6 Favorite Pictures from My Trip to Jordan, Israel, and Egypt
An iPhone camera may have its limitations. But it can still take some surprisingly good pictures. Even with a ninny like me operating it.
Here are some of my favorite photos taken on our recent sojourn in Jordan, Israel, and Egypt, chosen strictly for purtiness:
Dominus Flevit Church, on the Mount of Olives:
St. Catherine Church, Bethlehem:
Old City, Jerusalem:
Sunset on the Sea of Galilee:
Sunset on the Nile, Luxor:
Felucca ride on the Nile, Luxor:
Here are some of my favorite photos taken on our recent sojourn in Jordan, Israel, and Egypt, chosen strictly for purtiness:
Dominus Flevit Church, on the Mount of Olives:
St. Catherine Church, Bethlehem:
Old City, Jerusalem: 
Sunset on the Sea of Galilee:
Sunset on the Nile, Luxor:
Felucca ride on the Nile, Luxor: 
A Holy Delight
Another of our fellow Jordan and Israel travelers, Debbie Stacy, offered these reflections on our trip: "What a delight it was to spend those few days in such holy surroundings with such lovely folks. What a team we had. It was quite a pilgrimage. When do we leave again?(In the photo above, taken on our ramparts walk on the walls of Jerusalem, Debbie is second from left--next to the lovely Robin)
"I am so thankful for the invitation to join your group and so blessed to be able to "walk in the footsteps of Jesus" and see the Bible come alive right before my eyes and very being. I have been so awakened to God's word and alive in my Spirit that I have trouble even finding words to share it at this point. I am looking forward to returning to this holy place in the future. I believe every CHRISTIAN, especially pastors, teachers and local leaders, should experience the Land of the Bible.
"My prayer is that I will use the experience and presence of God in those few days in the Holy Land to be able to make the Bible come alive for God's people to whom I minister. My passion is to see others whole and complete in Christ....Thanks again for an experience I will never forget."
20 New Things Learned and Experienced on My Fourth Holy Land Pilgrimage
I honestly don't know why any pastor--and any follower of Jesus, for that matter--would not be interested in making a pilgrimage to the land of Jesus, the apostles, the patriarchs, and the prophets. If we can all recognize the benefit--the necessity--of reading our Bibles and studying them and applying their teachings, it shouldn't be hard to see how important to our spiritual lives would be an experience that makes our Bibles even more alive, immediate, inspiring...right?
For all I've learned on previous trips to the Holy Land, I continue to learn more and more each time I go. And, more even than the facts and images and perspectives I pick up is the experience, the increasing impact of actually reading the Sermon on the Mount ON the mount, of hearing Psalm 48 while approaching the city of our God, of smelling the Salt Sea while contemplating Sodom and Gomorrah. No words can describe such experiences that seem to pervade spirit, soul, mind, and body, and stay with you forever.
This time around there were yet more things I learned that I had not known, or had forgotten, or failed to grasp:
1. The modern city of Amman, Jordan, corresponds to the Biblical city of Rabbath Ammon, capital of the Ammonites.
2. I have in my mind's eye clear images of Ammon, Gilead, Moab and Edom, and their relationship to each other and to other Biblical places.
3. I visited the Western Wall at night for the first time:
4. I learned that locals in Jerusalem will not throw bread in the trash; it is too special, even sacred. And if they see it on the street or sidewalk, they will place it on a windowsill or ledge.
5. It was driven home to me in a new way (in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre) how precise the Gospel is when it describes Jesus' tomb as being "close at hand" from Golgotha (John 19:42).
6. I learned that the massive Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, enclosing as it does the entire footprint of the tiny Biblical village of Nazareth, is no doubt on the same location as the annunciation, and of Mary and Joseph's home, and more:
7. I learned that the Church of St. Anne is the only Crusader church surviving intact inside the Old City.
8. The Syrian Orthodox Church and Convent of St. Mark in the Old City (which I had not previously visited) is on a site maintained since the first century as being the location of the home of Mary, John Mark's mother, and thus the possible site of the giving of the Holy Spirit to the disciples (which is quite possibly different from the "upper room" of the Last Supper):
9. I learned that Horatio Spafford, author of It Is Well With My Soul, lived in Jerusalem at one time...and it was from his window that Major-General Charles George Gordon spied what has come to be called "Gordon's Calvary":
10. I sailed on the Sea of Galilee at sunset for the first time. Wow.
11. While I'm sure I've been told this before, this time it sunk in that the famous and ancient mosaic of the loaves and fishes at Tabgha contains two fishes, but only four loaves....probably because the fifth loaf was the communion bread on the altar above in the Byzantine church it once adorned:
12. I learned that in ancient (as in modern) times, "Egypt" was pretty much confined to the thin ribbon of towns along the Nile, as everything else to the east and west was desert.
