Panentheism

As much as Jesus’ actions were calls against systems of dominance, they were also rooted in the Inter-Being of life.  God makes the rain fall and the sun shine on all of us, right?  That sense of Inter-Being and Love should be at the core of the Christian message, as I see it.  

Day 7: Bethlehem and Diyar (Part 1)

Much of our trip was heavy with meetings.  We had the privilege of meeting with many activist organizations, the U.N., a university professor, a leader of the BDS movement, Christian religious leaders from Lutheran, Orthodox, the Y.W.C.A., and Quaker organizations, the leader of a Christian Zionist organization, and a tour of the city that brought us to Palestinian neighborhoods unseen by most tourists and Israelis and Israeli settlements of varying size, Ramallah in Area A, another refugee camp, a member of Palestinian parliament, and other meetings.  It was heavy with head-stuff, heart-stuff, and spirit-stuff.  I'll divide these days up more, since they are heavy with information.

Our hotel was in East Jerusalem, so we began our day, as we did most days, by getting in our van for a small drive.  Here is what it looks like to drive into Bethlehem:



Our day began in Bethlehem.  It was Armenian Christmas and the Patriarch was coming to town, so there was lots of security for a parade.  We first went into the church, which was heavily under construction, to visit the spot that is supposed to be the birthplace of Christ:

Above:  (at Church of the Nativity)  Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem at the spot some believe Jesus was born. 

Seeing the church under construction was an interesting experience:

After wandering the church, we went to see the parade and procession of the Patriarch.  I loved how different the Armenian Christmas was from my Christmas experience.  The festive parade full of youth was amazing.

Above:  (at Church of the Nativity)  Armenian Christmas. We saw the patriarch process into the Church of the Nativity, preceded by their equivalent of boy scouts and girl scouts. This doesn’t quite capture the festive energy. The sense of joy was palpable.

After visiting the church and viewing the parade, we went to Diyar, an organization based in Bethlehem.

From their pamphlet:

“Diyar is the plural of Dar, which means “home” or homeland” in Arabic.  Diyar is a Lutheran-based, ecumenically-oriented organization serving the whole Palestinian community, with emphasis on children, youth, women and the elderly through unique programs that are contextual and holistic in nature.  Founded in 1995 as the International Center of Bethlehem, Diyar Consortium serves several thousands of members and reaches to more than 60,000 people annually.”

 We met with Rev. Mitri Raheb, the author of Faith in the Face of Empire: Reading the Bible with Palestinian Eyes, one of our textbooks for the class.  I'm bummed that I didn't bring my book for him to sign.  He is a leader at Diyar.  You can find their website here:  Diyar Consortium

Also from their pamphlet:

Our Vision

That We Might Have Life & Have it Abundantly

Our Mission

To build a country; stone by stone

To empower a community; person by person

To create institutions that give life in abundance

From their brochure:

Civic Engagement

The Civic Engagement Program seeks to empower Palestinian youth, women, teachers and future leaders, and transform them from spectators to actors by identifying, motivating, and developing their potential through a unique and holistic approach.  The Program offers training in civic education and multiple civil society engagement initiatives.

Culture

Culture is often seen as a luxury, while in fact it is the art to breathe in a context of continuous conflict.

Diyar offers room for creativity, space for self-expression and venue for cultural exchanges on the local, regional, and international levels, thus making Bethlehem the cultural destination in Palestine.

From the Diyar brochure:

Diyar Art Center

“DAC seeks to empower Palestinian women by employing the arts as a vehicle for nurturing their creativity, enhancing their economic sustainability and giving a voice through advancing their productions as their personal unique expressions.”

From the Diyar brochure:

Diyar Publisher

Diyar publisher is committed to document the oral history of the Palestinian people, and to publish the works of Palestinian and international scholars on issues related to Palestinian art, social history, religion, Palestinian Christians, women, archaeology and civil society.

Ajyal

With no social security or health insurance for those who are above 65 years old, Ajyal Program is a comprehensive elderly care program that offers basic services, spiritual fellowship, social support system and opportunities for continuous education and growth.

Diyar is a wonderful organization and Rev. Raheb is an inspirational figure.  His ministry is the kind that is truly the work of God.

Our next visit in Bethlehem was with Karios Palestine, another Christian organization.  I'll share some about that next time.

Process and Reality

"…There are certain general truths, about the actual things in the common world of activity, which will be obscured when attention is confined to some particular detailed mode of considering them."

— Alfred North Whitehead

This.  Sometimes we need to break ourselves out of the ways we have been taught to think of things.  

