A Birthday in the Old City

This morning started with a birthday cake for Dr E, with candles labeled "6" and "0" on it.  (I won't tell you his exact age!)  After a rousing rendition of the happy birthday song, Dr E successfully blew out both candles.

We then left to take the bus from here into the old city of Jerusalem.  We got to the bus station to find there is no bus directly from here to there like there was two years ago.  A cab driver was more than happy to arrange cabs for us to get to the checkpoint, which we'd have to go through on foot before finding the bus on the Israeli side that could take us to Old Jerusalem and our intended destination, Christ Church.  We arrived just minutes before the service started.

Old Jerusalem is divided into four quarters - Armenian, Christian, Muslim, and Jewish (divisions which don't necessarily reflect the present).  Christ Church, in the Armenian quarter, is passionate about outreach to her Jewish neighbors.  Today's service was in English, with some liturgy and songs in Hebrew.  The sermon on Zacchaeus was meaningful for our group because we just saw his tree yesterday!  I appreciated the pastor's emphasis on Jewish mindset which created the framework in which Jesus interacted with Zacchaeus. 

After meeting up with Chris E (from last year's ICS trip; he's studying in Jerusalem this semester), we visited some "holy" sites, including the traditional site of Jesus' crucifixion and burial - the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Christian quarter.  Many in our group were saddened to see so many pilgrims desiring to touch "the very" spots where Jesus was nailed, hung, laid, etc, when we knew the Bible said he was crucified outside the city gates, so this couldn't be the location at all.  JT had us pray for those who were here seeking a religious experience and missing the relationship with Jesus.  Then Chris E graciously took our group photo.

The evening ended back in Bethlehem, hearing Joseph the innkeeper's testimony of how God has worked in his life and how He's working even now in Bethlehem.  He was born 130 meters from the place where Jesus was born, but his spiritual journey took him to the States for many years before coming back and opening a hotel in Bethlehem.  Joseph is passionate about sharing the love of Jesus with his neighbors, a task which has unique challenges, considering the surroundings.  Pray for Joseph - and many others like him - for encouragement and perseverance!

Masada, Mud, and Mount of Temptation

We took a swing into southern areas of Israel/West Bank today, with our first stop being Masada.  Masada had been rebuilt by King Herod just before Christ's birth for use as his summer cabin, so to speak.  It sat empty until the Jewish revolt under the Romans, serving as a last holdout against Roman occupation.  The Romans surrounded Masada for 3 years, and when they were finally able to reach the top, they found an eerie silence. The Jews had died by their own hands that morning, believing that death as a free man was more victorious than life as a Roman slave.  This gave our students a glimpse into the Jewish mindset.  Masada itself gave us a glimpse into the genius of King Herod.  The mountaintop was fortified with cisterns holding 3 years' worth of water and storage areas to hold 3 years' worth of supplies for his armies, plus the extravagant living rooms and bath houses.  It would have been a wonderful place to spend a hot desert summer!

Our next stop was the Dead Sea, where we wore our bobbing suits and tested the water.  (It's not possible to swim in the Dead Sea, so we had to rename our swimsuits).  It was definitely a different experience for a bunch of Minnesotans used to the lakes up north!  One group of us tried some of the mud which the Dead Sea is known for.  It's like that which you use for a facial mask, but black and smeared all over the body.  Stay tuned, and I'll try to upload a shot from Amy N's camera.

From there we drove to Qumran to see the caves where the Dead Sea scrolls were found.  However, due to a couple students feeling kind of nauseous from the bus ride (or swallowing salty water?), combined with arriving after about 49 other tour busses, we decided to skip the tour.  Our tour guide, Suki, picked up a postcard of the caves and gave a brief explanation.  We took off from there for a quick run through Jericho to see "the" sycamore tree which Zacchaeus climbed (it was an old one, anyway!) and the Mount of Temptation, where Jesus was tempted by the devil to bow and worship him. 

