Sunday, June 20, 2010

Another interesting day.  Spent the night locked in the Holy Sepulcher.  Was very peaceful.  I actually worked on the 7th part of my Intro into Scripture. It was peaceful until the doors were opened for the Greek Orthodox to begin their services.  People swarmed in like it was the sales after Thanksgiving.  Just chaos.  And when we were leaving at 12:30 there were groups after groups filing into the corridors leading to the Church.  Came back to the Church for Mass in the Resurrection Chapel.  Our group was joined by other pilgrims.  Nice Celebration.  I remembered all the parishioners of Resurrection. But I especially remembered Matt Rexing at the mass.  My deepest sympathy to his parents.  Five of us went for coffee after the Mass and two hadn't done all the Stations, so we did a reverse order to all of them.  In the afternoon, nine of us went to Hebron.  This is the place where the Abraham, Sarah, Jacob and Joseph are buried or in a mausoleum type.  This is a site that is holy to the Moslems, Jews and Christians.  But the Israelis occupy it in the middle of a Palestinian Area.  That causes great tension.  There are guards everywhere.  For years, tourists couldn't go there.  But it is safe now.  The Jews can't enter where the moslems enter, the Christians have to enter with the Jews.  It is such a mess.  Coming back the Israelis wouldn't allow us to enter Jerusalem through the Tunnel Checkpoint because we had been to Hebron.  We had to go to the Bethlehem Checkpoint.  It all worked out.  The first picture is of me. I heard rumors saying that I was really in Vegas and just posting the blog from there because I wasn't in any of the pictures.  Here is an Easter Candle Holder that wasn't being used, so I smuggled it out of the Church for Resurrection.  Just kidding.   With a candle in proportion, this would be taller than our Church.  The other picture is the tomb of Abraham.