Rome to Home

My last days abroad were in Rome, but we did not have internet there unless we paid for it.  So since I could not blog then, I will share some details now.  Our first day we saw the Church of St. Paul Outside the Walls.  It was very beautiful.  The thing I noticed most about this church was the contrast it had to the Eastern Orthodox churches we had visited elsewhere.  It was far more lit with natural light and had fewer images and decorations.  Although I understand why the Eastern Orthodox churches include the icons, gold, lanterns, and incense, I found my heart more restful and worshipful in the Church of St. Paul than in any other church before. 

The following day we spent at the Vatican.  It was so full of tourists.  I am glad I do not get claustrophobic, because when I was standing looking at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, I was shoulder to shoulder with strangers.  I was so excited about all I was able to see in Rome: the Sistine Chapel, the painting, "The School of Athens," St. Peter's Basilica, the Pieta, Michelangelo’s "Moses," the statue of "The Ecstasy of St Teresa," the Coliseum, the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, and so much more.  However, Rome was so busy and full of people that it was not the most enjoyable place to be.  Everything costs money.  If you want to sit at a table to eat your gelato--it costs money.  If you want water at your meal--it costs money.  The only free places to sit in Rome are the churches!  However, it was great because we had our last free day there to roam Rome with the great friends we made on the trip.  I have enjoyed getting to know all forty-six of us.  I miss them already.

After traveling for a few days, I finally made it home to New York last night.  I am so glad to be back with my family.  I missed them a lot.

Thank you all for your prayers.  We had a great trip with no one getting sent home.  This is the first year in a while nobody has had to go home because they were so sick, or so I'm told.  We only had a few falls that lead to abrasions on the trips, and only a couple people were ever so sick that they had stay back from the day's activities.  Also, I do not think anyone ever had anything stolen.  It is truly amazing that we were so well protected over the course of the trip, and I am so thankful for God's hand of protection.  Thank you for "traveling" with me on this pilgrimage.  I have learned so much; I do not know even where to begin.  I look forward to sharing more with you when I see you again in the future.

Catching Up

  The Hagia Sophia.  It is far larger inside than I had expected.  If you look closely you can see the Arabic grafitti over the Christian icons--the mark of its transformation from a church to a mosque.

Ephesus

Poppies in Ephesus

I'm standing in the location of the Council of Ephesus that took place in AD 451.  After learning about this council so much over the last few years, this was a privilege.

I'm standing between Caesar Augustus and his wife.  The next picture is of John, me, and Nick in Greece.  We are the history majors on the trip.

The Chora Museum in Turkey.

All of us girls waiting to meet the representative of the Eastern Orthodox Patriarch in Istanbul.

It's blurry but the icon on the left is of Gregory of Nazianzus.  His bones are in the box behind him.  He is one of my favorite theologians so it was also an exciting moment for me

Philippi

The monastery we visited in Greece.  It was one of seven monasteries established precariously on top of small cliff islands.

With Caroline on Mars Hill in Athens.  The Parthenon is behind us.

With Maris in front of the Parthenon.

Some of our guys at the Acropolis in Athens.

 We had a forty years celebration of Wheaton in the Holy Lands.  We went to a lovely hotel in Athens and met the alumni cruise for dinner.  Shelby and I bought our dresses in Greece before the dinner.  We also decided to get a picture of all the girls with striped dresses.  It was so much fun to see students with their parents and to interact with adults again.  We are leaving tomorrow for Rome.  Only five days left...

Turkey to Greece

The last few days I was in Turkey and traveled to Greece. I did not have time to blog at all before now because we had full days from breakfast to 9pm dinners in Turkey. They were long days, but I enjoyed the sites. Our first day we visited the Hagia Sophia. This is a site I have wanted to see since freshman year in high school in my global history class. It was so big inside; I was really surprised by that. Since it was turned into a mosque when the Ottomans took over there was a lot of Arabic graffiti over the paintings and mosaics at times, but some of the original mosaics were restored. This included one of Jesus, which after seeing I realized was the famous one I have see reproduced elsewhere. I just didn't know it was at the Hagia Sophia. That was a highlight for that day. We also visited the Blue Mosque and an archaeological museum. The next day we flew to Ismir and took a bus to Ephesus. We did not have much time for reflection at Ephesus which was a bummer to me. However, I was delighted to see the city that Paul spent three years in. The site is huge! After being in the smaller archaeological sites in Israel, this was very impressive. Marble was everywhere. Later after I recharge my battery I will upload some pictures of this site. We ended at the Church of Saint Mary where the third Ecumenical council took place. Here Nestorianism was condemned. I have seen in Istanbul and Ephesus the site of four of the seven ecumenical councils! After spending so much time in school learning about these councils and their importance to Christianity today, it was a privilege to see these locations. Our last day in Turkey we went to the Chora Museum, an old church with lots and lots of mosaics. It was beautiful. I have lots of pictures of them which I will share later, but they do not convey the mosaics beauty very well unfortunately. We ended that day with a boat ride on the strait connecting the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea. We straddled the continental line of Asia and Europe. We also dolphins jumping alongside our boat! After such busy days, it was really, really nice to have that time to relax and enjoy the skyscape of Istanbul.