13. I learned that Israelites are actually portrayed in an engraving at Karnak, depicting the events of 2 Chronicles 12:1-12 (that's the Pharoah at the left and the bearded Israelites in the lower right quadrant):
14. I learned that my mental picture of the Nile was MUCH too small.
15. I learned that "Copt" refers not only to Egyptian Christians, but historically to all native Egyptians.
16. I learned that "King Tut" should be pronounced "King Toot."
17. I learned that Hatshepsut, a female Pharoah in the 18th dynasty, may well have been the "pharoah's daughter" who drew Moses out of the Nile (if one accepts the "early Exodus" based on Judges 6:1), an idea that would make her successor, Thutmoses III, the possible Pharoah of the Exodus.
18. I have a much more defined--vivid--mental picture now of the "Via Maris" and "King's Highway."
19. That whole thing about the alabaster jar of expensive oil (Matthew 26:6-7)? MUCH more meaning now. Alabaster is perfect for storing oil because the alabaster absorbs--extracts--water from the oil. Oil stored in alabaster=much more pure. Seems to suggest more going on in that passage than first meets the eye.
18. I learned that Winnie the Pooh (and Tigger too) AND the Care Bears speak fluent Arabic.
For all I've learned on previous trips to the Holy Land, I continue to learn more and more each time I go. And, more even than the facts and images and perspectives I pick up is the experience, the increasing impact of actually reading the Sermon on the Mount ON the mount, of hearing Psalm 48 while approaching the city of our God, of smelling the Salt Sea while contemplating Sodom and Gomorrah. No words can describe such experiences that seem to pervade spirit, soul, mind, and body, and stay with you forever.
This time around there were yet more things I learned that I had not known, or had forgotten, or failed to grasp:
1. The modern city of Amman, Jordan, corresponds to the Biblical city of Rabbath Ammon, capital of the Ammonites.
2. I have in my mind's eye clear images of Ammon, Gilead, Moab and Edom, and their relationship to each other and to other Biblical places.
3. I visited the Western Wall at night for the first time:
4. I learned that locals in Jerusalem will not throw bread in the trash; it is too special, even sacred. And if they see it on the street or sidewalk, they will place it on a windowsill or ledge. 
5. It was driven home to me in a new way (in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre) how precise the Gospel is when it describes Jesus' tomb as being "close at hand" from Golgotha (John 19:42). 6. I learned that the massive Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, enclosing as it does the entire footprint of the tiny Biblical village of Nazareth, is no doubt on the same location as the annunciation, and of Mary and Joseph's home, and more:
7. I learned that the Church of St. Anne is the only Crusader church surviving intact inside the Old City. 8. The Syrian Orthodox Church and Convent of St. Mark in the Old City (which I had not previously visited) is on a site maintained since the first century as being the location of the home of Mary, John Mark's mother, and thus the possible site of the giving of the Holy Spirit to the disciples (which is quite possibly different from the "upper room" of the Last Supper):
9. I learned that Horatio Spafford, author of It Is Well With My Soul, lived in Jerusalem at one time...and it was from his window that Major-General Charles George Gordon spied what has come to be called "Gordon's Calvary":
10. I sailed on the Sea of Galilee at sunset for the first time. Wow. 
11. While I'm sure I've been told this before, this time it sunk in that the famous and ancient mosaic of the loaves and fishes at Tabgha contains two fishes, but only four loaves....probably because the fifth loaf was the communion bread on the altar above in the Byzantine church it once adorned: 
12. I learned that in ancient (as in modern) times, "Egypt" was pretty much confined to the thin ribbon of towns along the Nile, as everything else to the east and west was desert. 13. I learned that Israelites are actually portrayed in an engraving at Karnak, depicting the events of 2 Chronicles 12:1-12 (that's the Pharoah at the left and the bearded Israelites in the lower right quadrant):
14. I learned that my mental picture of the Nile was MUCH too small. 
15. I learned that "Copt" refers not only to Egyptian Christians, but historically to all native Egyptians. 16. I learned that "King Tut" should be pronounced "King Toot."
