Hi folks. I spent so much time figuring out my picture situation yesterday, I never got around to writing. So here's a quick recap of highlights from the past 24 hours.
Evan the Terror Suspect (Thursday, April 3)
Yesterday our group went to the Temple Mount to see the Dome of the Rock, the al-Aqsa Mosque, etc. The security there is very tight, as you can imagine. The Western Wall is the holiest site in Judaism, and the Haram al-Sharif is one of the three holiest sites in Islam. They say that the Temple Mount is even more precious than the Prime Minister's life—you can always get a new Prime Minister.
So...of our group, guess which one of us was refused entry for being suspected of potential terroristic activity? Yep. You guessed it. The reason was this: my new little computer is so small and light that I've been able to take it anywhere, which has been great for storing my photos, writing updates on the fly, logging in anytime we have access to a hotspot, etc. So when I was going through security and they began digging through my bag, they found the laptop—but they didn't believe it was a real computer! They thought it was some kind of devious device, perhaps a plastic explosive, disguised as a laptop. So I was denied entry.
No matter. While the rest of the group toured the Temple Mount, I got close up to the Western Wall and took some colorful pictures, including a few of a guy from Nigeria on a pilgrimage who was wearing bright green “pajamas” with pictures of Jesus and the Bible all over them. (You'll see these when I upload pix.) Beth W. says she wants to go back to the Dome anyway, since the group got pushed out early so the Muslims could say prayers. So there's still a good chance I'll see it. I'll leave my computer home next time.
The Martin Luther Schule (School)
Thursday afternoon we toured the Martin Luther School right next door to the Church of the Redeemer. Dr. Charlie Haddad, school superintendant was our host. The school has several sites throughout the region and takes students of both Christian and Muslim backgrounds, empowering them with education. The MLS hopes to have Jewish students some day too, but this cultural climate isn't quite ready yet, it seems, for that degree of ecumenism. But someday...
The Ballcap of the Holy Sepulchre (Friday, April 4 )
Friday was a great day for pilgrimage experiences. In the morning we went to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; in the afternoon we went to the Garden of Gethsemane. Now, a lot of the religious sites in this city have a pretty shaky pedigree as far as authenticity goes. I mean, it's very hard to verify that “this spot is the precise location where Mary was met by the Angel Gabriel,” or “this brick is the exact one that Peter's tears fell upon when he wept bitterly after denying Jesus.” But the very best archaeologists and historians assert that, of all the religious sites, the site of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is very probably the actual location where Jesus was crucified.
The church itself is an amalgam of Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Armenian, Russian Orthodox, Coptic, etc. A veritable mutt of Christian architecture and tradition. But it's an intriguing place, and quite conducive to moments of sincere spiritual reverence. We got there early enough that the line to go into the “tomb” (the main attraction as it were) was very short, so we went for it.
There are beefy guards and one huge, linebacker-sized Greek Orthodox monk who keep pilgrims from spending too much time in the inner chamber of the tomb (which, suffice it to say, puts a little pressure on you to “hurry up and have your once-in-a-lifetime spiritual experience already!”). As I was going in, the Rasputin-like monk admonished me to remove my white “Maisons sur Mer” baseball hat. “Boy,” I'm thinking, “you've got to COVER your head at the Wailing Wall, you've got to UNCOVER your head here—why can't the religions come to a consensus as to whether or not God wants to see the tops of our heads when we're in His house?”
So I removed my hat, went into the tomb, had my 20 second allotment of wonder, and then was promptly summoned out. Ten minutes later, Rasputin walks up to me holding my white ballcap. “Yours?” I was delighted that he remembered me and even sought me out. He could have just chucked it in Lost & Found (or in the garbage). So I was quite grateful. And then I realized: My hat was inside Jesus' tomb longer than any pilgrim is permitted to stay in there. Is my hat a holy relic now?
We Came to Do More than Eat and Sight-See
Did I mention that the print room in the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer is really coming along? Well it is! We've got some very talented and hard-working people along who are using all their many complementary talents to make it happen. The pictures I will upload will prove it.
Haggling!!
They say you can't buy anything in the Middle East without haggling. I just don't have the haggling gene, so I've simply avoided buying anything. But today, as we were walking away from where we ate lunch, a vendor came up to me and said, “Sir, I want to show you what *I* make. Please. Let me show you.” For whatever reason, I began to think I was meant to see what this craftsman had to show me. He was a jewelry maker. My wife likes—no, loves—jewelry. So I began to look at his wares. Well, he had incredibly beautiful mother-of-pearl/abalone pieces set in silver jewelry that I KNEW Rhonda would LOVE. So I picked out the best looking bracelet, then found a matching necklace and felt quite pleased that I had nailed the perfect gift to bring home. “How much?” I asked naively.
“For you? I give special deal. You want to pay in cash or charge?”
“Cash.” (Thinking that would get me the best deal.)
“Dollars or shekels?” I didn't care. I had both. I assumed he might prefer dollars.
“Okay.” So he picked up his calculator, played a nimble arpeggio on the keys, then smiled and said, “Your special price, my friend.” The display read: 625.
I said, “Is that 62 dollars, fifty cents? Or six dollars, twenty-five cents?”
“No sir. Six-hundred twenty-five dollars.” I gasped. I told him I'm not a rich man; that I had about 70 dollars in my wallet and maybe 110 shekels.
“Okay then. For you, since you are my friend, I give to you for 550 dollars.”
So Rhonda, if and when you are reading this, please know I was really thinking of you and hoping to score THEE gift that would make you happy. But I figured you wouldn't necessarily want me to squander our mortgage money on something I think I could find in the States for a LOT less. So, um, anyway...it's the thought that counts, right?
God's Fiber Optic Infrastructure
I've got pictures to upload of where we ate lunch today. The venue came on the recommendation of one of the local guys who works at LCR. It's a place tourists would never go, and wow, was it ever good. Kebab sandwiches that could blow your mind. But as we were served and some of the hungrier among us began to dig in, my Crossways International reflexes kicked in and I suggested a blessing. And so I began to pray. But only several words into my prayer, our host/waiter interrupted us to tell us that Friday is Muslim prayer day, and that he had to go away to pray, but would be back after 10 minutes, when prayers were over.
He left, and I continued my prayer. “Lord, we thank You for all of Your provision and grace. And we know that so many people are praying to you right now, that the lines are pretty busy. So we won't take up any more of your bandwidth. Thank you, Amen.”
Yes, it's been an incredibly reverential, spiritually meaningful day—but we're having fun, too. Or should I say AND we're having fun, too? God likes us to have fun, right?
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