(Ed’s Note: This is the second in a series of articles tracing the route of the Holy Land Pilgrimage that Joe and Mila Yamamoto trekked last year. This is the same route that will be followed by the 200 pilgrims who have already signed up to join the CFC Pearlgrimage from November 20 to December 2, 2011.)
From Mt. Nebo, the CFC pilgrims will proceed to the lost city of Petra in southern Jordan, an ancient monument and building carved out of rose-colored limestone. To gain access to Petra, the pilgrims will travel on foot through al Siq, a narrow gorge that winds its way for about a mile into the ancient ruins of the city. The Siq is a natural geological fault produced by tectonic forces and worn smooth by water erosion. This trip will take the whole day.
Petra was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985 and named as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007. It is located in southwestern Jordan, along the slopes of Mount Hor, the mountain where Aaron, the brother of Moses, was buried. Likewise, Petra was the land of the Edomites, descendants of Esau, the twin brother of Jacob. The Bible tells us that Jacob, in disguise, deceitfully stole the birthright and blessing that properly belonged to Esau as the firstborn of Isaac, enough reason for the feud between the descendants of the two brothers. Genesis eventually narrates that the two tribes eventually effect a reconciliation after a lengthy period of fraternal enmity.
Treasury,Petra
For movie aficionados, the Treasury temple (Al Khazneh) in Petra was featured in the third Indiana Jones movie, "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989) as the place where the fictional Indiana Jones discovers the location of the Holy Grail.
The Treasury,Petra
The journey to the ancient land of Israel follows a border crossing at Allenby Bridge, named after the famous British Army Field Marshal Edmund Henry Allenby who served with distinction during the conquest of Palestine and Syria at the time of the First World War. Allenby also won the Battle of Megiddo over the Turks in 1918. Megiddo is the vast plain in Israel where the Bible describes Armageddon, the last great battle between the forces of good and evil in the future.
The bridge crossing into Israel runs across the Jordan River and connects Jericho in the West Bank to the kingdom of Jordan. While modern day crossings across the Allenby Bridge is rather perfunctory, the significance of crossing the historic Jordan River should not be lost on the pilgrims.
Significant events associated with the Jordan River are emphasized in Biblical history as the struggles for survival of God's people. After the death of Moses, the Israelites led by Joshua proceeded to cross the river. The Ark of the Covenant, carried by the priests, went ahead of the Israelites and as soon as their feet touched the edge of the waters of the River Jordan, it dried up allowing the people to cross over to Canaan on firm ground (Joshua 3:14-17).
Much later in the Bible timeline (2 Kings 2:8), the prophet Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up and struck the water, which divided, and both Elijah and Elisha crossed over on dry ground. Soon after that crossing, Elisha asked Elijah for a 'double portion of your spirit.' Not long after that conversation, Elijah was taken up to heaven in a flaming chariot in a whirlwind (2 Kings 2:9-11). In these two momentous events, the River Jordan miraculously dried up on account of divine intervention.
After Elisha took over the prophet role from Elijah, he was sought out by Naaman, the army commander of the King of Aram. Naaman was afflicted with leprosy and, upon advice of Elisha, was made to dip seven times in the Jordan. Miraculously, Naaman was cured (2 Kings 5:1-14). After his encounter with the army commander, Elisha performed another miracle at the Jordan -- he made the axe head of one of the "children of the prophets" float, by throwing a piece of wood into the water (2 Kings 5:14; 6:6).
In the New Testament events surrounding Jesus, the River Jordan features prominently once again. The river is the site of His baptism (Matt.3:13-17; Mark 1: 9-11; Luke 3:21-22 and John 1:29-34).
IMMERSED IN PERSONAL THOUGHTS
During Mila’s and my own pilgrimage last year, I remember being deep in personal thought as our tour group crossed the border. Setting foot on the land where Jesus himself walked was a dream come true. Crossing the Jordan nowadays via the Allenby bridge, in the airconditioned comfort of a tour bus, is no big deal. For the Israelites in ancient times, however, fording the Jordan was always a matter of survival. Life and death weighed heavily on God's Chosen people as they crossed this natural barrier. For modern day Palestinians, engaged as they are in the lingering enmity with Israel, there remains the obstacle of hurdling restrictive policies governing their free passage into and out of Israel.
Once one gets past the immigration formalities, Filipino pilgrims will feel a genuine warm welcome and friendship from the people of the modern state of Israel. Perhaps, the Filipinos have become familiar and comforting presence at workplaces, offices and kibbutzes or Jewish homes as family caretakers or long-term residents. The likelihood is that modern day Jews remember how the Philippine government supported them in the fragile early days of their existence by being one of the first nations to cast a vote in favor of a free and independent Jewish nation. At the time of the Jewish pogroms in Europe during the harsh days of anti-Semitism in the 1930s while the dark clouds of World War II were forming, our country was also one of the very few that courageously provided asylum to many displaced, unwanted and persecuted Jewish families. Thus, today, visiting Filipinos do not need a visa to enter a grateful Israel. Remembering the selfless acts of Filipino leaders of a bygone era, I felt a tinge of pride in my heritage.
JERICHO BECKONS
After a simple border crossing, the pilgrim will set foot in Jericho, to the west of the Jordan River. Jericho is an ancient city in Israel. It is ironic that no Jew should enter, much less reside, in the ancient historic city of Jericho - it is now Palestinian territory! One recalls that Jericho was the very piece of land that God handed over miraculously to Joshua. This is one of the modern paradoxes of the Middle East. A nuance of the modus vivendi among the Jews and Palestinians is that there are recognized areas in an independent Israel that are not open to the entry of Jews; places where only Palestinian Arabs can live and dwell. I remember purposely telling myself not to dwell on the politics of it all, if I were to derive the most meaning from the pilgrimage. Similarly categorized areas are very important Christian pilgrim sites - Bethlehem, Nazareth, Bethany, Nablus, and even the Temple mount in Jerusalem.
