The moaning calls of the Muslims to prayer that bounce off the cobblestone streets and the wailing prayers of the Jews that ring in your ears long after you have left the Western Wall, contrast with the quiet reflection of Christians at the Garden Tomb.
America is regarded as the melting pot; however, I believe that Jerusalem takes the cake. Not only is every culture represented, but the walls are bursting with religiosity. At first it may seem like a normal city, it’s cobblestone streets are quaint, there are narrow alleys leading to thousands of small shops that are selling the same wares for different prices. The walls tower above you as a witness to the impressive masonry of the city, and the marketplace bustles with yelling owners and bartering customers. Rounding corner after corner leads you to another monumental piece of history. There are signs plastered everywhere describing why this remnant of a wall or this location is significant. Walls from 500 or 1000 AD seem “new” compared to the walls that date well before the time of Jesus. Yet, all this history points to one factor that combines both places and people; religion. It is seen everywhere and in everything. It commands how the people live their lives. Spending a night in the city itself opened my eyes to the devout religiosity that I otherwise would have missed.
This city was the Jews’ first. God promised them this land in the time of Abraham. His people would receive land, the seed of the Messiah, and blessing from God. They were the chosen people and God led them to their promised land, Israel. Even though they are God’s chosen people, they have refused to believe their Messiah has come to them. They long for their Savior who will rescue them, and you can hear their cries at the Western Wall of the Temple Mount, appropriately known as the Wailing Wall. There was a constant sea of black lining the wall. Even though space was running out, there was a rampage of others racing down the stairs to reach the wall. The men were in black from head to toe. The sounds from the people, screaming, yelling and crying out towards this wall was heartbreaking. All their crying is hopeless. I needed to be among the people and experience it firsthand, so I made my way through the throngs of women and children on the right side of the divide. I navigated through the narrow spaces to touch the wall for myself and hear the cries of the people reverberating in my ears. I reached over other young ladies and laid my hands on their sacred wall. I looked to my left and right, I was surrounded by women holding prayer books to their faces, heads against the wall. They were repeating and over and over the same cries and then slowly backing away from the wall when they had finished.
The same gut sadness in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher revisited me at this wall. I had gone in with a group of girls and we were all touched deeply by the evident lostness of these people. We couldn’t help but stop and pray for them while in their midst. Each girl in my group took turns crying out on our own, not in hopelessness, but in hope. We prayed for the nation, that they would see their Savior, and also thanked Him for opening our eyes and allowing us to have hope. Studying the Bible for these past three weeks, caused my hurt for these people to affect me deeper. They are living in the land where the Bible came to life, they are walking the streets their Lord and Messiah walked, and yet they are crying out for God to send their Messiah, when they should instead be eagerly awaiting His second coming. Hope is in their grasp and they are not taking ahold of it. Talking with a tour guide, she kept mentioning one word, “tradition.” The Jews are concerned about their traditions. They will study the Torah and are passionate about their faith and religion, but they are mainly focused on performing their traditions correctly; it is all works righteousness.
The Muslims are the next prominent group in the city. Their cries are heard periodically throughout the day from the minarets dotting the city, calling them to prayer. These cries are mournful, depressing and eerie as they reverberate off the city walls. Their presence does not end at their calls, but they control the most holy site in the city, the Temple Mount. They have built the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa mosque over the place where the New Testament Temple would have stood. The tension in the city has been increased because of this powerful control. There have not only been many attempts for the destruction of the Dome of the Rock, but stones have also been thrown down at Jews on the Western Wall. And there is an inscription in the Dome of the Rock that mocks Jews and Christians. It is forbidden to read the Bible and pray on the Temple Mount, which is difficult because that was the original purpose of this place.
I was overwhelmed by the immense size of this Temple Mount. It was built by Herod the Great as a testimony to his great power and the beauty of the Romans. Even though we didn’t have our Bibles, we were able to discuss quietly and contemplate events we know took place here. One of those events was the turning over of the tables by Jesus in Mark 11:15ff. He walks into the Royal Stoa where the selling of animals would have been, on the East side of the Temple Mount, and turned over the tables, causing chaos. He drove out the people and sellers. And verse 16 says “And He would not let anyone to carry anything through the temple.” It would have gone from a loud marketplace, to become quietly eerie. Witnessing the Temple Mount firsthand gave me a better perspective on how much control Jesus actually had over the people and over all events. Comparing myself to the size of the Temple Mount it is amazing to contemplate how one person could have control of the entire area, yet Jesus had ultimate control.
In contrast with the loud cries and tension of the Jews and Muslims, the Christians of the city are seen in moments of quiet reflection of their Savior. The Garden Tomb provided the perfect spot for this contemplation on the places and events which had taken place in the city. This last site also gave me a moment to rejoice and be hopeful, rather than reflect solely on the grief over the lostness of the people of the city.
This tomb is in gardens just outside the city walls. Even though it is not the most likely spot of the burial and resurrection of Jesus, the time of reflection was unsurpassed. I was faced with the reality of the cross and the resurrection, and the truth of these events were made clear in this garden. After viewing the tomb for ourselves we were given an area to talk about what we had seen. The professor, Nate Foreman, mentioned a few things that struck me. In summary, he told us that even though this tomb and the Gethsemane are not the exact locations of the events, reflect on how Jesus controlled every situation. He read Matthew 26 with us and the most outstanding part of this passage is how clearly Jesus orchestrates all the events. He told Judas to do what he was going to do quickly; He allowed Judas to know where He would be and then give him the moment to slip away and bring the chief priests and elders to arrest Him. During Passion week, one time or another, He escaped from the hands of the religious leaders. He slipped through the crowd when they tried to stone Him, and through their questions, He stumped each religious group. He would not allow Himself to be caught before the moment He was to be crucified. He was not part of a sinister plot. He controlled the entire situation. He turned Himself over, the crowd did not capture Him.
When they finally were able to kill Him, they mocked Him while He was on the cross. Crucifixions take place for criminals, but Jesus was no criminal. They thought they had defeated Him, but He had the final word. He rose again. The tomb may not be the one that He was laid in, but it was empty. “…the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay’” (Matthew 28:4-5). He WAS here, He is no longer. He HAS risen. Come see the place where He LAY, He lays there no longer.
It was a stunning reality and made my heart rejoice with thankfulness. And that is the sound of the Christians. There were praise songs coming from different areas of the garden and we joined in with our own, out of thankfulness and hope.
However, the reality of the lostness of the Jewish people settled on me again, right in their backyards is evidence for the truth of the gospels. The death and resurrection of Christ did happen, and they will not accept it. But Nate said something else, Christ left no evidence for us to find, but He changed the world. From every other event we can find archaeological evidence of the people, whether personal objects or words sketched into stone. But with Jesus there is not a trace, it is all proposed and not confirmed. There is not piece of the Cross left, or any other evidence aside from the truth of God’s Word. It is up to us to believe in blind faith that what He says is true. And I am thankful for the once in a lifetime opportunity to see the places that are mentioned in the Bible, to make my faith, sight.
1) the Wailing Wall, 2) The Dome of the Rock, 3) The entrance to the empty Garden Tomb
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