(5/29) Friday - Sightlines

Today was a long day -- our "Jerusalem Approaches Field Study" day. This was our first full day of travel outside of of the Old City of Jerusalem, and our constitutions (and I'll admit our attitudes!) were challenged in a good way. I and some others were working off of 4 hours of sleep after our amazing evening locked inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. [Stay tuned for a post about that! Crazy awesome!] Our day started at 7 am and our first stop was the Mount of Olives, the rise that dominates almost the entire view east from Jerusalem. One of the most significant new discoveries for me thus far has been the awareness of sightlines -- that is, what you can see from a specific place. From David's City (the original pre-Temple city), you can only see the surrounding hills. From the Temple Mount, you are higher but still can't see much more.
The Mount of Olives blocks sight to the east, and the "western hill" of Jerusalem blocks sight to the west. BUT we climbed to the top of the Mt of Olives, and what did we see? Holy ausblick.



You can see all the way to Jordan. Literally you can see all the way. That dark horizon line off in the distance is the upland plateau that lies across the valley. You are at the high point of everything to the east. You can see the Jordan River valley (really the northern extension of the Rift Valley which runs eventually down into central Africa) and a snippet of the Dead Sea and everything! To the west you can see all of Jerusalem laid in front of you like a picnic lunch set out on a table, (a rather slopey table) and then down south practically to Bethlehem. If Jesus wanted to find a place that last night before getting arrested to quietly contemplate what would soon come in the city of Jerusalem, the Mount of Olives is the perfect place to do that because you can see the entire city--you're literally looking straight at the Temple, right over the Kidron Valley. There is a shrine called Dominus Flevit ("the Lord wept") partway down the hillside toward Jerusalem which we stopped at, and I took a picture from inside the chapel which both illustrates the view as well as presents a wonderful symbol of the triumph of Christ through his defeat -- and it all happened here.



We proceeded downhill a bit to the Garden of Gethsemane site -- well, one of a few such possible sights, but this one is commemorated the best so most tour groups come here. :-) For "garden" we shouldn't think of what we in America tend to think of, but a "place of cultivation," and for the kind of soil you have here that means things like olive groves and such. Now at the site there is a large and ornate but still relatively simple church called Church of All Nations, so called because upwards of 10 European nations (if I recall correctly) put money toward the building of the church in the first decades of the 20th century. I particularly loved this place (and not just because there was a lot of Latin inscriptions here...but that was a big one :-). In the Gospels, Jesus lost his disciples to sleep here... we managed to just plain lose a student! The wayward soul eventually turned up at a rendezvous spot and we were then on our way to ...

Bethlehem! We were off to see the place where the Incarnation happened. Where God became flesh and Jesus entered the world in the most humble way imaginable. It also meant the Separation Wall. For the first time we were going to be crossing into Palestinian territory. Most people I think don't realize that Bethlehem, although only 5 short miles straight south of Jerusalem, is politically controlled by the Palestinian Authority, and you have to cross a checkpoint and go past guntowers and drive through the brand-new Separation Wall that literally allows nobody to cross unless you do so at military checkpoints. As we were on a registered tour bus full of American passport holders, we were waved right through. It's a completely different story for Palestinians who want to cross the other way.

Our first stop was Bethlehem Bible College, a wonderful little gem of Christian witness here in the town of Jesus' birth and in the midst of a predominately Muslim population.



Dr. Awad, one of the directers here, graciously hosted us and gave a presentation on what the College strives to do in reaching the community for the cause of the Gospel and in training up Christian leaders to help put that vision into action. He also talked a lot (from his position as both a Christian and a Palestinian) about how the world-wide Church can and should act on behalf of justice and truth and peace regarding the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The day before we had been visited by an Israeli who talked on exactly the same conflict, but naturally from a different perspective. The combination of both these talks have given us a LOT to think about. This is good. It's also bewildering. Most Evangelicals are raised in a very pro-Israel atmosphere; this is also my background. I have, however, read a good deal about the creation of the modern state of Israel in 1947-8 in preparation for coming here, and I have come to the conclusion that nobody is innocent in this equation. I'm still far from done with processing my experiences, but I keep coming back to the thought that that Jesus cares far more about His Kingdom than political borders. I'm starting to see that perhaps I can be pro-both sides in a way that can be so because I am pro-Christ and the redemption that only He can bring. There have been many conversations among all of us on this topic, and we are all trying to process and wrestle with a deeply complex issue and problem. There is no simple solution. At least not politically. But we serve a God who delights in making all things new. Bring your peace quickly Lord! The whole earth groans in expectation... and we along with it...

Then we set out for the Church of the Nativity itself! What a special place and moment. First of all, let's get back to sightlines again. From Bethlehem you can see all the way down into the Rift Valley! All the way to Jordan! Who would have thought. The views are incredible to the east! This also means that anybody traveling from the East could technically have been able to see a star or comet or whatever hovering above this place from a very long way off. The Church of the Nativity was a great way to round out the day. It's very old, from the mid-6th century (!) and you have to stoop through a very low and narrow gateway to enter the church from the plaza. I found some more neat Greek and Latin inscriptions, and then proceeded downstairs to the lower chapel where according to tradition Jesus was born, with a tiny nook right next to it where Jesus was first laid in the manger. According to tradition. Regardless of where it actually was, we were all right there in Bethlehem near where it took place. The event. The Incarnation of God. Immanuel -- God with us. Blessed with the amazing opportunity to reflect on my Savior in both the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Church of the Nativity in the space of a mere 18 hours, I sat down in the manger niche, quietly read both nativity narratives (Matt. and Luke), then pulled out my journal, and wrote down some thoughts:

What a strange way to save the world.

God came down here. To be with us.

To walk in our footsteps but even more so that we might learn to walk in his footsteps.

Right as I finished, and as I was singing one of my favorite Christmas songs in my head, I suddenly was overwhelmed with emotion. A special moment.

On our way out of Bethlehem, we stopped by an old pre-industrial threshing floor where we talked about the story of Boaz and Ruth. It is a story of loss and redemption. It was a fitting way to end a long and challenging day.

Even though the weather has been comparatively mild, the combination of lots of sun exposure and going all day since 7 am has hit a lot of us harder than we thought it would. The last thing we want to do is get weary already, or start complaining. Fortunately, we are having amazing experiences and get to do so amidst a great community. We have plenty to keep our spirits up, and we will all get more used to the long days. I know I will once I stop forgetting to put on sunscreen! :-)

Tomorrow -- the road to Jericho!