December 31, 2016 - New Year's Eve

Tomorrow will be a new year but today was a wonderful way to spend the last day of 2016.  After church services in the Jerusalem Center auditorium, we took some photos outside before we had a quick lunch and ventured out for another day to explore the Holy Land.

It was so fun having our family with us for church services this morning.

Garth wanted to take us to the tomb of Samuel, the prophet, because there is a lovely story about Hannah, a devoted handmaid of the Lord in the Old Testament.  Hannah was the mother of Samuel, the Prophet.    His tomb is located in a Palestinian village at the top of a steep hill. On the site is a building containing a mosque built in the 18th century that was formerly a church.  The tomb is located in an underground chamber where a small synagogue is located and where Jews and Muslims offer prayers at the tomb.  

Many religious Jews visit the tomb on the anniversary of 
Samuel, the Prophet's death.

The Tomb of Samuel and the surrounding archeological excavations are now part of a national park. An Arab village of 20 families is located on the hilltop.

According to tradition, the Crusaders found the bones of the Prophet Samuel in a Jewish cemetery in Ramla but his remains were reburied here overlooking Jerusalem.  We went downstairs to where Samuel's tomb was located and found a Muslim woman in prayer.   I am always fascinated with the stone structures of these buildings, particularly the arched, or dome ceilings.  I am always amazed how ancient builders were able to construct them from mud, stone, concrete and glass and keep them from falling in!  

We left this location and headed to the mosque at Abu Gosh.  The Abu Ghosh Mosque is the second largest in Israel, only smaller than Al-Aqsa (Dome of the Rock) Mosque in Jerusalem.  The construction was finished in 2014 at the cost of $10 million dollars of which $6 million was funded by the president of Russia's republic, Chechnya.  An article in the Associated Press of Israel states that some residents of this area trace their ancestry to 16th century  in Chechnya and for this reason the mayor of Russia's republic of Chechnya donated money for the construction of this mosque.  

The mosque has four minarets which symbolize the brotherhood between religions of people.  Three of the minarets symbolize the three monotheistic religions and the fourth minaret represents the rest of the world's religions.  The mosque was built in the Ottoman Turkish style because that is the favored style in Russia's republic, Chechnya.

When we arrived, the mosque was just closing but we had a chance to take a quick look inside.  We thought of Omer and how much he would have loved to be with us.

Our next stop would be the Garden Tomb, located just outside the Old City.  The Garden Tomb is maintained as a place of Christian worship and many believe that this is the garden in which Jesus of Nazareth was buried and where He rose from the dead.  When we arrived, we could hear people singing and we saw several groups of people holding religious services. It always warms my heart to hear people singing praises to God in a world that is in so much turmoil.

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher  (established in the 4th century at the time of Emperor Constantine) claims to have the actual tomb of Jesus. We cannot be sure exactly where the crucifixion took place, but the exact location is of less importance than the spiritual significance of what really happened.

There are many areas in the garden where people can gather to sing and listen  guides or religious leaders  contemplate what tradition says happened here.  

 We went inside and looked at the empty tomb and paused in reverence.

The empty tomb.  Note the Byzantine cross painted on the wall of the tomb.

He is not dead for He is risen.  

It has been wonderful to show our family places we have visited while living in the Holy Land.

This is an ancient winepress which was excavated in 1924.  

It indicates the presence of an ancient vineyard.

We left the Garden Tomb and headed to Damascus Gate at the Old City.  

Adam was hungry and his mouth was watering for another  falafel.  

See the Falafel place at the end of the walkway . . .  Adam couldn't get there fast enough.

Adam had waited all day for his favorite food in Israel and both boys devoured their falafels.  

Falafel is a deep-fried ball or patty made from ground chickpeas and is a traditional Middle Eastern food commonly served in a pita (pocket bread) or wrapped in a flat bread type tortilla. The falafel balls are topped with pickled vegetables, salads, hot sauce and drizzled with a tahini type sauce. This is a very common dish and a favorite among the JC students. This particular place is located just inside Damascus Gate and has the best falafels in the Old City and the best price of just 8 shekels or about $2.00. The fritters are basically a replacement for meat and a form of street food commonly sold in Israel.  

This Muslim woman sits in this same spot every day.

Muslim woman on the street.

Fresh meat?

Men will sit in front of their shops smoking these pipes.

It was getting late and we still had more places to go.  

This has been one of the best days of our lives but tomorrow will bring 

another adventure thanks to G'pa, our marvelous tour guide! 

