Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Days 29 & 30: July 28-29, the Dome of the Rock and Ein Kerem



To be honest, I am very sad writing this because I will very much miss being here in Israel.  The only consolation are the friends that I have waiting for me in Houston, which has truly become my home.  So let me tell you about two of the most beautiful places that I have visited.  I will post some pictures for these sites later but I was not able to at this moment. 

First, the Dome of the Rock is one of the Holiest sites in Islam and so provides a lot of intrigue for people of other religions, mostly that it is the most visible building in Old Jerusalem.  You can see from everywhere and it is what you see in postcards and pictures....so I have been wanting to go up onto the Temple mount, the courtyard where you can find the Dome of the Rock. The history of the Temple mount is simple although long...it is the site where the ancient Jewish Temple was...first there was a 1st temple somewhere in the area but was destroyed by foreigners...then a 2nd temple was built...by Herod during the time of Jesus and it was supposedly twice the height of the Dome of the Rock.  This was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD and ever since that area has been a site of mourning and holiness for the Jews. Then the Dome of the Rock was built in 680 AD, so it is quite old and built exactly over the spot where the ancient Jewish temple was. 

The inside is quite exquisite but very different from most churches.  In Islam they forbid making images of people or animals and so all you see are intricate designs, pattersn, pictures of plants, and a lot of colorful stained-glass window. The structure is very impressive and we were lucky to get inside since non-muslims are not allowed anymore as of 2001.  Wait until you see those pictures!!!! 

Now onto Ein Kerem.  This is the little town just outside Jerusalem where Zacharias & Elizabeth (Mary's cousin) lived.  So most people come here to visit the church of the Visitation, although the actual town itself is so beautiful.  There are plenty of pine trees around and hills, which makes the town feel like you are in Europe.  The climate is a bit cooler because of all of the shade, and everything is built a bit more compact and closer together than Jerusalem.  We spent all morning and a bit of the afternoon there so that we could have some time for reflection.  This was the last official day of our stay here and so we were given 2 hours to pray and spend some time in silence. 

Let me say this, this trip has been one of the hardest for me to leave because Jerusalem and Israel are one of the most beautiful places you can go to on Earth.  They are beautiful...not just physically...because in fact many other places in the world are more beautiful...but they are beautiful for the people that are here...for the struggle that is still going on here...and most importantly for all the siginifcant things that God has done here...especially for me a Catholic...Jesus having been born, living, and dying here.  So for that...it continues to be a pleasure to share all the things I have come to see. 

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Day 28: July 27 - Hiking the Wadi Qelt


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
This beautiful picture that you see is what we did on Tuesday morning. It was a wonderful day that started oh so early. A group that decided that wake up earlier than the others, had to wake up at 4:30 in order to be ready to leave by 5:30am. We wanted to get to the desert at least 2 hours earlier than everyone else because the desert gets incredibly hot as you can imagine. The other thing that we were going to go see was the St. George's monastery.

So we arrived at the site, were dropped off, and were allowed simply to take in the beauty of the desert sunrise. The colors are brighter and more beautiful during sunrise hours than during the day. Then we began our hike down to the very isolated Orthodox monastery. It was quite a hike down, perhaps 400m vertically down although it took us at least 30 minutes to walk to St. George's.

We weren't alone as we saw some dressed in black Romanian Orthodox nuns who started some 15 minutes before us and beat us to the front door entrance. This way we knew that we were going to be allowed inside, since this wasn't guaranteed...the only thing that got us inside was that our guide is Fr. Tim, an Orthodox priest.

We spent 45 minutes in the monastery praying and observing the beautiful icons. Then we left and hiked along the edge of a gorge/canyon until we arrived at a road. There, we were picked up by the bus and were taken to Jericho. It was around 8:30 am at this point and so we were a bit tired...

Jericho was hot, but we went to the monastery commemorating the site where Jesus was tempted in the Desert....it was so incredibly hot. We took a cable car up to the monastery and were allowed to enjoy the most beautiful view of the city and surrounding area. This monastery was also very beautiful as you will see from some of the pictures. Aside from the day when we went to the Dead Sea, this was one of the most tiring days that we have had...but is was all worth it!!

Thank you for visiting...God bless you!!!

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Days 26 & 27: Jerusalem, Mass, and Laundry


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
So here is another blog that will include a couple of days to make it easier for me to post and for you to read.

On Sunday (July 25th), I went to the Old city for mass, which is always a treat for me. I took the 21 bus right outside of Tantur, paid 5 shekels (which is about $1.50), and then was taken to the Damascus Gate. I LOVE this gate because you can find all types of vendors there selling coffee, clothes, sweet bread, cell phones, middle eastern candy, and just about anything else you can think of. You can even get fresh squeezed Orange Juice right around the corner!!! So the only mass available at that time was at the Austrian Hospice and it was in German. Since I had a little bit of time before Mass started, I went to one of the stations of the cross, the crowning with thorns & flagellation. This is a smaller church, but I really was able to pray and meditate on our Lord's sufferings. I will load those pictures as soon as possible. There was a very somber atmosphere because of the dark stained glass windows, so it helped you enter into His agony. Then I walked over to the Hospice for mass at 10:30, which was all in German. The chapel was absolutely beautiful, with the entire chapel being painted with pictures and statues. It really was great...although it could only fit around 50 people. Then after Mass, I went to Adoration at my favorite station, Station IV, Jesus meets his Mother. This is by far one of the most beautiful monstrances in the world, being made in Poland and with an image of the Black Madonna. Truly something to behold. I had a delicious falafel pita for lunch and then headed back to Tantur.

