Today I have been to the Mountaintop!

Today I have been to the top of the Mountain – to Mt. Nebo in present-day Jordan!  This is the very same mountain where Moses looked out over the plains of Moab.  From here he saw miles and miles to the land of Canaan, the place where his people would ultimately go to be safe and start anew.  Here is where the Israelates would finally settle, having left Egypt over forty years before. 

Mt. Nebo is about 400 miles from Egypt where the Israelites had left lives of physical plenty but of spiritual poverty and uncertain futures.  On thispilgrimage we have seen some of the area that the Israelites traveled through, the Wadis or natural formations making paths between mountains, and the desert.  These areas are unimaginably harsh and unforgiving.  The Wadis lay in deep canyons betweens solid rock formations stretching hundreds of feet tall.  The desert is trackless.  And because all this area is low lying, it is impossible to have an idea of distance to the end.

So it must have given Moses a sense of relief, or, more than that, a sense of hope and vindication to see, at last, where it was that God was leading the people.

Standing here at Mt Nebo today, it is a beautiful day – around 60 degrees.    In the distance we can pick out buses and cars and trees.  We are looking down from a temperate area to land that changes geographically, from the mountains to desert, to tropical area with plenty of spring water, to far hills covered with fertle cultivated fields. 

But we cannot see all the way to the promised land because of dust storms in the horizon that fill the air with a reddish haze. 

I have seen the mountaintop.  I cannot help but hear the voice of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King echoing in my consciousness;  his voice saying that he had seen the mountaintop in his last major speech before his death.  In so many ways we have progressed towards the promised land since the time that Dr. King glimpsed the promised land.  Yet in many ways the promised land eludes us. 

In the United States many of the battles of the geat days of Civil Rights were won, only to face challenges from new sources promoting and advancing racism and discrimination in new and subtle ways.  Women have advanced in business and professions only to hit glass ceilings. 

As always when I travel outside the US, I am aware of how incredibly blessed and advantaged we Americans are.  We enjoy basic human rights and protections, incredible wealth by comparison to many, and infrastructure of electricity and water and roads and communications that we take for granted.  We have religious freedom and diversity – the kind that the Israelites left Egypt to find.  

God calls all of us, as Christians, to live out our faith, to live out the promises of our baptismal covenant.  We are called to push beyond our immediate concerns, and in faith and after prayer find ways to be part of the great movement of all creation towards God’s promised land.  

Like the red haze that hangs over the land today obscuring the distant hills, the shape of the promised land is not entirely clear.  As yet the promised land remains elusive.  But I have been to  the mountaintop. 

We fly home tomorrow morning full of wonder and thanks for this pilgrimage.   Amen

The River Jordan is chilly and cold..

Not really – at this time of year the River Jordan is warm and inviting under the hot sun.  The River is not huge - its waters are siphoned off for irrigation.   In this river John baptised his cousin Jesus and the heavens were opened and a voice said, “This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased.”

Our band of pilgrims went to the River and on the banks renewed our Baptismal vows – promising to seek and serve Christ in all people – one of the priest’s sang Wade in the water… I thank the Lord that the faith of our African American ancestors reaches people of all backgrounds in this Holy place!

A hollowed out cave in the sandstone cliffs made a perfect place for Jesus to speak to 5000 people gathered on the Mt of Beatitudes and in the valley below. 

The Sea of Galilee was amazing – so blue and a striking contrast to the desert.  We took a boat-ride – and another  spiritual – this time from the boat’s loudpeaker – again I give thanks for the enduring faith of African Americans and the spirituals that continue to give hope and faith to the world.

We crossed over the Jordan River into what is now the Kingdom of Jordan — this is spectacular desert – very different from Israel.  There is more freedom of movement and Christians and Muslims interact fmore freely. (There are no Jewish citizens).  Jordan has adopted and given citizenship to over 100 thousand Palestinian refugees.

We visited St Marys Episcopal church in Irbid with a remarkable school and parish.  These parishes are the “living stones” of the church. 

Our first night in Amman in a hotel in this bustling modern city.

Blessings and prayers!

Nazareth and Bethlehem

Here in Jesus hometown we are getting a feel for some of the stories of Scripture…

Take for example, the parable of the person who keeps knocking on the door until it is opened.  We think of our homes, where we would wake up, turn on the light, go downstairs and open the door.  In Jesus time, people in Nazareth lived in hollowed out caves in the hills.  We saw an example an actual one of these.  It is excavated  under the Church of the Annunciation.  The family would sleep on a ledge directly in front of the doorway.  To get to the door the owner would have to step over everyone and wake them up!  No wonder it is a big deal to continue knocking until the person lets you in!

In Jesus time about 400 people lived in Nazareth.  It was a backwater.  The outlines of the villqge at that time have been excavated  so we know this.  The biggest city nearby was Sepphoris.  We saw ruins there as well. 

Everything that I learn and experience here helps to deepen my understanding and bring Jesus message to life.

Also amazing are the contrasts.  The three religions Jewish, Muslim, and Christian living in tension at some times and in harmony in others.  The desert and lush crops.  Tourists and locals.  Religious and secular. History and current life.

Due to technical limitations of the equipment here at the Sisters of Nazareth, I cannot send photos. 

I am so thankful to be here and look forward to sharing on my return.

Blessings!

Tomb of the Holy Sepulchre, the Way of the Cross, Anglican schools, leaving Jerusalem

Under the able guidance of Canon John Peterson, former Dean of the Cathedral in Jerusalem, we explored the treasures of the Christian story that took place here.  Here, many levels down in a subterranean chapel,  is the actual rock formation that was Golgatha in Roman times.  Golgatha was the rocky hill where crucifixions took place in Jerusalem.  It is the place where Jesus was crucified.

