Today was a study day once again. As our time comes to a close here in Bethlehem, our primary focus is classes, so today we started with Morning Prayer followed by class with Fr. Baima, and the class the “Spiritual Pilgrim,” with Sr. Kathleen. At Mass Fr. Sullivan challenged us on this pilgrimage to come to a deeper “understanding of who we in fact are” explaining that as we prepare to receive orders, this pilgrimage provides us with the opportunity to come to a deeper understanding, and refocus on what it means to be a Christian disciple.
The afternoon was primarily free for those that wished to either catch up, or use one of their last few opportunities to purchase souvenirs for home. In the early evening we had a presenter return to give us the second part of a lecture on Islam. After dinner the evening was free.
Once again we had a day of classes. Fr. Baima reminded us in his homily at Mass that today was also the feast of the Holy Name of Jesus. For those of us from Chicago this has special significance since it is under this title that our Cathedral is named. We had our meals together and then the afternoon was free once again. However, as our stay in Bethlehem comes to a close it seems that there are all sorts of things to catch up on (besides homework.) The evening was relatively peaceful. As the result of a short power outage in our building, many of the community decided it was the perfect opportunity to abandon whatever it was they were doing and go out for an early dinner snack of their favorite Palestinian foods (especially falafel).
After supper several members came together to watch a movie, while others continued to catch up or simply enjoyed a quiet evening.
Today was a rather peaceful day. Many of us remained inside this morning as we celebrated the feast of the Epiphany, the commemoration of the wise men’s journey to visit the Christ Child in Bethlehem. After lunch many of us left to explore the city and to buy souvenirs for our time in Bethlehem was coming to an end.
This was our last full day in Bethlehem. It was also our last day with Fathers Baima and Sullivan. For our last Ecumenism class, we presented answers to questions in small groups that dealt with explaining the Catholic view of the Eucharist in an ecumenical context. In Dr. Nagle’s class, we discussed the region of Galilee and the importance of water imagery in preparation for the next leg of our pilgrimage. We are beginning to get a very good idea of what Jesus’ ministry would have looked and sounded like in the context in which he lived.
It was with both sadness and expectation that we packed up and cleaned our rooms to ready for departure from Betharram the next morning.
To Galilee! We departed Bethlehem and the Betharram community this morning and began our journey into the northern part of Israel, Galilee. It was a day packed full of travel and information. Our first stop was in Caesarea Maritima – not to be confused with Caesarea Philippi – where we saw another of Herod the Great’s monuments to his extravagance. He built this city into a port by making a breakwater by dropping large stone blocks that measure 50’x10’x10’ into the Mediterranean Sea. A Roman theatre and a hippodrome were added as well, along with a huge palace.
After this we traveled to the Jezreel Valley, where we encountered Armageddon! This apocalyptic sight has been the location of many battles throughout the history of this land. The hill, Megiddo, from which Armageddon takes its name, was produced by twenty-four successive settlements, each one built on top of the previous. This was a very strategic position because it was a chokepoint on the route between Syria and Egypt.
We finished the day out at Haifa on Mt. Carmel. The Stella Maris guesthouse where we were located overlooked the Bay of Haifa. One could easily imagine Elijah hiding in the caves of the mountain and sending his disciple to check for clouds over the Mediterranean in the West.
We woke up this morning to a breakfast of various meats and cheeses at the Stella Maris guesthouse. We did not linger over this meal though, because we were invited to meet with the Melkite Archbishop Elias Chacour. After a brief stop at the Baha’i Gardens, we went to the archbishop’s house in Haifa. He entertained us for two hours with the story of his life and various anecdotes and insights about many things. He was a wonderful host and we were all very thankful for his willingness to sit that long with a group of seminarians from the United States.
From there we headed around the Bay of Haifa to the city of Acre – also known as Akko – to tour the crusader fort that was there. As recently as twenty-five years ago, the extent of this fort was unknown to everyone. Now that it has been excavated further, we were able to tour what was a large fort and capital of the Crusader Empire in the 12th and 13th centuries. The entrance to the fort was a beautiful courtyard shaded by four large palm trees with a fountain in the center.