I did laundry later that day and I want to describe the process to you so that you can understand some of the beauty of this country. First of all, they offer to us free use of laundry machines and laundry detergent. My friend was using one of the machines so I had to use the other one, which was all in German (noticing a pattern here?). Ya! So I put my laundry into the machine, which really only has room for about 5 days worth of clothes and then let it go through the cycles. Now when they are done, you have to dry your clothes on these racks that you see in the picture above. I love the idea because it saves electricity and it allows the natural heat and sun to do all the work. The clothes take about half a day to dry so I did it at night and they were dry the next morning. However, I HATE that the clothes come out TOASTED!! Do you know what I mean....they come out after being dried...as if you just put them in a toaster or perhaps like old bread.....it reminds me of how they turn out in El Salvador.

So what do you with your toasted clothes????? Well...you can either live with and let your body heat soften them when you wear them....or you can iron steam them in order to soften the fabric. Either way....I much prefer using a dryer, which makes them come out very soft.

Last thing...I do want to say that on Monday we went to go see the City of David, which are excavations near the Old City of Jerusalem. They are the findings of Jerusalem at the time of King David and in fact they have most likely found the palace that he would have lived in. Check out the pictures of the city and the tunnels on www.flickr.com/photos/alvaro_interiano

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Days 24 & 25: The country of Jordan and the Adventure in Petra



So I have not been able to blog for the past few days, but since I have been here for a while, it seems to be a good idea to blog maybe every 3 days since what we have been doing has been more routine.  However, the last two days have been incredible and so I wanted to blog right away before I forgot. 

First of all, Dr. Paul Jones of Transylvania University, who is here for a month, organized the trip of 2 days.  We took a shuttle through the border into Jordan (which took about 2 hours of driving) and then we drove South for about 2 hours to get to the city of Petra.  We drove through Amman, Jerash, and then arrived in Petra.

In Jerash, you find some of the most beautiful remains of a Roman city.  There are hundreds of columns left, with stone streets, and a beautiful theater.  The remains are fantastic, especially if you like archeology.  Now, Jordan is a country of about 7 million people, so it isn't overly large, but it still takes a while to get to different cities. 

We arrived in Petra Friday evening (we left at 8:30 am that day and arrived at the Hotel at around 9pm).  We were very tired since not only did we stop to see some sites, but we also drove all day long.
Petra is particularly famous because of the Indian Jones movie but more importantly because the Naboteens, who inhabited that area, carved an entire city into the sandstone walls of the canyons.  It's hard to describe what's there.  The canyons were formed much the same way that the Grand Canyon was formed, by water, and the colors in the canyon are red, blue, purple, yellow, but mostly a beautiful red & rose hue that is quite stunning.

We took a 4  hour tour that including riding on donkeys, riding on a camel, and seeing the beautiful sites of the canyon.  The city is no longer inhabited, but they believed it was made perhaps around 4 BC.  What is most beautiful about the whole thing is the size of the carvings, and the fact that the people carved the cities and tombs into the rock in such a way that it protected it from the water.  In other words, the carvings are at least 10 to 15 ft. into the rock.  The most famous carving is the "Treasury" that you see here, and you can imagine how huge it is compared with me at the bottom of the picture.  I do want to say this about the whole site, it gets very hot in the later part of day, but in the early morning when we go there, it was quite beautiful especially because of the rosy colors of the stone.  The whole place looked like it was one big sunset.  The entire site, is a park that would take at least 2 days to see completely and we only had 4 hours, so we saw what most tourists go and see.

We stay until around 12:30pm, and then we had a very quick lunch and had to take the bus back to the border 6 hours north of where we were.  This gave us plenty of time to see Jordan by car, to see the Dead Sea on the Jordan side, to see a few other beautiful panoramas, and to see also a bit of the daily life.  Please look at my pictures and enjoy some of the beautiful things that I was able to see.

Thank you for seeing my blog, God bless you!

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Day 21: July 20, The Desert of the Negeb


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
I will keep this blog a bit shorter. Today we did a full day trip to the desert of the Negeb, which is the desert that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob often found themselves in. It is south of Jerusalem by about 2 hours and is quite beautiful. It isn't a desert like the ones in Africa, but it receives very little rain fail, and is very rocky, dusty. We go the privilege of going into this small canyon where we were able to have some time for silence. I simply remember that I was able to pray and let God speak to me in the same desert that Elijah and other great Old testament people were able to speak to God.

Man was it hot there!! You think it makes it easier to talk to God, but it makes it harder because you're sweating, you are hot, and most likely if you are in the desert, you are lost. I learned that out here, you are forced to trust that God is going to take care of you...

