Our travel along the Jordan river to Jerusalem and Bethlehem

Our time in Tiberias was short, 2 very quick days. Check out is at 7:00 a.m. with breakfast to follow. They have been feeding us well with their cultural cuisine. Not what you'd think American food is like, but similar. They had eggs and meats (steak, roast, etc) fruit, vegetables, fish, and a lot of pastries. They also have food that I can not discribe or know the name of but I had to try just because it was there.

8:00 a.m. we loaded the bus with our final destination of the day - Jerusalem via Bethlehem. Our first stop would be the mountain upon which Jesus preached his famous sermon on the mount sharing the beatitudes. (Matthew 5) This place is actually on the other side of the Sea of Galilee from where our hotel was located in Tiberias. We toured the Church of the Beatitudes and celebrated morning mass. 

On the drive to Jerusalem we traveled from the lush fruitful land of Galilee to the deserts of Jordan. While driving through the land we came to realize that Jesus walked this path while we drove it in a bus. What took us a few hours must have taken him weeks.

We stopped in Jericho to view the Mount of Temptation. This was the mountain that Jesus stood on when he was tempted by Satan during his 40 days wondering the desert after being baptized. (Matthew 4:1-11) Speaking of baptism, we did stop at the Jordan river at the authentic spot were Jesus was baptized. We renewed our baptismal promises and I sprinkled Jordan water on everyone. 

The Dead Sea was our next stop to have lunch and float in the soothing water. I didn't go in, but I did wade in a little bit.

By night fall we made our way into Jerusalem. It is a very large city. Much larger then one would expect. Homes are build upon the side of the hills and the roads were narrow going up, down and twisting here and there. Over a million people live in this town. Driving through Jerusalem we were allowed to venture into Bethlehem going through a check point from Israeli land into Pakistani land. In Bethlehem we visited the Shepherd's fields. The angel of the Lord appeared to these Shepherds the night  that Jesus was born. (Luke 4: 8-15). The church of the Shepherds Field is built over the cave site of these Shepherds used and is now  a modern day place of prayer. The cave was later used as a secret gathering space for Christians to pray in the early years of our church.

After spending a few prayerful moments and singing "Angels we have Heard on High", we loaded into the bus once again to venture to our hotel in Jerusalem to stay for 4 days.

Again, Happy New Year and Peace be with You!

Fr. John