We then traveled to and settled into our home for the next three days in Nazareth. Our hosts here are the Sisters of Nazareth; they are located very near to the Basilica of the Annunciation, the place where our Lord was made incarnate. Some of us were able to visit for the evening with seminarians from St. Paul Seminary in Minnesota who are on pilgrimage now as well. We also met up with Fr. John Lodge who will lead us in studying the Gospel of Mark and Fr. Frank Coady who will be our resident pastor for the next five weeks.
We started our morning today by visiting a church in the city of Naim that commemorates the place where Jesus raised the only son of a widow. It was a small church that had no congregation; the caretakers were a Muslim family. Mass is said there only once a year by the Franciscans. It is the only Christian presence left in the small town of Naim.
We left there and went to Mt. Tabor, the place where Jesus took Peter, James and John to the summit and was transfigured in front of them. We took taxis to the top with a group of Nigerian pilgrims, one of whom was a King of the Yoruba tribe. We celebrated Mass at the top of Tabor in the basilica that is maintained by the Franciscans. This church was built in 1924 after over a millennium of the mountain being conquered by different groups. The Italian architect designed it to be a basilica of light that reflected the glory of the transfigured Christ. We were given over an hour of time to pray in this most holy place.
Upon returning to our home with the Sisters of Nazareth, we were informed that they would give us a tour of the excavations that were going on underneath the guest house. When the Sisters bought this from the Franciscans in 1855, it came with an oral tradition that this was built over a Byzantine church and a 1st century house and tomb that belonged to “the just man.” One of the sisters found a small hole that led to a larger cavern. In time, the area underneath what was then a school was dug out and revealed that the oral traditions were indeed true. There is no solid archaeological proof that this was the home or final resting place of Joseph of Nazareth, but it seems that this was an important place in the worship of the Early Church. A tradition associated with the site is that some of the Muslims tried to build a mosque here in the 8th century and it collapsed before it was finished. When they tried to build another mosque later, this one also collapsed without being finished. The people of Nazareth took this to mean that the just man did not want a mosque built over his final resting place.As 3rd year seminarians, we felt honored to be living over what could have been St. Joseph’s house; we had chosen him to be our patron this last year to guide us through our ordinations and our priesthood.
We started this morning with Mass in the grotto at the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth. We were some of the first people in there this morning and it was very peaceful. One could imagine the angel appearing to Mary at the moment of the Incarnation and our humble mother giving her assent to bear the Son of God.
We then proceeded to Cana where we learned more about Jewish/Palestinian wedding feasts and what the miracle at Cana might have looked like. These feasts generally start on a Sunday and end on the following Sunday with the wedding itself. The family of the couple provides food and drink for guests coming to visit and congratulate them; it was a source of great shame to run out of food or drink at any point. Mary approached Jesus with compassion for the hosts and faith in Jesus’ ability to solve the problem.
We also took a tour of the Orthodox Church of the Annunciation, which was built over the site of Mary’s well. A tradition received through a writing known as the Book of Jacob tells of two annunciations made to Mary. The first took place when Mary was drawing water at the well, but she was so afraid at Gabriel’s greeting that she fled. When Gabriel appeared the second time, he quickly admonished her, “Do not be afraid.”
We finished our day with an official tour of the Catholic Basilica of the Annunciation. This church, built in 1969, is full of imagery from both the Old and New Testaments that point to the Incarnation and the virgin motherhood of Mary. It also contains mosaics from nations all over the world depicting Mary in their tradition. Especially beautiful is the mosaic from the Philippines.
This is our last day in Nazareth. Though we only spent three days here, we visited many places and learned many things. It is again with sorrow that we leave our temporary home, but with hopeful expectations for our time in Tiberius.
