Day 6

TUESDAY 15th DECEMBER



Synopsis of day: Sites where people say Jesus did stuff.

Spiritual Sites visited:
Temple Mount (Seriously, just ask Kerri. She knows so much more about it than me. I thought it was pretty). Garden of Gethsemane. Bethany – Lazarus' Tomb, Mount of Olives. Shrine of the Ascension. Pater Noster. Dominus Flevit

Highlight of the day: The miracle of the phone. Also the prettiness of the Dome of the Rock and the ossuaries at Dominus Flevit.

Lowlight of the day: Gila talked for forty minutes without moving between the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome on the Rock. That woman could talk underwater. Though being struck by the boy on the Mount of Olives wasn't a bag of laughs either.
Favourite quote/word: “You are the most wonderful man I have met in Israel” to the man who kept my phone for me in the Jewish shop.

Favourite photo: Dome of the Rock prettiness.

Cultural-shock moment: The boy who struck me as I got off the bus at the Mount of Olives because I wasn't giving him money. Also the noise of the Muslim 'salat' prayers while we were in Bethany – we were very close to a 920 year old mosque and the speakers worked very well.
New food consumed: Coffee for the first time on the trip was rather a highlight. Tried a hideous nougat thing at breakfast.

Favourite purchase: I found a t-shirt which entertained me about the different civilizations or groups who have tried to overcome the Jews, and how they clearly have someone important on their side.
The thing I lost today: My patience for a time. Got it back though.
Random act of crazy: The seriously cheery man guarding the toilet who kept raising his hands and saying “Hallelujah” imitating the Nigerians.
Something I want to remember: That God can do immeasurably more than I can even comprehend, and that I shouldn't be as judgemental as I am about others.




Because of the likelihood of large numbers at the mosque and dome of the Temple Mount, we started early. There is only one entrance for non-Muslims, and the Jewish rabbis have declared the site un-kosher because of the inadvertant possibility of walking over the original site of the Holy of Holies. Apparently the evening before we arrived, there was some threat in Palestinian territory, so there was far more security within the precinct than would normally be there. It was chilling to see the perspex police raid blockaids all lined up along the sides of the entrance. We had no issues however and although it was a brisk morning, it was just fine for the viewing. Since 2000 non-Muslims have been prevented from entering the Dome of the Rock, which particularly put out Kerri. We endured some very long stories and explanations out in the open but the Dome itself is a stunning feature. I have felt a little conflicted that aesthet ically I prefer viewing this Muslim site to the plethora of Christian sites (Kerri and others would argue that this is both a site of Christian and Muslim significance [Site of the Temples and Muhammed's ascension and night journey] but if I am bluntly honest, I see the Dome more as a Muslim site. It is the standout icon of Jerusalem and stunning from any angle, and the gold-covered dome itself glistens in the sunlight and stands out in the sunset (I haven't seen it at other times of the day than that).

Perhaps I am very much a victim of my own context, for it seems ludicrous to imagine that the reasons for conflict in the city are largely because of religious differences over this site, and that it is worth it. I know other cultures and other times hold vastly different ideas, but I cannot. It was so peaceful in the morning, and I spent minutes reflecting on the countless lives spent and lost over the protection and ownership over this tract of land and building. It seems tragic that people have been so overtly passionate about one place. Dispassionately, I don't value it as a place more significant than a human life (is any place, despite the cries for freedom which echo over the ages), but scores must have been lost over it over the course of its history, especially around the Crusades.

Ironically, because of bus troubles (and doesn't every tour have some of these?) we diverted our plans and walked to the Garden of Gethsemane. The garden there did not strike me as an authentically reconstructed one, so I didn't want to take photos. Beside the garden was the Church of All Nations, a large and very dark church. Numerous nations including Australia have contributed items or materials for its construction. A mass was being conducted as we viewed the church so again, not many photographs. It didn't speak to me much in any case.

Cool Alpha and Omega gates.

