 1 Samuel 24 to the group and we could see in our minds the scene unfolds; David finally has his enemy in his grasp, finally had a chance to get rid of the demon possess Saul once and for all. But he won’t do it; it is beneath him to strike down the Lord’s anointed.

En Gedi was not meant to be a hiding placed, or simply a place to get away from it all and enjoy the beauty and refreshment of the Artesian well fed falls. En Gedi was meant to strengthen David so that he would make the right choice when temptation came his way. May God give us all our own En Gedi, and may we use it as well as David did.

Birth place of Jesus at the Church of the Nativity

Bethlehem

Wow, what a trip this has been so far! After getting up at 3:45 on Thursday to catch my 6 hour flight to New York, followed by a 7 hour layover, then a 10 hour flight to Israel, and only a brief cat-nap on the flight, I was ready to crash. So I finally got to bed at the hotel and slept for 11 hours. It seemed to cure all jet lag as I was ready to go on the first day of the tour.

The day began with a stop at the Pater Noster, a convent and the place where Jesus taught his disciple’s the “Pater Noster” what we know as The Lord’s Prayer. This sacred prayer has been carved into stone along the walls in well over 200 languages! What an impressive and moving experience to see how Christians from all over the world are represented in this one place.

Next stop was the Mount of Olives, which played such an important role in the bible. From this place you can see much of the city, including where the Temple once stood, and where the Dome of Rock now stands. Then we walked down the hill to where the Garden of Gethsemane is located. The Church of the Nations is built over the place where Jesus prayed and sweat drops of blood. We stopped and read Luke 22, the passage that recounts the events in the Garden. We were moved as we thought about how these very events happened right where we were standing!

From the Garden of Gethsemane, which is as the bottom of the Mount of Olives, we headed up the next “mount” passed the Old City Wall, and went to see the Upper Room, where Jesus had the Last Supper, and where the Holy Spirit came on the disciples on Pentecost. The original room no longer exists, but another had been built there to commemorate this place. Again we read the scripture about the Last Supper and sang “Amazing Grace.”

The next part was the most exciting part of the day – Bethlehem! Bethlehem is in the Palestinian Territory, and since Lillian, our tour guide, is an Israeli citizen, she was not allowed to go with us. So they arranged for a Palestinian tour guide to take us to Bethlehem. The Church of the Nativity is built over the cave where Jesus was born. The church has three owners and three sections: Orthodox, Armenian, and Roman Catholic. The entrance is only about 4 feet high so that everyone must bow in humility as they enter the church. The group then waited in the Orthodox Church until it was our turn to enter the cave. As I descended down the narrow stairs I experienced a growing reverence and sense of awe that I was about to see the place where God became man! I waited my turn, then knelt and touched the spot with my hand and said a prayer of praise to God. Then I went over and looked at the place where the manger had been. After our group had all seen the sacred site, we stood in a circle and sang “Silent Night”. I wished that I could have stood there and sang that song 2000 years ago!

Our last stop of the day was at The Shepherd’s Field, where angels appeared to the shepherds and announced the birth of Jesus. There is a cave there where the shepherds were sleeping while tending their sheep. The cave is now a small church, and we read from Luke 2 about the angels and shepherds.

We returned to our hotel, ate dinner, and now I am in my hotel room reflecting on my day:

1.       This land is a rough land; extremely hilly, very rugged and barren of trees. There is no flat land in Jerusalem, Jesus walked up and down hills all day long!

2.       The Jews considered Israel to be the center of the world, and I can see why. It is the place where three continents meet, it was on the road of commerce and travel between nations, and it is where armies were sent to meet one another and have it out. The history and geography of this place is amazing!

3.       This land is filled with spiritual meaning – no wonder they call it the Holy Lands. A lot of God appearances happened here, angels gave messages here, and God came in human flesh in this place and walked its dusty roads.  

4.       A lot of God-wrestling has happened here, and it was rightly named Israel: one who wrestles with God. God is still showing up and people are still wrestling with Him.

5.       When we truly encounter God we will wrestle with Him because we all want something from God. But in the end we will come out limping, as Jacob did, but that will be OK, because that limp is the mark of God on our life.