Pilgrimage to The Holy Land Diary & Poem 2009

[Fr Kerry Murphy-O`Connor]

Diary of Pilgrimage to the Holy Land & Poem  7th-16th  2009   Groups from Turner’s Cross Parish, Innishannon Parish and others under  the leadership and spiritual direction of  Fr. Kerry Murphy-O'Connor,  Fr. John Kingston and Sr. Mary O’Brien.     52 pilgrims, Pilgrimage guide: Bassam Canavati from Bethlehem              Wed.  7th Oct. We depart from Cork Airport at 9.30am  direct to Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv, we are met by our guide Bassam Canavati.    Coach to Hotel Bali in Tiberias Thurs.  8th Oct. After breakfast the short drive to the Sea of Galilee. It is in this area that Jesus spent most of his ministry. The boat trip on this beautiful lake is tranquil and  memorable.  When the engine of the boat is turned off, we reflect silently on what has been read (Matthew 8:23 / 14:22.).  It is a moment to remember.  The fishing net is cast (no catch!) and the Irish Anthem sung.  On to the Mount of Beatitudes, where we have our first Mass in the open air, by the side of Octagonal Church representing the eight Beatitudes over-looking the Lake.   After Mass we spend some quiet time in the Church and around the grounds.  Then down to Tabgha, The Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes - the feeding of the 5000, with the famous mosaic on the floor depicting basket of loaves and two fish. To the Church of Peter’s Primacy  on the shore of the Lake where Peter declares his loyalty and is appointed Pope.  After lunch to Capernaum   where Jesus called  some of his apostles and worked many miracles. The Church here is built over the house of Peter where Jesus  stayed during his ministry in Galilee.   We visit the ruins of the Synagogue in Capernaum where Jesus thought  - it is very warm this evening!   We travel around the Lake to Yardenit Baptismal Site on the Jordan River where Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist.  Many of us don the white robe, and go into the river and renew our Baptismal promises. On our way back to our hotel we pass by Magdala , the birthplace of Mary Magdalene, where a new Vatican Centre is to be built.

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Fri.  9th Oct.
After breakfast, to the ruins of the ancient Roman City of Sepphoris about 6 km N. West of Nazareth -  a fascinating place. Joseph would have worked here and brought the boy Jesus with him on occasions.     On to  Nazareth, where  The Holy Family lived, and Jesus grew up,  preached, taught and worked. A visit to Mary’s Well in the Orthodox Church of St. Gabriel, then to the Church of Annunciation for Mass, where we view Mary’s home behind the altar.  On to the Upper Basilica with its beautiful mosaic, and out the side to St. Joseph's Church where the Holy Family lived and worked. We walk up the narrow street to the Synagogue  where Jesus  read from the scrolls of the Old Testament.   After lunch, a short visit to the small Church in the village of Naim, Jesus according to Luke performed a miracle here  bringing  the widow's son back to life. No Christians living here now a Muslim Community.  On to  Cana  where Jesus performed his first miracle at the wedding feast - water into wine.  In the Franciscan Church of the Wedding Feast we renew our vows and commitment in a lovely ceremony.

Sat 10th Oct.
We leave Tiberias,  our coach takes us to the foot of Mount Tabour and taxies up the mountain to where the Transfiguration of Jesus took place before Peter James & John.  Mass in the open air near the  Church of the Transfiguration - this church like so many of the Holy Land Churches and sites are in the care of the Franciscans. We have a magnificent view across the plain of Jezreel.
We continue our journey south through the desert and the Jordan valley to Jericho, the lowest inhabited place on earth 825 feet below sea level.  After lunch  to Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found by Bedouin in the hill caves in 1947.  To the Dead Sea where many of us swim. On our way to our Jericho Intercontinental Hotel we stop at the  Sycamore Tree where Jesus called up to Zachaeus to come down. We sing the “Zachaeus” song.

