2018 Travels
Israel and Palestine
October 4th to 11th, 2018
It was wonderful to visit the Holy sites throughout Israel and Palestine. We stayed in Jerusalem for eight nights and took day trips to the sites.
Bethlehem is in Palestine (West Bank), and our guided tour into Palestine was very interesting. We learned about the 10,000-year-old history of Palestinian lands and people, including the current strained relations with Israel. Fortunately everything remained calm and orderly while we were there.
Below: The Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth was built to preserve what is believed to be the childhood home of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, and also the spot where the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary to announce her immaculate conception.
Below: In The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, we reached into the silver star and touched the cave floor believed to be the exact spot where Jesus was born.
Below: Jamie dips her hand into the Jordan River near Jericho, believed to be the spot where John baptized Jesus.
Below: Here we are standing in the 4th-century Synagogue of Capernaum, built on top of the original synagogue where Jesus preached, and next to the house where Saint Peter lived.
Below: The Sea of Galilee. Much of Jesus' ministry occurred on the shores of this lake.
Below: Mount Zion (aka Temple Mount); perhaps the Holiest place on Earth. It is currently the site of the Islamic shrine 'Dome of the Rock,' which is built on the site of Solomon's Temple, and Herod's Temple which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. We took this photo from the courtyard where Jesus cleansed the temple of money-changers.
Below: The Mount of Temptation in the Judean Desert, where Jesus wandered for forty days and was tempted by the devil.
Below: The sycamore tree in Jericho, said to be the one Zacchaeus climbed up into to see Jesus. While this tree is indeed 2,000 years old, and is the right species, and is in the right area, it cannot be known with certainty that this is the exact tree Zacchaeus climbed. Regardless, it was fun to see it.
Below: The Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gethsemane. A church is built over the rock believed to be the one Jesus prayed on the night before his crucifixion (the ten-foot-long rock is in front of the alter).
Below: Jamie places her hand on the rock that Jesus touched as he carried his cross to Calvary. We walked in Jesus' footsteps along 'Via Dolorosa' in Jerusalem.
Below: The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, built over 'Calvary,' the place where Jesus was crucified, and contains Jesus' empty tomb.
Below: The Alter of the Crucifixion, traditionally regarded as the site of Jesus' crucifixion (Golgotha).
Below: The Wailing Wall is part of the original wall built around Jerusalem. It has been a point of pilgrimage for 2,000 years.
Below: Each year over one million written prayers are placed in the cracks of the Wailing Wall. These slips of paper are removed occasionally and buried nearby in the Mount of Olives.
Below: This is the Jewish cemetery on the hillside of the Mount of Olives. Jews desire to be buried here because they believe the Messiah will resurrect the dead starting here and they want to be first in line. As our tour guide said, "If you're a Jew, you want to be buried here, not in Canada or something!" Over 125,000 people are buried (and continue to be buried) in this massive cemetery.
Below: Today, Jerusalem is a modern, bustling city. This is one of the downtown fruit markets.
Throughout Israel and Palestine it was a wonderful feeling to walk where Jesus walked - and contemplate the meaning of it.