Yesterday we took a five hour bus ride from Istanbul to Greece. My passport now has the stamps of three countries. We are staying in a camp. We are right on the Aegean Sea. Last night, we swam in it. I have had the opportunity on this trip to swim in so many famous bodies of water. I did not used to be a huge water person, but this trip has made me one. After being sweaty all day long, swimming in the cool water is so desirable. I think I love Greece already. As we drove up to this camp I saw mountains on my right and the sea on my left. It is so green and there lots of flowers. It is just perfect! The only downer is the humidity and mosquitoes! Today is our free day. I plan after this to go swim and sunbathe! Tomorrow we go to Philippi which will be another exciting experience.



Thank you for your prayers. I miss you all and will enjoy being home after this trip, but I am also loving my time here with all the great Wheaties on this trip. We have really grown close together. Thank you for praying for that.

In Galilee and its Surroundings

This week we went to Galilee.  In contrast to last week’s trip south to the wilderness, this trip took us through the lush growth of the North.  This area is the headwaters for the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee.  Dan has the most water of any place in the country.  For this reason it was one of my favorite spots.  While up there we also visited Caesarea Philippi where Peter made his Messianic confession and Christ was transfigured.

 We also stopped at the famed Caesarea Maritima—the man-made harbor that Herod the Great had made.Here Paul spent two years in house arrest before going to Rome.

We spent a significant amount of time traveling to sites around the Jezreel Valley where God worked miracles many times from Deborah and Barak to Gideon to Elijah on Mt. Carmel, to Elisha bringing the boy back to life to finally Jesus raising the widow’s son.  We also visited the “Jumping Cliff’ right outside Nazareth where the crowds took Jesus to push him off.  This was one of my absolute favorite spots on the trip as I sat and looked at the view of the Jezreel Valley Jesus’ grew up seeing.  For one of first times on the trip I was able to connect to Jesus directly the geography I was seeing.  The picture above is of the Jezreel Valley from Mt. Carmel.

 After a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee, we visited the museum where a first century fishing boat discovered in 2000 was displayed.  The above pictures are from that.

Around the Sea of Galilee, we visited Capernaum and saw the first century basaltic ruins of the town where Jesus spent so much of his time.  I enjoyed the site as I reflected on the miracles Jesus performed there—walking on water, healing the paralytic, and healing Simon Peter’s mother in law. Below is a picture of the synagogue at Capernaum.  The black rock at the bottom is the foundation of the first century one in which Jesus often taught.  The picture on the right is looking at the Sea of Galilee from Capernaum. 

On the left is a picture of Kelsey and me with Mt. Hermon in the background.  It is the tallest mountain in the country and if you look closely you will be able to see snow on it. 

I thought this bench and tree were just lovely, so I wanted to share it with you.  It was from our stop at Gergesa where Jesus cast the demons out of Legion.

We also visited Sepphoris, and I was so excited to see the “Mona Lisa” of Sepphoris.  I was surprised at how small the mosaic of the woman was.  However, from I have heard, the Mona Lisa itself is smaller than most expect, so perhaps this is appropriate!

We saw other sites as well such as Mt. Carmel, Megiddo, Gamala, Golan Heights, Mt. Arbel, Gergesa, Jezreel, and Beth-shan.

Another wonderful part of this trip was our stay at the En Gev resort.  We had cottages around the Sea of Galilee and every night we took the opportunity to swim in the Sea and watch the sun set on the mountains surrounding it.  Our first night we arrived just in time to see the sunset before going to dinner, and then right after when we were swimming we saw the full moon rise from the opposite side of the lake.  It was spectacular!

I have enjoyed receiving your comments and messages.  I have loved being in Israel, but this last week I was thinking a lot about home, family, and friends.  Know that you are missed and loved. 

We have had a few ill this past week and some scrapes and bruises.   Please pray for their healing so that this next part of the trip will be as enjoyable as possible for them.  Please also pray for endurance through the constant traveling we have ahead of us.  It has been nice these last few weeks to have a “home base”, and I am going to miss it.  We fly out of Israel bound for Turkey tomorrow night.  We will be there until Wednesday when we leave for Greece.

