My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius…

30 March 2006
OK, so I couldn’t resist that one, but standing in the Coliseum this afternoon almost left me speechless. The stadium is literally colossal. The tour guide said that it held 70,000 people. That is the equivalent of Arrowhead Stadium – except that they built it 1900 years ago. It felt like being at Arrowhead except it was all made of stone instead of concrete.

The emotions it evoked are hard to describe. It was a mix of awe and horror. As a feat of engineering, it is absolutely amazing. But when you think of what happened inside its walls, it was profoundly sad. Death as entertainment is almost unthinkable to the 21st century North American mind. And yet for almost 500 years it was the norm in Rome and in some parts of the world the practice (at least animal killing) has survived to this day. The whole experience was a little overwhelming.

Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica

30 March 2006
We started our day in the heart of the former empire by touring the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica. The odd part of the tour was that you were more aware of the creations of some of the world’s most famous artists (Michelangelo, Rafael and Bernini) than you were of being at the center of Christianity for most of the past two millennia – Jenni, you would have loved it. The paintings on the ceiling of the Sistine were amazing. As usual, I wish we had had more time to just sit and soak it in. Our pace today was pretty brisk and I felt rushed most of the time.

I’m usually not that impressed with churches, but I have to admit that standing in the largest church in the world was impressive. The Basilica of St. Peter is two football fields long inside and you just feel dwarfed by the size of the whole thing. The Greek and Latin writing that runs around the top of the walls near the ceiling has to be three or four feet high because it looks large from the ground and has to be 30 feet off the floor.

Michelangelo’s sculpture of Jesus and Mary was incredible to see. If I understood our tour guide correctly, it is carved out of one piece of marble – not an easy feat. It was worth seeing for its artistic value, but I can’t say that it moved me on a deep level. I suppose I don’t have the eye for art that others do. Maybe if I’d spent more time there it would have sunk in a little more. I’ll stay longer next time.

Masada

28 March 2006
From Galilee in the north to the Dead Sea in the south, Herod the Great has his fingerprint all over Israel and the fortress at Masada is no exception. How in the world they were able to build such an extensive military outpost on top of such an isolated hill is beyond me. Herod himself had a three-level palace built complete with bath houses and places to entertain guests. The rooms were covered in marble in some cases and mosaics in others.

The fortress is most famous for the battle fought there between the Jews and Romans in the second century. After the Romans had crushed the majority of the Jewish rebellion that started in Galilee, they were left to fight the last band of rebels who had holed up at Masada. After an extended siege, the Romans finally breached the gates one night. They decided to wait until morning to enter the fortress and take the Jews as slaves. During the night, the Jews decided that rather than live as slaves they would die as free men.

So they killed everyone in the fortress except ten men. The remaining men drew lots and the one who drew the shortest had to kill the rest of the men and then commit suicide (a terrible sin in Judaism). When the Romans arrived the next morning the fortress was silent. They did find two old women and a baby. The women supposedly told the story to Josephus and he included it in one of his histories.

When Israel became a nation again in 1948, the military started a new tradition. After their six months of basic training (and we wonder why their military is so good) each soldier climbs the snake path (about an hour climb) as the sun rises and when the get to the top they promise to never let Masada fall again. It is an incredible story about the human desire to be free.

Holocaust Museum

28 March 2006
We spent an hour at the Holocaust Museum this morning. I’ve never cried at a museum before, but I got misty-eyed a couple of times at this one. The museum is both beautiful in its construction and haunting in its content. “Crime Against Humanity” just doesn’t quite do justice to what happened to the Jewish people. At times I found myself angry at the people who perpetrated the crimes and at others I felt both sad for the victims and ashamed that the rest of the world, including many Christians, waited so long to do anything. The time there felt very heavy and disturbing. At the same time, I highly recommend the experience to anyone.

Wailing Wall

27 March 2006
This afternoon we ended our tour of the old city at the Western or Wailing Wall. A Jewish historian explained to us that the wall itself is actually not part of the temple, but part of the wall surrounding the temple and the surrounding courtyards. It is, however, the closest point to the holy of holies that the Jews have access to and so they go there to pray.

As I stood watching the orthodox Jews pray I had a different reaction than I did my first morning in the city. Rather than wanting the Muslims to be thrown out so that the Jews could have their temple area back, I found myself thinking of John chapter 4. It is the passage where Jesus tells the woman at the well that the location at which one worships God is irrelevant since God Himself is not a localized being. He is spirit and must be worshipped in spirit and truth. Although it was neat to be able to pray at such an historical site, I found my self very thankful that God hears my prayers and accepts my worship in Kansas just as much as He does here in Jerusalem.