Common Denominator Christian

I often drive past gaudy churches in San Francisco and am bothered by their displays of wealth in a city in which wealth is currently so dichotomizing.  A particular, gigantic church near my neighborhood recently started a repainting project that is certainly expensive and that from my perspective, was unneeded.  I wondered what better things that sum of money could have done.  Those of us in positions of privilege have an obligation to address that privilege and use it well.  Whether for right or wrong, there are certain circles within which my voice will be more easily received and in those circles, I think it is my job to challenge the damaging paradigms that exist.  That said, I think it’s important to try to understand any religious group from an emic perspective.  I might not agree with my Evangelical friends on “their” issues of justice (abortion, war, prayer in schools, Creation Science, etc.), but to suggest that their concerns are trivial is part of the problem.  I’m not having a conversation or changing hearts and minds if I am dismissing them.  Many religious folks would suggest that I’m disregarding God’s laws and justifying my own wordview via scripture, instead of following scripture.  I would, of course, disagree (and probably suggest the same was true of them).  But that’s the point.

Day 6: Old City of Jerusalem

The final stretch of our stay was mostly in Jerusalem.  After our first night in east Jerusalem, we got up early for a tour of the old city, which started on the mount of olives.  We looked at the old city from there... and saw a camel:

Above: (at Mount of Olives)  View from the Mount of Olives where Jesus is said to have wept over the city. 

One of the most special places I visited was the Garden of Gethsemane.  The Mount of Olives used to be full of old olive trees, but they were mowed down during Israel's takeover of the land.  However, the Garden of Gethsemane and the church were left alone.  So: these trees date to the life of Jesus.  It is believed to be the spot where he and the disciples were the night he was betrayed.

Above: (at Gethsemane)  Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus is said to have been betrayed. The trees are 2000 years old.

Above: At the garden of Gethsemane. 

Inside the Church of Gethsemane:

Above: (at Gethsemane)  This is the church at Gethsemane. The spaces which commemorate the more tragic tales told about Jesus tend to be dark inside, which I found beautiful, especially because they often also have mosaics which played with the limited light in affecting ways. 

 The Garden of Gethsemane had a very intense feeling.  What sorrows must those trees hold?

After the garden, we went into the old city.  I wrote about my experience on this blog, so I won't rehash that part.  You can read it here if you like:  I Am That I Blog: Razing of the Temple and My Spirit

Above: (at Western Wall)  It was important for me to touch with Western Wall (the remaining piece of the temple destroyed in 72 AD), especially after my experience at the Jordan River. The ring I wear on my right hand was my Grammie’s. I once watched a documentary about Jerusalem with her and had a lovely conversation with her about wanting to visit these places and better understand the conflicts. So: I did this and took a picture of it to share with my family. I will say that my experience at the Western Wall, however, was… Yucky. Everywhere else has offered so much hospitality; the intense sense of unwelcome, inequality, and hypocrisy at this particular place was striking.

A wall inside the old city holds truth:

Above: (at The Holy City Jerusalem)  "We NEED Peace"

I was also amused that the doors inside the old city were all very short-- some as low as about 4 feet.

Above:  The doors in the old city are all so small! I felt tall for a change. (at The Holy City Jerusalem)

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher was my favorite part of the Old City.  The space commemorates the place of Jesus' tomb and crucifixion.  It is fairly dark inside and the space is shared between 4 or 5 Christian traditions, so there is a wonderful mix of noise and ritual.  You must walk through the Coptic Church to get to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  Here is a woman who was sitting outside the Coptic Church:

Above:  (at The Holy City Jerusalem)  Woman outside the Coptic church, which was uniquely beautiful inside. She gave us such warm smiles. Our guide said she is always there. (She gave me permission for this picture). 

Above:  Inside the Coptic church. This photo does not do it justice. It felt so loved and worn in a unique way. (at The Holy City Jerusalem)

Above:  Watching the intense piety among such a diversity of people at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher was beautiful. Different churches operate within the same space in a wonderful cacophony. (at Church Of The Holy Seplecher)

Above:  The dome over the tomb at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. (at Church Of The Holy Sepulcher)

Above:  Candles lit in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  

As we waited in line to go inside the tomb, a group of Romanian Orthodox pilgrims sang some of the most beautiful music I’ve heard in a sacred space. They changed the entire energy of the room. Here is a video of their singing.  Apologies for the shaky video; I didn't want to record their faces without permission.

There was so much going on inside.  Here is another instance of chanting and procession:

Above:  Chanting procession (again, didn’t want to film faces). I believe it was Roman Catholic, but there were lots different traditions sharing the space. 

