Waiting for the Hush!

Tonight the week before we celebrate our Savior's birth begins and so does the hush in our lives. The weeks have been busy - nursing a friend who had been injured in an accident, two trips to the East Coast, a trip to Germany, a trip to Denver, a crowd for Thanksgiving with Gary's parents and other family for most of a week. music to prepare for Church programs, Gary's Lab students for dinner (there were 30) and keeping two adorable grandchildren for the past four days…..and life keeps going and going and going……….I might add that Gary's Fall has been much the same too. Some Christmas preparations still lay before us I might add

But this year we have a new tradition after 41 years of marriage. We will not climb in the car and drive 750 miles to the East Coast to visit friends and family. We will not run from place to place. We are staying home for Christmas! And I'm ready for a new Christmas hush. We will still have our children and grandchildren who are here over on Christmas Eve going to church to remember our Savior's birth right in the middle of the evening. And we will spend Christmas day with just six of us: Katie, her husband of less than six months, Alan and Alan's parents Margaret and Frank. (It's a wonderful thing to enjoy the in-laws as friends too!) We will miss our family in Berlin and, hopefully with spend some time on Skye.

Christmas Day will be quiet with puzzles, games, a movie or two and the family tradition of quiche and blueberry muffins, etc. to eat. There are
reconnections to be made in the time before and around the celebration of God come to Earth to redeem us. Who is that man that I share our home with?  We've missed each other and hope to spend a lot of time together. And I crave more time in my Sun room, hopefully looking out at the snow with the Lord of the Universe who, marvelously, miraculously wants to visit with me and came to earth and gave Himself for me that that might happen.

Christ came as a baby to die as a man on a tree for my sins. He rose again to prove that the debt for my sins, for your sins had been paid. I look at the Christmas Creche as the hush begins, thinking of that. Do you know Him? Have you asked Him to apply that earned forgiveness to your life? If you haven't please do, then enjoy the hush and the peace that can follow your life even in the busiest of times, knowing Him, the Savior of the World. This Christmas I will enjoy Him and life in the hush

How silently, how silently,
The wondrous Gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may hear His coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive Him still,
The dear Christ enters in.

God's Time and Turns

I took a God's Hand from Israel  to
one of my friends in Colorado and she
incorporated it into her Thanksgiving
centerpiece. (More about that later.)

Exactly two months ago my life took a turn that I never expected. God sent me a job to do as I took in a friend who was badly injured. Since that time she has experienced and continues to recover. It changed my Fall as I never expected, yet it was a joy in getting to know her as she recovered and continues to recover. Since then, she has moved out, I have been to Germany to visit my dear family who live there and to Denver with my husband where I visited with two dear friends. (You probably will hear about both.)  Where to begin?  And will I ever return to my thoughts on Israel?  (I know that a piece of my heart still lives there.)

In  the coming weeks I must host family and friends as we celebrate our American Thanksgiving. And we will spend the first ever complete Christmas time that we have ever spent here in Central Illinois rather than traveling to see family on the East Coast. We will miss them, but it is time.

Some early birthday and Christmas celebration with
my family in Berlin

God sends His turns into our lives; and life changes. I am thankful that He is in it all! I don't have to approach it "Willy Nilly" but can trust Him with all of it's it's twists and turns. So life goes on and I am back.

    

Thanksgiving thoughts of a six year old in Berlin.
Apparently they do not have root beer there. Fun!

A beautiful church in Berlin, but so many
of the churches there are almost empty.

A Brief Interlude on My Knees

 I knew that this year would be different - my last child married, another living in Germany with her family, taking a needed break from teaching the wonderful group of ladies that it's been my privilege to lead in Bible study for eight years, the decision to spend a quiet Christmas in Illinois rather than travel to the East Coast as we have every year of our marriage.  I asked the Lord how I should spend this new, quiet time in my life. I planned a few trips, piled up some books, acquired some potential projects and expected to organize the chaotic corners of my house and my life. I would also finish writing about Israel and organize the thousands of pictures from our time there.

But that wasn't God's plan. The phone rang and I was told of an accident that left a friend with broken bones in her neck,spine and arm and a need for care. I knew that she needed a place to recuperate; and, before I even had time to think, my empty nest was no longer empty and I was learning to tighten the neck brace that, hopefully, will allow her to heal and prevent even greater and more permanent injury. I know that I'm doing what I should yet I an wondering how I will juggle it with other responsibilities of upcoming travel and future guests. Oh Lord what have I done? 

