Day 11 - Church of the Holy Sepulchre and Garden Tomb

Our last day in Israel started with one last devotion led by Terry. He read from Psalm 133: “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” With such a beautiful text, we were forced to ask the question, will there ever be peace in this land?

Fallen humanity has and always will be bent towards oppression, violence, and persecution. Honoring God leads to human thriving and peace, and there is no peace without Jesus Christ. As his followers, we are the messengers of peace among the nations. We are the hope of peace… we must share it! It was a poignant reminder as we will soon leave this incredible bubble of life change to enter back into our everyday lives. 

Our first stop of the day was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This church houses the traditional site of the crucifixion, burial preparation, burial, and resurrection. The current church, dating back to the 4th century, is in the Christian quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. Within the church, are the last four stations of the cross of the Via Dolorosa. Today the church property is shared among several Christian denominations. Each is visible throughout the church in the various styles and lavish decorations.

While this is always a crowded location, we arrived early enough to move through at a decent pace. We were able to easily see the area where some believe Jesus’ body was prepared for burial. We made our way up a narrow staircase to see the place where many believe was the place of the crucifixion. It was adorned with so many beautiful mosaics and frescoes. Hours wouldn’t have been long enough to take it all in, and pictures will never do them justice. We then made our way downstairs and into another section of the church that holds the place of burial. 

We then had some free time to shop within the Christian quarter of the old city. Hebron glass, fresh juices, and Israeli antiquities were some fan favorites. 

We then traveled to the Garden Tomb, another place thought to be the site of the crucifixion and resurrection due to descriptions consistent with Golgotha, the “place of the skull”, referenced in the Bible. Tombs and a garden dating to the first century are also located in this area, making it another possible location for the crucifixion and resurrection.  Everyone in the group was able to go inside the empty tomb dating to the first century, a possible  location of Jesus’ burial. Then we gathered to hear Terry’s incredible “Maundy Thursday” message. Despite most of us having heard a variation of it in the past, it was truly special to enjoy it together and in this place. We took communion together from our olive wood cups, and it was truly a special way to round out our last day together in Israel.

If you haven’t heard Terry’s Maundy Thursday message, you can listen here:
https://crossings.church/media/sermons/holy-week-2022/maundy-thursday-2022
Better yet, join us at Crossings on April 6th at noon or 6pm. You don’t want to miss it!

Most people went back to the hotel while a few others stayed in the old city to do some additional shopping in the Arab quarter. While the hotel people were showering and packing, the rest of us were not ready to end our trip! We had a blast exploring the shops, grabbing coffee and sweets, and taking in the sights and sounds of the open market. Then, it was finally time to head back to pack.

We loaded up all of our stuff (let me tell you, we left with much more than we started with), and headed to one last dinner together. We ate a family style meal and bid farewell to our amazing guide, Yehuda, and bus driver, Yigal. Some shared with the group the parts of the trip they enjoyed the most, and we all felt the sudden sorrow of saying goodbye to each other. It’s amazing how quickly two life changing weeks go by. 

And just like that, it was time to head to the airport.

We all survived the 13.5 hour flight to Miami, and then split to different connecting cities to make our way home. 

Thank you for following along with us and for your prayers. We felt them!
If you haven’t already, ask the people on the trip what their favorite parts of Israel were. I guarantee they don’t have just one, but they will love sharing with you about what they learned. We will never be the same.

Until Next Time…

Ashley Fuhr