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

Day 3 of Immersion: Last Day in Jordan and Crossing to Palestine

Our next day began with a drive to Madaba to see a church built on the remains of a mosaic floor:


6th Century mosaic on the floor of St. George Mosaic Map Church in Madaba.

Above: St. Georges Mosaic Map Church Madaba, an Orthodox Church in Jordan.

After visiting the church in Madaba, we headed to Mount Nebo.  Along the way, we passed many Bedouin homes.

Above: Bedouin dwellings in Jordan. 

Mt. Nebo also has a 6th century mosaic and is said to be the spot from which Moses viewed the Holy Land.  The views are, of course, spectacular.  The idea of approaching the mountain top and seeing below it a piece of fertile land that a wandering tribe could possibly call their own... the hope was real.  The hope in my own heart felt real as I glimpsed it from a distance and longed for the coming moment when I would walk on that ground with my own feet.

Above: Mt. Nebo, where Moses is said to have viewed the Promised Land.

I thought about Moses.  Our stories suggest that Moses never made it to the Promised Land.  I imagined him looking at the Holy Land with longing, like many Palestinians do.  Maybe he saw that place and knew in his bones a sense of belonging, yet also knew he would never be able to touch it with his own hands.  I imagine Palestinian children today, looking at a wall that blocks their view of the land they have heard their parents talk about... I imagine that key to a house that an Israeli family lives in today being passed from hand to hand as the house is described from memory.  

That sense of longing is real, too.  Perhaps like the Jews of the Exodus, many of the Palestinian people are landless.  While they don't quite wander through the desert, since their movement is so restricted, I imagine their longing for the home they know from memory or from a parent's story.  It must be terrible to live in a refugee camp, knowing that only 50 miles away, your home is there-- so close and so far.

The sense of belonging and longing for the Holy Land is felt by many people... I often think, however, that folks have trouble imagining the longing of others.

Perhaps I am getting side-tracked, though.  

After Mt. Nebo, we went to the Jordan River.  We first visited the site of a 3rd century monastery built at the spot believed to be John the Baptist's cave:

Below is the cave (and the monastery built around it):

The site of John's cave was had water access (a spring is nearby) and is surrounded by reeds that make a beautiful sound.  There is also wild honey and locusts.  The spot felt very intense for me and I had a spiritual experience at the site that I prefer not to share (at least not yet).

Above: Remains of a 3rd Century monastery at the site that may have been the cave John the Baptist lived in. There were locusts, honey, and the Jordan near the cave.

(at Jesus Baptism Site, Jordan River)

• Spot thought to be where Jesus was baptized. Remains of the church around it are from the 3rd Century.

Oh, hello. (at Jesus Baptism Site, Jordan River)

 (at Jesus Baptism Site, Jordan River)

Above: Jesus Baptism Site, Jordan River

Metaphors.

My experience at the Jordan River was intense.  It left me questioning the universe and reality in a way that I cannot explain.  Sometimes you feel in your bones a truth that is more true than other truths.  

Maybe you know what I mean.

Above:  Feet in the Jordan River. I can’t even… (at Jesus Baptism Site, Jordan River)

The Evangelical Lutheran Church at the Jordan River in Jordan gave us our tour at the Jordan.  It was lovely.  The pastor was wonderful in his descriptions and the sense of spirituality he brought to our time.  He gave us lovely blessings in the water and had a great energy and commitment to justice.  After our tour, he invited us back to the church for coffee... of course he did!  Everyone in Jordan has a fantastic sense of hospitality.

Above: Lutheran Church at the Jordan River. (at Jesus Baptism Site, Jordan River)

I found the witness and spiritual work of the Lutheran churches in the Holy Land to be quite impressive.

Above: Altar art inside the Lutheran Church. Stunning.

Above:  Feels after crossing the border into the West Bank. It took 4 hours and was a terribly dehumanizing experience– one that Palestinians go through regularly in their own country. It’s now nearly 2:00 a.m., but we are in Nazareth and will rise early for more. 

We went through a Palestinian border crossing.  Israelis and other groups (like our own) can go through another one, but we went through this crossing, one Palestinians must use, so that we would see what few visiting do: how dehumanizing the experience is for Palestinians who are simply trying to enter their own country.  

There were about 7 different checkpoints our vehicle had to pass through, then about 7 different lines we had to get in to get through the border.  Baggage and Passport.  Passport.  Baggage.  Passport and questions.  More passport and questions.  Baggage.

People in our group were stopped and harassed at various points, but faced only a fraction of the discrimination that Palestinians face… GOING INTO PALESTINE.  It took 4 hours, but likely would have taken more on a different day at a different time, and surely would have been worse if we were Palestinian.  The process treated us like animals.  The atmosphere is strange.  People squish through, simply trying to get home amidst chaos and never-ending lines.  Despite the chaos, one must keep smiling if one doesn’t want to be harassed by Israeli security.  

Happy cows come from…

wait.

Peter observed a young man trying to speak to a member of the Israeli security.  He spoke in Arabic.  “This is Israel.  Learn to speak Hebrew,” said the man.

It was Palestine, not Israel, and even in Israel, one of the national languages is Arabic.

A 15-year-old boy stood next to one of my peers in line.  “Do you see what they’re doing to us?” he asked.

“I do,” he said.

We see it.  We will not be silent.

...

After crossing the border, we had a late dinner in Jericho before heading to our hotel in Nazareth.

Here are a couple of videos that may help you better see and hear what is going on in these lands:

Life in a refugee camp.