Yet I'm doing what I should and I need to trust. Tonight I'm feeling a bit of panic, but God is in control and He has a plan. This did not take Him by surprise, because He is the God who is never surprised.  I can only give it to Him and trust that He will use this time for eternal good in the lives of those around me. The following verses have become my mantra as I seek to follow HIm.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.                                                                                                                                 I Peter 1:3-7

So the saga continues not with thoughtfully written commentary on time an places in the Holy Land, not with completed projects and an organized house, but with trust in God for strength, provision and His great power in my little corner of the world. And He will be there!

There's More to the Wall Than Meets the Eye!

The Western Wall Plaza

Approach to the wall is divided into the men's
and women's sides.

Few places in Old City of Jerusalem are visited as frequently or as revered as much as the Western Wall, also known as the Kotel, the Wailing Wall, or Al Buraq by the Muslims (due to the tradition that Mohammed used to tie there his winged steed by that name).  Often people view it as a surviving section of Herod's Temple, but what is the Western Wall and why is it so important?

The plaza is very busy during Passover.

A drawing of the Southeastern corner of Herod's Temple
shows the entrance to the Temple at the time and the
beginning of the Western Wall.

The first Temple was built by Solomon, son of King David, in the 10th century B.C. and was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC.  The Second Temple was dedicated in 519 BC and was a mere shadow of the splendor of the first Temple. Herod the Great greatly expanded and enlarged the Second Temple and its surrounding grounds during his lifetime in about 19 BC, restoring much of its early splendor.

That same area today is known as Robinson's Arch

The Western Wall is a remnant of the wall that surrounded the courtyard of the ancient Jewish temple. Most of it was constructed during Herod's lifetime. However, excavations have shown that it was not completely finished during that time and that remaining sections were added later. Archaeology confirms claims by the historian Josephus Flavius that it was not completed until the time of Herod Agrippa II, Herod the Great's great-grandson.  The term Western Wall refers not only to a large exposed section facing a large plaza in the Jewish Quarter that runs about 187 feet (57 meters), but also to unexposed sections that run along the whole length of the Temple Mount, including through areas in the Muslim Quarter. The total length of the wall is 1600 feet or 488 meters.  It has been a site for prayer and mourning over the fate of the Jewish Nation for centuries but, with the growth of the Zionist movement in the 1920s, it has become an increasing source of friction between Jews and Muslims as its popularity has grown. After Israel's War for Independence, it came under the control of the State of Jordan, and Jews were banned from the wall for 19 years until the Old City was captured by Israel in the 1967 War.  Three days after that war, the Moroccan Quarter around it was bulldozed, in a very controversial move, destroying the homes of 106 Arab families to make room for the plaza that now stands at the foot of that area of the wall. Since then, it has been a sacred place of worship for modern Jews and a popular destination for all who visit the Holy City.

A Famous Photo of the First IDF Soldiers to Reach
the Wall in 1967 and Those Men Today 

Soldiers Praying at the Wall

A Look at Above Ground Sections of the
Western Wall Today

The exposed section of the Wall stands about 62 feet or 19 meters high; however, its total height from the foundation is considerably higher.  It is constructed of huge limestone layers, 28 of the 45 being above ground. The different stones weigh from 1.8 to 7.3 tons each and the blocks from Herod's period are easy to identify, as they have a chiseled stone border, which was a trademark of Herod the Great's construction. It is easy to spot these stones beneath the sections that were added later by the Ottomans after they conquered the city. There is much more that I could add to the history and controversy that surrounds this area of the city, but I will leave comments to this.

The Entrance to the Below Ground Kotel Tunnel

However, there is an even more interesting area to be explored underground. In the 19th century British researchers Charles Wilson and Charles Warren, along with other researchers, did their best to measure the Western Wall. However, they were unable to complete the task as much of the wall was underground.  Following the 1967 war,  the Ministry of Religious Affairs immediately began the job of exposing the total length of the Wall.  It was a difficult project involving structures that had been built upon ancient ruins, passing through neighborhoods, water holes and even areas of sewage collection. The task was huge and required careful supervision by structural engineers, archaeologists, and, of course, experts in Jewish Law. It took twenty years to complete, but gradually wonderful areas of the Jerusalem of 2000 years ago were exposed. Giant Herodian stones and Roman roads were unearthed along with the remains of other types of construction from the Hasmonean, Muslim and Herodian eras.

Descending into the Jerusalem of 2000 Years Ago

Chiseled edges are a clear sign of
Herodian construction.

Lessons in Jerusalem of the First Century Given by
Our Guide, an emigre from New York City.

Today, these tunnels are available to worshippers and tour groups. The opportunity to visit hidden parts of subterranean Jerusalem is an amazing treat for those who take the time to reserve a tour into the hidden parts of ancient Jerusalem.