Pictures from Week Two

Walking through the Judean Hill Country

The Wilderness of Zin

 

Shelby and I in the Wilderness of Zin

Beginning the climb up from the valley in the Wilderness of Zin

The remains of the temple at Arad

Standing at the top of Masada overlooking the Dead Sea

A waterfall at En Gedi

Caves at Qumran



Beautiful flowers at Shiloh



 Standing in front of a possible site for Golgotha at the Garden Tomb site.  You can see "eyes" of a skull in the rock face behind me.

Looking out from inside the Garden Tomb

The skyscape of Jerusalem from JUC at twilight

Tomorrow we will be leaving a four day field trip to Galilee which I am really excited about.  After that we have our exam Friday, and we leave for Turkey Saturday. 

Week Two in Israel

It has been so long since I posted because I was gone on an extended three day field trip for the first part of the week and then had to prepare for an exam today.  Once again there is so much that I could write about—this is a continuing theme.  Some quick highlights: 

On Monday: I saw terraces in the Judean hillside and climbed down a mountain.  I visited the Sorek Valley where Samson lived.  I stood on a hill overlooking the Elah Valley where David fought Goliath.  The day ended at Ashkelon where the Wheaton group will be doing their six week dig with Harvard.  While at Ashkelon, we swam in the Mediterranean Sea for the first time.  I loved it.  The waves were large, and the water was very blue.  I collected some shells and smooth marble rocks from the shoreline.  Christabel, Elese, and I were the last ones of the group out—all Northeast coasters who appreciate the ocean’s beaches!

On Tuesday: We spent most of the day in the wilderness in the South.  We began in the Wilderness of Paran where the Israelites traveled through leaving Egypt.  We also traveled to the Wilderness of Zin and climbed up from the valley to the top of the mountain via steep, narrow stairs and ladders.  Then we continued northward to the Negev visiting Beersheba (the southern boundary of the Promised Land) and Arad (where a temple resembling the Biblical design remains in ruins).

On Wednesday: The day began at Masada (the fortress overlooking the Dead Sea where the Jewish Zealots killed themselves to avoid death and slavery at the hands of the Romans in AD 73).  We climbed up the mountain and were impressed by the beautiful view of the Dead Sea.  After walking around the ruins we descended via the Snake Path, which as the name suggests wound down the mountain.  Pretty much it was forty minute walk down narrow ,winding steps.  This whole field trip has had a theme of climbing and descending!  We also visited the En Gedi spring where David hid from Saul.  It was a luscious green area between the dry Judean Wilderness and the Dead Sea.  It was here that we also “swam” in the Dead Sea.  It was so much fun!  We were in it for about an hour bobbing in the 30 percent salt water.  I have never experienced anything like it.  Our final destination was Qumran.  After learning so much about Qumran, I was really excited to see the mikvahs (ritual baths) and caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found.

That ended our three day field trip, and we returned to JUC. 

On Thursday we drove north into the land of Ephraim and Manasseh.  This year was the first time that JUC was able to go to the sites of Shechem and Samaria due to past political instability.   We first visited Shiloh where the Tabernacle resided in the Promised Land.  So much has happened here.  Here Joshua divided up the Promised Land among the remaining tribes.  Here Eli lived with his wicked sons.  Here Hannah prayed for a child.  Here Samuel heard God call him.  It was also destroyed by the Philistines after the Jews fell into apostasy and took the Ark of the Covenant into battle—an illustration of God’s judgment Jeremiah used to remind Jerusalem. 

In Shechem, I stood with Shelby and pondered the valley between Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim that Abraham would have seen when entering the Promised Land.  It is also right near here that Jesus talked to the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well.  Our last stop at Samaria (Sebaste) we saw the ruins of Ahab’s and Jezebel’s palace as well as Herod’s theater and temple to Augustus.

This is a quick run through of what I have seen this week, and I could go in far more detail about what they all meant to me.  However, I am afraid I do not have the time to go into all that.  I hope that in future conversations some of that can be fleshed out in more detail.  Also one last highlight from the week: last night we got a tour of the Protestant graveyard behind JUC.  It is a relatively old cemetery going back to the 19^th century.  A lot of important people are buried there including the author of “It is Well with My Soul”, Horatio Spafford.  There were some crazy stories connected to it.  The reason I enjoyed it though, is the way that cemeteries connect history to us today.  When you stand looking at a grave, you are looking at the place a person in history lies.  It makes it real and personal. 

Oh and I cannot forget to mention this!  Last night just as we were beginning our tour in the graveyard, the director of JUC giving the tour received a phone call because there was a fire on the hill outside the school wall.  We all ran to grab fire extinguishers and run down to put it out.  Some of the guys bravely attempted to get it out, but the fire truck got there shortly after we did and put it out.  It was an exciting night nonetheless. 

