Greek this Week

The Via Dolorosa

Maundy Thursday and Good Friday

In the last post, we saw the steps that Jesus walked from Gethsemane to the house of the high priest, where the Sanhedrin (ruling council) was hastily convened and a travesty of justice took place.

In order to have Jesus sentenced to death, the religious authorities needed the consent of the Romans. This is why, at dawn on Good Friday, Jesus is led from Caiaphas’s house to the Praetorium.

This is the start of the Via Dolorosa, the traditional path that Jesus took from condemnation to his death and burial.

It is a powerful experience to walk this way, in the footsteps of Jesus, as well as alongside believers from all over the world.

We begin at the ruins of Antonia Fortress, built by Herod the Great and used in Jesus’ time as a Roman barracks. Around this site stand the Chapel of Flagellation, where Jesus was whipped, and the Chapel of Condemnation where Pilate conceded to crucify Jesus, even though in his own words, he had nothing nothing deserving death.

Merciless beating was usual before a crucifixion, to weaken the condemned prisoner so they would offer no resistance to what came next.

Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. ²⁸ They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, ²⁹ and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. ³⁰ They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. ³¹ After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

Matthew 27: 27-31

Golgotha (or ‘Calvary’ from the Latin) means ‘Skull’, and at the time of Jesus’ death it was a cemetery. It was also a hill near a main road, perfect for public executions. The Romans wanted as many people as possible to see what happened to revolutionaries and guerrilla-fighters.

(You might have heard about ‘Gordon’s Calvary’ also. In 1883, the British General Charles Gordon claimed that this was the actual place where Jesus died and was buried. This was a rockface with tombs cut into it, looking from one angle a bit like a skull. It was unlikely that the stone was eroded like this 2000 years ago. Gordon probably wanted to stake out an Anglican alternative! It’s not the actual Golgotha. However, it provides a peaceful, less ‘churchy’ location to reflect.)

Even if it’s not authentic, Gordon’s Calvary reminds us of this:

Jesus was not crucified
in a cathedral between two candles
but on a cross between two thieves;
on a town garbage heap;
at a crossroad of politics so cosmopolitan
that they had to write His title
in Hebrew and in Latin and in Greek …
and at the kind of place
where cynics talk smut,
and thieves curse, and soldiers gamble.
Because that is where He died,
And that is what He died about.
And that is where Christ’s own ought to be,
And that is what church people ought to be about.”

Rev. George MacLeod, founder of the Iona Community

But back to the historical site: The Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This church stands on the holiest spot on earth, where Jesus died and, a short distance away within the same structure, where he rose again.

Prepare yourself – the various locations we want to see are very ornate, quite possibly not to our modern Western tastes, and definitely not as we imagined them!

Bear in mind that cities change, ground moves and subsides, and structures crumble. So building beautiful churches was the one way Christians over 2000 years have known to preserve the sites in some way.

‘… and with love stronger than death he made the perfect sacrifice for sin …’

Holy Communion, the Church of Ireland’s Book of Common Prayer, 2004

The Crucifixion Altar here in the basilica stands where the cross did. Underneath the altar, it is possible to see the rock itself through a glass covering, and sometimes pilgrims can touch it.

Remember, though, this place is packed with pilgrims, all like you and me trying to follow in Jesus’ footsteps, even if we are all wearing very different clothes and praying, singing and chanting in very different languages.

When Jesus was taken down from the cross, his body was hastily prepared for burial in a newly-cut tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea. His body was laid here (or somewhere very close-by) for preparation for burial. This is the Stone of the Unction:

I confess, I have no idea what is happening in these times of Covid, but this stone has been caressed and kissed by worshippers for ages immemorial – it is worn smooth.

And then we come to the tomb. It is a strange-looking building called the Edicule (‘little building’), built a millennium after the resurrection when the sides and ceiling of the tomb began to collapse in.

We have come to the place where Jesus’ body was laid. On Sunday we will sing joyfully about how it is empty – but tomorrow is Good Friday. There is no resurrection without the cross, and that’s where we’ll remain in our meditation tomorrow.

Thank you for joining us on this virtual pilgrimage. It is my prayer that we have a deeper appreciation of the Lord Jesus, his earthly ministry and his conquering of death.