So it was simply one more day of seeing beautiful things in Israel. Keep checking up on my blog. But I will write again on Sunday because I will be leaving on a 2 day trip to Petra in Jordan. Petra is the city that is carved into the canyon that you see in the "Indian Jones" movie. Pray for me that I stay safe. God bless you!!

Day 20: July 19, Old City Jerusalem and goodbye to the British Group


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
The days have been going by faster and faster, and it has been more difficult to keep up with the blog on a daily basis, so I apologize for those that have not found new things here.

The days have also become more ordinary. For instance, this Monday, we simply went into the Old City of Jerusalem (which we usually get to by taking a Bus that costs 1 dollar) and went to a well known district of shopping. There were a lot of people there walking around, some people playing music, there were even a group of about 30 Korean Christians dancing, singing religious songs, and acting out the fight between good and evil. To be honest, it was pretty hilarious, and this is certainly a new thing that I have seen here.

Today was special in that we said goodbye to the British Trust Group, that you see here. This was a group of about 30 people from Britain who are studying to be priests and ministers in the Anglican Church. They are studying in about 3 different seminaries, and they came as part of a 3 week program to see the Holy Land. My group has an average age of about 45, and their group has an average age of about 30, so you can imagine that I enjoyed having them here. Plus it was funny to hear their accents for a few weeks.

We actually went to eat at a local restaurant in Bethlehem, that had been affected by the Israel/Palestine wall that had been put up nearby. The man owned a business that is a hotel/restaurant business, but it had been doing so poorly, that they had been thinking of closing it. So about 18 of us went to have some fun and help their business out. The grandmother did most of the cooking, and we had a traditional Middle Eastern Dinner of Hummus, pita bread, yogurt, cucumbers & tomatoes, and a few other dips. Then he gave us chicken and beef Kabobs. We had a great time! But probably the most exciting part of the night was that it took us 45 minutes to get back to Tantur because we had to pass a security checkpoint that didn't have anyone to let us through.

Just one more of things that you find here in Jerusalem. Thank you for keeping up with my blog! God bless you!

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Day 19: July 18, Mass, Arabic Coffee, and Adoration


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
Today was a very simple day, yet also filled with it's own adventures. So we were going to have Mass at the Cenacle church or the room where Jesus had the Last Supper. I went with 3 other people leaving at 9 am, taking one of the local buses into the Old City for a Mass at 10 am. The first problem was that the bus didn't arrive too quickly and go there at 9:20. Then we were dropped off at the southern part of the city and had to walk about 1/2 a mile to get to the Church. Walking 1/2 a mile around here is hard because the roads wind left and right and often through construction so you don't really know which direction to go in. Sylvia (an older lady from Nevada) and I were trying to follow these two priests, but we lost them and so had to keep asking people who didn't know very much English. Eventually, we go to the Church, and walked up to see the rest of our group already ready for Mass. I was hot and sweaty and frustrated that I couldn't find my way around.

Then we all split up and I walked to meet a group of friends on the north part of the old city, which is about a 30 minute walk. I took my time to look at the shops and also to take some time to pray at the 4th station on the Via Dolorosa St. From there, we went to a Museum for about 1 hour, where there was mostly pottery and tools from earlier civilizations. You begin to realize that in Israel, archeology is so important because people have been living here for 10,000 or so years. Therefore, museums are a great place to get an idea of hold old this country is.

Then I was going to have an hour of Adoration at the 4th Station again. At that station is an Armenian Orthodox Church that has Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament every day from 8-5pm. The Monstrance that they have is absolutely wonderful, I don't know if you can look it up on line. Of course, I wanted to stay awake while doing that, so I ordered a delicious Arabic Coffee while there, as you can see in the picture. $2.50 for all you see there, and let me tell you, the coffee was the equivalent of a double shot of espresso. They gave me these delicious little cinnamon cookies, and even a glass of water!! Around here, that's a deal!! I was struck by the hospitality of the owner, who said in an Arabic accent, "sit down, and relax!" Then I went to pray, where I could just give thanks to God for this whole trip, and also pray for all of you, my friends & family back home.

Again, thank you for following my blog! God bless you!

Day 18: July 17, Blessed Miriam, the Mosque and Partying


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
So what am I really doing on this trip. I am visiting Catholic holy sites, visiting other religions, and having a lot of fun!!

Let me tell you about Bl. Miriam of the Crucified Jesus, or "the little Arab" as the like to call her. She is one of a few Palestinian Christians who joined the Carmelites and then later became a great mystic and saint. I went to go visit the Carmel where she lived in Bethlehem and was able to pray with the very cloak that she used to wear. I also was able to pray in front of her relics and speak with a young girl there who is discerning to enter the religious community. First of all, the convent was beautiful. Secondly, I was so impressed with being able to pray with the cloak that she used to wear, which I did for at least 15 minutes. Thirdly, I was able to pray with her, a local saint amidst the other religions. It was so amazing, in fact, that I have decided to go back at least several times to really let her "soak in". I also bought a book on her, which I have really very much enjoyed and it has helped me get closer to her and God. If you didn't know, I was helped in my conversion by the Carmelites, specifically, the writings of St. Teresa of Avila, and so it is great to meet another of their wonderful saints.

