Holy Sepluchre

I have been thinking a lot about the Church of the Holy Sepluchre. Initially, I thought, "What a strange place. All those Christians competing with one another, getting their shorts all bunched up in a knot over someone moving a chair. How ridiculous!" Then it occurred to me. The Church of the Holy Sepluchre is every church I've served. (Please tell me that I'm not alone. I endured a meeting in which it took 45 minutes to decide how thick to slice the ham for a church supper!) There is a cacophony of noise arising from all the various groups in the church, all of which is done in the name of God, but which nevertheless seeks to drown out the noise from competing groups. There are marginal groups who struggle to have their voices heard. There are groups that worship the place and become irrate if someone moves anything in the sanctuary, or if someone changes the color of the carpeting, or replaces a worn out memorial gift given by someone's great-great grandmother. And then there are all the petty things about people care. Instead of a tomb, we have a baptismal font. An image that I didn't really appreciate until I got home comes from the glass Christmas ornaments I purchased at the International Center in Bethlehem. The ornaments are made from broken pieces of glass found on the streets of Bethlehem put together to form an ornament, something of beauty, reminding us of our own brokenness, but how when joined together we can become a thing of beauty and worth. Blessings, Jim

Uh, should any of us be concerned about this?!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Land_Syndrome

A few memories

So many things to remember and call to mind...among many other things, I shall always be thankful for the kind hospitality of our Arab friends. "Gus" our faithful guide in Jersualem, and Abdul, the maintainance man at Pligerhaus who always had a smile on his face.

Jet Lag

It's 3:46am and I can't sleep! Can't wait until my body gets back to normal from jet lag, but I pray that I will never be the same again...

Welcome back everyone! Thanks again for sharing your heart and yourselves with me and with one another. Blessings!

Beauty and Complexity,... Layers upon Layers....

It's been very difficult to post during our time in Jerusalem. There was so much to do and to see, but honestly, I think it was tough to post because there was so much to see and to understand. One of our speakers, described it like this, "Beauty and complexity - layers upon layers is religion (and life) in Jerusalem." I think most of us agreed that it will take us the rest of our lives to unpack and understand all that we saw, heard, and experienced - it was close to impossible for me to blog and to put into words my thoughts. What can you say about the Western wall and the Separation Wall, the complexity and diversity of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the differences and similarities between the Christians, the Jews, and the Muslims. What can you say about young people with guns on a field trip, about thousands of pilgrims from all over the world coming to this land, about old streets and dry deserts, about too much religion and not enough God...

However, I would like to share an experience I had on my final day in Jerusalem. It was a free day, so we were able to do and go wherever we wanted. I spent the morning at the Temple of the Dome listening and learning, some last minute shopping, and lunch at a delicious Lebanese restaurant near the Jaffa Gate. After lunch, I was hot and tired, and ready to go back to the Notre Dame Center to pack and to get ready to go home. However, it didn't take me as long as I expected, and as I went through my pictures I realized that I had missed some of the sites in the Holy Sepulcher (even though I had gone through it three times already - there is just so much to see and let sink in!) Anyway, I decided to go back on my own. I was quite proud of myself - getting through the Old City without getting lost! When I got to the church, it was fairly empty. Fortunately, I think I arrived between tour groups. I made my way up to the 11th & 12th Stations of the Cross - the place where Jesus was nailed to the cross and Calvary, the place where Jesus died. I took some pictures and paused to reflect. There was no one there so I placed my hand in the hole under the altar and touched the rock of Calvary. I really didn't know what to think at that moment. After I rose, I went behind the rope and took a picture of the altar. I turned to take another, and realized that my media card was full. That was the last picture, the last photo I could take. At that moment, it all came together for me. At the place where Jesus said, "It is finished!" I took my last photo. I was again reminded that there on the cross Jesus is the final word. There is no more that we can do or need to do, by Christ's sacrifice on the cross we receive grace upon grace. For me, this marked the end of my pilgrimage. There may be more to see or to do, but for me this was enough - I had come to the place of the cross and it was more than enough.

I just walked in the house. It is nearly 10:15 pm PST. Since on one in the house is awake, I just want to post this blog up before I forget and miss the moment.

On the way back, one of my buddy, who picked me up, asked me, "so if the trip was all about learning, renewing, and deepening, will your sermons and lessons be different now?" I said, "yes, of course, I can't see the bible the same way anyway." He said, "good, now that you are more fired up, I can come to your church and listen to more than feel good sermons."

This response resonated with the wise words we heard from the director of the International Center that, "there is no peace" when everyone is preaching peace. Let's deal with the reality of no peace and go on from there. Before I go on too much, that's not the main point of this post.

All of us have expressed openly the changes we experienced in ourselves and in each other while we were still in Israel. Now that most of us, minus perhaps both Susan (from WI, and WV) and Nancy who might be driving home now, are all home and might be sleeping by now, I think the reality of change and real transformation in all of us are yet to be seen. For that, I look forward to stay in touch with you all to hear how you have changed by September when we gather and in the years to come.

For now, in the words of another good Lutheran, Garrison Keillor, "be well, do good work and stay in touch."

David

Final day

I can't tell you how hard the last 3 days has been for me. Words, images, ideas, sounds, and visions are still swirling in my head. My heart is broken by the security walls that Israeli government has chosen to put up against the Palestinians. My faith is challenged by the humiliating suffering of Christ as we walk through the stations of the cross. My mind is inundated with images, and visions of cruelty, injustice, disgust, division, and finally together with hope. My body is exhausted by the overwhelming  heat and travel. Yet, over all, I am so grateful for Trish and David (our professors on this trip) and every single saint on this 2009 Holy Land Pilgrimage. I am inspired by the 3 speakers that have imparted their wisdom, passion, and activism with us. I am delighted by the tour guides and tour bus drivers for their knowledge, humor, and generous hospitality. Thank you all. I look forward to slowly peel back each layers of this incredible and transformative experience. I await eagerly to continue this path of change with my fellow pilgrims and to see what God has in stored for the next phase of my walk with the Living and Holy God. 

For now, allow me to share the picture of the my fellow pilgrim on today's trip to Masada (the picture is without one saint, Charles, but we remember him and save the column for him).