Let’s keep following, right here in our wee corner of the world.

Who knows … maybe one day, when Covid is under control and we are ready to fly again, we might depart for real on a parish pilgrimage to the Holy Land? Start saving your pennies now …

Tuesday in Holy Week The aim of this pilgrimage is not, in fact, to learn lots of things and see lots of sights. It’s not even quite the same as bringing the Bible to life, although that certainly is important. The ultimate aim, on this pilgrimage and during Holy Week, is to come close to the Lord Jesus.

Jesus is betrayed and arrested in Gethsemane (where we were yesterday). He was taken by his captors up these steps to the house of Caiaphas, the high priest.

We truly are walking in Jesus’ footsteps here!

The steps take us to the Church of Saint Peter in Gallicantu. That strange word ‘Gallicantu’ is Latin for ‘cock-crow’, remembering of course the fact that Peter denied Christ three times before the cock crowed just as Jesus had predicted.

The church is built on the site of the high priest’s house. You might remember that Jesus is first arrested and tried by the religious leaders, before he is sent to Pilate, the political leader.

These chambers underneath the modern structure were used for storage in Jesus’ time, but it may well be that Jesus was detained in one of these rooms.

The man-made caves date to the Second Temple period, i.e. the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry.

Here is the first part of the story, Jesus’ sham-trial. (This took place of course on the Thursday night before the crucifixion that Friday, but if we try to follow the events chronologically we’ll have too much to take in towards the end of this week).

Jesus Before the Sanhedrin

⁵³ They took Jesus to the high priest, and all the chief priests, the elders and the teachers of the law came together. ⁵⁴ Peter followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. There he sat with the guards and warmed himself at the fire.

⁵⁵ The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death, but they did not find any. ⁵⁶ Many testified falsely against him, but their statements did not agree.

⁵⁷ Then some stood up and gave this false testimony against him: ⁵⁸ “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another, not made with hands.’” ⁵⁹ Yet even then their testimony did not agree.

⁶⁰ Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” ⁶¹ But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.

Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”

⁶² “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

⁶³ The high priest tore his clothes. “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. ⁶⁴ “You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?”

They all condemned him as worthy of death. ⁶⁵ Then some began to spit at him; they blindfolded him, struck him with their fists, and said, “Prophesy!” And the guards took him and beat him.

Mark 14: 53-65

And then, in the next part of the story, having been falsely convicted and wrongly sentenced in a travesty of justice, Jesus’ own friend betrays him:

While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came by. ⁶⁷ When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him.

“You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus,” she said.

⁶⁸ But he denied it. “I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about,” he said, and went out into the entryway.^[g]

⁶⁹ When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, “This fellow is one of them.” ⁷⁰ Again he denied it.

After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.”

⁷¹ He began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know this man you’re talking about.”

⁷² Immediately the rooster crowed the second time.^[h] Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows twice^[i] you will disown me three times.” And he broke down and wept.

Mark 14: 66-72

This cell (or one very like it) is where Jesus was detained as he awaited transfer to Pilate. According to Roman law, Jewish religious leaders had no authority to impose the death penalty, and that is what Jesus’ opponents were pushing for.

And so, Jesus waited here for those few hours before dawn – betrayed and alone.

Monday of Holy Week

Walking down from the Mount of Olives towards the city, we come to the Church of All Nations, better known as the Basilica of the Agony, right beside the Garden of Gethsemane.

The ceiling is painted a striking blue in recognition of the detail that, when Jesus and the disciples left the upper room to pray in Gethsemane, ‘it was night’ – signalling not only the time of day but the mood and the imminent danger.

Within the church, there is said to be the rock on which Jesus fell down when he sweated drops of blood. This claim is reasonably uncertain, but the location of the Garden itself is well attested. If not on that rock under the altar, then close by, Jesus lay prostrate and prayed the anguished words ‘if it is possible, remove this cup from me’.

The garden itself is not big. ‘Gethsemane’ means oil press, and there are some very ancient olive trees still growing here.

Here is what happened in this little garden 2000 years ago:

They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³ He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ³⁴ “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

³⁵ Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. ³⁶ “Abba,^[f] Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

³⁷ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? ³⁸ Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

³⁹ Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. ⁴⁰ When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.