We then visited the place of the "upper room," the spot believed to be where Jesus shared his Last Supper with his disciples.  Here is the room: 

I found that my American mind expected things to be made of wood.  After all, less-expensive buildings in the U.S. are typically made of wood.  Also, in the area I live, stone buildings are impractical because of the risk of earthquakes.  In Palestine, everything is made of stone.  It very much asked me to re-imagine the mental pictures I have about the life of Jesus.  

Here are some pictures of Old Jerusalem at night.  It was beautiful.

It was a beautiful day.  The love I felt for this city was so important to how I understood this entire trip.

You must understand the whole of life, not just 
one little part of it. That is why you must read, 
that is why you must look at the skies, that is 
why you must sing and dance, and write poems, 
and suffer, and understand, for all that is life.
~J.Krishnamurti

We can read about things.  

History is told by the winners.

Even when we follow “alternative” sources of information, truth is often something that must be felt and witnessed. There are some things that must be seen.  

The ways that Palestinians are living is one of them.

 Sometimes the intensity of life is transformative.  We find ourselves in the midst of an experience that necessarily changes us.

Have you changed your life?

Some videos you may find interesting:

“Pray as if everything depends on God, and work as if everything depends on us."— Blessed Augustine of Hippo (via theorthodoxbritreturns)(viasacredsecularity)

When it comes to the conflicts of the world, our prayer is important, but prayer that is silent or in private places cannot be enough.  We must remember that prayer must be coupled with action, just as our faith couples grace and works.  

Process Cosmology

"Each creative act is the universe incarnating itself as one, and there is nothing above it by way of final condition."

— Alfred North Whitehead, Process and Reality

Poetry

Process Theology

"Religion is the translation of general ideas into particular thoughts, particular emotions, and particular purposes; it is directed to the end of stretching individual interest beyond its self-defeating particularity."

— Alfred North Whitehead 

Theology

"Every actual entity in its relationship to other actual entities is in this sense somewhere in the continuum, and arises out of the data provided by this standpoint.  But in another sense it is everywhere throughout the continuum; for its constitution includes the objectifications of the actual world and thereby includes the continuum; also the potential objectifications of itself contribute to the real potentialities whose solidarity the continuum expresses.  Thus the continuum is present in each actual entity, and each actual entity pervades the continuum."

— Alfred North Whitehead, Process and Reality

Reclaiming Church

Jesus as a salvational figure is so important to so many people: repentance and confession are powerful; to be freed from the weight of a secret, of a sin, of a regret is powerful.  I think it’s also why speaking out against the injustices of the Church and changing what church is and has been is so important– it is purification. In addressing the problems, the elephants in the room, the reasons why people leave church and have been hurt by church, we release ourselves, in a sense, of that weight.  In building a “new” from what we can take from the “old,” we purify the church.  We rid it of its sins; we let it be who it should be allowed to be.  In allowing folks to be who they are and should be in church, we purify the church and bring it into an honest existence in the world.  

Ideas

Church should have a listing of helpful resources posted outside.

Trafficking hotline, suicide hotline, showers, shelters, food, police numbers, etc.

Day 5 of Immersion: Walking His Path

On our fifth day, we continued to visit places from the life of Jesus.  We visited several places in Nazareth and the Galilee region, visited the Golan Heights, and transferred to Jerusalem, our final location, that night.

We began our day at the Church of the Beatitudes.

Above: (at Church of the Beatitudes)  Spot where some believe Jesus spoke the beatitudes. The view of the Sea of Galilee was spectacular.

I took a video of it as well.

View of the Sea of Galilee from the Mount of Beatitudes.

There was a large tour group at Church of the Beatitudes.  There were many women in the group with expensive hair processes and plastic surgery/injections.  I wondered where they were from, mostly because they seemed so wealthy.

One came up and talked to our tour guide.  She wanted to know who we were.

When she found out we were Christians, she walked away and stopped making small talk.  

I asked who they were.  They were an Israeli tour group.

I thought it was strange.  Who did they expect at a Christian holy site?

Above: (at Church of the Multiplication, Tabgha)  Church on the spot where some believe Jesus fed the 5,000. The church has recently been victim of a hate crime (arson) of nearby colonists.

Church of the Multiplication.

This church (on Palestinian land) was recently the victim of arson by nearby Israeli settlers who have gone unpunished.

Palestine is continuously losing land to illegal settlements.  While these settlements of Israelis are illegal, they are also incentivized.  Living in them is cheaper than living in Israel proper.

Furthermore, the Israeli military, for the protection of these illegal settlements, builds a wall around them, posts cameras and military personnel, and builds roads to and from them for trash services and whatnot.  These are more services that Palestinians themselves get in occupied territories.  

Settlements tend to be populated by more extreme Zionists who believe that all of the lands is THEIRS.  They often harass Palestinians and vandalize nearby property.  Violence between settlers and Palestinians is well-documented.