A Subterranean Model of the First Century Temple

Walking the Tunnels

A Garden, a Tomb and a Mission

A View of Jerusalem from Mt. Scopus

Most places in Israel I find easy to write about: The Road to Switzerland, The Galilee, The Dead Sea and so on. For some reason, I'm discovering that it is tougher to write about Jerusalem. I find myself wondering why and saying to myself "just sit down and pick an area"; and I can do that! But Jerusalem is so complex that I want to do more. I can and will continue to take you to places in Jerusalem and elsewhere in Israel, but it is very difficult to capture such a city in words.

In my last blog, I left you at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the end of the Via Dolorosa and, very possibly, the area of the crucifixion and the burial of Jesus (just thirty feet or so below it). Before we look at a few more places within and without the Old City, I want to take you to the place that I like to visualize as the burial place of our Lord, the Garden of the Tomb.

    

What is know as Skull Hill sits just outside the
Damascus Gate

In 1842 a German theologian named Otto Thenius suggested that an outcropping of rock, just outside the Damascus Gate and near what is today a bus station, resembled a skull and might possibly be "Skull Hill" or Golgotha.  That theory was unexplored for some time until British General Charles Gordon began to publicize similar ideas in 1883. In 1867 an ancient Jewish tomb had been unearthed near to "Skull Hill" and many began to believe that this might be the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. The structure fit the description of the tomb of a wealthy Jew quite well and followed the details given in the 
Gospels: having a low doorway and a trough for a rolling stone that would have sealed the grave. Nearby, a large cistern and wine press from the Second Temple Period were later found, giving even greater credence to the idea that this was the garden and the tomb of a wealthy man. 

The Garden Tomb fits the description of a rich man's tomb of
the Second Temple Period.

Waiting for the Easter Service to Begin

Easter Sunday worshippers wait to
enter the Garden of the Tomb

Today the area is known as The Garden Tomb and has been maintained by the British since the property was purchased by The Garden Tomb Society in 1894.  It is a lovely area, beautifully maintained and open to all who want to tour or worship in the gardens.  On Easter Sunday it is the site of four large celebrations in three different languages attended by thousands of people from all over the world. Attending one of the services is an energizing and enriching experience.

Sharing the Easter Message in the Garden

Whether this is the actual site of the burial of Jesus we do not know at this point. However it is where I prefer to sit and visualize the amazing power (dunamus in the Greek, the word from which we get the word dynamite) of God being manifest as the tomb was opened and Jesus arose.  I can imagine Mary as she ran toward the tomb and saw that the stone was no longer in it's place but rolled away.  Is this where Peter and "the disciple that Jesus loved" looked inside and saw, not a body, but the neatly folded grave clothes and an empty shelf where the body should have been?  Were there angels standing there when Mary finally got the courage to look inside? And was Jesus standing in the trees nearby as she turned to go, looking at first like a gardener to her tear-filled eyes. What joy she must have felt as she realized the truth. This is where I like to think of all of this happening.

As Christians, our faith pivots on one event, the resurrection. Is this where it all began?  From that point, history records that for forty days Jesus appeared to groups of people both large and small before His ascension to heaven. His message to them was of the Kingdom of God. This is the event that changed the world and comes with substantial proof. In a time when most religion is based on the stories of men or even "whatever you want" we have a faith rooted in history and it has been given to us with a mission: to spread the message of the Kingdom of God! Our Christian message is filled with hope both for this life and the one to come (I Corinthians 15 19-21) and we must share it.

The Garden is a lovely spot for
rest and contemplation.

The Scriptures say that one day the nations will gather in battle against Jerusalem and overcome it for a time.  As I look at current events in the Middle East, though we can not really know the day, I wonder if time is getting very short. Following this time of turmoil and defeat, our risen Lord Jesus will return to stand on the Mt. of Olives. The mountain will split down the middle as our Savior returns to rule and reign (Zechariah 14:1-9).  Until then He has given us a job to do!

Visitors wait to enter the tomb.

A City Like No Other

An Old  City Street Scene

The Jaffa Gate at Night

My first visit to  Jerusalem was on the Thursday evening before Easter in 2008.  We entered the Old City through the Jaffa Gate late in the afternoon and proceeded into the Arab Quarter.  Though now I love to wander the streets of the old city and even count some of the shop owners as friends, that evening I found it to be a daunting experience.  Being someone who does not even usually like a clerk looking over my shoulder as I shop, I found the merchants popping out at me, trying to lure me into their stores, the uneven pavements, people darting everywhere and the cacophony of sounds all around me completely overwhelming. Our goal was to have a look around and visit the Western Wall, but within the first fifteen minutes, I was ready to leave. Where it not for my patient husband and my desire to see the streets where Jesus walked, I might have done just that. How I have changed! This trip, we made five different visits to Jerusalem and to the Old City, which I wandered freely both alone and with our many guests.

