The West Bank!

We were pretty shocked to see how different life on the other side of the wall was. Bethlehem is on the other side of the wall that separates the Palestinian West Bank from Israel.


The Catholic church attached to the Greek Orthodox church which is above the manger is very beautiful. It was ready for a wedding which made it more so.




This was our favorite part of our time in the West Bank! We didn't go there, but we definitely appreciated the laugh!

Bethlehem!

We went to Bethlehem in order to see the Shepherds field and the manger! We were super excited to go! We ended up pretty disappointed though as everything was built on in such a way that it was difficult to picture it as it was.


The Shepherds field...


Us in line to see the manger. While in line, our guide got kicked out of the church for talking. :O) The Greek Orthodox Priest ended up sending a guy to apologize to him for doing so later. It was pretty classic though. We didn't know what we were going to do without him. :O)

I'll tell you one thing, I'm positive that I would not have known that we had walked through the manger if he hadn't told us. :O)


That silver star is where Jesus was born.


This is where Jesus was laid in the crib.

The Garden Tomb!

This was another incredibly powerful experience. There are currently two possible sights where Jesus may have been crucified and placed in the tomb. This site was not discovered and excavated until the late 1800's. The Catholic tradition holds that this occurred at another site.

Regardless of the accuracy of the site, we could more easily wrap our minds around all of it easier here.






Our guide presented it incredibly well and we were reminded to focus on the fact that Jesus' body does not reside in any tomb!

HE IS RISEN!!!!

The Garden of Gethsemane!

This was Bekah's favorite. It was amazing for me as well. I feel like I could have stayed there all day and still felt like I didn't have enough time! To be where Jesus faced the pain and separation he was about to endure... heavy!



Olive trees are a little crazy because, when the old tree dies, the new tree grows from within the old tree. So, these trees are literally over 2,000 years old. These very trees were in the Garden the night that Jesus was! CRA-ZY!!!!

Views of Jerusalem from Palm Road!

The Southern Steps from afar.


The Eastern Gate. Sealed by the Muslims as Jesus will return through those gates.


Bekah told me to take this photo. She has such an eye for good photos... and for men. :O)


After walking down the traditional Palm Road, our guide told us that this road (which we did not walk down) was probably more likely the road that Jesus entered town on Palm Sunday by as the other road goes through a VERY old cemetery which would require a Jew to be "unclean." So, why did we walk down the other road then?

The Upper Room!

After going through Steven's Gate (I'm sort of a big deal around here...), we made our way to the Upper Room.


They have built an "upper room" in the area that they believe the original Upper Room was anyhow.



Just outside the exit, they have the "big 10" on top of a wall so I snapped a photo for both of us.

Bathesda!

It was at this water cistern that Jesus healed the lame man!



In the church that was here, Eddie led us in simple songs from the heart. Our lifted voices opened Heaven's gates. A spiritual experience beyond words or melodies. Not a dry eye.

After some thought, I feel that this was so powerful as it came just after our brief visit to Antonio's fortress. This gave us time to properly reflect on where we were and connect with the Living God we love and serve!