Sun. 11th Oct.
After lunch we see the Mount of Temptations on our way to Bethany - a home from home - where Jesus often stayed when traveling to and from Jerusalem. We have Mass in the modern Franciscan Church with its striking mosaics built over the traditional home of Lazarus, Martha and Mary  After Mass to Bethlehem for shopping.  Leaving Bethlehem we have to exit the coach and queue to pass through the checkpoint.  We sing “Jerusalem” as we get our first view of the Holy City.   Our Jerusalem Hotel The Golden Walls Hotel is beside the Old City - very convenient.  

Mon. 12th Oct.
A very early morning wake up call! After breakfast we walk the short distance to the Damascus Gate and enter the Old City. On to the Church of the  Holy Sepulchre, and up the steps to Mount Calvary where we have Mass - what an unforgettable experience!. We touch the rock on which Jesus was crucified and see the slab where the body of Jesus lay before burial, and then take our turn to enter the Holy Sepulchre. After a coffee break, we  walk through the narrow  crowded streets to the Church of St. Anne where Mary lived with parents Joachim and Anne.   In the same grounds is the Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus cured the crippled man who could not get into the pool when the waters were stirred. Then to the Church of Flagellation where Jesus was scourged, we cross the court yard to the Church of Condemnation where he was condemned to death. From here we commence the Stations of the Cross and take turns to carry the big wooden Cross along Via Dolorosa stopping at each station on the way until we arrive back at the Holy Sepulchre.    We visit the Mercy Gate which Jesus passed through on his way out of the city to be crucified. After lunch in the Old City we walk to Mount Zion to the Dormition Abbey where Our Lady may have died. We go under the main Church to the crypt and say the mystery of the Rosary -‘The Assumption’.  Then back to our hotel for a rest,  tired but happy after a long day of walking.  After dinner, the short distance to    Gethsemane where the agony in the garden took place. We have a quiet Holy Hour.  It is a prayerful moving experience - an opportunity for confession and anointing.  We see the olive trees in the garden and the rock of the agony before the altar in The Church of All Nations.

Tues. 13th Oct.
By coach to Zion Gate, we walk to The Wailing Wall, where we put on our kappel (little white skullcap) and place our petitions in the crevices of this famous wall.  From there  to St. Peter’s Gallicantu, the house of Caiaphas where Peter denied Jesus, then down into the dungeon where Jesus spent the night before he died. Outside we see the steps that Jesus would have walked on going from the Upper Room to Gethsemane on the first Holy Thursday night. We look out over the Kidron Valley, see the Potters Field where Judas went after betraying Jesus in the garden.   After lunch on to the summit of the Mount of Olives to the little Chapel of the Ascension -  the Christian and Muslim holy site that is believed to mark the place where Jesus ascended into heaven. To the Church of the Pater Noster (Our Father).  On the way down the Mount of Olives we stop for Mass at the Dominus Flevit Church (built in the shape of a tear drop to commemorate Jesus weeping over The City of Jerusalem).  Outside the Church a panoramic view of the Old City, the Temple Area and The Dome of the Rock.  Back to Mount Zion to the  Cenacle - The Room where the Last Supper took place.

Wed. 14th Oct.
After breakfast we walk the short distance to the famous Ecole Biblique (where Stephen the first martyr is buried) for Mass with Fr. Jerome Murphy-O’Connor OP. After Mass he answers our questions and he makes a presentation to our guide Bassam. That evening we take the road through the hills to Emmaus about 7 miles from Jerusalem where Jesus joined the two disciples on the evening of his Resurrection. We read  the Gospel account of the event in  the Byzantine Church in the village. We travel on to Ein Karem to visit the Visitation Shrine - the home of Zachariah and Elizabeth, and the birthplace of John the Baptist.  Mary came here to visit her cousin Elizabeth.  A little hic’cup with our bus breaking down. !!

Thurs. 15th Oct.
We say good-bye to Jerusalem, again passing through the checkpoint as we enter Palestinian territory - the town of Bethlehem - Sad to see the high security wall built around the town.  We enter Manger Square and the Church of the Nativity  for Mass down in St. Joseph’s Cave.  After Mass we visit the main Church of St. Catherine and then down into the cave where Jesus was born - a star marking the spot.
We walk the short distance to the Milk Grotto, which was the home of the Holy Family after the birth of Jesus and before their flight into Egypt.  
After lunch in Bethlehem  on to the Shepherds’ Field where the shepherds heard the news of the birth of  Jesus on that first Christmas night. A little strange as we sing Christmas Carols - sun shining.  We spend our last night in the Bethlehem InterContinental Hotel.