We packed up our bags and ate one last breakfast in Nazareth before heading on to new and exciting locations. Our first stop was a quick look at the ruins of what was once the fishing village of Magdala, which means tower. This home of Mary Magdalene lies directly next to the Sea of Galilee and was a bustling community until its destruction during the Jewish Revolt in 68 AD.
We went from there to the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves. This site was venerated and used for worship from the time immediately after the Resurrection. After Christianity was legalized, a church was built using a stone as an altar that was believed to be the stone where Jesus set the loaves and fishes as he blessed them. Only a century and a half later in 480 AD, a much larger church was built to accommodate the large community present there. This Byzantine style church stood only for 134 years before it was completely destroyed by the invading Muslim armies. It remained this way until its rediscovery in 1980 and its consequent reconstruction. The structure standing now is an exact replica of the Byzantine church built 1400 years ago. Amazingly, most of the mosaic floor from the previous church still existed and is well preserved.
A short bus ride took us to Kursi, the biblical home of the Gerasene demoniac. After Jesus cast out the demons that possessed him, called Legion, 2000 swine drowned themselves in the Sea of Galilee. Fridder Llacsa, one of the seminarians on pilgrimage, did the math and calculated the loss in pork chops and shekels that this exorcism cost. As he made clear, the concerns of the Lord are not necessarily of this world.
Our next visit was to Chorizin, another city that exists only as ruins. This city was cursed by Jesus who upbraided it for its lack of faith even in the face of all of the miracles that he worked there. It certainly is humbling to see that this ancient city, once so full of life and prosperity, is now reduced to a heap of ruins while places that were of little import 2000 years ago like Bethlehem and Nazareth are now thriving because of the faith of all the pilgrims that visit. Truly the proud have been cast down and the humble have been exalted.
We then celebrated Mass at the site of Peter’s reconstitution after the Resurrection of Jesus (John 21). The ruins from a church honoring the primacy of Peter visited by the famed pilgrim Egeria in the fourth century still exist, along with a new church built over the rock where it is believed that Jesus shared breakfast with his disciples.
Our final stop was a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. We were able to go out to the middle of the Sea and stop in silence for a few minutes to reflect on the miracles that were worked there. Jesus walked on water, invited Peter to join him, and calmed the storm.
We then settled in at Pilgerhaus for the next few days. This beautiful German retreat house looks to be one of the best places that we have stayed thus far. There are many balconies that overlook the Sea of Galilee and walking trails to all of the sites that we visited today and many others. We are truly able to walk in the footsteps of the Lord as we travel from place to place.
We woke this morning to a downpour of rain and a change of schedule. We had initially planned on going to the Mount of Beatitudes but decided against it seeing that it would involve a long walk through the mud and in the rain. After Mass at Pilgerhaus, we did a tour of the Golan Heights near Lebanon and Syria.
Our first stop was at biblical Caesarea Philippi. This ancient city was built up around a spring that forms one of the three sources of the Jordan River. This city, originally known as Paneas, was built under Greek rule in the 4th century BC. A temple complex was built over the spring to honor the Greek god of nature, Pan. Along with a temple to Pan, there were many other pagan temples to the other gods.
During Roman rule, King Philip changed the name of the city from Paneas to Caesarea Philippi, thus honoring both Caesar and himself. When Jesus visited this place with his disciples, the temples to all of the Greek gods were still standing and in use. It was here that he asked his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” After Peter’s profession of faith that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God, Jesus appointed Peter as the vicar of his kingdom.
Why did Jesus bring his disciples to this place? It seems odd because it is a long journey from the Sea of Galilee and the main focus of the area was the pagan temples. Jesus stood in the place where many made their sacrifices to the false gods and asked the disciples to see if they recognized him as the One True God. As the pagans found their identity in these idols, so Jesus found his identity in his Father and Peter found his identity in Jesus.
From there we traveled further into the Golan Heights, closer to Syria. Along the way our tour guide taught us about the Druze. These people were officially established as a distinct religion in 1021 AD and incorporate many things from the three monotheistic religions of the world, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. After 1050, the Druze became a closed community and would not allow converts. They have a very distinctive view of reincarnation that entails that there is exactly the same number of Druze now as there were in 1050. Every time a member of the community dies, he or she is reincarnated as a newborn child in the community. There are just over 200,000 Druze worldwide.