The Israeli government needs to stop protecting and fortifying these settlements, which are effectively continuing landgrabs by Israel.  Each settlement walls off more land from Palestinians and makes their lives more unstable and dangerous.  

Each settlement continues the nakba slowly every day.

There are SO MANY Palestinians who are still living as refugees and in diaspora around the world, yet Israeli settlers (most often from Europe) are given the freedom to invade Palestine and take land from its people with help and protection from the Israeli military.  Where is justice?

Above: Mosaic floors at Church of the Multiplication.

After visiting the Church of the Multiplication, we visited the Galilee shore.  On our way, our tour guide pointed out a spot where some believe Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount:

Above: Spot where some believe Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount. It’s not the most photogenic spot. 

The Sea of Galilee was one of my favorite places.  Many of these monuments to the life of Jesus would not have been there during Jesus' lifetime.  The Sea of Galilee, however, was.  There is something precious to me about touching the water Jesus touched many times and gazing upon the beauty of the hills and the light upon the water.  I imagine Jesus was nourished by the beauty of this region and the stillness of the Galilee.

Above: The shore of the Sea of Galilee. 

Above:  (at Sea of Galilee)  Standing in the Sea of Galilee. It is way bigger than I had imagined and intensely beautiful. 

Above:  (at Sea of Galilee)  Sailing on the Sea of Galilee. The weather was beautiful, so there was no need to calm storms. I did walk on the water, though.  Not really.

After we sailed on the Sea of Galilee, we went into a nearby museum that holds a 2,000 year old boat that was found in the Sea of Galilee.

Above:  (at The Ancient Galilee Boat)  A 2,000 year old boat found in the Sea of Galilee (not the metal part, obviously). It was quite the task to remove and preserve the boat. Perhaps Jesus and/or his disciples used a boat like this.

After sailing on the Galilee, we went to Capernaum, another town Jesus is said to have lived in.  There were remains of a 4th century town and synagogue.

Above:  (at Capernaum)  These are ruins of a fourth Century synagogue in Capernaum. The foundation is from the first century. Scholars believe an earthquake destroyed the first century synagogue in the fourth Century; this one was built in its place. Jesus may have attended this synagogue location in the years he lived in Capernaum. Learning about possible motivations for Jesus’ ministry in Capernaum was very interesting. I can’t wait to get home and start typing up the ways that this trip has not only brought Bible stories alive, but offered unique interpretive lenses.

You can see the foundation from the first century in the image below.  It is much darker than the stone used for the 4th century synagogue:

Capernaum and all of the area around the Galilee were beautiful.

Above:  (at Capernaum)  Much of what fed my spirit was simply being in the land. Some sites felt different than others and the sites have varying likelihoods of historicity… but there is something about walking on the land, eating its food, listening to the native birds, and touching the native trees. This, I believe, brought me closer to something real. These are things I believe nurtured Jesus’ spirit and rooted him.

Our final spot was Migdal/Magdala.  The town of Magdala has recently been discovered, along with its first century remains, which include a synagogue that dates to the time of Jesus.  I tried to imagine Jesus and Mary Magdalene walking through this town, going about their lives.  

Above:  Mosaic floor of the Synagogue in Magdala. The synagogue and town ruins were rediscovered fairly recently. The mosaic dates to 26 CE. It is possible that both Mary Magdalene and Jesus spent time here. 

• 
  
• The management of Magdala, however, left me with a yucky taste in my mouth. Their plans for the site and the particular brand of religiosity they brought to it were both very disappointing.  The religiosity was literalistic and evangelical and the plans seemed centered around consumerism, including "rebuilding" the town so that you can shop in the marketplace, too.  It seemed irreverent and opportunistic.

Here is a short video looking around the remains for the first century town:

After visiting Magdala, we began our journey to East Jerusalem, where we would be checking into a new hotel, where we would be spending the rest of our trip.  Of course our van broke down on the way there and we spent a good chuck of the evening sitting on the side of the road, waiting for a new belt to arrive.  We got into our hotel late and tired (yet again).  Worth it.

Here is a version of the history of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict that many people hear.  It is selective in what it includes and does not:

Video about Palestinians who film colonist attacks:

Video about life in one of the refugee camps:

Video showing how difficult it is to find justice for some Palestinians:

"Just Another Day":


There is nothing but water in the holy pools. I know, I have been swimming in them.
All the gods sculpted of wood or ivory can’t say anything.
I know, I have been crying out to them.
The Sacred Books of the East are nothing but words.
I looked through their covers one day sideways.
What Kabir talks of is only what he has lived through.
If you have not lived through something, it is not true.
–Kabir