Again thank you for your prayers.  Our guide has been amazed that no one has gotten lost, been separated from the group, or gotten hurt over the last two weeks, and I know it is greatly due to the prayers of those back home.  Pictures to come.

Jerusalem and Beyond

 Over the last few days we finished our tour of Jerusalem and branched out into Benjamin and the Judean Wilderness.There was so much to see.I am going to try to highlight the places that had the most significance to me.On Wednesday we went to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher—the traditional site where Jesus was crucified and buried. The following pictures are from that visit.

The first one is from inside the tomb.  This is a replica, and beneath the stone slab about five feet down is the original tomb found there by Helena. 

The second is a beautiful window I saw high up in the church.  The church is rather dark and this window with the cross brought streams of sunlight down into the church.  I imagine Christ’s resurrection like this—a bright light of hope and life shining into the darkness of grief and death.   Just last night (Saturday night) a small group of us were locked into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre from 9:00 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. and had a private tour with Father Samuel, an Armenian Orthodox priest.  After my first visit to this church on Wednesday with all the tourism, I anticipated this tour as it provided a more worshipful environment.  In the first hour of our visit, we were able to dialogue with Father Samuel and ask him questions about the faith and practices of the Armenian Orthodox Church.  Having done some reading about the Orthodox faith prior to this visit, I was excited about this opportunity to interact in person with a father of that institution.  We covered a wide range of topics from Jesus’ humanity and divinity, to the unity of the Church, to salvation, to the Eucharist, to the role of knowledge versus experience in one’s seeking after God, to the dynamics among the Catholic Church, Greek Orthodox Church, and Armenian Orthodox Church in sharing the space of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  From this conversation I was both encouraged and saddened at the state of division in the one Church.  I was encouraged because Father Samuel was affirming of the salvation and baptisms of other churches and because his openness to the sharing of the Eucharist among institutions, but I was saddened by the disputes that arise among the three churches in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher over the number of candles, pillars, and altars each one is allowed to have.  It was huge privilege to have Father Samuel go around showing us all the different rooms and altars and tell us their significance and meaning.  Though an amazing experience, I was glad to leave a little after midnight because the scent of oil from the lamps and the incense did a number on my senses leaving me with quite the headache and nausea, but the visit was well worth it.

Back tracking to Wednesday, the next picture is from the first century southern steps of the Temple.  On these steps Mary, Joseph, Jesus, all his disciples, Paul, and many other Bible characters would have gone up to worship.  With very little left in Jerusalem from the first century, this was special place of connection to the biblical narrative.

In Luke 19: 41-44 is says, “As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes.  The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side.  They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls.  They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”  On Thursday we visited the Dominus Flavit, the church located on the Mount of Olives which stands in remembrance Jesus’ weeping over Jerusalem.  It is pictured below with the window looking out over the Temple Mount.

We visited the ruins of the Herodian Temple on Wednesday, and in the picture, behind the four of us girls, sit blocks from the Temple buildings that the Romans destroyed in AD 70.  The verses above came to life in seeing the physical evidence of Jesus’ prophesy.

  

 This next picture is of a first century tomb with the roof removed.

Below is a view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives.

 

This is a photo from the garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives.

On Friday, we traveled to the Judean Wilderness.  This was my favorite place so far.  I could not decide which picture to post of the Wilderness, because not one could capture its vastness and its beauty.  After struggling to see past all the relics and regalia that fill Jerusalem’s sites, the Wilderness was a breath of fresh air.  For the first time, I was seeing part of Israel that has not changed since the first century.  I cannot go into all the thoughts I had while sitting there, but I would like to share two.  First, after struggling to stay upright while descending the steep and rocky slopes of the mountains, I have a greater appreciation for Psalm 37 in its description of God keeping David’s foot from slipping.  Second, God provided for Israel and Jesus when they were in their different wildernesses, and if God could sustain them there, I know he can provide for me.  It was a sobering reminder that my worries are so much smaller than the need for life-giving water and food that anyone in the Wilderness faced.

      

The last photos are from Gezer in Benjamin.  This beautiful and fertile land was a wedding gift from Pharaoh to Solomon when he gave his daughter in marriage to Solomon.  Pictured below is the six-chambered gate at Gezer dating back to the Solomonic period.  This was a site I remember learning about in OT Archaeology, so I was really excited to actually see it and walk through the ruins.

I know this has been a very long post, but we were without internet for a bit here at JUC.  I cannot believe that I have already been here in Israel for a week.  Time is moving quickly, but our days are packed.  I am very thankful for this, for, though it is tiring, I will not feel like I wasted precious time here that could have been spent seeing other sites.  Thank you again for all your support and prayers.  I have seen them answered in our group’s continual protection from danger.