Garden Tomb

27 March 2006
For the second time on the trip I got choked up this morning. We started the day at one of the two proposed sites of Jesus’ burial – the one known as the Garden Tomb. Our guide through the site was right proper English gentleman who made a really good case for this being the likely site. Whether it is or not, it certainly looks more like what the original site must have been like (translation – there isn’t a church built on top of it).

At one point during his presentation he said, with tongue in cheek, that we had come all the way from Kansas for nothing. He quickly assured us that what he meant was that the tomb we were going to see was empty. It was at that point that I stared to get misty-eyed. To be in a garden with a tomb in it at least somewhere near the actual site and to be reminded that Jesus had not only been buried but raised from the dead was moving. There is no body. He is risen from the dead. He has no equal in all of history. And because He is risen we have hope for new life now and eternal life after death. Being there was amazing.

Via Dolorosa

27 March 2006
Walking the route that Jesus likely walked from his beating to the place of His crucifixion and supposed burial at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher was a good experience. But like about half of the experiences on the trip so far, it went by too fast and there wasn’t enough time to stop and appreciate each of the stations of the cross. Part of that had to do with the fact that for the locals, life has to go on. So the streets are packed with merchants and shoppers alike. Occasionally, a taxi rumbles down streets that are barely wide enough for it to squeeze through. The noise and busyness make reflection difficult at best.

That said, walking the route was cool and I’m glad I had the opportunity to do it. I’m also very glad that my mother was able to walk it with me. It is long and uphill most of the way, but she hung in like a trooper and did great. I was really excited for her. I know it is something she will remember.

Culinary detour

27 March 2006
Yet another great local experience today. After walking the Via Dolarosa, we hung out in a little shopping market for a bit and found a good back-alley coffee shop (Liam, you will appreciate this). They served real Arabic coffee that they make a cup or two at a time. It consists of one very large scoop of coffee some sugar and some cardamom that goes into an amount of boiling water that is much less than we would expect. The result is a strong, spicy, sweet coffee that is a little on the thick side. As a bonus, you can look at the grounds at the bottom of the cup when you are finished. ☺

And the Word became flesh...

26 March 2005
This afternoon we had the opportunity to go to Bethlehem which, like Jericho, is currently a Palestinian portion of the country. After passing the checkpoint through the wall we went shopping at a store owned by a Palestinian Christian, ate lunch and then went to the Church of the Nativity. Like many historical sites, it has a church built over it to "commemorate" the event but the effect is much less commemorative than it is annoying. The picture is of a portion of the cave where Jesus was likely born (or a cave much like it). The indentation in the wall, which is currently filled with the big candle display, was probably a carved-out feeding trough for the animals who lived there (and thus, Jesus' manger).

I have to confess that all the gaudiness of the location made it hard to imagine what the original might have been like. Nonetheless, being in Bethlehem in a cave that may have been Jesus' birth place was pretty amazing. I love that God became a man and dwellt among us.

The Wall

26 March 2006
This one is for Matt and John Harty. The Berlin Wall was torn down a year before I first traveled to Eastern Europe. Evidently, the Israelis are ponying up for round two. The wall is designed to separate the Jewish and Palestinian sections of Jerusalem and to help prevent acts of violence. Considering that the Palestinians just elected a new Hamas-controlled government a few weeks ago and the Israelis are having their elections in a few days, this is a very interesting time to be in this part of the world. As we walked outside the Old City today we noticed an increase in military personnel at the different entrances. It is always odd to see 19- and 20-year old men and women (military service is compulsory for both men and women in Israel) toting the shortened version of the U.S.-made M16 in public places. We’ll just pray that no one gives them a reason to use them.

Food part 3

26 March 2006
OK, now this is what I’m talking about. We had lunch at a little local falafel stand today. The food was really good and pretty cheap. It was fun watching the guy deep fry the falafel balls in between making the sandwiches. This evening we traveled to a spot outside of the city in the Judean desert and had dinner in a tent that was supposed to simulate a dinner during Abraham’s time. I think the atmosphere was more period than the food was. We did cook our own pita bread over a fire, though. The rest of the meal was served while sitting on cushions in the tent at a very low table. The food came in courses and consisted of a choice of four or five different “salads” which were more like collections of vegetables with vinegar on them, a main course of herbed chicken and meatballs with saffron rice and a dessert of dried fruit including dates, apricots and raisins. It was quite the feast!