Family Visit During Christmas Holidays

Nothing makes a holiday more exciting than knowing that members of your family are coming to visit. Christmas day came and went and the following evening, Garth and I were waiting anxiously the arrival of our oldest daughter and her family. For the past 11 months, we have missed our children and grandchildren greatly and have been counting down the days until they arrived.

I was so excited the day our family was arriving I couldn't concentrate on anything. I wanted to see their faces and know that they had arrived safely. It was a very long flight but they were all champs and full of smiles when we met them.

This past week we have walked our legs off! We have visited as many places as we could each day. These are just a few of the highlights of places we have visited and not necessarily in order. Garth has been the tour guide so he has lead our family outings.

The weather has been cold, windy, and sometimes rainy. Claire said to G'ma Kathy, "How come I get hot when the sun is shining but when it's not, I am cold?" G'ma replied, "That's why we bring lots of layers to put on or peel off."

We have walked most of the places we've visited in Jerusalem but next week we will be driving to the Dead Sea, Masada and the Galilee.

Orson Hyde Park.

Jewish graves. It is customary to place a rock upon the grave when visiting a friend or relative.

Garden of Gethsemane

Russian Church of Mary Magdalene.

This striking, 19th century, Russian Orthodox church is a place I have wanted to visit for many months. It has seven golden cupolas and looks like something out of a fairy tale. Because it is only open a few hours on Tuesday and Thursday, we have not been able to visit it until now. This is where Mary of Magdala saw Jesus being arrested in the garden on the Mount of Olives. Mary showed the Emperor of Tiberius an egg and she told him that there was life in that egg. He said, "There is no more life in that egg than the egg is red," when immediately the egg turned red.

The view from the Church.

It was a beautiful, sunny day and we walked to this site from the Jerusalem Center.

There are lots of steps everywhere we go.

G'pa Garth said, "Kids, don't run or you'll fall and knock out your teeth!" I guess he was right . . . someone's child didn't hear him.

Wailing Wall

Papers are stuffed in the cracks of the Wailing Wall. They are collected and saved and buried in a designated place and never destroyed.

I am always inspired when I see people praying, wherever they are are and whatever religion they might be.

We saw a Bar Mitzvah at the Western Wall.

The City of David.

Hezekiah's Tunnel was one place everyone was excited to go.

When the city of David was defending itself from the Assyrian army in the 8th century BCE, King Hezekiah decided to protect the water by diverting its flow deep into the city with a tunnel system. "Hezekiah also plugged the upper watercourse of the Gihon waters and brought it straight down to the west side of the City of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works." (Chronicles II, 32:30) This engineering feat was accomplished by digging a 1,750-foot tunnel into the mountain.

We walked down many stairs to the level of the tunnel and were prepared with head lamps and water shoes because we knew we would be walking in the dark in water.

You need a light to go into the tunnel.

We started out with water up to our ankles but before we knew it, it was past our knees and then up to our thighs. If you are claustrophobic, it would not be something you would want to experience.

The tunnel was completely dark so if you didn't have a light, 

you wouldn't be able to see where to step.

You can see how high the water came up on our legs. It took about 45 minutes to walk through the tunnel and was so humid my hair went frizzy.

The acoustics are wonderful in St. Anne's Church so we sang a few songs. The Catholic Priest said we sounded like angels.

Church of the Holy Sepulcher is located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City. It was constructed in 326 AD.

Visitors may bow and touch the rock where Jesus was placed on the cross.

On the way out of the church, Garth chatted with the man who is the Key Keeper of the church. A special key is used to unlock the doors of the church at 4 AM and it is locked back up at 7 PM.

He showed us the very unusual key that unlocks the door every morning.

We also went up on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher to see the Ethiopian monastery.

We visited the cave where Jesus was put in prison. Prisoners were dropped down through a hole so they couldn't crawl out and were bound and tethered to the wall of the cave.

Steps that have been dated to the time of Christ. Coins were found along these steps which verify the dates.

During the Last Supper, Jesus foretold the triple denial by Peter.  "Peter said, Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.  Jesus said, I tell you, Peter, the cock will not crow this day until you have denied three times that you know me."  Luke 22, 33-34.

It was cold and rainy the day we visited Jericho.

Bethany is where Lazareth's tomb is located.

Separation or "Barrier" Wall in Bethany.  These are just a few of the places we have visited the past few days and we are off now to another place.  Check back soon!