En route to all of these sites, Suki filled us in with other biblical tidbits about the area. He showed us the mountains of Moab, which are currently known as Jordan.  He pointed out where King David did this, King Saul did that, John the Baptist did this, etc.  Ashley's comment at the end of the day gives pause for reflection.  She said that even though Suki knew more about the Bible than most people on the bus (which says a lot, considering the courses they take at Northwestern!), he didn't know the Author of the book. He claimed to not be religious, finding all religions to be the same kind of thing. She found that sad, and wondered how someone who had studied scriptures so much in order to be a tour guide, indeed, who in other areas of life was so intelligent - BA from Arizona, MA from Germany, fluent in 7 languages - could miss the point of the Book.  She realized that reading the Bible without the Holy Spirit won't change a person much.  A good reminder to ask for the Spirit's guidance every time you read his word!

A Day at BBC

After reading Light Force and "meeting" people in the pages like Bishara Awad, it seems almost surreal to meet him in person, not to mention realizing that much of the book took place on the street directly outside of the front door of Bethlehem Bible College.  In a similar sense, it was humbling to have him walking past as we were working on various projects and thanking us for our work.  HE was thanking us?  But he's the famous one! I'm guessing he doesn't see himself that way.

Our taskmaster for the day was a charming man named Jihaad.  He had some of us cleaning up the flower gardens, others putting up a fence, some cleaning windows on the roof, and most of the rest of us on painting projects - a large outdoor gate, a classroom door, railings up to the admin building, and the walls in the main entry way.  A couple of us also worked in the library.  I was impressed with how he could oversee so many projects in so many different areas of the school grounds - and still get off work at 3:00 leaving us with a feeling of accomplishment.

We've had some opportunities to mingle with the staff and students over lunch together. Cassidy and Amy have been learning some Arabic words from the BBC students. Isaac learned about the difficulties another student has trying to get home - how her 30 minute commute now takes 3-4 hours.  Koob talked to a student who wants to be a missionary but is frustrated because he can't leave Bethlehem.  Please pray for us, that we will be led to speak just the right words of encouragement to our brothers and sisters here!

O "Little" Town of Bethlehem...

I'm going to have to double check my hymnal when getting home. Do the lyrics that follow "...how still we see thee lie" mention roosters at 3 am? dogs barking? horns honking? imams calling for prayer? So much for a Silent Night...

Welcome to Bethlehem, home to thousands of Palestinian Muslims and Christians housed in apartments precariously perched on steep hillsides linked by labrynths of winding lanes.  We're staying in a building owned by Joseph the innkeeper (and yes, we did find room at the inn upon arriving. Quite spacious rooms, in fact).  As we marveled at the cars and tour busses jostling for space on the road in front of the hotel, Joseph commented, "They say they will build bridges and tunnels for traffic. Where?  This town was built for donkeys!"  After finding our way to the Church of the Nativity this afternoon, we agreed with him.

Life in the Palestinian areas of Israel is not easy.  We saw an example of that on our way here from Tel Aviv last night.  The bus driver said normally the drive is 40 minutes, but because the checkpoint into Bethlehem (which is in the West Bank) "was closed since 3 days," we had to drive a good 20-30 minutes out of our way to enter Bethlehem via one of its suburbs, Beit Jala. Very frustrating for the driver, who couldn't explain any logic to closing a checkpoint if one can get into the city by another route anyway.

The bulk of our time here will be spent helping with various chores at Bethlehem Bible College. BBC brings a beacon of hope to this community. Directly across the street from the college is a refugee camp, crammed with Palestinians who've lost their homes, some having lived there since Israelis took their land in 1948.  A book that the team read this fall is Light Force by Brother Andrew.  I highly, highly recommend it to give an understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a viewpoint that CNN will never give you - that of the Palestinian Christian.  Today we met Bishara Awad, a Palestinian Christian and founder of the college, and tomorrow we will start painting gates and classrooms, cleaning windows, helping in the library, and working in the garden.

Leaving London already?

"It was so rainy!" says Cassidy about our day out in east London.  Aside from her comment on typical London weather (and nearly taking out a few people with her umbrella), the general consensus of our day spent in east London was of an amazement over the assortment of people found here.  We met with Ben, who has been working with Pakistani immigrants for years.  We spent the morning in the flat that his organization owns (to house visitors and longer-term workers), drinking tea and learning about Ben's background with Pakistan, some notes on Islam, and a brief history of east London.  A few hundred years ago, Protestants from France flocked to this area of London and called it home.  Once they prospered and moved out, Jews from other parts of Europe settled on this section of the Thames.  After they moved on, Muslims and Hindus from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and other areas of Asia moved in - to the point that there's currently a neighborhood here called "Bangla-town." 

After a spicy lunch of chicken curry, our group split into 3 teams and walked through east London, soaking up more than mizzle (British for mist/drizzle).  The teams experienced an open air market featuring anything from produce to head-wraps, walked past the oldest mosque in England, smelled some interesting smells, and saw the site where the Salvation Army was formed.

Tomorrow we leave for a much warmer climate - somewhere in the vicinity of the Dead Sea.  I, for one, am looking forward to being able to walk outside without 4 layers on to ward against the chill!  We hope for an uneventful transition from England to Israel.  I'm not sure what we'll have for Internet access once there; I'll give updates as often as possible.

A Picture is Worth... almost as much as the person taking it?

Making a Phone Call?

We've been just over two days now in London, which we're finding is not quite as relaxed as Portugal.  There is a lot to see here!  Thankfully the London Underground is quite easy to navigate. It really is amazing, the labrynth of "tubes" criss-crossing below street level!

We've tried to experience Evensong at both Westminster and St Paul's, arriving to find out that the start time listed on the Internet was not as accurate as the information on the signboard posted out front of each.  The outsides of the buildings are impressive!  Since we couldn't go in, we opted to at least take pictures.  It's not every day you run across Big Ben!  Although some of the picture-takers were almost as entertaining...


Today our group had a "free day," so we split up to explore.  My group tried to tour Westminster in the morning but didn't want to pay the 15 pounds entrance fee.  The sign out front stated that the fees were used for upkeep of the building; those who go to worship [Evensong services] are never charged an entrance fee.  In other words, people pay to see the building, but there is no charge to worship the King of the Universe.  And shouldn't it be that way? 

After last night's service at our host church, some of the students asked the pastor some questions about his sermon on adoption, based on Romans 8:1-17.  He shared the difficulties that Christian families in England have when trying to adopt, as all adoptions have to go through the state.  Because such a small percentage of the English are actually practicing Christians, the social worker tried to tell them that putting a child into such an "odd" situation might actually cause her harm.  A Christian home?  In England?  We're beginning to understand the idea of a post-Christian society in Europe.  There is a great void here!

Bika!

That seems to be the phrase most commonly heard around the seminary here.  Bika is the shot of espresso so integral to Portuguese daily life. The coffee shop up the hill has become a morning favorite for our quiet time or group studies; likewise, we see many Portuguese gathering to meet friends and carry on business there.  In fact, some church plants here have started as coffee houses.  People aren't comfortable entering church buildings, but everyone finds a coffee house safe! 

Today we sampled another item Portugal is world famous for: pastel de Belem (or pastel de nata if you get it anywhere else in the country).  We drove to Belem to sample this tasty pastry, and all agreed: Dr Phillips was right to tell us we couldn't get the full Portuguese experience without it. Another discovery we made was grilled sardines for lunch.  Those who were brave enough to order it found it delicious.

Yesterday we visited the other two seminaries in the country. One is run by the Assemblies of God, which is one of the largest evangelical denominations in the country.  The other is PBI, Portuguese Bible Institute, which is where Dr Phillips and his wife served for many years.  We led their evening chapel service with songs led by Aaron, JT, and Amy N (and a Portuguese student on percussion), Garret giving a message, and a drama of the prodigal son by Aaron, Koob, Cassidy, Ashley, Krista, and Amy R.  In between our visits of the seminaries, we also visited the European Teen Challenge headquarters, toured their facilities here, and learned about the incredible impact Teen Challenge can have in different countries around Europe.  We were saddened to learn that some government policies in different European Union states are making it nearly impossible for Teen Challenge to work effectively.  It's the "Jesus factor" which differentiates this sober program from other programs. Please pray that more lives will be changed by the "Jesus factor!"  Portugal is less than 1% evangelical Christian, so organizations like Teen Challenge are vital to show the amazing change Jesus can have in someone's life.

We leave very early tomorrow morning for England, where we may not have much Internet access and so we may not update the blog as often.  We'll update as often as we can!