⁴¹ Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. ⁴² Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

Mark 14: 32-42

This Holy Week is a time to accompany the Lord in prayer. You might find the simple Taize song ‘Stay with me’ (Watch and Pray) helpful as you do so today – click here.

As in the ‘Lord’s Prayer’, Jesus begins by intimately and simply addressing God as Abba, that is Father. He is not afraid to show his anguish, either to his close inner circle of friends, or to God.

Jesus prays with his full humanity. He has no death wish. He is not impassive or impervious.

He prays three times that God will remove the cup (i.e. suffering) from him. It is a process that takes time. It is not like saying a magic spell! There is honesty, and that includes it taking time. Taking time for prayer to change things; taking time for prayer to change us.

And yet, look how Jesus’ demeanour is transformed after prayer. He arises, calmer, newly resourced for what is about to happen.

The Collect of Monday in Holy Week

Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy,
but first he suffered pain,
and entered not into glory before he was crucified:
Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of his cross,
may find it none other than the way of life and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Week 5 – Bethany & the Mount of Olives

Thursday 25th March Today we are just 2 miles from Jerusalem City, in the village formerly known as Bethany.

I once got lost on my way here. We had a few hours scheduled for wandering by ourselves through the souks and bazaars in the Old City, and my friends and I somehow missed the rendez-vous for the drive to Bethany where Jesus stayed with Mary, Martha and Lazarus.

On the map, it looked like we could walk it in half an hour, but we kept going round in circles. Finally, we decided the only thing for it was to jump into a taxi.

‘Bethany, please’ we said. The taxi driver looked non-plussed. Where?

‘Ah! West Bank!’ he said eventually.

West Bank? No, it’s close by, just a few kilometres, we tried to say. When communication wasn’t free-flowing, off sped the driver. It was Middle Eastern driving at its scariest! Good for your prayer life, as they say.

As it turns out, ‘Bethany’ is the modern Arab village just the other side of the ‘peace wall’ between Jerusalem and the Palestinian-controlled West Bank. On the map, it was 3km away. The drive was a much longer loop around checkpoints and closed-off streets. Its modern Arabic name is al-Azariyeh which, if you say it over a few times, sounds very much like Lazarus – its named after its famous former resident and friend of Jesus’.

You’ll know the story, I’m sure, of Mary and Martha:

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Luke 10: 38-42

Sitting by a Rabbi’s feet was the position taken by a disciple, i.e. an apprentice or student. We might think of Mary taking up a position of humility and meekness. In fact, when Martha is outraged at her sister’s behaviour, it is in part at least because her sister is assuming a place normally reserved for a man. And a woman’s place is, she thought, in the kitchen!

Jesus defends Mary’s quite liberated decision not to do what was expected of her by her culture, and by her family. Women have as much place in Jesus’ community as men.

We need to make sure we don’t slip back into thinking the ladies job is to be in the kitchen of the parish hall making tea. Making tea is an important job, but one that men can do as well as women!

Another episode in Bethany was this:

Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. ² So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. ³ Mary therefore took a pound^[a] of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. ⁴ But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, ⁵ “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii^[b] and given to the poor?” ⁶ He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. ⁷ Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it^[c] for the day of my burial. ⁸ For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”

John 12: 1-8

Mary shows up the men once again in this passage! Judas is pretending to care about the poor, and the others seem quite unaware. But Mary senses that Jesus is soon to die, and she is overcome with emotion.

She performs a lavish act of worship, including opening up a bottle of very expensive perfume. Once opened, it has to be used. Of course, she knows it will be required very soon, when Jesus is finally executed. Mary is anointing Jesus for his death. It is a prophetic act.

Friday 26th March And here we are – on the Mount of Olives, looking at the classic panorama of Jerusalem below, the Holy City, the destination on this pilgrimage.

Look at the skyline – there are high-rise buildings. This is not a museum or a representation, but a modern city. Yet it is so full of ancient history.

Look at the shining Dome of the Rock. Built on Temple Mount, it reminds us that this was for centuries an Arabic city, and it is where three monotheistic, Abrahamic faiths come together.

This mosque is built on Temple Mount, site of the Jerusalem temple which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. The remnants of that temple form the Wailing Wall. Security on Temple Mount is like nowhere else on earth! The tension felt on this site, so holy to Jews and Muslims, is palpable.

