Today we went to the Mount of Olives for a group picture and an amazing view of the Old City. Above, you can see the Dome of the Rock over my shoulder.
Directly below us was a Jewish cemetery (their coffins are above ground). Brings new meaning to when Christ returns, the dead in Christ shall rise first...
We also visited the Dominus Flevit church (“tear drop” architecture marking the spot where the Lord wept), the Church of All Nations (Garden of Gethsemane) and an adjacent garden for some quiet time.
Above is the Garden of Gethsemane-so amazing to actually be there! Below is the supposed spot in the garden where the Lord prayed. The Church of All Nations is built on top of this spot.
Below is a picture of the outside of the Church of All Nations. I really enjoyed the artwork in this church.
Here is a view of the Temple Mount from the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus would have been able to see the Temple area while He was in the garden praying.
Then we went down to the Old City and walked the Via Dolorosa, visiting stations of the cross and ending at the Church of the Holy Sepulchure. Below is where we began our journey on the Via Dolorosa, the path that Jesus would have taken as he walked to his crucifixion.
Below is the Church of the Holy Sepulchure. I loved the story about this ladder on the church. This church is cared for by 5 or so different orthodox churches, all of which quarrel with each other and have trouble agreeing on who has responsibility for what. Because of this, the church has fallen into some disrepair. As the story goes, someone put up this ladder about 100 years ago to try to fix something and someone else got mad about it and everyone has disagreed ever since, with the work never getting accomplished. Now that is death by committee!!! This church is the probable site where Christ was buried and resurrected and it is quite ornate.
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e also visited St. Peter Galicantu (cock crowing; house of Caiaphas). Below is a beautiful stained glass window in the ceiling of this church.
The next two pictures show the underground caves of Caiaphas' house where Jesus would have been kept while under arrest before the crucifixion.
Below is the church of
St. Peter Galicantu which is built in the spot where Caiaphas' house was and the supposed place where Peter denied Christ.
Then we went to the Garden Tomb and saw where some believe Jesus was buried.
He was not there-He is risen!
Some people believe that this is Golgotha. You can kind of see the face of a skull in these rocks. Many believe that Jesus was crucified here, on top of this rock mountain.
We were able to have communion together at the Garden Tomb.
Lastly, a beautiful overlook on the city of Jerusalem and the Dome of the Rock.
Finally, we had a sumptuous dinner at the American Colony Hotel (founded by Horatio Spafford, writer of “It is Well with My Soul”) where we reflected on our trip and departed for the airport.
It was truly an amazing trip-the trip of a lifetime-and I am so thankful to my dad and his wife Jeanne who wonderfully cared for our kids for these days that we were gone. It was so amazing to see the stories of the Bible more clearly through visiting these places!
2 comments:
Oh Lori - Every time I get a glimpse of where you went, what you saw and what you did on your trip it amazes me! Israel is such a fascinating place so rich in history, so full of life! This is truly an experience that will last you a lifetime! It was a privilege and an honor to spend such quality time with our grandchildren and know that so much of what you were doing was honoring God!
Wow! Thats all...wow!
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