We stopped at a restaurant in the Golan Heights to try a food particular to the Druze. It is made by covering a very thin wheat-based tortilla with a layer of sour cream/soft cheese and drizzling it with olive oil mixed with hyssop and sesame seeds. Then it is folded over and fried lightly. It was a new taste that was well received by the seminarians and staff.
Breakfast was earlier than usual. We had to eat quickly so that we could still make the hour fast before we celebrated Mass at Capernaum which was a short ride from the pilgrim house. Upon entering the site of Capernaum, we saw ruins and excavations. Signs of an ancient civilization were everywhere. There are two imposing structures amidst the ruins. One is the large ruin of a synagogue built in the 4th century AD as a response to the growing Christian Church just one hundred feet away. The other structure, a modern 20th century Church stands – rather, hovers – over the ruins of a large octagonal shaped church from an earlier period. It is believed that this church is a domus ecclesia, or house church. This early church itself is built over ruins which are believed to have been the house of St. Peter.
There is evidence in Capernaum that this was not just a back water town, but was an “industrial” town on a very important trade route, the Via Maris. The Holy Land stands at a major intersection between Europe, Asia and Africa. The via from Egypt went up along the Mediterranean, cut inland through the Jezreel Valley, and along the Sea of Galilee. Capernaum was good stop for caravans to rest and replenish the water before continuing out towards the Fertile Crescent between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. From Capernaum, news and messages could be easily spread across the country. Jesus chose the perfect spot to carry out his ministry.
Then we left Capernaum and drove north to Tel Dan. This area is full of springs, creeks and rivers. It is also one of the sources of the Jordan River. Dan was also an important region at the time of the division of the Davidic Kingdom. This is when Israel split into the Northern Kingdom (Israel) and the Southern Kingdom (Judah). The King of Israel erected two pillars with golden calves, the pagan image from Exodus, one in Shechem, and one in Dan. There was a massive altar built in Dan. Paganism was practiced alongside Judaism here.
Today what is left of Dan are ruins. One can still see the lower level of the city gates which were a magnificent feature in the ancient world. The road passing through the gate is the original from the eight century BC.
The group returned to Galilee for lunch. We ate at a restaurant where we could order Peter’s fish, a fish possibly eaten by St. Peter, Jesus and the disciples, which is actually tilapia.
The afternoon was free, and a few guys went swimming in the Sea of Galilee. Before supper some of the seminarians went to Tabgha, which is next to the pilgrim house, for chanted vespers with the German Benedictines.
The sun was bright and shining as the group awoke on Tuesday morning. This was the day we had Mass on the Mount of Beatitudes. It was indeed a beautiful day, but very windy on the mount. Mass was at one of the outdoor altars, with the Sea of Galilee in view.
There was a group of Eastern Catholic priests and pilgrims touring the site. One could definitely distinguish the Latin Catholics from the Eastern by the way they reverenced the sanctuary in the Church. The Latins genuflected and the Byzantines bowed and crossed themselves three times. There was another group there; they were neither Catholic nor Byzantine. This was apparent by the look of confusion on their faces when they looked at both the Latins and the Byzantines reverence the altar and Blessed Sacrament.
Nevertheless, these different groups of people came to the Mount of Beatitudes to pray and to see the place where Jesus delivered his most famous sermon. The Beatitudes, we learned there, were not just suggestions on how to be nice. Archbishop Chacour impressed upon us that to live the Beatitudes is to roll up one’s sleeves, get to work and get dirty in the Lord’s vineyard doing His work.
The rest of the day was for packing and cleaning up. We were also invited to meet a group of Protestant seminarians visiting the Holy Land. They ranged in age from twenty years old to sixty, men and women, and about five different denominations. They were interested in the Catholic seminary system and were curious about our formation. We likewise reciprocated with questions of their studies and what challenges face their denominations. One thing we all had in common on this question was “evangelizing the youth.”