Jews come here to lament the fact that their temple lies in ruins. The air is filled with cries and shouts of grief. Worshippers write their prayers on slips of paper and insert them in among the stones.

Looking across at the ruins of the old temple precinct, pilgrims experience a wide range of emotions: joy, exhilaration, awe … But here on the Mount, we remember that Jesus wept:

And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, ⁴² saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. ⁴³ For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side ⁴⁴ and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

Luke 19: 41-44

We have been retracing Jesus’ steps around the Holy Land. When he arrived here, he realized that Jerusalem was not going to accept him as Messiah. The political and religious leaders there were ‘hell-bent’ on their own corrupt plans, nationalistic agenda and their privileged position at the expense of the poor and disenfranchised. In short, they were rejecting God’s kingdom.

So Jesus wept over this city. He was distraught that his own people were rejecting God’s new kingdom on earth, and that the consequences would be dire.

So from Dominus Flevit Church here on the Mount of Olives, we will walk in the steps of Jesus (or rather the hooves of his colt!) on this coming Palm Sunday.

Join us at 10am from Christ Church, Castlerock and join us in shouting Hosanna! Hosanna! as he arrives at last in the city of destiny.

Week 5 – Jericho

Jericho is the last main stopover on Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, the cross and the grave. It is possibly the most ancient city anywhere in the world.

Remember the walls? Archaeologists are kept busy here, excavating layers of pre-history from Canaanite settlement, to ancient Hebrew and all the way down to today’s modern city.

As always, we have to be a little bit cautious when people make claims about what things are. Sometimes the claim is rather tenuous. Sometimes people have seen and discovered what they want to find. For example, here is what is known locally as Zacchaeus’ Tree. I’m not sure it’s really the 2000 year old tree that Zacchaeus climbed to see Jesus!

But hey, I could be wrong. And part of this pilgrimage is not seeing the very tree, or the very spot, but nourishing our creative imaginations to help bring the Bible to life when we read it.

But it’s another Bible story I’d like us to read today:

Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. ⁴⁷ When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

⁴⁸ Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

⁴⁹ Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” ⁵⁰ Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

⁵¹ “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”

⁵² “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Mark 10: 46-52

Jesus arrives in Jericho after a long journey from the North, through hot, dusty, difficult and dangerous terrain. The whole way, he has been teaching.

I can understand why the crowds told Bartimaeus to be quiet and not bother Jesus. But there’s no deterring him. This is his chance. He’s not going to let it pass in order to be polite.

First, he’s called Bartimaeus. He’s not a generic ‘blind man’. He’s an individual with a past and a future, like you and me, a 3D person.

Second, he’s physically blind but he sees something that many others miss, namely that Jesus is the Son of David, i.e. a royal figure, a King. We’re encouraged today not to define people by their disability, in fact to avoid the word ‘disabled’ where possible. Instead, we can say ‘differently abled’. It might sound irksome to some, ‘political correctness gone mad’, but Bartimaeus is more able than most – just in a different way!

‘Jesus stood still.’ An important detail. He’s on a journey, on a schedule, but people come first. He’s not too busy to make time for this man.

‘What do you want me to do for you?’ Jesus doesn’t assume, he is led by Bartimaeus.

There’s a true story about a healing service. A woman in a wheelchair goes up front to ask for prayer. The minister immediately asks for God to make her legs better so she can walk. He finishes. So? Can you feel any strength returning to your legs? Can you move them?

No, says the woman. I actually came up because I’ve got a terrible migraine.

Jesus asks what it is we want. He doesn’t assume he knows best, but he treats his fellow human with respect and dignity.

Do you feel you can be honest and tell Jesus what it is you want?

Bartimaeus casts off his cloak. Jericho is hot! It wasn’t for warmth! His cloak was what he laid out by the roadside hoping pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem might throw in a mina or two. When he casts it aside, that’s a big leap of faith! He is going to leave behind his old life. A bit like Peter and co. leaving behind their nets.

And Bartimaeus joins them on ‘the way’ to Jerusalem. ‘The Way’ was an early expression for the church, the Christian community in Acts. Bartimaeus has become a follower, a disciple.

You’ll not believe the name of the road from here to Jerusalem, by the way – the Valley of the Shadow of Death! As in Psalm 23!

