Day 13 – Thursday, January 22: Garden Tomb, St. Anne’s Church & Pools of Bethesda, Sifting Project, Israel Museum, Hidden Gate, Farewell Dinner
Today was our last full day in Jerusalem and the last day of the trip. We made the most of it was we enjoyed various encounters throughout the day. We began (with a late start) with a brief Worship & Communion service at the Garden Tomb. The weather was again on the cool side, with a high only around 50. We read from two of the “Psalms of Ascent” (Psalm 121 and 134) as we left the hotel at 8:45.
Garden Tomb
Our first stop was to the Garden Tomb. Located on the north side of the Old City today, this suggested site for the crucifixion and burial site of Jesus didn’t begin until the late 1800s. Today it serves as a Protestant alternative site to the Holy Sepulcher Church. Once we arrived, a local guide showed us the suggested crucifixion site and the tomb. The tomb, however, dates to the First Temple Period, and was one of many other Old Testament tombs in the area. Nonetheless, the Good News of Jesus is shared here, and our time of Worship & Communion service was special! Graydon led us in the observance of the Lord’s Table. It was a meaningful time for all. We worship the Person and not the place.
St. Anne’s Church – Pools of Bethesda
Following our time at the Garden Tomb, we bussed to the NE corner of the Old City where we walked to the only open gate of the Old City on this eastern side. We walked into St. Stephen’s Gate (also called Lion’s and Jericho Gate) and visited St. Anne’s Church, a Crusader Church. The acoustics in the church are incredible, providing a 6-7 second echo. We enjoyed singing here! On the same grounds is also the Pool of Bethesda. We read John 5 of the miracle that took place here. After walked out the same way where David picked us up.
Temple Mount Sifting Project
From here we drove to the northern end of the Mt. of Olives for a “hands-on” experience! We participated in the Sifting Project. This was a project of transferring nearly 400 dump truck fills of debris extracted illegally from underneath the Temple Mount (the Arabs did this in 1999 in order to build an underground mosque at the NE corner of the Temple Mount). So following a brief teaching from the local archaeologist, we sifted through some of this material. It was a fun experience for about 45 minutes, with a few of us finding significant things! Our group found a coin (from Early Islamic Period, mosaic stones (tesserae), Roman glass, pottery, among other things.
“Today was our last full day here in Jerusalem. To begin with a Worship & Communion Service at the Garden Tomb was special. We also visited the Pools of Bethesda, St. Anne’s Church, and the Israel Museum. It was fun to participate also in the Temple Mount Sifting Project. What a great last day!”
Israel Museum
From here we drove to the area of the Knesset, Israel’s parliamentary building. Across the street is the Israel Museum. Here we saw three things. First, a 1:50 scale model of 2nd Temple Jerusalem. The model gives us a good idea of what Jerusalem looked liked during the time of Jesus. Next, we briefly walked through the Shrine of the Book where some of the Dead Sea Scrolls are on display. Lastly, we saw the highlights within the archaeological wing of the museum. Among the many things we saw, this included such artifacts like the Arad “Holy of Holies,” the Dan and Pilate Inscriptions, Lachish Letter #4, the Ketaf Hinnom inscription (Numbers 6), Herod’s sarcophagus, and the “pie plate” from the 2nd century AD. 🙂
“Hidden Gate” (Optional)
We returned to the hotel from here. About half of the group called it a day, while others continued to the Jaffa Gate area. We walked to the southern area of the western side of the Old City to see what is called the “Hidden Gate.” This may have been the “lithostrotos” (“stone pavement”) upon which Jesus stood when Pilate presented Him to the religious of Jerusalem who wanted Jesus crucified. Some of the original steps leading up to this gate (that was there 2000 years ago) can be seen today.
We drove back to the hotel (again) for our “Farewell Dinner.” It was a good time of sharing around the table some of our “highlight” moments of the trip. For many of us, our flights have been changed because of Lufthansa canceling flights. Most in the group fly out tomorrow morning or afternoon. Others in the group who arranged their own flights will stay in Jerusalem another day or two.
Day 14 – Friday, January 23: Ben Gurion Airport, Flights Back to the U.S
Various flights we used to get us all back to the US. It was a great trip with a great group!