Later that night, we went to a Mosque for night prayers, which was a tremendous experience. I wasn't able to take many pictures, but the picture you see is me in front of the area where they preach. It was a bit weird for me to be honest, because I never know how tense or relaxed the situation is. You can understand that relations between Jews, Christians, and Muslims have not always been wonderful and so there is always room for growth. I was glad to be at the mosque, but it especially made me thankful that I am Catholic. There may be wonderful things about Islam,there really indeed are, but I simply think we have a Gold mine in the Catholic faith, especially in our saints, like Bl. Miriam. One thing of interest is that they women had to wear veils and ankle length skirts, which they actually did not mind wearing because they were so interested in seeing how they prayed.

So as the bus was leaving, we asked to be dropped in the 'Old City' so that my dear friends Elizabeth and Caitie could go out and have some fun. They have become like sisters to me and so you will see many pictures of them on flickr.com
We went to this great shopping area called Mamilla, which remained open until around 11pm and then we found this wine, dessert, and chocolate bar where we just laughed, had wine, and talked about all the fun things that we have done so far. It is days like today that make me so thankful for God allowing me to be here.

Let me tell you, Jerusalem isn't easy to be in at first, but after a few days, it really starts to open up to you! Keep reading my blog and God bless you!!!

Monday, July 19, 2010

Day 17: July 16, Rosaries, the River Jordan, and Mount Tabor


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
So now you get to find out about another one of my little projects while I am here in the Holy Land. I bought 150 Rosaries to honor the 150 beads in Rosary. They were bought from a store in Bethlehem from a Catholic family who owns that beautiful store. They are made of Olive Wood and say Bethlehem on them. My intention was to bring those Rosaries everywhere I went but especially to the 20 places of the mysteries of the Rosary.

So far I have been to 13 places:
Nativity, Annunciation, River Jordan, Cana, Mt. of Beatitudes, Mt. Tabor, Last Supper, Agony in the Garden, Jesus carries his cross, crucifixion, burial of Jesus, Resurrection, and the Ascension. So I still have some work to do. But I am almost there.

And today we went to the River Jordan and Mt. Tabor where the Transfiguration happened. These places have been one of my favorite places by far!! Wow, the River Jordan, even though it has been highly commercialized, was an experience of God's grace. I was able to quickly renew my baptismal promises and put my feet in the water. I tell you that it was a simple experience but truly a wonderful one and one that I will always remember when I pray with these Rosaries.

Mt. Tabor was absolutely beautiful, and you will have to check out some of my pictures. The mountain is isolated from the other hills in the area and so you take a bus to a parking lot, whereby you take these shuttles up a winding road to a Franciscan Church. The Church is situation on the mountain with really nothing else there. It is the type of place where you could spend a few days in silent prayer just enjoying the physical beauty of it. I was able to pray a Rosary there and just enjoyed the beauty of that spot. To be honest, we didn't spend enough time there, but it will remain engraved in my memory. I have really enjoyed all the spots that were located on hills or mountains. By the way, this was the week that we spend Monday - Friday and Galilee, and so we headed back to Jerusalem today. Isn't it strange that when we arrived in Jerusalem, I thought to myself, isn't it great to be back home?

Two weeks left....

Day 16: July 15, Tel Dan Nature Reserve


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
The picture you see here was one of the most fun experiences during the week. Water is a big issue in Israel and there is this beautiful reserve that ends up being a source of water for the River Jordan. This reserve is unique in that is has an amazing waterfall that actually has its source from a bubbling spring. You can see in the pictures on Flickr.com that my friend Elizabeth and Caitie are joining me in the fun. Caitie is the short one from Australia.

This was one of the few opportunities where I could get my feet into the water and then walk around a little bit. The water was incredibly cold, as you can see the look of pain in my face and the rocks were a little bit difficult to walk on. Actually, as soon as my feet were in the water, I felt like my blood was rushing away from my head!! So I was laughing as well because I felt a bit light-headed.

Another interesting aspect about this park is that it used to belong to the country of Jordan and in fact is right on the border. They gave it to Israel for a temporary period, but as you can see by its beauty, Israel decided to keep it permanently. So both Jordan and Israel want this beautiful park that is such an important source of water. This is the type of learning that has been going on here, that although religion plays an important role in this part of the world, water & land are huge part of the political struggle between these countries.

The next day we went to the River Jordan to see some absolutely beautiful things so please keep following my blog!!!

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Day 15: July 14, the Mt. of Beatitudes, the House of Peter, the Sea of Galilee, and a wonderful swim!!


I have to say that today was one of my favorite days.  First we went to the Mount of the Beatitudes, which is beautiful even just for its location.  It overlooks the ocean and has plenty of places to go pray where you can see the Sea of Galilee.  The Sea of Galilee, by the way, is more like a Lake, and yet it is a big enough size to provide a good amount of fishing, especially for the villages and cities around the time of Jesus.  We were able to pray there and I was able to pray a Rosary off in one of the outside chapels.  I felt peace, and God's love, and especially a joy that I was able to be so privileged as to be here in Israel. 

Then we went to Capernaum and also the house of Peter.  This is where you see the picture, where I was able to go off and get close to the water.  One thing I notice in the group is that because we are all of different denominations, most of the other Christians place very little importance on St. Peter and the Papacy. 

