March 14, 2013 Thurs Day 9

                                    After boarding the bus at 8:30, Luke 22 was read.

 ³⁹ Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. ⁴⁰ On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” ⁴¹ He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, ⁴² “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” ⁴³ An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. ⁴⁴ And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.

⁴⁵ When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. ⁴⁶ “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”

  Dome of the Rock (gold plated in 1994).  It  is a shrine for Islam’s third most holy site.  The Dome of the Rock has survived all earthquakes thus far, being built firmly on rock, and has never been destroyed, merely renovated.  It contains the precious remains of Solomon's Temple. The shrine also stands on the mountain where Abraham tried to sacrifice Isaac.  The structure has been refurbished many times since its initial completion in 691 CE. 

Group picture with Jerusalem in the back. 

Jerusalem is in Palestinian territory.  We took our passports in case we needed them. 

Overlooking the city of Jerusalem, we recited The Lord's Prayer. 

Absorbing Jerusalem in silence. 

Burial caves and stone coffins. 

 Dominus Flevit Church.   ("the Lord  has wept")

   A Catholic Franciscan church,  on the foothill of Mount of Olives, where Jesus visualizes the destruction of Jerusalem and cries.   The church is shaped as a tear drop.

Walking to the Garden of Gethsemane along the same path as Jesus took
when entering the city on Palm Sunday.  

We..Walk.

Basilica of Gethsemane.  Above Jesus are two Greek letters-Alpha and Omega, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.
As per Rev. 1:8  "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending ".

Basilica of Gethsemane on the slopes of the Mount of Olives. 

The entire olive grove most commonly thought to have been the “Garden of Gethsemane” is within the walls of the “Basilica of Agony.” Also known as the Church of All Nations (after the twelve nations that funded it), it was built in 1924 around a section of bedrock traditionally thought to be the place where Jesus prayed alone. A 12-century Crusader chapel and a 4th-century Byzantine basilica were located here previously.  This site is currently under the control of Franciscan monks and the olives from the oldest tree at the site are regularly sent to the pope in Rome. It is thought that there are trees here that may be almost as old as 2,000 years. 

Rock of Agony.   The walk down the Mount of Olives passes through the garden of Gethsemane. The Bible tells of Jesus taking two disciples with him after the Last Supper and going to this garden to pray. He prayed with agony that he might be spared the torture and death he knew was before him, but that he accepted that it was the will of God for it to occur.  A modern cathedral is now on this site, replacing earlier churches that had been destroyed by earthquake and other disasters.

Amazing old olive trees with a gecko on the trunk.
The olive trees provide oil for temple use. 

 Back on the bus.  Scripture reading from 11 Samuel 5 

Archaeologists and volunteers. 

                                                                                

It is believed this is where Solomon (David and Bathsheba's son) and his family lived. 

Rocks in the buckets are market and washed by hand. 

Ruins of the City of David 

Each home on the mountain has a room dug into the mountain. (tombs)

The Kidron Valley is the Ancient cemetery of Jerusalem. Burial caves carved into these mountains served generations of aristocratic families.  By the time of King Josiah, the Kidron Valley had become the city cemetery (2 Kings 23:6, Jeremiah 26:23). For this reason, the valley has been of much interest to archaeologists.

Delicious lunch and Turkish coffee. My coffee fix for the day. 

Olive wood carving we bought as a souvernir.

It was hot..hot..hot.  Hokey hey. We all piled into a van and a small bus, past guards and into Bethlehem  Luke 2 (birth of Jesus) was read.
Bethlehem (house of bread in Hebrew) is ruled by Palestinians, and has a population of 30,000.

Church of Nativity.
This 1500 yr old church is the oldest standing church in the Holy land.  

Long line up to get into the church.

Peter entering through the Door of Humility, a small rectangular entrance to the church, was created in Ottoman times to prevent carts being driven in by looters, and to force even the most important visitor to dismount from his horse as he entered the holy place.  

Well

In Bethlehem, while celebrating the birth of Jesus, soldiers with machine guns are walking the streets.
Such a sad feeling that brings on. 

A silver star overlies the spot of Jesus' birth. My hand on the Star of Bethlehem.

The believed site of the manger.  Original manger is in Rome.

This hill used to be shepherd's fields.

Back on the bus and through security leaving Bethlehem.
Two Palestinian soldiers (I think they were 12 yrs old) with huuuuge machine guns walked through the bus.   

Fields and hills of Boaz

                                                     Second  night at the Leonardo Hotel