This is the dangerous stretch on which a man was attacked by bandits and left half-dead, until he was helped by the Good Samaritan.

Following Jesus from here means the Valley of the Shadow of Death. We are now in Passiontide, our thoughts turning to what awaits Jesus in the capital.

Join us again on Thursday as we arrive on the outskirts: Bethany and the Mount of Olives.

Week Four – Judea

If your head is reeling having visited so many places already, don’t worry, that’s to be expected. There’s no test at the end! Just let the experiences and impressions sit with you and take away from it what is important to you.

We’ve been in Galilee, the bustling northern fishing villages around the lake.

Then Samaria, the edgy bit you have to travel through.

And now we’re in Judea, the southern third of the country, dry and mountainous, centred on our destination – Jerusalem.

Thursday 18th March Today we’re in Hebron, 20km from Jerusalem in the West Bank.

Hebron is a divided city and a very tense place. It’s the only part of Palestine that has an Israeli settlement within the city. As we wander from street to street, we’ll be asked for our travel documents many times!

So why are we here? This is the second most holy site in the world for Jews and the fourth for Muslims. It’s where the patriarch Abraham and his family are buried.

So it’s worth traversing the ‘peace walls’, blockades, bulletproof screens and fences, and ignoring as far as possible the rubbish thrown across at the other side.

Our destination in this war-torn city is the Cave of the Patriarchs. Now, you’re used by now to finding that all the places associated with Jesus’ life and ministry have big churches build over the top of them. Well, here the cave where Abraham and family are buried is inaccessible to us – but there’s a big mosque and synagogue built on top!

Islam and Judaism both have Abraham as their common ancestor. Tragically, today, the building over his final resting place has to be divided by a bulletproof screen.

We remember of course God’s promise to Abraham:

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty^[a]; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. ² Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

³ Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. ⁵ No longer will you be called Abram^[b]; your name will be Abraham,^[c] for I have made you a father of many nations. ⁶ I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. ⁷ I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. ⁸ The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

Genesis 17: 1-8

When Sarah his wife died, Abraham still was not in possession of the promised land, so he had to buy this cave as a family burial plot. After Sarah, the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were also buried here with their families.

You might know yourself the emotional force of having a family burial place.

For Abraham, it is even more important. This small patch of land is the first to become the possession of Abraham’s descendants. It is a small first step in God’s promise coming true. As God’s people went down to Egypt and back again, in all their journeying, they’d pass by this tomb and remember God’s promises.

For us Christians, of course, the big sign of God’s promises coming true in the world is also a tomb – but an empty one!

He has helped his servant Israel,
    remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
    just as he promised our ancestors.

From the canticle Magnificat

Friday 19th March How do we know that the Bible is true? How come people interpret it in so many ways? Why are there so many different versions and translations?

Our visit to Qumran is a good place to think about these questions. The visitor centre is also a good place to cool down in the air conditioning!

In 1947, a local Arab boy was tending sheep in the caves and hills here, when he discovered a jar of old scrolls. What came to light was that some of these scrolls were copies of the Hebrew Bible that were well over 2000 years old!

Suddenly, we had copies more than a millennium older than the oldest copy of the Old Testament we possessed.

But was it the same? Amazingly, these scrolls prove the reliability of the Bible over time. The site excavated at Qumran contains a scriptorium (copy room) and library shelves. Caves were used for storage, but also to hide valuable scrolls when the Romans attacked.

These are the famous ‘Dead Sea Scrolls’. We have copies of almost every verse of the Bible, as well as lots of commentaries that help us understand how Jesus and his contemporaries thought about things.

I do hope our virtual pilgrimage is helping to bring the Bible to life a bit. Qumran is where we are reminded that it’s also reliable.

Join us this Sunday for worship @CastlerockDunboe 10am, and next week we’ll be in Jericho, with Jerusalem just in sight.

Week 4a – Bethlehem!

Monday 15th March

O little town of Bethlehem

How still we see thee lie

Above thy deep and dreamless sleep

The silent stars go by

Yet in thy dark streets shineth

The everlasting Light

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are met in thee tonight

Bethlehem is in fact neither little nor still! It’s a bustling city. And any month of the year you are likely to see Christmas decorations, especially crib scenes of course, and to hear carols played.

