Visiting Bethlehem and the places associated with the nativity of Jesus

On Friday, the group set out for a tour of parts of the West Bank that are related to Jesus' birth. We had a local professional Christian Palestinian guide and he taught me many new things. We first had to pass through the checkpoint leading into the West Bank and quickly passed the Separation Wall. We picked up our guide, Elias, and went to Beit Sahour - the traditional known place of the shepherds that the angels appeared to. There is a beautiful church built there with the most amazing acoustics. We sang Hark The Herald Angels Sing and I swear, my friend and I could hear an organ playing in the background! We walked further on and entered a traditional shepherds cave where we celebrated Mass that 4 of us organised (including me). Our hymns were Christmas Carols. Walking outside, we spotted a real shepherd in the fields but he was very far away that the picture was not clear. There were excavations of a 4th Century Monastery.Elias taught us about the life of the shepherds and put a spin on all our beliefs of the 'inn' and the manger where Jesus was born. I can't wait to share it with others (too long to put here now!)

We then went to Bethlehem. We stopped at the shop that sells hard carved wooden figurines where we went crazy spending CEO money for our schools. The local people were so happy as we helped their local economy that day.

We then went on to the Franciscan Family Center and met Sister Maria Grech. She had a personality that reminded me of Mother Teresa. Sister looks after the male orphans, counsels families and educates them about standards of living. She was amazing! All of us have proposed doing fundraising activities to support her work at the center.

We then walked in the direction of Manger Square where we had lunch. Before that, we entered a Church known as the Milk Grotto where it is believed Mary stopped on her flight to Egypt and breastfed Jesus. It is said that drops of her milk fell on the stones and that they changed colour to white. Many people drink milk with sand from the stones of this Church in the hope of being healed, conceiving and being fertile. Many miracles have occurred according to the Church janitor.

Lunch was beautiful. We were served by a young man who could have passed for a model if he was in our Western world. He showed me photos of him in the Dead Sea and spoke about his life among the Israelis. His story is sad and unfortunately, only one in a long line of sad ones that we have heard.

After lunch, we went to the Church of the nativity that was built in the 4th Century by Constantine's mother, St Helena. The Church was magnificent. We went down to the tombs of early saints such as St Jerome. We were not able to enter the actual place of the nativity as the queue was so long.

We then went to Bethlehem University where we had a tour, watched a DVD about it (the Vice Chancellor is from New Zealand!) and had an opportunity to ask questions of 3 young women from Muslim and Christian backgrounds about their life at the university and in their communities. Their stories are incredible.

After this we went to the Separation Wall where we sang, "Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace". The place is so depressing. The Palestinian side of the wall is full of grafiti that expresses exactly what the people are feeling. I could have wept. There were many goose-bump moments. I have many photos to share.

On our way back to Jerusalem, we had to pass through the checkpoint and have our Passports ready. 2 Israeli soldiers boarded with their guns (1 female, 1 male) and just walked through quietly. The act of intimidation was felt by all as we felt it was totally unnecessary.

All in all, the day was amazing. I will write about the Jewish festival of Sukkot next.

The first 4 days!

My trip over was uneventful and fun with the 11 others I am travelling with. However, when I arrived at Tel Aviv Airport I was interrogated for 30 minutes about my Lebanese background because my passport was stamped in 2004 in Beirut. The man was pleasant but my passport kept being passed on to different people. They took down my mobile number, father's and grandfather's name, occupation amongst other things. Thank God I was not alone and had the 11 others waiting for me on the other side of the customs.

We arrived on Sunday, 19th September. After resting, 2 of us went for a walk through the Old City, had lunch and watched people walk by. It was so interesting to see the mix of religions in the one small area. I observed Muslim women in their Hijabs walk past Jewish soldiers in their full gear and also pass Italian pilgrims singing and chanting while moving between the 3rd and 4th Stations of the Cross on Via Dolorosa. Afterwards we went to Mass at Notre Dame Chapel outside the Damascas Gate in the new city. Mass was celebrated by an Aussie Priest from Melbourne!

We were all woken up at 3:45am to the call to prayer from the Al Aqsa Mosque which is almost a touch away from the Terrace at Ecce Homo. It was beautiful to hear the praise to Allah. This call goes on almost constantly for 45 minutes. Ear plugs have become essential!

The souks here are amazing! There are eager and hopeful shopkeepers trying to sell their wares while trying to convince the buyer that they have the best price! They are incredibly touched when I speak to them in Arabic and almost fall over themselves to help in any way they can. On Monday, 3 of us went to walk the ramparts of the gates of Old Jerusalem and to shop for souvenirs. We went into one shop where the shopkeeper is of 2 faiths when it suits him. His father is Muslim while his mother is Armenian Catholic. I was impressed by his ability to bargain and to want to help us save money and not pressure us into buying anything. We stayed in the shop for almost 2 hours then had some tea with him. I walked out with so many things that I did not have the money for but his response to that was, "I trust you to pay me as soon as you can". We walked through the different quarters except the Jewish one. We had Lunch while steadily making our way to the Jaffa Gate to begin our ramparts walk.

There are so many things to see, touch, hear, smell and taste. Pomegranate juice seems to be the new favourite amongst my group. There is the smell of incense mixed with the smell of coffee and other smells of spices. Religious artifacts abound everywhere. One of the first places we went into was a small place run by the Greek Orthodox Priests and Nuns where they believe Jesus was kept in prison. We needed a torch to see and it was intriguing. We visited the Holy Sepulchre and I have to admit to feeling disappointed. The most holiest place for Christians sounded like a market. There was no silence and it was a great big tourist attraction. There was a queue to go into the tomb where Jesus lay and another to touch the stone on which the cross hung. I was happy to be in this sacred place but I did not feel the sacredness as much as I believe I should have. The experience reminded me of an indoor marketplace! I hope to go back another day, early in the morning, and celebrate Mass with the group.

The walk from Jaffa Gate to Lion's Gate took about 1.5 hours. We took many photos and were disappointed in many areas to see so much rubbish and waste around archaeological sites. We could see the slits where the Crusaders and other armies would let arrows fly from onto their enemies, Palestinian children playing with a football that kept being kicked over the gate into the new city part and one boy had to keep running around through the gate to get the ball. It was very interesting to see historical sites mixed with newly built areas or neglected old areas filled with rubbish.

On our way back to Ecce Homo, we passed the Chapel of the Flagellation where Jesus was whipped and scourged and then into another Chapel where Jesus took up his cross. I felt more spiritually alive in these 2 places than in the Holy Sepulchre!

On Tuesday, our official Biblical Studies program began with 30 people from 7 countries (most of whom are Aussies). It was a great way to begin our course.

On Wednesday, we had 2 lectures about the beginning of the Gospel of Luke which were informative and inspiring. After Lunch we got on a bus to go to Ein Karam. Some of us were late getting onto the bus because of a woman in the group having twisted her ankle the day before. We had just left the Lion Gate when we came across angry Palestinian youths throwing large rocks, some boulders, at any passing vehicle. We had no warning. The bus in front of us and another behind us had its windows shattered. Cars on the road had poles put through them, a Police car was set fire to. I will never forget the look of pure hatred on the youth's faces as they picked up the rocks and threw them. I was in the very back row of the bus with 3 men and the rest of the bus got onto the floor and covered their heads. I do not know how it happened but not one single window was shattered of our bus. Rocks were thrown, some on the roof and windows. I saw one of the men gesture to our bus driver to keep driving. Maybe we were spared the majority of the damage because of the Palestinian driver or maybe we had some divine help! The carnage was horrendous. We saw Jewish men bleeding then riot police driving to the area we were leaving. I was told at dinner, by my Palestinian waiter, that a local man from the local area was shot by a Jewish person and the youths had retaliated because of this. When asked why the man was shot, he replied that this was a common occurrence and that it happened almost every week. Later we found this article on the BBC website explaining what happened.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-11387964

After leaving this behind, we went to Ein Karam where Mary visited Elizabeth and Zechariah and the famous Magnificat was expressed. The Churches of the Visitation were beautiful. We then walked to the Sisters of Sion Convent where we celebrated Mass. The drive back was uneventful but we were stopped at the Damascus Gate this time instead of the Lion's Gate. Tonight is the Feast of Tabernacles (Suffoth) and all the Jews are celebrating. As we walked through the Muslim Quarter tonight, we saw groups of Orthodox (?) Jews walking through which was not something I had seen before. We can now hear gun fire and a father yelling at his son to stay at home.

More soon…