Queen of the desert

25 March 2006
This afternoon produced the funniest moment of the trip yet. We were given last-minute permission to visit Jericho (which is still Palestinian-controlled). Site-wise, there wasn’t much we could see. But as we stopped to shop at one of the gift stores, my mom decided she wanted to ride a camel that was sitting in the parking lot. A young man named Samir helped her up into the saddle and after a very wobbly stand-up by the camel they took off across the parking lot. It was only a short circle around the lot, but seeing my mother on the back of a camel and listening to her laugh made me crack up myself. She really seemed to enjoy it. I still can’t believe she did it. It was worthy!

Garden of Gethsemane

25 March 2006
Of all the places we have seen so far, this is the one that really moved me. As we sat on the hill and looked out at the olive trees, some of which may date back to Jesus’ time, I read Matthew 26:36-56 and was moved to tears. It was easy to imagine the disciples leaning against some of those trees and falling asleep while Jesus prayed. I got choked up as I read where Jesus calls Judas his “friend” – you can’t be betrayed by an enemy but only by a friend. I was amazed at His rebuke of the disciple who cut off the guard’s ear. At any time, Jesus could have stopped the whole process by summoning 10,000 angels to defend Him but He didn’t. He knew what was coming and He willingly went there – for me and for you. Even now it is hard to write this without getting teary. It was so powerful to sit in the place where He chose to go to the cross. It will be hard to forget.

Jerusalem

25 March 2006
As we took the bus from the hotel this morning to the Mount of Olives, I found myself getting angry as I looked across the Kidron valley at the old city. The gold top of the Dome of the Rock and the other mosques and prayer towers made me very sympathetic to the Jewish people and I found myself wanting to have all the Muslims expelled from the city and country. I know I’m supposed to love my enemies and pray for those who persecute me, but I kept getting angry that the Muslims had invaded the city a number of times and had intentionally done things to it that would make life more difficult for the Jews. The things they did just seemed so antagonistic. I probably need to pray for compassion and understanding.

Cave #4

24 March 2006 - Qumran
OK, this was one of my favorite sites so far. After seeing a short movie on the Essene community, we walked through the ruins of their village and then sat across a chasm from Cave #4 (pictured). According to our tour guide, this is the cave where the entire scroll of Isaiah was found in 1947/48. What an amazing thought that for over 2,000 years the complete scroll sat undisturbed and preserved in a clay pot in that little cave. The Romans never found it, the Turks never found it and yet at the right time (at the time Israel was becoming a nation again) the Lord allowed a Beduin shepherd for find it and then quickly sell it to the United States where it was cared for and preserved until it was eventually bought back by the Israeli government. The Word of God preserved for over two millennia! The scroll that put an end to much of the criticism of the Old Testament messianic prophesies. In a little cave in the side of a hill in the middle of the desert. God is kind and wise.

Bet She'an

24 March 2006
The ruins were incredible. It is the largest excavation site we have seen yet. Again, Herod the Great might have been crazy, but he sure knew how to get things done. The theater had three levels of seating, there were two bath houses, you could see where some of the markets were and the columns that lined the main street were flat-out huge. It was very impressive. It was strange to hear more about the Roman city that was built on top of a Jewish historical site than we heard about the stories of the Jews at this place. It is likely the site of the death of King Saul and his son, Jonathan – both significant OT characters. Yet we hardly heard about them at all. I suppose that there isn’t much that has been excavated that is from ancient Israel, but still they could tell the stories.

Food part 2

23 March 2006
So this afternoon, I ate fish from the Sea of Galilee. It sounds really impressive and was actually pretty good for lake fish. That has probably been the highlight of the food adventure so far. There has been a lot of humus and vegetables (salad at all three meals) and, of course, no pork. And for the most part, I’m really liking the food.

But I have to say that I still feel a little insulated from the culture and food here. One of my favorite parts of international travel is going to the local restaurants and trying to order food in a language you don’t know and never knowing what you might get. It is part of the adventure. But that may not happen much while we are in Israel. We are traveling with a tour group and mostly eat at the hotels we are staying in. It is part of the package and is convenient but steals a little of my joy. I hope that doesn’t sound too whiny because I’m enjoying the trip, but I kind of hope Rome is a little less structured, at least as far as the food goes. More to come…

Mount of the Beatitudes

23 March 2006
This is definitely the coolest non-ruin site we’ve seen yet. I read Matthew 5 while looking out at the hill on which Jesus likely delivered the Sermon on the Mount. The hill is sort of scooped out and forms a natural amphitheater-type effect, so Jesus’ voice would have carried very nicely. It was amazing to think that He delivered such a powerful and world-changing message at that spot. As I read about the kind of people who enter the kingdom, it made me want to be that kind of person even more. It was very inspiring.

