SHMS Desert Formation Experience 2006

This morning, we had Mass at the Church of the Beatitudes. Today was Fr. Byrnes’ 10^th anniversary of priestly ordination. After mass, we loaded up the bus and headed on the road at 9:00. We traveled northeast toward Caesarea Philippi, the site where Peter said Jesus was the Messiah. The city, now an archaeological site, was at the Hebron National Park. There were springs there that form the basis for the Jordan River. There was an ancient temple there dedicated the god, Pan. We walked around there for about 45 minutes. After we left there, we took a scenic drive through the Golan Heights. We continued driving southward back to the Sea of Galilee. We first had lunch at a restaurant that served the St. Peter fish. It was a whole fish served on a plate with French fries and all the Middle Eastern fixings. After lunch, we went to Capernaum, the town of our Lord. There is a fourth-century church there built on the spot of Peter’s house. Now, there is a much larger church built over it. Directly next to it was a synagogue that very well could have been the one Jesus taught and ministered at when he was at Capernaum. We had the opportunity to pray there briefly. After Capernaum, we went down toward the Sea of Galilee and boarded one of the fishing boats for a trip out onto the Sea of Galilee. They played about 4 praise and worship songs, and even raised the American flag to the tune of the Star Spangled Banner. They did a little “fish-catching”, but ended up not catching anything. The ride lasted about 30-45 minutes. After embarking, we went into the museum that contains an actual fishing boat almost 2,000 years old.

We began the day atop of Mount Tabor, the site of the Transfiguration. After Morning Prayer, we had 3 hours of personal prayer time on the mount. After a sumptuous Italian lunch of pasta and chicken, we were on the road again. About half the group decided to walk down Mt. Tabor, while the other half took a taxi. We drove to the village of Cana, the location of where Christ worked his first miracle at the request of his mother, by turning water into wine. After passing by the church of St. Bartholomew, we had Mass there at the church which commemorates Christ's first miracle. After several of us bought some cheap wine as a souvenier, we drove to Nazareth, and made a visit to the Basilica of the Annunciation. We had an hour to pray there and to take in the many interesting displays, icons, and pictures of the Virgin Mary. The mosaic attributed to the United States was described to us as "unforgettable." It was. We then made our way to the Hotel St. Gabriel, where we had evening prayer and dinner. Today was Rich Budd's Birthday, and we celebrated with a cake complete with a firecracker candle that set off the smoke detector.

This morning, most of us were awakened by the 4AM call to prayer by the nearby Muslim mosque. Drowsy and touched with a bit of eye dust, we had breakfast before heading out at 8:30 for our visits to the churches in Nazareth.

We've posted some pictures from Friday's visit to the ruins of the City of David, which includes a couple pictures from Hezekiah's Tunnel. There is also a picture from Mass celebrated in the lower church at St. Peter's in Galicantu. 

The day started with early Mass at the monastery ad Coenaculum, meaning towards the Cenacle. The Cenacle itself has been turned into a mosque because it is a spot although unlikely where King David may have been buried. Only the pope was known to celebrate Mass there in 2000. It was still a moving experience to celebrate Mass so close to the spot of the Last Supper.

Afterwards we made our way over to Dormition Abbey. Tradition, more Orthodox than Catholic, says Mary died here and was honored in various places around Jerusalem before being placed in the tomb which is near Gethsemane. The church was beautiful and had a statue of Mary sleeping underneath the main chapel. Many seminarians made their Holy Hour in the Blessed Sacrament chapel nearby.

The rest of the day was free.

We visited St. Peter Gallicantu. Gallicantu means the cock crows. Tradition was that it was the site where Peter thrice denied our Savior; however, it was not likely to be the site of the high priest's residence which is more likely to be in the Armenian corridor. Still pilgrims have visited this place for 1400 years and graces abound. Outside the church steps led from the place of the Last Supper which was above into the valley. It is almost certain that Jesus would have walked this path the night before he died. We had Mass in the lower chapel of the church and explored some of the excavations below.

After Mass we descended the mount to Hezekiah's tunnel. It was a half hour wait and many of us ate our packed lunches. Once inside there was a traffic jam. Israelis can't handle traffic and this bellicose man right behind us kept yelling for people to get moving. Not sure exactly where he wanted them to go. About half of the group went into the tunnel which involved walking through knee deep water. The other half cut out early through a dry tunnel.