 Once we were provided with a new bus (which is nicer than the one we had before so huzzah!) we headed off to Bethany to see what is believed to be the authentic site of Lazarus' Tomb. It was a couple of very steep steps down (and a couple of the others were adamant that Newly Revived!Lazarus would not have had the energy to climb up them without divine intervention) and then a squeezy walking backwards entrance to the crypt/actual burial bit.

Kerri didn't end up going that far but she didn't really miss much. It was just an underground square really. What I found far more interesting at Bethany was the fact that we arrived right during the midday prayer session at the Mosque next door (It seems the Muslim's have been hijacking my Christ-related experiences today) so the prayers were being sung over a loudspeaker which drowned out all other noises. We have heard small sections of these prayers over the course of the past days but this was our closest experience, and I am so unfamiliar with the system. I have found the singing rather entertaining especially when the voice gets particularly animated but this is very offensive so I've had to stifle that amusement. Mary made some of the group re-enact the passage from John 12 but because I was short I didn't get to see much of it. Fairly promptly we returned to out bus for the drive back into Jerusalem (which is much cleaner – going into the heavily Arabic sections of the city is a recipe for junk everywhere) to the Mount of Olives, a section of the city I have quite enjoyed.


Gila warned us that this area is a haven for pickpockets. I deftly ignored one of the begging boys who came up to our bus as I disembarked, and he actually hit me. That experience was rather surprising because although there is jostling in the markets and the shopkeepers constantly call out to you and try to persuade you into the shop, there has been no intentional physical contact except for that. We walked into the Church of the Ascension which was really unimpressive (I think the Catholics liked it but I watched the pigeons). Mary made us sing again. So far the singing among our group has also been fairly uninspiring and very repetitive.


I much preferred our next site, the Pater Noster, which is tended by French Carmelite nuns (so almost everything was written in French). This was where Jesus taught the Our Father prayer, so all through the gardens there were tiles showing the Lord's Prayer in scores of languages. Of course the Catholics did their thing and left off the “for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever” so Kerri and I added it for them quietly. We also had various people read the French, German, Italian and Latin versions to us. There were some obscure languages too, and I took a pic of the Javanese version for Mel.



We followed on from there further down the Mount of Olives and passed two memorials in the Jewish cemetery. According to Jewish traditions, a grave should be visited on the anniversary, and a minimum of ten men should be present. The ones we saw were all dressed traditionally, with many swaying themselves in mourning. We only took pictures from a distance, and later we even saw a funeral procession.

I really liked seeing some broken ossuaries (burial method for the Jews in the C1AD). We had some interesting conversations about Jewish burial rituals and beliefs regarding human remains. I particularly found it interesting as an extension of the discussions we have about the ethics of the display of human remains with 12 Ancient.

Part of the Mount of Olives/Palm Sunday walk.

Our last visit down the road of the Mount of Olives (the traditional Palm Sunday walk) was the Dominus Flevit, which was where my Ken Duncan puzzle of Jerusalem's image was taken. The wrought iron window ornamentation of the chapel provided a lovely and artistic sight (much like the church of the Good Shepherd at Tekapo in New Zealand).

I think we made it straight back to Notre Dame after that and Kerri and I fairly dashed to our first coffee shop stop in Israel (all the boards were written in Hebrew and they served the drinks with mini chocolate pieces yay!) and then back to the Moriah bookshop, where we learned via a phone call (THANKS KERRI!!!) that I had indeed left my phone there the evening before. Can you imagine, of all the places I might have lost it, it was probably in the only place where we could possibly track it. I fully appreciated the miracle that it was. I think we also returned to our Hannukah doughnut (it does have a name but I can't ever remember it!) place and pretended they were wheat free. This was the night that I was so exhausted that I fell asleep around 8pm with my clothes on and with things all over my bed (like my computer and purse and camera) so that Kerri had to move them because of the likelihood of their destruction. This has been such a tiring experience – I'm not used to walking so much, but it is good preparation for Sinai, and it does help to visualise the experience of the ancients (but further reinforces my incredulity that anyone should want to actually live in such a hilly place!).