Day 10 - Jerusalem: Mount of Olives, Gethsemane, Garden Tomb, Old City (Jewish and Muslim Quarters)

Thursday Feb 26 / Day 10 -  Jerusalem: Mount of Olives, Gethsemane, Garden Tomb, Old City (Jewish and Muslim Quarters)

Mount of Olives

It was a wet, chilly morning in Jerusalem!  We began our day on the Mount of Olives to the east of the city. Jesus spent time here– walking to the temple from the home of his friends, Martha, Mary and Lazarus, in Bethany, teaching his disciples, and praying at the Garden of Gethsemane (more on that in a moment!) Though it was cloudy, we had a great view of Jerusalem and the temple mount, which made it easy to imagine what Jesus saw as traveled into the city. The rainy weather seemed appropriate, actually, knowing that it was from this vantage point that Jesus wept over Jerusalem, saying  “If only you had known on this day what would bring you peace!” (Luke 19:41). 

The Mount of Olives contains one of the world’s oldest cemeteries– over 150,000 graves that span 3,000 years. This is because of a Jewish belief based on a prophecy in the book of Zechariah, that the Messiah will come from the east and that the resurrection of the dead will begin there when he arrives.

There were graves here in Jesus’ day, and there was a path that Jewish travelers followed to get to the temple without crossing over the graves and becoming unclean. So the (steep!) road we took down was almost certainly along the same track.

We visited the grounds of the Church of Dominus Flevit (which means the Lord Wept).  Here we saw an ossuary that dates to near the time of Jesus and had a good vantage point to see the Kidron Valley and the walls of Jerusalem. We learned that the Eastern Gate, or Golden Gate, was sealed by Muslims in the 1100's– it remains blocked today, with the intent of preventing the Jewish Messiah’s entry.  (This was the gate that Jesus entered on Palm Sunday–coming from the east! If only they had known!)

Gethsemane

We visited two sites that could be the Garden of Gethsemane. First, we went to the Catholic Church they believe to have been built on the place that Jesus prayed, The Basilica of the Agony. The olive trees are very old there–one dating about 1,100 years.  Yehuda told us the roots are older, though. The Basilica was beautiful, with vaulted ceilings decorated in blue with olive tree details.

Next, we went to a beautifully kept walled garden, where Terry taught for a bit on the sorrow that Jesus experienced at Gethsemane–  It was here that Jesus prayed, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” We had some time in the garden to walk the grounds (more like climb–the Mount of Olives is a mountain, after all!) and reflect on Christ’s suffering, which led to our great joy. 

Garden Tomb

After making our way slowly down the slick streets, we went to one of the possible sites of Jesus’ death and resurrection: the Garden Tomb (Tomorrow we’ll visit the other.) Close to the Damascus Gate outside the Old City walls of Jerusalem, there is much about this site that fits the biblical description of where Jesus was crucified, buried and raised from the dead. Our guide led us to an area overlooking a rocky cliff. Even now, the formation of the cliff resembles a skull. This may be Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). The site also fits the historical context of how Romans conducted crucifixions–not on a hill, but along a road. They wanted these executions to have maximum impact for those passing by, and this area would have been a busy thoroughfare for those traveling to and from Jerusalem.

The area where Jesus may have been crucified, at the base of the “skull,” is not in the Garden Tomb, though–there is a bus station there. It was heart-rending to have such a noisy racket at such a holy place…”if only they knew.” 

Next, we visited a first-century tomb found nearby. So much evidence has been uncovered to suggest that if this isn’t the tomb of Jesus, it is very much like it (especially if the area was, indeed, Golgatha!)

“At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.” John 19:41-42 

We were able to walk in the tomb and see the area where Jesus’ body may have been laid. As we left, a few of us couldn’t help declaring, “He is not there! He is risen, just as he said!”

Our teaching time at the Garden Tomb was very special. Terry walked us through the story–from Abraham to Moses to Jesus. He showed how Jesus has done what we could not– He fulfilled the Covenant God made with Abraham, He fulfilled every righteous requirement of the Law, and, on the night He was betrayed, Jesus inaugurated a New Covenant in his blood. He did all this because He loves us. 

At the Last Supper, Jesus deviated from the typical Seder meal tradition to offer the cup to his disciples in a way that mimicked betrothal ceremonies of that day. To “drink the cup” was to agree to a covenant. To say: “I love you and I commit my life to you.” And so, in Gethsemane, when Jesus used the metaphor of “letting the cup pass by” he was speaking of his suffering– but also the commitment He was making to lay down His life for his bride. Oh how He loves us… if only the whole world knew. 

We finished by taking communion together.

(If you are reading the blog and were not here, and you’ve never heard Terry give this message, you can find it by searching “Crossings Community Church Maundy Thursday!)  

Old City (Jewish and Muslim Quarters)

After a delicious lunch of Jerusalem bagels (they were huge) served with dips of olive oil, hummus, labneh, and chocolate, we headed to the Jaffa Gate. Yahuda shared some history and we got to walk through the narrow streets of the Old City, especially a few shopping areas in the Jewish quarter and the Muslim quarter.  

Pray for Jerusalem, especially as so many gather for Ramadan– that they would know that Jesus the Messiah has come, and that on the cross at the foot of Golgotha, He has finished the work that will bring them peace!

Quote of the Day

“If it’s not about Jesus, I’m not really interested.” - Andy, when offered a traditional dessert on our jaunt through the Muslim Quarter.