The water filled tunnel ends in the Pool of Siloam where Jesus cured the blind man (cf. Jn 9). Unfortunately the pool now smells to put it politely and wasn't the most conducive spot for prayer.

The two groups which were separated at this point made their way back up the mountain to St. Peter Gallicantu.

As our last free day in Jerusalem, all of us decided to make the most out this day.  It began with an early morning rise at around 5am so that we could catch cabs at 6am to take us to the Holy Sepulchre for Mass at 6:30am.  Most of us made it in time for the First Reading.  The Mass, which was in Spanish, took place in the tomb where Christ was buried and rose.  Although a group was already in there, we could still hear what was said as we stood on the outside of the tomb.  Others, upon learning that Mass was offered in German on Calvary, decided to attend Mass there as it wasn't as crowded.

Afterwards, several guys departed immediately after the dismissal and made a mad dash to the Armenian Church of St. James (it was only going to be open from 6:30am-7:00am according to one guide book).  There they enveloped themselves in the beauty of Armenian chant and enjoyed the ambiance of the church, dimly lit by a few candles and by sunlight peeking through closed doors.  Others stayed in the Holy Sepulchre where Mass was offered once again at 7:30am. 

One seminiarian went to Bethlehem by himself!!

Many of us visited the sights of the New City of Jerusalem, almost nostalgic to that of New York.  Prices in the New City were definitely above average, but the atmosphere of the whole experience made those prices bearable.  Music filled the air as musicians throughout the city played melodious tunes that ranged from the Irish to the 80's.

After spending some time in the New City, some returned back to the Old City, taking in the sights once again (and perhaps for one last time) of the places where Christ trod during His time on earth.  Most have returned to Ein Kerem for a great pizza dinner, while a few remained in Jerusalem... there to enjoy the nightly life of the ancient city and to dine on very exquisite Middle Eastern cuisine.

Tuesday

We boarded the bus to set off for Bethany. Although it is only a couple of miles from Jerusalem, it probably is 20 miles away because it is in the West Bank and through a security checkpoint. We visited a church built upon the site where the Byzantines erected a church in the fourth or fifth century. The tomb of Lazarus is now located under a mosque. Even though it would have been at the street level in Jesus' time, we had to descend twenty-four flights of stairs to visit the tomb.

We were supposed to eat lunch at the Inn of the Good Samaritan, but... it was closed.

Our next stop was the Qumran archaeological park. We saw the ruins of the ancient communities that would have copied the Dead Sea scrolls and stored them in pottery to be preserved for almost 2000 years in caves.

The highlight of the day though for hot seminarians was swimming in the Dead Sea! It was an experience unlike any other. Really you have to try to float immediately once you get into the water because you'll sink in the mud or trip over the rocks (and gash yourself as Rich did). David tried to read his material for the TR and was successful. Mike drank coffee while floating, and several covered themselves in mud. In all, it wasn't as nice as a Michigan beach and the water was SALTY. Don't get it in your eye or in your mouth.

Wednesday

"As he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples. He said, 'Go into the village opposite you, and as you enter it you will find a colt tethered on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it here'" (Lk 19:29-30).

We visited several places on the Mount of Olives this morning. Our first stop was the spot where Jesus ascended into heaven. The church built by the crusaders is long gone and was turned into a mosque. Inside contained the rock of Jesus' footprint. We sat there staring at it for a while but we really couldn't see it unless Jesus had a giant foot!

The next stop was Dominus Flevit. Here Jesus wept for the peace of Jerusalem. Because of a misunderstanding, we were forced to have Mass and Morning Prayer outside. Afterwards we were allowed into the chapel which fittingly overlooked the Al-Aqsa Mosque, a reminder that fervent prayers for peace were still necessary. The view overlooking the city from the mount was spectacular. From there we had the best view of the prominent places where our Lord's Passion took place, from the cenacle, to the Garden of Gethsemane, St. Peter Gallicantu, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

We walked down through the cemetery on the Mount of Olives and took our bus back to Bethphage which is atop the mount. Bethphage commemorates our Lord's triumphant entry into Jerusalem and is the start of the Palm Sunday procession every year in Jerusalem.

After lunch we explored excavations underneath the temple. At one point we were able to walk the steps that Jesus would have walked to enter the temple.

There are three or four places believed to be the site of Emmaus. Our first stop was the Church of the Covenant. The steeple had a beautiful statue of Mary standing atop the Ark of the Covenant.  As our tour guide pointed out, this included the New Testament and the Old Testament of the Bible. Mary is the fulfillment of the Old Testament Ark of the Covenant because she bore God within her as did the Ark of the Covenant.

