ThomasV
27th February 2007, 12:45 AM
All Christian pilgrims to the Holy City of Jerusalem do their best to visit the holiest shrine of Christendom. On arriving in Jerusalem you feel compelled to walk through the Turkish walls that surround the Old City and as you repeat to yourself the psalmist's words "I rejoiced with those who said to me, 'Let us go to the house of the Lord' (Ps 122,1) you keep walking towards "the tomb of the Lord".
You get carried away by the masses that throng the narrow streets of the city. You look around you and see the hundred shops proudly displaying their merchandise in your face, in your way, over your head. You are almost carried away by the sweet smells of spices that mingle in the air with those of a roofed market.
After a few minutes you find yourself in a square and in front of a shabby façade with a cut off belfry. You start wondering how could it be, that at this site there was a hill, a garden and a new tomb. You almost give in to the temptation of completely ignoring what the guides say because this shocking experience has left you speechless and confused.
But you muster your courage and venture inside. You see a Greek Orthodox monk lighting candles. You hear the Armenian Orthodox choir singing their Liturgy. You pass by a small chapel where a Copt Orthodox priest devoutly says his prayer and nearby a Syrian Orthodox monk recites his. You continue on and meet a Franciscan friar preparing an altar for the celebration of the mass.
You get carried away by the masses that throng the narrow streets of the city. You look around you and see the hundred shops proudly displaying their merchandise in your face, in your way, over your head. You are almost carried away by the sweet smells of spices that mingle in the air with those of a roofed market.
After a few minutes you find yourself in a square and in front of a shabby façade with a cut off belfry. You start wondering how could it be, that at this site there was a hill, a garden and a new tomb. You almost give in to the temptation of completely ignoring what the guides say because this shocking experience has left you speechless and confused.
But you muster your courage and venture inside. You see a Greek Orthodox monk lighting candles. You hear the Armenian Orthodox choir singing their Liturgy. You pass by a small chapel where a Copt Orthodox priest devoutly says his prayer and nearby a Syrian Orthodox monk recites his. You continue on and meet a Franciscan friar preparing an altar for the celebration of the mass.