Not a Medieval Pilgrimage
Dear Friends,
I went to Jerusalem for the first time since the start of the pandemic. My goal was to visit as many churches as possible on the Mount of Olives and Mount Zion, and to see Hezekiah’s tunnel. That’s six churches and a tunnel. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, half the churches were closed (or had weird opening times that I missed). Google Maps led me astray again and I was unable to located Hezekiah’s Tunnel, but I did walk past some cool monuments.
My mom warned me once that things always go wrong on pilgrimages and this was no exception. Nevertheless, reaching half the attempted places is pretty good for plague times; after all, if I had been a Medieval pilgrim trying to get here during a plague, I would probably be dead without having seen any of the sites. Now, having taken a moment to be thankful that I am not a Medieval pilgrim, I shall share some pictures with you! All my information about these places comes from what I either read on site or from Fr. Samson’s book Come and See.
My first stop was the Church of All Nations. It carries this name because so many different countries donated to its construction, particularly the mosaics. On the ceiling, you can see the emblems of different countries that donated.
The mosaics on the floor are copies of the Byzantine mosaics over which this new church was built.
The large mosaic on the left side of the church shows Judas’ betrayal; the right shows the moment where he declares, “I am He,” and everyone falls back (John 18:6).
The center is moment for which this church was built. On this rock, Christ sweat blood. Here He kept a long, lonely vigil, preparing for his passion.
Outside of the church is a grove of olives. These individual trees are probably not 2,000 years old, but the DNA in their roots goes back to the silent witnesses of His agony.
My second stop was up the hill at the Dominus Flevit church. This church is built to resemble a teardrop and is located where Jesus supposedly cried for Jerusalem (Luke 19:37, 41–44 and Matthew 23:37–39).
The view from the church overlooks the Old City, specifically, the Temple Mount where the Dome on the Rock mosque now stands.
The design on the altar shows Christ’s desire articulated in the Bible passage.
The gold ceiling seemed fitting for the tears of God.
From there I hiked further up the hill to the Pater Noster church where Christ supposedly taught His disciples the Our Father/Lord’s Prayer. However, it closed early because of COVID and would not open again that day.
I also attempted to find the Mosque of the Ascension. Google Maps says that it is a chapel, but Fr. Samson (who is eminently more trustworthy than GoogleMaps) says it is a former church transformed into a mosque. Regardless, I found a wall with a sign saying “Ascension Tickets” but no indication of a door or where to get tickets.
Even though I didn’t get to see these places, Christ was regularly walking over the Mount of Olives as He went from Bethany to Jerusalem and back again during the feast days.
From there I attempted to find Hezekiah’s Tunnel. However, where Google Maps said it was located only had a locked-ish gate with a bunch of garbage on a dirt road beyond.
Also, I couldn’t tell if I was in East or West Jerusalem, and that made me a bit uncomfortable. So, I headed up towards St. Peter in Gallicantu and Dormition Abbey.
On the way I saw Absalom’s Pillar, the Tomb of the Sons of Hezir, Zechariah’s Tomb, and Mound of the Rabbi Kalonymus the Miracle Worker. I’m not precisely sure of the significance of all these, but they’re pretty cool looking.
Finally, after being misled by Google Maps again, I swore off using the app and made it to St. Peter in Gallicantu. This church is built over the house of Caiaphas, where Jesus was taken after his arrest. It is also where Peter betrayed Christ three times (the name “Gallicantu” is Latin for “Cockcrow”) and the image of a cock/rooster seemed to be all over the place.
This church is built on a steep part of Mount Zion and over several layers of archeological finds. The upper church is modern.
I liked the crypt church better (also there was an adoration chapel there.
From there, you could look down into the dry cistern where Jesus is said to have spent the night of his arrest.
Just outside, is a statue commemorating Peter’s betrayal in what is believed to be the courtyard where it happened.
Even further down, you can actually go into the cistern where Jesus was said to have spent the night. There they have Psalm 88 translated into a ton of other languages.
Outside, there are more archeological related structures that lend credibility to this being actually Caiaphas’ house. One of these structures are the stairs up which Jesus was probably brought the night of his arrest.
Finally, I went to Dormition Abbey, which is a Benedictine Abbey just outside of the Old City. I’ve heard the inside is beautiful and the outside certainly is, but it is closed “Due to the current situation” and apparently will remained closed to the public for the foreseeable future. One day I will go there, but it won’t be during this stay in Israel.
And so, dear Friends, the modern plague hasn’t killed me or even prevented me from reaching the Holy Sites, even if it did prevent me from entering half of them. Unlike the Medieval pilgrim, there is a good probability that I will outlast this plague and be able to come again to the Holy Land and see all the places again.
Pax!
DS