Friday 16th Oct.
Last Mass of our Pilgrimage in the Hotel, we express our thanks to Bassam who has been a truly wonderful guide.   We head for Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv, for our direct flight to Cork, arriving at Cork  10.30pm.

We sincerely thank all who helped to make our Pilgrimage a truly memorable experience.    
              Fr. Kerry, &  Fr. John


Poem  -  Pilgrimage to Holy Land, October 2009
We gathered at Cork Airport about the break of dawn.
Some were bright and lively and some stifled a yawn.
But either way we knew that we felt really grand
To be setting out as pilgrims on a trip to Holy Land.
Our leaders gave us greeting with smiles so warm and cheery
From Innishannon, Father John, from Turner’s Cross Father Kerry.
Arrived in Tel Aviv our journey continued without hitch
With Mohammed to drive and Bassam as guide there wouldn’t be a glitch.
Our first step was Hotel Bali on Lake of Galilee.
Of Tiberias we’d often heard and now we could it see.
Our boat trip was a great success with readings, song and prayer
And in the midst of all of that we could feel Jesus there.
At River Jordan in the afternoon we made a lovely sight
As we entered in the water garbed in baptismal white.
And though all that undressing and dressing was a pain
It was a great blessing to be baptised once again.
At the Dead Sea we’d be rejuvenated, so Father Kerry said,
But I think that the waters must have got into his head.
For as I look around me I cannot see more youth
But all that early rising has added years, in truth.
Monday was a special day though early out of bed,
Every minute worth it though many a weary head.
Along the Via Dolorosa we took our pilgrim way.
Each took a turn to carry the cross and stations we did pray.
Though in the heat we suffered and feet were weary and sore
We knew without the slightest doubt that Jesus suffered more.
In the evening we rested souls and found tranquillity
In an atmosphere so special up in Gethsamene.
In the church at Naim Village we heeded widows’ pleas
And asked that God give special care to all the B.A.V. s
A very special privilege was our Mass with Father Jerome.
It’s great to have good contacts when you travel far from home.
As many of us know full well when we have suffered loss
We too have had Jesus’s company on our own road to Emmaus.
And to know that He was there was comfort in our pain
To see the road He travelled was yet another gain.
An unplanned part of the pilgrimage was when the bus broke down
And we thought we’d have to go on foot back to Jerusalem town.
I fear that we’re not nearly as tough as Russian pilgrims of yore
For our faith gets sorely tried when our feet and legs are sore.
On the trip we got to know Jesus from boy to man,
The Jesus who, as carpenter, could curse as we all can.
And when that human Jesus made the choice to die
That choice was just as difficult as ‘twould be for you and I
Bassam sure had his work cut out to keep us up to time
But unfailingly good-humoured he made us toe the line.
That someone would be left behind there wasn’t any fear
For John was watching out for us and bringing up the rear.
From Nazareth and the annunciation we have travelled a long road
To Golgotha with Jesus, each carrying our own load.
We have prayed and laughed together, a family in faith
And Jesus on this journey has blessed us with his grace.
In Bethlehem somehow it didn’t seem quite right
When the sun was beaming down on us to be singing Silent Night.
But from now on those hymns we sing on Christmas night and morn
Will have a special meaning when we’ve seen where Christ was born.
We’ve been blessed in our leaders who led us with such grace.
As a scholar of the Bible Sister Mary had an important place.
We’re really lucky pilgrims to have had as guide Bassam,
A guide who’s full of knowledge and a very special man.
As for our priests, Father Kerry and Father John
There is no end to the praise that them we could heap on
Unfailingly pleasant and with energy galore
They led us on the spiritual path as never known before.
Our Masses were a sacred time, times of special grace.
We give thanks to the Lord above who led us to this place.
And to you, Fathers Kerry and John, may God both of you bless
For the gift you have given us, of priests you are the best.

Bernadette Hegarty