Calvin Alumni Visit Israel | Monday, March 16, 2015

Well rested in our beautiful accommodations, we set out for our first day in and around Jerusalem.  We are all well, healthy and enjoying one another's company--always good to report when spending this amount of time together!  :)  Today we celebrated Bob Korneef's birthday giving gratitude for his witness of God's faithfulness in his life.

A few of our happy band seem to have been rewarded with "super accommodations" which included balconies overlooking the city of Jerusalem.

Bethlehem  

• A shepherd's cave
• Our first stop found us crowded into a shepherd's cave probably quite similar to the one in which our Savior was born. Here we heard the birth story of Jesus in a new and fresh way.  We pondered the similarities of Jesus' birth and death... coming into the world naked and wrapped in swaddling cloths and laid on a slab (manger).  His death mirrors this:  left this physical world naked on a cross, wrapped in cloths and laid on a slab. Jesus:  a gift to humankind, wrapped in grace and truth and dressed in humanity for us.
• Gift shopping!
• We spent an hour at a shop in Bethlehem that carried beautiful olive wood items and jewelry.  As we boarded the bus after this stop, many of us admitted to hemorrhaging money here (All children/friends of Pilgrims should be happy to read this!).
• The Al-Basma Center
• We made wonderful visit to the Al-Basma Center.  Al-Basma means smiling (and we saw MANY smiles!) and is one of the only known ministries in Bethlehem that provides a workshop setting for special needs children through adults.  These "clients" amazed us with the beautiful hand made paper, rugs and large paper "pellets" that are sold to burn and use as a heat source.   The director of this program (who greeted us personally) was the former press secretary for dictator Moamar Ghadafi before fleeing Libya to come home to Bethlehem where he felt called to start this important ministry. It was a privilege to spend time in this place where the face of Jesus was so evident. 
• The Diyar Organization
• This Lutheran-based ecumenically oriented  organization serves the Palestinian community with an emphasis on children, youth, women and the elderly.  Our group had audience with Mitri Raheb who shared the increasing challenges/threats for the Palestinian people in Israel. 
• Herod's Palace: the Herodium
• Our final stop for the daylight hours was another one of Herod's amazing architectural feats--a palace built on the top of an artificial mountain and created for his glory and protection.  Our teaching lesson brought us to a better understanding of how the details of the old and new testaments come together in the very places we stand.  Here, high atop this mountain standing in Herod's palace we recognized together how our lives as believers have never been the same since Jesus' birth in Bethlehem.

We've been told that when taking a trip like this, we will never read scripture in the same way.   Each day we are understanding that more clearly.

Mary and Marlene--two pilgrims who add joy to each day!