There’s Star Street, Nativity Street, Holy Family Hospital, Gabriel Hotel, and here we are on Manger Square. This is where worshippers gather every Christmas Eve for the arrival of the day itself.

From Manger Square, we can see the Church of the Nativity. It’s not easy at first glance to find the way in. Due to various invasions and rebuilding projects over the years, some doors were bricked in, and the entrance in use today is very small. Most grown-ups have to stoop down to get in, which of course is very fitting when you consider this is the place where the Lord Jesus was born. It’s called the Door of Humility. Like the shepherds and wise men who first visited the Infant, we have to bow down as we approach.

The Church of the Nativity is built over the grotto, or cave, where Jesus was born. How can we know it took place here? Not long after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, early generations of Christians already met here to worship. Roman Emperors didn’t like the competition – they preferred to be the only ‘sons of gods’ on the block. It was forcibly converted to a pagan shrine, which in fact turned out to make the site all the more certain for later pilgrims.

The grotto itself is under the main altar, and the place is indicated by a fourteen-pointed silver star on the ground:

If you can remember your schooldays’ Latin, you’ll understand the inscription “Hic de Virgine Maria Jesus Christus natus est” – Jesus Christ was born here of the Virgin Mary.

Slightly lower than the star is another alcove which, if we stripped away the marble inlay, is the size and shape of a 1st C feeding trough. Jerome was here when the Church extended this grotto and installed a silver manger – and he was not impressed!

“If I could only see that manger in which the Lord lay! Now, as if to honour the Christ, we have removed the poor one and placed there a silver one; however, for me the one which was removed is more precious.”

St Jerome

Whatever we might think of the decor here, it will hardly be as we imagined that first Christmas. We all have our own ideas of what’s appropriate for holy places, and what’s just kitsch.

But close your eyes for a moment and forget about the silver, the marble, the lamps and chandeliers, and think to yourself. This did not take place in my imagination, it took place here, in this place, in real space and time!

God became a baby, Immanuel, and He was with us!

Once in royal Davids city,
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her Baby,
In a manger for His bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ, her little Child.

He came down to earth from heaven,
Who is God and Lord of all,
And His shelter was a stable,
And His cradle was a stall:
With the poor, and mean, and lowly,
Lived on earth our Saviour holy.

Tuesday 16th March I don’t know about you, but I just think Bethlehem warrants a second day! While we’re here, you might like to do some Christmas shopping?

Bethlehem has a big population of Palestinian Christians, and some families have been crafting beautiful nativity scenes (aka crib sets) for centuries, out of local olive wood. You’ll also find lots of tackier offerings, of course, like souvenir Santa hats!

Just to the east of Bethlehem is Beit Sahour, the hills where the shepherds watched their flocks by night. It’s completely different to the city below, so it makes for a nice stop. This is more like we imagined things; more like it would’ve looked 2000 years ago.

It’s good to see the exact spot where things happened, but you know, I think it’s important as well to nourish our imaginations with the sights, sounds and smells of what it may have looked like back then. Thee Shepherds’ Fields are a good spot for this!

Here’s the Bible story:

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

Luke 2: 8-15

As it goes, there are fewer places that can compete to sing ‘Glory to God!’

Wednesday 17th March From Christmas in Bethlehem to St Patrick’s in Castlerock & Dunboe – join us here @CastlerockDunboe at 7.30pm for a short Eucharist on this feast day of our patron saint!

Then we resume the tour around the Holy Land exploring the region around Jerusalem on Thursday.

Week 3B – Samaria

Thursday 11th March Welcome to Mount Gerizim! Around 400 Samaritans, that’s half of the Samaritan community, lives here. These were the arch-enemies of Jews in the times of the New Testament.

Because they can only marry within their community, the population has shrunk greatly and there are just four families left. They have maintained many traditions and practices over the centuries that mark them out as a unique community.

If you come here on 15th September, the Day of Atonement, you’d better have a strong stomach. The Jews no longer offer sacrifices, because the Temple in Jerusalem is the only place that’s allowed to happen, and the Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

However, if you read the story from John 4 about Jesus and the Samaritan woman a few days ago, you’ll know that Samaritans worshipped on Mount Gerizim instead – in fact, they still do even today.