The reality is related to an important question, 'If Jesus is who we say he is, don't you think he would have left someone in charge to make sure that we remained faithful to God?'  It doesn't make any sense to me at least, to say or think that Jesus would not have entrusted his people to another person.  This is the gift of our Catholic faith, that we believe that the one true vicar of Christ on Earth is the Pope.  Notice that he is the Vicar and not Jesus Christ himself.  In other words, the Pope is human , and yet protected by the Holy Spirit!  So for me, it was beautiful to go to St. Peter's house, and thank God, that we know who is Christ's official representative, the Pope.  

The rest of day was also very beautiful.  We visited a wonderful church that had mosaics dating back to the 4th century.  This was one of the simplest and most beautiful churches that we had visited, and I really wish we had stopped there and had Mass or at least more time to pray.  I can't wait to show you all the pictures when I get back to Jerusalem on Friday.  

Next, we went to visit something that was found within the last 10 years, a fishing boat that was found when the waters of the Sea of Galilee had been drying up.  This boat had been stuck and preserved in the mud, and so when it was found, they only had a few days to preserve it, move it, and then coat it with protective chemicals.  The find is quite spectacular, and get this, it is made from 12 different types of wood, and dates back to the time of Christ.  Again, the pictures will tell more of a story later! 

Finally, I swam in the Sea of Galilee and just enjoyed the beautifully fresh waters.  It was so much fun even though I was a bit scared of getting bit by some of the fish that swim around there.  They are a bit too friendly for my taste.  Thank you for following my Blog!  More to come!

Day 14: July 13, the first miracle at Cana & the Basilica of the Annunciation


Today was a day that we went to go visit some famous churches in this Nazareth and Cana.  There are at least two, with some orthodox churches as well.  First we went to go see the church of the wedding feast of cana.  It was a simple church and you notice that all of the shops around the church sell "wedding wine".  One thing that I have noticed and especially if I am going to come back here as a priest leading a tour group is that you need to take a lot of time before hand preparing for the places that you are going to visit so that they become places that are special.  I was not able to do that for this place in particular and so only stopped by very quickly.  Nevertheless, it was nice to be there. 

Then we went to this place called "Nazareth Village".  This was started by a local group that wanted to bring to life some of the scenes from the life of Jesus.  For instance, they work the land, they shepherd goats, the work on wood, and they wear the clothes that would have been worn in those days.  It was a little bit "cheesy" but I think it gave you the idea that it was quite difficult to live around here 2000 years ago.  I mean, the weather has been upwards of 85 F, but without any air conditioning!  So I have been very sweaty.

Then we stopped by the Basilica of the Annunciation.  This church has the peculiar trait about it that it actually has the house where the annunciation was made to Mary.  The house, you can see in the picture above, and it was found when they were laying a foundation for the church.  This was a moment that I really wished I had stayed around for at least 1 or 2 hours more, just to really enjoy the moment.  It also would have been nice to have gone to Mass there. In a few days, I will upload more pictures to Flickr.com  

Lastly, we enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Hotel and a fun evening laughing with some friends by the beautiful Sea of Galilee.   

Day 13: July 12, Caesarea Maritima & The Valley of Meggido

Time is passing by too too fast!!  Today is the week that we left Jerusalem to come and visit beautiful Galilee.  On the way to the beautiful city of Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee, we stopped by Cesarea Maritima, a beautiful small city right by the ocean where they used to have sporting events and horse races.  We went to go observe some of the architectural and archealogical sites and then we were able to enjoy the nice ocean water.  I had never heard of the place, but it was really wonderful. 

Then we stopped by one of my favorite places, the valley of Meggido, because this is the site that the Book of Revelation talks about "Armageddon".  So this is the place where the final battle of the end of the world is supposed to take place.  Let me tell you, it's beautiful, but it's not that dramatic of a place.  This site has some importance in the geography because it's right in the middle of a trade route.  That means, people from Africa and the Middle East would have passed through this valley in order to trade and buy products.  Therefore, we stopped by an ancient military fort that was meant to control the people who were traveling through the valley.  It was very windy and we were able to get some great pictures. 

Later on we also visited Mt. Carmel, where I was able to pray, enjoy the view and take some pictures.  The mountain is smaller than I imagine and there is still a group of carmelite nuns there keeping their tradition of contemplative prayer. 

The nicest surprise was arriving at our hotel in Tiberias, a city of about 100,00 people.  Our hotel is right on the ocean and we are able to swim in either the pool or the lake.  I can't wait to show you more pictures.  Unfortunately, the internet is slow here so I cannot load as many pictures as I would like on Flickr.com 

Thank you for your patience and for following my blog!!

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Day 12: July 11, Mass and the Tent


I am actually writing this from Galilee and so I am trying to remember what I did on this Sunday.  This was the day after the stay in the Holy Sepulchre.  It was very very tiring, because we went to bed at 4 am and then I woke up, (my guardian angel woke me up) and I found out that the only mass was at 11 am.  We all paid about 20 dollars to take a taxi to a French monastery where they had a very simple mass.  It was a Trappist monastery where I had to say that I found the most friendly and joyful monks that I have seen in the Holy Land. 