A chapel is there now, maintained by the Roman Catholics and the Armenian Orthodox, I believe.  An altar sits on the rock – which is exposed through glass.  And there is one section that pilgrims can touch.  This is one of the stations of the Cross.

We believe that Pilgrims had come to this place in Jerusalem to walk in the Lord’s footsteps since the crucifixion.  It is believed that communities of monks lived at or near the site in the years after Christ’s crucifixion and Resurrection, but they did not erect churches over the site.  

It was only in the 4th century that Helena, Emperor Constantine’s Mother, built a Basilica complete with courtyards and a magnificent memorial, to honor the place of Calvery.  Helena’s workmen found what she believed to be the True Cross and that place is revered as well.

Helena’s church was destroyed and the Dome of the Rock built over the site half a century ofter the death of Muhammad, and the beginning of the Muslim faith. 

The next day, having studied the history of the place and reflected on the events, we returned early in the morning to walk the Way of the Cross.  Carrying a wooden Cross, walking in silence we traced the path that Jesus would have walked.  We walked along the path of the Roman road, the Cardo, to the place of judgment, to the prison where He would have awaited word from Pilot (who washed his hands).  We prayed at each station, and between each station one or another of us carried the Cross.  Through the narrow streets, up and down the hills, through bazaars and acros streets, following the path where we know it was in ancient times.  Finally we came to the city wall, marked by a sweet shop.  And finally outside the walls of the ancient city, we began the ascent to the hill of of Golgatha. 

On the way, women in traditional orthodox scarves shouted at us “drano” – meaning “Congratulations!”  For we are pilgrims.  We are blessed.  In (Eastern, Armenian) Orthodox traditions, the celebration of Crucifuxion is a joyous event, linked to Easter, for it is always understood in the light of the Resurrection. 

Jerusalem is an interfaith city. The Muslim calls to prayer are broadcast regularly, beginning at  4:30 am.  The city is divided with different groups predominant in different areas.  Here in East Jerusalem, on the West Bank, Muslims are predominant.   Christians and Jews retain their ability to worship, and have access to their Holy Sites. 

Yet, Israeli separation walls divide the countryside, and young people in uniform with machine guns guard entry into sections of the country.  

The Anglican Church is a force for interfaith reconciliation and cooperation in Jerusalem.  With the American Friends of the Diocese of Jerusalem, we visited the Princess Basma school which serves Christian and Muslim children pre-school through grade 12.  We also visited the Arab Evangelical Episcopal School in  Ramallah, where students at the hotel managment division of the Techncal School treated us to a marvelous lunch.  We visited with young children and teens as well.

We leave Jerusalem tomorrow for Nazareth and may not have access to the web for posting.  So please be patient if I am not able to post!

 For blogs of other pilgrims on this trip see Pilgrims Blog at www.AFEDJ.org

Hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to God’s people!

Bear with me, friends back home… as this blog has been uneven in coming—there were a few technical issues to overcome - a computer crash, issues in accessing and uploading, and one day I was just too tired to blog! 

So here are some impressions about the visit to the Western Wall – the Wailing Wall - with all of your prayers! 

The pilgrims who had been to the Wall before took one look at my three bags of paper and said – oh no they have to be rolled very small to get in between the cracks!  Late that night, Jane and Kate, fellow pilgrims, helped me to roll the prayers into miniscule packets to fit into one plastic bag!

The Wall is a Jewish Holy Site, maintained by the state of Israel.  A sign says that according to Jewish tradition,  the Temple Mount is the place where God created Adam, where Abraham served, where the Temple of Solomon and David stood and where the Shekinah, the Presence of God, rests.  As we got closer to the wall it was clear why it is called “Wailing.” 

The sounds of prayers and songs and laments fill the air!  People are rushing by in groups in families, to make their prayers.  Dressed in many types of garb of the Jewish faith, some men wear the black coats and broad hats, others white long garments and shawls, still others are in street clothes with yarmulkes.  Women have heads wrapped in shawls.   Christians approach as well, clergy and tourists, nuns and monks, Christian Orthodox women in different types and colors of shawls and head coverings. Out of respect we did not take close-up pictures of people at prayer. 

Men and women go to separate areas of the wall.  Several of the pilgrims in our group take a handful of prayers and we each approach the wall place them in the tiny crevices.  A kind Orthodox woman shows us the best places to put the prayers, and we stand back and silently pray.

I touch the wall – this Wall in Jerusalem that was here – in this place -when Jesus was in the Temple – here – in this place.  

Words do not come – only tears. 

Amen

Photographs from Mother Kathleen … a post in pictures please take a look!

Jerusalem Second Day – Let us Break Bread Together on our Knees

Early Mass in small chapel at the Cathedral of St. Georges, the Bishop of Jerusalem presiding. I felt the closeness of the Anglican Communion in the Service. It was familiar Rite II Liturgy with a few local differences.
And I felt right at home when they started singing “Let us Break Bread Together on our Knees!”
After a breakfast of wonderful local bread, olives, eggs and sour cream, we set off for the Mount of Olives. The photos were taken at various places along the way.
In the Garden of Gethsemane are olive trees that are 1800 years old, but they were grafted onto roots that are even older! In a meditation, The Rev. John Peterson, former Dean of the Cathedral of St. George, asked us to think about what it means to be grafted onto the Body of Christ.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem. The Basilica of the Agony marks the spot where Jesus spent the night before the Crucifixion.
We walked down the Mount in silence tracing Jesus’ path to Golgotha.