The evening drew to a close later than usual, and in the morning we would have to leave Galilee.
We packed up to leave Galilee. While many were excited to move on to Jerusalem, there was sense of sadness in leaving this peaceful and beautiful region. It was another bright sunny day and the water was especially blue and the landscape vibrantly green. We felt a very unique connection with the Lord: it was a sharing of how He must have felt to leave Galilee and to move on to Jerusalem, knowing what lay in store for him.
We drove south, along the Jordan River Valley. We ascended a high mountain to get to Belvoir Castle. This castle was one of the last crusader strongholds to hold out against Saladin. Saladin was so taken by the courage and resistance of the crusaders that, when the castle was finally breached after two years, he allowed the Crusaders to return to Europe peacefully. The castle, however, was destroyed and never rebuilt.
Belvoir overlooks the Jordan River. From its heights one can look to the west and see the Carmel Mountains, Nazareth and Mt. Tabor. To the north, on a clear day, one can see Mt. Hermon and the entire Sea of Galilee in one glance.
We continued south toward Jericho. We stopped to look at the Mount of Temptation, where Jesus was tempted by the devil after His forty days of fasting. We did not give into the temptation to go up the mountain and instead pressed on towards Jerusalem.
We went up to Jerusalem and settled into the Notre Dame Center, just opposite the Old City wall and the New Gate. Many were excited to explore the city the next day, but this evening, most of the pilgrims unpacked, settled in and rested.
We are in Jerusalem! The day was a day of rest. Many were able to sleep in a little since we took the day to recuperate from the intense week and a half of travel before. However, after breakfast, some of the seminarians ventured into the Old City.
Some of us found the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. We got lost a little but followed the city wall back to the residence. Others found the Western Wall, which is also know as the Wailing Wall. A few of the pilgrims found the Via Dolorosa, and followed the Stations of the Cross. The rest took the time to do laundry and to organize their rooms, or to simply rest.
There were many stories at dinner time. Our host, Father Eamon Kelley, took us to the roof and gave us a nighttime visual tour of the city. The Dome of the Rock was lit up in its entire splendor. Many of the church towers were also easy to identify. However, two domes which were not lit up could also be seen. Father Kelley pointed out that those domes are from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Our host told us, “Gentlemen, you are two-hundred fifty yards from the place where Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died on the Cross for our sins, and where he was buried and rose triumphant on the third day.” The whole group remained in a reverent silence for a few minutes before we sang “Holy God, We Praise Thy Name” in honor of our Lord and in thankfulness for the opportunity to be here in this holy place.
We returned to having class today. It was a full morning. However, some of the pilgrims arose before sunrise to walk to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher for Mass at the tomb where Jesus was laid.
After lunch, some of the pilgrims made their way to the church of the Flagellation where the Stations of the Cross begin. The Stations were done in Italian, Latin and English. The group started with seventy people walking the Via Dolorosa. Many people were from different countries and spoke a variety of languages, but when the prayers were in Latin, all joined in. One could get a deep sense of the Universal Church.
The Stations were a great testament to the living Church. These pilgrims where processing through the Muslim quarter of the Old City and chanting the Pater Noster, praying the Ave Maria and singing the Stabat Mater through busy and crowded streets. It was indeed a great witness to the faith. The Stations wound downhill and then back up again. It is at the seventh station where many believe the old wall of the city would have ended and where Jesus would have exited the city on his way to Calvary. The tenth through the fourteenth stations are prayed inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Four of them are prayed up on Calvary and the last is prayed at the Tomb itself. Never have the Stations been so real.
Some of the seminarians attended the evening Shabbat at the Western Wall. The Jewish people assembled at the Wall and began with music and festivities. Prayers and songs were offered as the sun descended. One had the sense of being transported to an ancient time. Is this the sound the Romans or other gentiles heard coming from within the walls of the Temple? Are these the same songs and prayers the Lord Jesus would have known?