The rest of the day I spent doing laundry and just enjoying the beautifully hot weather.  The evening and night were really the highlight of the day.  The ten is this restaurant that looks like you are at a Mediterranean wedding.  The roof of the restaurant is indeed a tent it just so happened to be the finals between Spain and Holland, so the entire restaurant was very much full of people cheering both teams on.  We went to the tent, 5 of us: Elizabeth from the US, a family of 3 Australians (Terry, Bernadette, and Caitie), and I.  We all have become quite good friends as we have similar senses of humor and you will find them in my pictures.  Caitie, is the very very short girl although she is really 23 years old. 

We ordered "salads" and to our surprise received around 12 plates of different vegetables similar to the vegetables that you will get at a Korean restaurant.  This includes hummus, baba ghanough, cole slaw, potatoes, cucumbers & tomatoes, and more things that I cannot even name. We also ate some stuffed meat pies with the most delicious pita bread, hot and soft.  To finish it off, we had some very good local beer, I believe it's called Tabeyah in case you want to look it up online. 

Overall, it was a tremendous finish to our first week and a half in Jerusalem.  One we go in our bus to the beautiful Sea of Galilee and the city of Tiberias!!

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Day 11: July 10, The Wailing Wall & Holy Sepulchre


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
I want to talk about two different experiences that I had at the holiest sites for 2 religions. The Wailing Wall or the western wall has significance in Judaism because it is one of the remaining walls for the Old Jewish Temple. The temple was where they sacrificed animals to God in order to enter into relationship with Him, to atone for sin and simply to eat with God. You see me putting my hand on the western wall. Now it is a place where Jews come to pray the Old Testament or Torah, and to pray for a revival of ancient Jerusalem. It seems that they are praying so that God may restore Israel to its formal Glory. I went there once to pray but also on a Friday nigh which is the beginning of their 'sabbath'. They celebrate the beginning of this day of rest by vocal prayers, dancing around, wearing their traditional suits and hats, and offering prayers at the wall. It is quite an experience to see this in person, it feels like you are at a club with 1000 radical Jewish men. "Fun" would be one way to describe it, unfortunately I did not take any pictures.

The other experience was being able to spend the night in the Holy Sepulchre, the place where Jesus was crucified, died, was buried, and resurrected. I stayed there with some friends from 12 midnight until 3am. My absolute favorite spot, even though I was very tired while I was there was the spot of the crucifixion, Golgotha. The people here are incredible at keeping traditions of where things happen, and the hill was a stone quarry and they actually excavated the physical location where he was crucified. You can still see the massive stone hill and even a deep crack in it to show that an earthquake did occur after Jesus died. What was most impressive for me, was being able to pray in that holy space, but also seeing how other people showed their religious devotion. There were many people from Russia who were Orthodox, and so had many elaborate ways of showing their love for God.

Not only were these two experiences religious but they were also observing and studying the way different people have a relationship with God.

I am praying for all of you, continue to pray that I remain safe and enjoy the time that I have here.

Day 10: July 9, The Dead Sea


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
Today is one of the days that I have been looking forward to for a long time. I have been wanting to go to the desert to see what it is really like and I have also wanted to go to the Dead Sea and float in the salty waters. The day was even better than I was wanting because we visited 4 important sites in the area. You can see all of my pictures from the flickr.com website with all the pictures in the desert area.

First, we went to Masala, a famous mountain city fortress that was built by the Jews when they wanted to escape Roman influence and Roman occupation. They fled to the desert to the top of of a mountain and built a city, where you can see me standing. This city consisted of houses, a temple, and other places for daily life. At one time it held 900 people. The story goes that they escaped there but the Roman army chased after them, built a ramp and a 30ft tower to go and slaughter all of the people. The Jews decided that instead they would kill themselves than become slaves of the Romans, and so the site has held important history for the Jews since then.

Next, we went to the famous dead sea, a beautiful blue color sea that hardly moves. There is very little wind in this area and it is in fact the lowest place on Earth!!! We arrived at a beach where we could get in and they warned us to not get any water in our eyes because it is 30% salt, and would be extremely painful if it splashed you. We swam for about 30 minutes, and all that I can say that it is the strangest feeling to be swimming in this warm water, knowing that there is nothing alive in the entire sea and that you can stay afloat simply by laying on your back or stomach. Of course, I got water in my eyes and one of my friends had to take me to the shore so I could wipe it out, but I returned again to try and 'learn' how to swim in that water. I can't wait to go back again.

Then, we went to the famous Oasis of En Gedi, or place of the goat. This is a waterfall that runs all year long in the depth of the desert. I have no idea where the water comes from, but it makes a small river that empties into the Dead Sea. You have to see the pictures to believe it, it is so beautiful and peaceful to see the desert and then all of a sudden to see green and lush trees and grasses growing next to a cool river.