Next, we went to a Benedictine monastery where Mass was celebrated in French. The Liturgy was chanted beautifully, lasting about an hour and a half.  Although the chapel had beautiful paintings on the walls and on the columns, the iconoclasts defaced the paintings.

Since Mass was longer than expected, we weren’t able to make it in time to enter the next monastery.  They were closed because they were chanting the Office. We stayed there for a bit and ate our bag lunches.

Our last stop was the ruins of another site believed to be Emmaus. Most of the ruins dated back to the fifth century.  There were ruins of a basilica and of a baptistery that had been  built by the Byzantines and then reconstructed by the Crusaders.  Of course it was left in ruins by the Muslims. There were 1^st century tombs discovered by archeologists and then also discovered by Mark Hornbacher and Rich. (Check out the picture of Mark and Rich rising from the tomb.) Rich was convinced that this was the spot of the true Emmaus. Afterwards, we made our way back home.

On the way back home, we stopped at the tomb of Samuel which actually wasn’t his tomb. Instead, it had been turned into an Israeli military complex.  Unfortunately, we could not go through. Well, at least the view of Jerusalem was spectacular.

Just to "whet your appetite" for the time being (we have EP and TR in 5 minutes)...

Today we visited the Church of all Nations, spent 2 1/2 hours in the Garden of Gethsemane, and it was another nice day out (which means a day that was "warm and mostly mosquito free").

More to come after Supper! ...hopefully.

This morning we climbed to a monastery which was the spot where the Blessed Mother visited Elizabeth. One of the more beautiful churches we have seen was at the site. This of course is another of those churches built by the crusaders then destroyed/fell into major disrepair under the Muslims. In the lower chapel there was a painting of our Lady and Elizabeth. Inside another wall was the rock behind which Elizabeth hid St. John the Baptist during the martyrdom of the Holy Innocents. In the top chapel there were beautiful paintings, the Council of Ephesus where Mary was declared Theotokos, Mary as guardian of the Church, the Wedding Feast at Cana, the sea battle of Lepanto (won by Mary's intercession) and Duns Scotus arguing the Immaculate Conception.

Mass was at another site, the home of Zacharia and Elizabeth. Fr. Trapp explained the multiple sites as places where pious Christians have visited and prayed for thousands of years. Which of these was the actual site... It will be grace filled to pray at both. This was another beautifully adorned chapel.

We caught a cab to an archaeological museum which showed the history of the Holy Land. We had hoped to see the Dead Sea scrolls here, but they only exhibited a copy.

Today was a free day, i.e. no planned activity. All the seminarians went into the "old city," taking a bus at 9:15.

We visited the Church of St. Anne which was the home of Joachim & Anne and the birthplace of the Blessed Mother. The church is next to the Shepherd's Pool where Jesus cured the parlytic in John 5. We spent close to an hour exploring the site and praying in the adoration chapel in the church below. Two churches had been built over the pool. One was a crusader church and the other was built by the Byzantines. The foundations still existed, somewhat.

Mass was at the birthplace of Mary which is in a crypt church below St. Anne's. After Mass we went into St. Anne's and sang two Marian hymns in honor of Our Blessed Mother. We tried as hard as we could to drown out the Muslim prayer blasting on the loudspeaker.

Next was lunch at our favorite pizzaria, which some of us call Louie's in honor of Ben.

We walked to St. Stephen's, a beautiful church rededicated in 1900. It was built over the site where Stephen was buried. Stephen, however, was moved by the crusaders when they were evicted. We spent more time in prayer and then the group dispersed for a couple of hours before catching the bus to En Kerem.

-Dave, Phil, & Rich

Today was our workout day. Instead of boarding buses we walked for an hour down a very large hill and up a smaller one (Rich says it was three Mountains) to get to a monastery where it was likely that St. John the Baptist lived. This time we checked ahead and after waiting quite a while, a Franciscan did answer the door and let us in.

We celebrated Mass in their chapel. We then walked up a large hill to the tomb of St. Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist was buried. At the site a small chapel was erected. We spent a half hour in personal prayer there.

We then returned home (up the very large hills[rich; he was sick by the way]) for lunch and a welcome siesta. The guys enjoyed the “light” day.

 

-Dave, Phil, & Rich