It’s a grizzly scene, there’s no doubt about it, to see all those sacrificial laws from Leviticus carried out for real.

We Christians have another reason for the dis-continuation of animal sacrifices, of course. The author of the letter to the Hebrews writes:

… we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

Hebrews 10: 10-14

Friday 12th March Welcome (if that’s the right word!) to Megiddo, better known as Armageddon!

Did you know this is a real place?

The Holy Land has always been contested. It’s the Fertile Crescent, and many people over the millennia have wanted to control it. You’ll know from the Old Testament how often there were wars between other countries and huge empires. Sometimes Israel was at war, and other times she was just caught in between bigger countries at war.

This Jezreel Plain that we see from Megiddo is a key strategic route between Africa and Asia. It’s seen many soldiers march across in all directions.

In Revelation, St John describes this as the site of the last battle, the definitive battle between good and evil. People interpret it in different ways, as literal prediction of a Middle East war to end all wars, or a symbolic reference to the final victory of God over evil at the end of time.

Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

Revelation 16: 14

What do you think? It seems to me to be a good spot to pray for peace:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

A prayer of St Francis

Well, in the past two days we’ve seen the sites of sacrifice and war … join us again next week for some nicer highlights – as we continue our southward journey, we’ll soon be in the environs of Jerusalem, including Bethlehem, Jericho and the Mount of Olives.

Remember to join us this Sunday at 10 am @CastlerockDunboe for a special all-age service for Mothering Sunday.

Week Three A – Into Samaria

Monday 8th March This week, we are in Samaria, the middle region in between Galilee and Judea. Samaria is its Old Testament name – today it is known as the West Bank, and it’s full of Palestinian villages and towns.

The West Bank is less developed than the modern State of Israel. For pilgrims, it’s a bit closer to our expectations – shepherds in traditional dress, bazaars where you can buy figs and dates and spices, and lots of olive trees.

Pilgrims are often surprised by this part of the Holy Land. First of all, it’s under Palestinian control, claimed by Israel and recognised internationally as an ‘occupied territory’. The population is largely Arab-Palestinian. There are very controversial settlements here, in response to an active policy of building new Jewish settlements. You’ll see refugee camps from the highway into Nablus.

Relations today between Jews and Arabs are a bit like those between Jews and Samaritans in Jesus’ time. As pilgrims, we’ll notice lots of security, checkpoints, and Israeli officials might ask lots and lots of questions about our reasons for visiting.

Last week, we saw some places where Jesus went, where he was in contact with Gentiles. If that was shocking, it’s scandalous that he comes here!

And we all know the scandalous parable of the ‘Good Samaritan’:

“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he travelled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

Luke 10: 30-35

Sometimes, Christian pilgrims have ideas about the Palestinians that are challenged, in a similar way to the lawyer to whom Jesus first tells this parable.

The many churches around the Holy Land are attended mainly by Palestinians – they are our brothers and sisters in Christ. You might hear a call to prayer in Arabic or the words ‘Allah huw Akbar’ and not realise they’re coming, not from a mosque, but form an Anglican church! And some of these Christians will be opening up their churches, welcoming and showing us around, starting tomorrow with Jacob’s Well.

Many of these Arab Christians could do with our support and prayers. One organization that runs projects among them is Embrace Middle East – click here to take a look at some of the work they do.

Tuesday 9th March Today we are at Jacob’s Well, or the Well of Sychar, on the outskirts of Nablus/Shechem.

Like so many of the places we’ve imagined since Sunday School days, a big church has been built over the top of it – in this case, an Orthodox monastery.

This is where Jesus broke a journey to Jerusalem in John 4:

Now he had to go through Samaria. ⁵ So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. ⁶ Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

⁷ When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” ⁸ (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

⁹ The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.^[a])

¹⁰ Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

¹¹ “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? ¹² Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

¹³ Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, ¹⁴ but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

¹⁵ The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

¹⁶ He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

¹⁷ “I have no husband,” she replied.

Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. ¹⁸ The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

¹⁹ “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. ²⁰ Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

²¹ “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. ²² You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. ²³ Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. ²⁴ God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

John 4: 1-24

It’s a controversial conversation, and nobody is more surprised than the Samaritan woman: ‘You? Are asking me for a drink?’