Lastly, we went to Qumran, famous caves where they found ancient scrolls of the old and new testament. This site is very small and mostly of interest to scripture scholars. By that time, to be honest, I was tired, it was 100 F or more and we were all a bit dehydrated. Keep following my blog to find out more of my adventures.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Day 9: July 8, a class and relaxing


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
This is a picture of my room at Tantur. It is pretty simple but at least I am able to have my own room. I don't need an alarm clock because the sun shines in my face at exactly 6:30am. God is very generous! There is no A/C but there is a good breeze if you open the porch and front door of the room. At night, the city cools off quite a bit and so it is very comfortable to sleep in.

Today we had a morning class about Judaism, and how it is very important for them to be related to the country of Israel. Israel has a central role in their religion perhaps in a similar way that Rome has a central role in the Catholic faith.

Then we had lunch. By the way, what does lunch consist of? I will have to take pictures because the food is quite good although it has a Mediterranean flair to it. We eat, cabbage with raisins, hummus, shredded carrots with raisins, sauteed peppers and eggplant, rice pilaf, pitas, home made chips, as well as different meats.

The food is delicious and so I will try and take a picture of what we have been eating. In the afternoon I went out with this guy named Grant from England. He is also in the seminary but he is studying to be an Anglican Priest. We walked into Bethlehem and simply saw everything on foot. So, not every day here is exciting but every day has it's own little adventure.

Friday, July 9, 2010

Day 8: July 7, Western Wall, Holy Sepulchre, & more Jerusalem

This Day was in an incredible day and I have not yet been able to load the pictures that I was taking.  My camera is actually now full and so thank goodness that I brought an extra memory card.  Today we saw the Wall of the Old Temple, or the Western Wall, the Holy Sepulchre where Jesus was crucified and buried, and also some other museums in the old part of Jerusalem.

The Old city is divided into 4 quarters, the Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Armenian quarters.  We have been in all 4 although today we were mostly in the Jewish quarter.  In the pictures that I will upload, you will notice big walls.  This is the Temple Mount, or the bottom wall of the Temple.  The Temple was in the center and upper portion of  the structure, but that is now replaced by a famous Muslim mosque, the Dome of the Rock.

The most amazing part for me was visiting the remains of a 2000+ year old Jewish temple where they knew that Jesus, the apostles, and the apostle Paul came every day to pray and to teach scriptures.  We sat on the steps where Jesus also sat and walked on.  The history was amazing to think about something that old.

The Holy Sepulchre, is something completely different.  This Church is so beautiful an complicated....there are at least 4 different styles of decoration inside the Church, depending on the tradition that the section belongs to.  The Egyptian Christians or Coptics, have one section and the Roman Catholic have another section, each with different art and styles.  I felt awe at knowing that I was in such an ancient church.  In fact, this Saturday I will spend part of the night in the church, from midnight to 3am to see the Masses and prayers that they have in there.  Keep on reading to hear some of the great things that I do.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Day 7: July 6th, Relaxing & Bethlehem


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
I love going to Bethlehem especially to go see some of the people there and some of the Churches. Most beautiful is a church called the Milk Grotto, you can see some pictures in my Holy Land set. The city is not small, but not large, about 100,000 people yet it has lost a lot of its flair due to the wall that has been set between Bethlehem and Jerusalem. Business is down even though there are many pilgrims going the the Nativity Church. This pictures shows you one of the first pictures I took of the entrance to where Jesus was born. I have gotten close but not actually been able to visit and kiss the famous "star" that marks the spot where they believe he was born.

So how do I get to Bethlehem? I walk out of Tantur, and go down through the olive tree field to a great big wall that was built in 2002. I go through 3 checkpoints where they scan or make sure I have my passport. Then I get harassed by 10 men who want to take me on a Taxi to 'Nativity Square'. Sometimes I chose just to walk, which is 30 minutes with plenty of hills. You get there and you can see the Church, a mosque, some stores, some small restaurants, and a simple plaza. The city isn't overly beautiful, but it has great personality.

Tonight was the first night that I went out onto Bethlehem. I will have to tell you more about it. Wait until you hear about Day 8!!!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Day 6: July 5th, Old Jerusalem, the Mt. of Olives


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
This trip is a bit confusing to explain. We have visited the Old City of Jerusalem 3 times, once for an overview, once to see the outer holy sites(this past Monday), and once within the city near the famous "wailing wall"(today Wednesday).

Here you see a picture of the entire Old City. The Old City is what is encompassed by the walls that you see just around the "Dome of the Rock". The New City of Jerusalem is everything else outside those walls. The Old City is quite spectacular because there is so much Jewish, Christian, and Muslim history in those places.

The Mt. of Olives is also quite beautiful as you can see from the picture because you get a beautiful view of the city of Jerusalem. Later, I will post pictures of the Orthodox Church that we went to go see, the Garden of Gethsemane, as well as the church of the Ascension.

Let me just say this, it is hot, and dry weather and we are always drinking plenty of water and wearing hats. It is rocky terrain with plenty of hills so you are always climbing up a hill and going down a hill. Definitely the most impressive site we saw today was the "Church of All Nations" or the Garden of Gethsemane, which are both right next to each other. Please check my photo website to see more pictures!!

Day 5 : July 4th, Hebron


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
In this picture you see Dr. Paul Jones, Ted, Elizabeth, Zaffer, and Mark. We were taking a tour to Hebron, the burial tomb of Abraham & Sarah.
It was a religious visit, but we ended learning about the political situation between Palestine and Israel.