Hol van a ti hitetek?

22 March 2006 You have to have seen the Hungarian translation of the Jesus film to get the joke. I hope this made you laugh, Mark. The scene is where Jesus calms the storm on the sea of Galilee and then asks His disciples, "where is your faith?" The Hungarian translation (the title of the post) makes it sound really funny.

In 1996 archaeologists unearthed the remains of a fishing boat (pictured) that has been dated by construction methods to the time of Jesus. It was incredibly moving to think that our Lord sat in a similar boat and commanded the sea to be calm. It was a little eerie see a boat that old. It took the historical society a couple of years to get the wood treated in such a way that it wouldn't just turn to dust when it was taken out of the water it was found in. Definitely a highlight so far.

Caesarea

22 March 2006. The ruins were really impressive. The theater and horse stadium were incredibly preserved and were huge. From what the tour guide told us, Herod was a pretty sharp cookie. The city was designed for the Romans (gentiles) and he built attractions that would entice the Romans to bring their business there.

Herod’s palace was fairly extravagant: courtyards, gardens, a pool and views of the sea from three sides – not bad for a volunteer king of the Jews.

The Roman engineering was impressive. The aqueduct ran four miles from the spring to the city. The theater had two walls the height of the top row of seats that would block out the sound of the sea so that they could have much better acoustics.

The only bummer of the trip was that there wasn’t much to see that corresponded with Biblical stories. Peter’s vision that lead to the spread of the gospel to the gentiles or Paul’s trail prior to his Roman imprisonment would have been amazing things to have seen. But only Roman ruins seemed to have been unearthed.

Tel Aviv

We just arrived this afternoon around 3:00 and between getting through customs, traveling to the hotel, eating dinner and being fairly wiped out I really haven’t seen much of the city yet. But I will say that my first impression of the Holy Land is this: it is green! I really wasn’t expecting that. I thought it would be a lot of sand and wasteland with the occasional burning bush scattered about. But, and maybe this is just Tel Aviv, it is full of green trees, fruit orchards and field after field of corn. It really is the land of milk and honey.

Update: I've changed the picture to one I took of the valley of Megiddo. Now you can see what I mean.

God at 35,000 feet

The older I get, the more I dislike cloudy weather. I can handle a day or two but after about three continuous days of cloudiness I start to get depressed. I know this sounds silly (and I would never say this on a theology exam) but I think that the idea of not being able to see the sun because the clouds hide it from me starts to become of a picture of my relationship with God. The longer it stays cloudy, the easier it is for me to feel distant from God, as if He is hiding behind the clouds. I know intellectually that He is still present in my life, but emotionally it starts to feel as if He has gone into hiding.

Last night (or sometime yesterday – my internal clock is a little wonky) as we cruised at 35,000 feet over the Atlantic, I saw something that gave me hope. The moon was half full and was shining brightly on the tops of the clouds below us. Not normally being on that side of the cloud cover, I was able to see something with my eyes that I usually have to take on faith – the moon was still there, despite the clouds. I guess it reminded me that on any given day, clouds or no, the sun (or moon) is still there. Just because I can’t see it doesn’t mean that it is gone.

And the same is true with the Lord. Even when I don’t experience Him in a way that is as personal or meaningful to me as I would like, it doesn’t mean that He has abandoned me – He is still there. And I guess because I was able to see the moon when I normally wouldn’t have been able to, I have a little more peace about the fact that God is near even when He doesn’t feel like it. I am really grateful that He speaks to us through His creation.

Airline Food

Kudos to Alitalia. The Italians know how to eat, even if it is just airline food. Beef tips in a tomato sauce with mushrooms and olives served with pene pasta, a pickled green bean antipasti with proscuitto (fancy ham, spelling help courtesy of Jon Bullok), fruit, cheese and Italian coffee. Not a bad start to a trans-Atlantic flight. It makes me eager to sample the local foods during the next two weeks. I’ll keep you posted.

Are you ready for adventure?

I'll be traveling over-seas for the next few weeks and some friends have suggested that I create a blog to highlight the trip. So...here it is. I'll try and post thoughts/reflections as well as pictures while I'm on the road. I hope you enjoy it.