Jesus should not really be talking to a woman in the first place (big no-no in the ancient world!), let alone a Samaritan one. But it’s noon – good girls aren’t hanging around wells at this time of day, if you understand me.

The location is tense, too. This is ‘Jacob’s Well’, and it’s a religious site that Jews would love to control but was smack bang in the middle of enemy territory.

That’s Jesus for you. He isn’t afraid of what people might say. Let tongues wag – Jesus has good news for Samaritans as well as Jews. In fact, it’s better accepted by notorious sinners – tax collectors, prostitutes – than by religiously respectable people.

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Wednesday 10th March Join us tonight at 7.30pm for a short Lenten service at @CastlerockDunboe.

Join us again on Thursday this week – hope you have a strong stomach – we’ll be visiting the place where Samaritans still worship by offering sacrifices Old Testament style!

Week 2.5 – Excursions from Lake Galilee

Thursday 4th March Up and out early this morning form our hotel for our daytrip. Quick breakfast of flatbread, hummus, olives and pickles, and then on board the coach please!

Today we’re heading to Banias. Where on earth is Banias, you ask? It’s under an hour, almost due north, in a corner of Israel close to the Lebanese and Syrian border. It’s at the foot of Mount Hermon.

It’s better known to modern Christians as Caesarea Philippi. It is a site associated with paganism, specifically the god Pan. (Arabic has no ‘p’ sound and substitutes ‘b’, therefore Banias for the old name Paneas, city of Pan).

Above, you’ll see a rocky cliff face with a cave called Pan’s Gate. The water is from Pan’s Spring. Pan was thought to be half man, half goat. His cave was believed to be the gate to the underworld, a place associated with death and darkness.

Why is this pagan centre of worship on our itinerary? And why on earth was it on Jesus’?

Here’s the story of Jesus’ visit here. As you read the familiar words, bear in mind this location: the rocky cliff and gates of Hades.

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Matthew 16: 13-19 (NIV)

What does Jesus mean? The pagan location would suggest the church will be an international community, i.e. people who are pagans (Gentiles, meaning most of us) will be included in God’s people.

Sometimes in our part of the world, various groups appeal to Old Testament stories like the siege of Jericho, defending Jerusalem’s walls, taking possession of a Promised Land and defending it against other would-be occupants. But the Christian narrative in Jesus’ teaching different, about God’s people transcending any national or cultural identity, and we today should be extremely careful about using these stories as if one side of our own community is like Israel and the other like Canaanites or Palestinians.

Or is Jesus referring to the ‘rock’ of Peter’s confession that Jesus is Messiah? Our answer to the question ‘Who do you say that I am?’ is the biggest decision we have to make in life.

Maybe a bit of both, I think.

After confirming his own identity, Jesus states what the church is. Built on a sure Rock. International, diverse, including people with a dodgy background! And with a huge privilege and responsibility: holding the keys of the kingdom.

No matter what happens, though, even those Gates of Pan/Hell will be no match for Jesus and his church.

Friday 5th March As our travels in and around Galilee come to an end, it’s time for some reflection.

This is where Jesus began his ministry. Not in the capital, not in the temple, but in the region where he grew up.

He lived out his vocation among family and friends, although they found it particularly difficult to accept him. (Remember how they tried to throw him off that mountain we climbed outside Nazareth?)

Remember as well how small houses were in fishing villages like Capernaum? Jesus was close to people. And by the same token, he knew when to get away to a lonely place to pray. A rhythm of service and prayer, the one flowing into the other. Jesus was not so heavenly minded as to be of no earthly use (a criticism sometimes made of clergy!). Neither was he so agenda driven that he became a workaholic who would lose sight of the vision behind his activity, or who would burn out early.

And Jesus was adventurous. He had his base, but crossed lots of boundaries. He got a bad reputation for fraternising with undesirables. He was open to people of other cultures and faiths, yet secure in his own beliefs.

All of this makes Jesus very unpopular with religious leaders. His teaching is threatening their identity and legitimacy. With conflict smouldering, it’s time to leave Galilee now, to set his face towards Jerusalem.

Sunday 7th March Join us live from @CastlerockDunboe at 10am for worship. On Monday, we’ll start our journey south, through Samaria on our way to Jerusalem for Holy Week.