The driver, Zaffer, took us into Palestinian neighborhoods to show us the very difficult situation that they have to live in due to the Israeli occupation. Basically, the Israelis, in order to keep security, have completely controlled the Palestinian neighborhoods and keep soldiers and watchtowers like the one you see with an Israeli flag.

My general impression of it was that it was scary to have those soldiers walking around and it was difficult to see the poverty of those neighborhoods and that many Palestinians really can't do anything about it other than just tell people like us.

So was it what I looking for when I came here? No, but it is teaching me the reality of living in a country where two people sometimes hate and are afraid of each other.

Yet despite that, there is a lot of beauty if you open your eyes to see it.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Days 4 & 5: Bethlehem & Hebron

I need to add a picture for these places but my pictures are loading slowly, I apologize!  But Bethlehem is just across the wall.  In Bethlehem, the main things to see are Nativity Square and this beautiful grotto, called the Milk Grotto.  I have already gone several times to go pray there and to enjoy the silence relative to the other places in the Holy Land.  Bethlehem is still a small city, with hills and a lot of old cobble stones for you to enjoy.  Most people go there to visit the site of Jesus' birth, which is beautiful and quite simple.  There is actually a specific spot that is designated by a star and I have not yet gone there because there are always lines of people waiting. 

The people are somewhat aggressive when it comes to selling and picking up a taxi.  It can be a bit frustrating because you just want to walk to the church and then you have these men trying to rip you off and take you to the church.  Aside from that, it's very beautiful once you give yourself time to enjoy some of the scenery.

Hebron was a completely different experience.  Let me just say that we went to go visit the tomb of Abraham and Sarah, it is used by both Jews and Muslims and so there can be some issues when it comes to religious tension.  The taxi driver took us through some of the Palestinian/Israeli neighborhood and showed us some of the discrimination that was being showed to the Palestinians.  It is really a difficult situation to explain...there will be more to come soon. 

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Day 3: Jerusalem by Tantur


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
Today we were taken on an outside tour of Jerusalem where we got to see Camels, the Mount of Olives, the Kidron Valley, and a whole lot of other places that I don't quite remember. There are 4 districts inside the old city of Jerusalem, the Catholic, Muslim, Israeli, and Coptic quarters. The old city is quite cramped and everything is put there that can possibly fit. There are several hills surround Jerusalem, in fact, the whole place is hilly and so it is hard to tell where Jerusalem starts and Ends.

You have to come in through one of the 4 or 5 gates, I don't remember. Most memorable was seeing the Dome of the Rock, an impressive and beautiful building. Also was the St. Mary Magdalene monastery that had 4 or 5 golden domes, Russian style. The whole city is so packed with history and yet there is a lot of Religious and Political tension which adds on top to all of those things. Honestly, the first time seeing these things was perhaps too much for me to really let it sink in, I just remember thinking how beautiful it is to see this beautiful city that has so much history. Well, check out my flickr.com page to see more pictures that are loading little by little.

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Day 2: Jet Lag & Bethlehem


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
Wow, so I am very tired and yet have been able to get enough sleep to wake up the next day and begin exploring. This is on Thursday, and so we are able to go into Bethlehem to go see the Nativity Church. This is a very beautiful Church, not overly large and we were able to arrive before a lot of the pilgrims were getting there. Before you go into Bethlehem, you can see in the picture that we had to go through a wall that you can see in the background of the picture. This wall surrounds the Palestinian side, which is behind the wall.

The situation is somewhat like this, the Israeli government in order to protect itself setup a wall around all Palestinian areas in order to keep them segregated from the Israeli's, the result is that the Palestinians have been put into something like "Ghettos" to reduce some of violence that was being done by extremist groups. To be quite honest, I don't understand most of the situation, but my experience of the Muslims and Palestinian Christians, has been incredible....so it is really terrible what is being done to them.

Spiritually speaking, I found most amazing, a Church called the Milk Grotto...where milk from Our Lady fell on the ground and was the site of miracles. Now there is a group of cloistered nuns who have Perpetual Adoration there, quite possibly the most beautiful and silent chapel I have been in. There is some to talk about....let me put it this way, the city is intense and full of Religious fervor...

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Day 1: Twelve Hours of Flying


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Originally uploaded by Militiaoftheimmaculata
So I was perhaps a little nervous about flying to Jerusalem, I don't know why and still don't, but it was such a beautiful trip getting to fly on a familiar airline.

I did study abroad in France when I was in High School and so now got to revisit a beautiful people and country. I was in France for about 2 hours...
The best part of the airline was hearing the French and also getting free Champagne on the flight, that's right FREE!!! It was DEELICIOUS.

The other was meeting some of the people on the way to Jerusalem, Fr. Bartolomie who will be in Jerusalem for 3 weeks doing some studies and George who will be going to Lebanon.

Then I arrived in Jerusalem and after being scared and confused about getting a taxi to the school (listening to loud Israeli men argue about who will take whom) and then another hour of driving...left me pretty tired. Yet, Tantur is so beautiful and I can't wait until the pictures upload so that you can see how awesome it is where I am staying.