In a small town park well inside Jericho is a lone, towering and ancient sycamore tree, the one that tradition associates with Zaccheus, the tax collector of short stature and beloved of Jesus. His name means 'pure and righteous one' in Hebrew. The call of Jesus for Zaccheus to come down from the branches of the Sycamore was a manifestation of God's unconditional love for a repentant sinner. Jesus said to him, 'Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.' (Luke 19:9-10)
Sycamore Trees, Zaccheus
It felt good to pause for a few moments under that old sycamore tree and to reflect on that encounter between sinner and Redeemer. As I came close to the trunk of that tree and savored the gentle breeze that made the leaves and small branches sway, it was just as easy to feel the kind of inner peace that Zaccheus must have felt when he met the Lord.
Just outside the limits of old Jericho is the Mountain of Temptation, an almost barren mountain that rises 350 meters above sea level. This was where Jesus allowed the devil to tempt him during His forty days and nights of fasting. The gospel narration places the event about the time after Jesus was baptized by John in Bethabara, a part of the River Jordan.The summit of Mount of Temptation provides a magnificently commanding and panoramic view of the Jordan Valley.
A Greek Orthodox monastery was built in the 6th century over the cave where Christ stayed during his forty days and forty nights of desert fasting. This spot is another of the holy sites said to have been identified by Queen Helena in her pilgrimage of 326 AD.
The mountain, which from early Christian times has been called the Mount of Temptation, was referred to as "Mons Quarantana" by the Crusaders in the first half of the 12th century, and is locally known as Quruntul (from Quaranta meaning forty, the number of days in the Gospel account of Christ's fast).
Mountain of Temptation
Next stop is Mount Tabor, the mountain of the Transfiguration, the revelation of Jesus’s divine glory that was witnessed by the apostles Peter, James, and John (Matt 17:1–9; Mark 9:2–10; Luke 9:28–36). The Transfiguration took place after Jesus’s discourse in response to Peter’s declaration and confession at Caesarea Philippi that Jesus was the Messiah (Matt 16:13–28; Mark 8:27–9:1; Luke 9:18–22). Jesus’ face shone brilliantly like the sun, and his clothing appeared white as light. Moses and Elijah appeared as witnesses representing the Law and the Prophets testifying to the reality of Jesus as the Messiah. A bright cloud then overshadowed them all and a voice was heard declaring, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” (Luke 9:35).
The cloud, so consistent with the theophanies of the Old Testament, revealed the presence of the Holy Spirit. As Saint Thomas Aquinas noted, the Transfiguration included the whole of the Trinity: “The Father in the voice; the Son in the man; the Spirit in the shining cloud” (Summa theologiae, III, q.45, a.4, ad 2). Traditionally, the mountain on which the Transfiguration took place is said to have been Mount Tabor in lower Galilee (CCC 554–56). (text on Transfiguration taken from the Catholic Dictionary, pp.1177-78).
Awed by that experience, Peter offered to build three tents (or booths) one each for Jesus, Moses and Elijah. Because of Peter’s offer to build the booths, some Bible scholars believe that this event must have happened close to the Feast of the Tabernacles or the Sukkot . This festival is still being celebrated to commemorate the desert dwelling time of the Israelites during their exodus from Egypt.
The Transfiguration revealed to the apostles the divinity of Christ. I have always wondered about the reason for the appearance of Moses and Elijah. Yes, they represent the Law and the Prophets in the Old Testament, respectively. Moses died in Mount Nebo and his tomb remains unknown. Elijah was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind. Could it be that another possible reason for the particular appearance of the two Old Testament personalities was that there were no mortal remains to speak of in reference to them? That through the Law and the Prophets, there was continuity with the New Testament; the coming of Jesus was in fulfillment of the prophecies regarding the Messianic redemption.
Every moment of our stay in Israel somehow felt very special and refreshing. Far beyond the novelty and excitement of going to a new country, I felt a sense of awe and wonder that cannot be explained by mere traveling to a historic place. It was really like getting connected to a lifeline, to what is the source of my own faith. From moment to moment, there was a new discovery; a fresh insight over something overlooked or taken for granted.
The actual rebirth of the modern state of Israel in 1948 is a prophecy come true. For many centuries, exiled Jewish diaspora across the globe longed to go back to the land of their ancestors, back to the land promised by God to Abraham, Isaac , Jacob and the descendants of the twelve tribes of Israel. In mid-twentieth century, against all odds, Israel was reborn. It is the only modern country that revived its original name, its original language, alphabet and religion. Just standing, walking, admiring and listening to the many facets of life in Israel is to stand witness to a miracle.
There is something uniquely unfathomable and captivating in the charm as well as the timelessness of Israel. The allure that this ancient land confers upon a pilgrim is a particular 'kinship' and spiritual bond that only its being the spiritual birthplace of our Christian faith can ever give.
Walking about the narrow streets, or trekking in the hills that are barren in some but blooming with produce in others, one cannot miss out on the breadth and contrast of varying impressions on the land that allowed the birth and growth of the world's three greatest monotheistic religions. In my case, the pilgrimage was a great opportunity to deepen my appreciation for the roots of our faith.