17. I learned that Hatshepsut, a female Pharoah in the 18th dynasty, may well have been the "pharoah's daughter" who drew Moses out of the Nile (if one accepts the "early Exodus" based on Judges 6:1), an idea that would make her successor, Thutmoses III, the possible Pharoah of the Exodus.
18. I have a much more defined--vivid--mental picture now of the "Via Maris" and "King's Highway."
19. That whole thing about the alabaster jar of expensive oil (Matthew 26:6-7)? MUCH more meaning now. Alabaster is perfect for storing oil because the alabaster absorbs--extracts--water from the oil. Oil stored in alabaster=much more pure. Seems to suggest more going on in that passage than first meets the eye.
18. I learned that Winnie the Pooh (and Tigger too) AND the Care Bears speak fluent Arabic.
A True Pilgrimage
One of our fellow pilgrims to Jordan and Israel, Millie Merkel, sent along these reactions to the experience: "The trip truly was a Pilgrimage invoking many tender moments as we traversed the same country Jesus did 2000 years ago. The travel arrangements, hotels, guides (specifically Nader in Israel) restaurants selected for lunch stops, and the pace of the travels were all very well planned. The historical background shared by Nader was helpful in understanding historical Jerusalem. EO Travels did a great job! We can highly recommend them."(In the photo above, our guide Nader offers explanation at the Solomonic gates of the city of Megiddo)
The Via Dolorosa
The traditional Via Dolorosa ("Way of Sorrow") winds along the narrow streets of Jerusalem from the Ecce Homo Convent to the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre. Fourteen stations along this route commemorate the journey of Jesus from his trial to the tomb. These photos were all taken on our recent pilgrimage to Jerusalem:
FIRST STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is condemned to death (John 18:28). (The photo is of the traditional "Ecce Homo arch")
SECOND STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus takes up the cross (John 19:16). (The photo is of the crown of thorns depicted on the dome of the Chapel of the Flagellation)
THIRD STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus falls under the cross.
FOURTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus meets his mother.
FIFTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Simon the Cyrene is forced to carry the cross.
SIXTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Veronica wipes the sweat from Jesus' face.
SEVENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus falls for the second time.
EIGHTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus consoles the women of Jerusalem (Luke 23:28).
NINTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus falls a third time.
TENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is stripped of his garments. (Photo is of the Chapel of the Stripping of Jesus' Garments, in the courtyard to the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre)
ELEVENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is nailed to the cross (John 19:17).
TWELFTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus dies on the cross (Matthew 27:50). (Photo is of the Greek altar, on Calvary. Under the altar is the exposed bedrock where the cross was erected)
THIRTEENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is taken down from the cross (Luke 25:53). (Photo is the Stone of Anointment, where they laid the body of Jesus after his death)
FOURTEENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is laid in the tomb (Matthew 27:59). (Photo is the anteroom of the sepulchre)
FIRST STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is condemned to death (John 18:28). (The photo is of the traditional "Ecce Homo arch")
SECOND STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus takes up the cross (John 19:16). (The photo is of the crown of thorns depicted on the dome of the Chapel of the Flagellation)
THIRD STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus falls under the cross. 
FOURTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus meets his mother. 
FIFTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Simon the Cyrene is forced to carry the cross.
SIXTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Veronica wipes the sweat from Jesus' face.
SEVENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus falls for the second time.
EIGHTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus consoles the women of Jerusalem (Luke 23:28).
NINTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus falls a third time. 
TENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is stripped of his garments. (Photo is of the Chapel of the Stripping of Jesus' Garments, in the courtyard to the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre)
ELEVENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is nailed to the cross (John 19:17).
TWELFTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus dies on the cross (Matthew 27:50). (Photo is of the Greek altar, on Calvary. Under the altar is the exposed bedrock where the cross was erected)
THIRTEENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is taken down from the cross (Luke 25:53). (Photo is the Stone of Anointment, where they laid the body of Jesus after his death)
FOURTEENTH STATION OF THE CROSS: Jesus is laid in the tomb (Matthew 27:59). (Photo is the anteroom of the sepulchre)
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