Our minister, Bridget Banks visited the Holy Land between 1st and 10th November. She describes here the impact made on her by the visit.
The Land they call 'Holy'
These days a pilgrimage to the Holy Land can be a challenge. If the Home Office say that it is safe to go then there other issues to consider. The Children of Abraham are not at peace with each other.
Israel and Palestine may not be attractive to tourists and pilgrims at present because of the political situation or the over commercialisation of the holy sites. Holy sites that are covered by churches and shops selling everything from ?Holy water? to olive wood nativity sets. But there is a need to look past all this to see the people and to try to understand the political situation. A wise friend said that we need to go to ?be? rather than to ?do?. We go to see where Jesus walked and to understand the land and its people, the struggle and the faith. To be a presence in the midst of the conflict. The land offers a challenge to our faith and enriches our understanding of the context of the biblical stories.
The Palestinians ask one thing of us; to tell their story. To tell people what we see of the political situation. It isn?t hidden away and much has been written on it lately. The Jewish people want security and the Palestinians want justice. 8 metres high and made of concrete, the wall separates Bethlehem from Jerusalem, dividing families, friends and communities. Work is scarce among the Palestinians and tourists are few. Food is hard to get and out of the villages. When we went into Bethlehem we were encouraged to spend what we could to support the local economy. It breaks your heart to see people so desperate in the land that was the first to hear the Good News.
As Christians, we need to keep going there to raise the profile of the situation with people in our churches and to understand it ourselves. Go, and see. Meet with the God of Israel who lives and works in that place today.
?As he came near and saw the city [Jerusalem], he wept over it, saying, ?If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace!?
Luke 19:40-41