The Old City of Jerusalem is a relatively small walled area within the modern city of Jerusalem.  It is composed of four distinct, but uneven, quarters: the largest is the Muslim Quarter on the northeast, the Jewish Quarter on the southeast, the Christian Quarter to the northwest and the Armenian Quarter on the southwest.  The Temple Mount sits bordered by the Muslim and Jewish Quarters on the eastern side.  There are seven gates that are used today: the Damascus Gate, Dung Gate, New Gate, Herod's Gate, Lion's Gate, Zion Gate and Jaffa Gate. And there are four that are closed: the Golden (or Eastern) Gate, Single Gate, Double Gate, and Huldah (or Triple)  Gate.

The current Old City walls were built by the
Turks in the 1500s.

It is easy to try to visualize the Old City of today as it might have been during the time of the Kings of Judah or when Jesus and his contemporaries walked the streets. However, that city is gone and the level of those streets is really about 30 feet below the streets of today as a result of thousands of years of destruction

and reconstruction. The walls of the Old City today are not the original ones but were built by the Ottoman ruler Suleiman the Magnificent between 1535 and1538 A.D.  However, there are glimpses of the city of Jesus' time in areas that have been excavated since Israel took possession of Jerusalem during the 1967 Six Day War.

One of those areas is the Cardo, an area that dates from the Roman era and was excavated in the 1970s.  It is a wonderful example of what a street might have looked like during that time and allows us to imagine how the people might have lived in first century Jerusalem.

A wonderful painting in the Cardo depicts life in the
Old City in first century Jerusalem

Friends explore the Cardo

Exploring the Ruins Beneath Robinson's Arch

        

Robinson's Arch was part of the entrance to the
Temple Mount at the time of Herod's Temple

And there are other areas. The Davidson Archaeological Park surrounds the southwestern and southern walls of the Temple Mount.  Excavations since 1967 have revealed what the area around the entrance to the magnificent Temple of Herod's time might have looked like, including an Arch identified by Biblical Scholar Edward Robinson in1880, consequently named Robinson's Arch, which was part of the stairs that led up from the first city streets of Jerusalem onto the Temple Mount. Work around that area has uncovered huge Herodian blocks that made up the walls of thet temple which were hurled down to the streets below during the destruction of Jerusalem by Roman troops in A.D. 70. Portions of the street that ran along the southwestern corner of the mount where street vendors and money changers plied their trades and ritual miqvahs (bathes), which existed for the purification of those who were preparing to ascend the stairs to offer sacrifices, have also been uncovered. To the south, one can ascend the steps often called the Teaching or Rabbi steps to the now closed Huldah Gates. And the work continues on the southern side of the walls.  It is an amazing area to visit and imagine what that magnificent area and temple must have looked like when it stood there in its glory.

The Teaching or Rabbi Steps on the South Side of
the Temple Mount were possibly one of the areas
where Jesus taught.

A Miqvah Near Herod's Temple

This recreation gives us a wonderful look at what the southwest corner of the temple
looked like in the first century.

Good Friday Pilgrims Outside the Church of the Flagellation

Inside the city there are many sites to see: the Via Dolorosa with its fourteen stations begins in the Arab Quarter and winds it way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which is venerated as the site of Golgotha or Calvary. It is also regarded by many as the site of Jesus' burial, and is home to branches of both Greek and Oriental Orthodox Churches as well as the Roman Catholics and is a highly venerated site.  Though quite possibly the burial of Christ was in this area, (Keep in mind the streets were 30 feet or so lower at that time.)  I will share the area that I prefer to think of as the tomb of Jesus in a later blog.

The Court of the Church Of the Holy Sepulchre on Good Friday

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

This structure has been built over what is believed
to be the burial site of Christ.

A set of steep and narrow steps leads up
to the site of Calvary in the church.

Many worship at this stone venerated as the place where
Jesus was laid when he was removed from the cross.

There is so much more that I can and will share
about Jerusalem, but I leave you with these
images of the city as it is today. It is a fascinating place of contrast and controversy. And, of course, at some point I will add my commentary on some of what I have shown you. Next time, we visit the Western Wall and its tunnels and the City of David.

Produce Sellers Outside
of the Damascus Gate

A Scene from a Rooftop Restaurant Near
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre