O, 'Dem Jesus Slippers - Palestine of Jesus V

I think I have mentioned in previous posts that many of the traditional and highly revered Holy sites can not be authenticated.  There are a couple of good reasons for this.  In the first few centuries, there was no continuity between the time of Jesus, the writting of the Gospel texts; frequent changes of "official" attitudes of the government of the region regarding Christianity often lead to supression of cultic practices or outright persecution and the anhilation of the holders of the oral traditions; and finally, the Romans brutally supressed any Christian veneration of these sites.  It was only after the conversion of the Emperor Constantine, around 312 A.D. that sincere and "scientific" attempts were made to locate and catalogue these sites.  Constantine's searchers, including his mother, Helena, often found themselves relying on the reports of local residents about the location of these sites, some of which had not been seen above ground for over 200 years.  Once the authority of the Imperium was brought to bear, no amount of expense or inconvenience was going to stand in the way of finding and bringing  these sites to light for the veneration of pilgrims.  Hence, some major shrines are located "pretty close" to the actual location, or represent a consolidation of similar events at a single site, such as the Mutlplication of the Loaves and Fishes, reported in all four Gospels, not necessarily and the same time and in the same place.  Most pilgrims are not very troubled by this vaguery.  If we needed scientific proof and absolute verification of the facts of our Lord's life, we couldn't be Christians.  At some point in every Christian's spiritual life, there has to be the acknowledgement that facts and reasons will get you only so far.  Untimately, faith and trust are absolute necessities to "carry you home."

That is a long introduction to the special qualities which are generating this post.  There are a few places, where our Lord's presence, his very feet, if you will, are not even debatable.  Monumental structures, firm archeaological identifications, wells, sites in continuous use, without interuption, these have a special authenticity which often gives me goosebumps when I am in their presence.  We've visited several of these "authentic" sites in the last couple of days.

The first was in  Jerusalem on the Temple Mount.  Jesus' frequent visits to the Temple, from his "Presentation" until the day before his arrest are frequently cited.  His conflicts with the Priests and the officials of the temple, his teachings and healings, his arguments with the scribes and pharisees make up a good part of what we know of Jesus' ministry.  All the beautiful stones and archetecture which his disciples admired, and which Jesus predicted would be tossed down, are all gone now, replaced by a hugh plaza (the equivalent of 29 football fields) dominated by moslem shrines and mosques.  Certainly the best known and most iconic is the Dome of the Rock which covers the tip of Mount Moria and is said to be the place where God began creation, Abraham bound Isaac (or Ishmael) for sarifice, and may have been the location of the Holy of Holies for the last Temple.  It is a highly prized space on this plane of stone and masonery.

Signs leading up to the Temple Mount warn Jews that Torah Law forbids them to go up on the mount, lest they step on something, or come too near to something left over from the last Temple.  Consequently, Jews of almost any variety you can imagine use only the Western Wall as their religious focus.

The next site was one of my favorites, for a number of reasons, the Church of Saint Anne on the site of what was once the Pools of Bethesda, or the Sheeps Pool, or the pool by the Sheeps Gate, it is known by all three.  This was a hugh reservoir consisting of double pools each capable of holding lots of water.  In Jesus time, it was located just outside the city walls, and had some history as a site for healing.  This is another uncontestable location since the pools are still there, along with the Byzantine, Moslem, Crusader ruins of previous owners.  Even the Romans, who destroyed nearly everything recognizable after the Bar Kokba rebellion in 130 A.D. thought it better to preserve such an important water source.  So, it is really the place where Jesus cured the lame man and incurred the ire of the Temple Priests for healing on the sabboth.  I like the site becaused of all the ruins that are there which are quite distinct, and because of the Church of Saint Anne which, today, belongs to the French, after it was conceded to them as a reward from their participation in the Crimean War.  It is dedicated to Saint Anne, Mother of the Virgin Mary, and claims to be her home, and the birthplace of Mary.  There is a grotto there which purports to be the very location in which Anna received the vision that assured her that she would bear a child.  It's proximity to the Temple Mount adds some credibility to the claim.  The Church that is there, today, is a beautifully preserved Crusader church which the Moslems (who also venerate Anne and Mary) used as a seminary, which explains why it has remained unaltered.  The main feature of this church is its unbelievable accustics.  Under its vault, any rag-tag group of six or seven can sound like the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  Our own Maori songsters offered two or three songs which I'm sure represented a different sound than is usually heard there.  It brought one of the White Fathers who run the place out to see what was going on.  It was really sublime!

Hugh mounds of rocks and giant cicterns are not the only things that do not move around or can't easity be destroyed, so are wells.  Next we were off to Nablus, the site of ancient Sechem for a visiti to Jacob's Well.  This was an authentic anciient site even before Christ.  Scripture identifies it as a geographical location goninh back to the Patriarchs, including Jacob, of course.  Our interest was in the encounter that Jesus had with the Woman of Samaria at Sychar, which was a small village just outside of Shehem in Jesus time.  Their lengthy exchange brings from Jesus the promise of "living water", a number of Smaratan converts, and the declaration by Jesus that he is the "Son of Man."  The well, today, is located in the grotto of an Orthodox Church and still produces great water.  It is around 70 feet deep, so it takes a bit of handle-turning to bring it up, but nearly all the class had a refreshing gulp or two from a well that is at least 5,000 years old, and there can be no question that this was a spot where Jesus stood.

The final stop in our day to stand in Jesus' footprints took us to Bethany, the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, where Jesus was apparently always welcome as a guest.  The location of the home of Mary and Martha is disputed, but there is no dispute about Lazarus' grave.  This is a site that has been maintained, in unbroken succession  since at least the second century.  The empty grave has been reserved, along with the place outside the door of the tomb  where Jesus would have stood and shouted, Lazarus, come out! 

No Lazarus!

I just want to close this post with a small political harangue.  The Israeli security barrier has created a terrible hardship on Bethany and many other Palestinian towns and villages.  Bethany was a close-in suburb of Jerusalem not an impossible walk from the Old City, it is now cut off and its residents, most of whom have to work in Jerusalem are forced to go miles out of their way and pass through security  checkpoints, twice daily.  Many of them are not allowed to drive their cars into the city, and must take scuttles to the checkpoints, walk through the security check, and then another shuttle to their work destination.  What used to be a 15 minute commute to work now takes regularly an hour, and that's only if everything is absolutely normal.  The slightest security alert can double the time, or even close off access altogether.  While no one can denigh the rights of the Israelis to protect their territory, at some point one needs to ask: How much security is necessary, and at what expense, and at whose cost?  The security barrier cost upwards of 30 billion dollars to construct.  Most of the money came from the U.S.

Soon, back to Jesus!  I promise.