The Mount of Olives…

 

This morning, Rami, our bus driver, dropped us off near the top of the Mount of Olives, and we walked up to the Chapel of the Ascension, where, the Bible tells us, Jesus ascended to heaven. There is a stone inside the chapel where there’s a depression shaped very much like a foot—tradition is that the power of Jesus’s ascension left a mark in the stone. Many hands, including mine, have touched this stone. Interestingly, this chapel at one time was also a mosque. Like many of the buildings we’ve been to, it felt steeped in prayer.

Our next stop was one of my favorite places of the day—the olive grove that is next to the Church of the Pater Noster. This church houses a Carmelite convent.There are well over 100 plaques, large and small with the Lords Prayer written in many languages and dialects.  As we were standing in the courtyard, Fadi, our wonderful guide, a devout Christian, prayed the prayer in Hebrew, Aramaic and Arabic, his native tongue. I sat in the church for some minutes in silence and could feel the holiness of this spot—the current church is modern, but people have been worshiping in this spot since the fourth century—the ruins of a 4th century church have been found.

The morning went downhill from then—literally! We walked down the very steep hill that might have

been Jesus’s entry way into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. My knees weren’t very happy about this!! On the way down this long hill, we stopped at the place where Jesus wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19:43-44). I dare say He still weeps…

Our next stop on the way down the hill was the Russian Orthodox Church of Mary Magdalene, with its spectacular golden onion domes. Mary Magdalene is one of the most prominent women in the very early church, so it was wonderful to see her honored in this way.

We ended our walk at the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus spent the hours following the Last Supper in prayer. According to our guide, the word “gethsemane” means “olive press”—the garden is filled with olive trees, and some of them are truly ancient, with huge, gnarled trunks—hundreds of years old.

We enjoyed lunch and then returned to the hotel. Liz and I went to one of the local markets in the Old City—a typical bazaar—lots of scarves, jewelry, spices, produce, ceramics, antiques. I bought a couple of things that I think I will really enjoy—a top with lovely Palestinian-style embroidery, and a small dish for nuts…with a one bedroom apartment, there are limits…plus I have to carry it all home!

Tomorrow the plan is to walk the Via Dolorosa, visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and meet with the Rev. Sally Azar, a Palestinian and the first woman pastor ordained in the Holy Land. She was ordained just last month, and it’s quite a milestone in this patriarchal society (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/1/23/first-female-palestinian-pastor-in-the-holy-land-ordained)

That’s all for today. Time for bed!