Calvin Alumni Visit Israel | Thursday, March 19, 2015

This was considered one of our "walking days" in Jerusalem.  Leaving the hotel at 7:15ish--which is our usual departing time--we started our day in the Temple Mount area of the city.

• Temple Mount
• In order to get into the City Mount area, we had to go through security check points.  Once inside, we caught our first glimpse of the Dome of the Rock--an imposing and beautifully impressive Islamic holy place, built on the site of the old Jewish temple.   We, of course, were not able to enter this building, but our guide, Kahlil took time to explain the history of this highly contested holy site.  

Wandering around the Dome of the Rock Square. Notice the rooster on the top of the weather vane.  This is thought to be the location where Peter denied Christ three times.

• The Western Wall
• This is better known to most as the Wailing Wall. On Thursdays, many bar mitzvahs are being celebrated--complete with bands and dancing and large parties of guests.  In stark contrast to these celebratory events was the experience of standing at the Western Wall observing the fervent prayers of men and women of every tribe and nation.  Many of us joined in these prayers asking God to bring peace to this area.

 The Western Wall--better known to many as the Wailing Wall.

• The City of David and Hezekiah's Tunnel
• The City of David occupies about 7 acres of the city, impressive excavation sites as well as two remarkable tunnels--a dry tunnel and a wet tunnel.  A high point of every pilgrim's trip to Israel is the walk through Hezekiah's tunnel--a mile-long engineering feat built under the city of Jerusalem in order to provide water to the city during an impending siege by the Assyrians.  For those of us who ventured into the water of the tunnel (sometimes thigh deep) this was quite an experience!  Singing our way through the tunnel seemed to calm any anxiety we had and we emerged agreeing that this was indeed one of the high points of our trip.  Our "tunnel trek" brought us out to the Pool of Siloam--remember the story of Jesus healing the blind man at the pool of Siloam?  Siloam means "sent" and with that message, we considered how God calls us through the power of the Holy Spirit to be sent into the world to do His calling.  

Coming out of Hezekiah's Tunnel.

• The Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu
• If we think about 1.) Peter and 2.) a rooster on the top of the weathervane of this church, it is probably apparent what this site commemorates--Peter's denial and sorrow over his unfaithfulness to Jesus.  There are caves, jail cells and a pit beneath the church that has been built on this site.  It was in the pit--one that may have been similar to the pit in which Jesus spent that night before his conviction that led to the cross, that we sang Oh Sacred Head, Now Wounded--a very moving song that recognizes the part we each played in Christ's death.  
• The Wohl Museum and the Davidson Center
• At the Wohl Museum we were able to envision the homes and lives of Jerusalem's aristocrats in Jesus' day complete with floors covered by beautiful mosaics and walls adorned by frescos.  The Davidson Center helped us understand what the temple may have looked like in the late 1st century.  
• The South Steps of the Temple
• Our final stop for the day was a teaching lesson on the Southern Steps of the temple.  Here we read again the familiar story of Pentacost but we saw it in a new light as we imagine the 3000 new Christians being baptized in this place and considered that this may have been the "birthplace" of the church.  We were challenged to see how Jesus brought the Holy Spirit out of the physical temple and into the heart of each believer on Pentacost.  

Tonight at our "debriefing", pilgrims shared their thoughts and reactions to our time together.  It is clear that we have each been touched in meaningful and powerful ways and for that reason, it is with some sadness that we are anticipating our last full day together in Israel tomorrow.