The Sun Shall Not Harm you by Day?

The 15 Psalms from 120-134 are collectively called the "Psalms of Ascent" They are called this because they were typically read by pilgrims to Jerusalem during their "ascent" of Mt. Zion. They express love for Jerusalem and longing to be there. These have been the focus of my prayer over the last few months as I have prepared to make this trip to the Holy Land. This morning I woke up early and re-read all of the Psalms of Ascent in preparation for what I knew was going to be an intense day. Scheduled today was a continuation of our "orientation tour" of the Old City.

We began the morning by visiting "the Citadel", a fortress in the City Walls that has been a necessary defensive structure since King David's Time. The Particular location of this fortress is necessary because it is on the lowest approach to the City. (right next to the Jaffa Gate). So it is basically a castle. And since it was reconstructed in the late Muslim period, it is like a medieval European Castle. Today it houses a museum of the History of Jerusalem. It also provides some of the best Panoramic views of Jerusalem and the surrounding area.

After a couple of hours at the Museum, we cut across the Armenian Quarter directly into the Jewish Quarter. This was our first time in the Jewish Quarter and our objective was the Western (Wailing Wall), but we got a quick tour of many highlights of this section of the City. Among my first impressions was how quiet it was. It is the Sabbath and most Jews are at home or at Synagogue (Jews in the Old City are largely Orthodox and very observant). None of the shops in the Jewish Quarter were open. I was also impressed with how incredibly clean, open, and new it was compared to the rest of the Old City. The new is because of the large amount of destruction that was done during the Arab-Israeli Wars that necessitated the razing of old structures and the building of new. This is a sad reality, but it gave a "recently completed" feel to the whole area.

As we approached the Western Wall, I was impressed with the order and organization. On the Sabbath there are fewer pilgrims than other days, but still, large numbers gathered to pray at this sacred place. I was very moved by my first experience of the Wailing Wall. This section of the Wall is venerated because it is all that remains of the Temple precinct from the 2nd (post-Exile) Temple that was desecrated and destroyed by the Romans late in the 1st Century. The Jews say that because it is the closest thing to the Holy of Holies, that the Glory of the Lord rests there. I was struck by a sense of God's presence there today. I was one of a few men praying outside. As I approached to touch the wall, I was overwhelmed by a sense of God's presence and I was even more overwhelmed by how this place represents the peace that has evaded the Jewish people throughout so much of their history. I was moved to pray for the Peace of Jerusalem. I leaned my head against the Wall and wept for a few moments. I was reminded of Jesus' weeping for his beloved city:

In Luke's Gospel we read:

As [Jesus] drew near, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If this day you
only knew what makes for peace--but now it is hidden from your eyes. For
the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against
you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to
the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon
another within you because you did not recognize the time of your
visitation."(Luke 19:41-44)

Matthew records this as Jesus' Lament over Jerusalem

"Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to
you, how many times I yearned to gather your children together, as a hen gathers
her young under her wings, but you were unwilling! Behold, your house will
be abandoned, desolate. I tell you, you will not see me again until you
say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.' " (Matt 23:37-39)

In a flash of seconds at the Wall, I was drawn to the Prophet Jeremiah's Lamentation over Jerusalem:

Let my eyes stream with tears day and night, without rest, Over the great
destruction which overwhelms the virgin daughter of my people, over her
incurable wound. If I walk out into the field, look! those slain by the sword;
If I enter the city, look! those consumed by hunger. Even the prophet and the
priest forage in a land they know not. Have you cast Judah off completely? Is
Zion loathsome to you? Why have you struck us a blow that cannot be healed? We
wait for peace, to no avail; for a time of healing, but terror comes instead.
(Jeremiah 14:17-20)

How much destruction, violence, and hatred can one city, one people stand? My sadness and tears were only momentary, but they were profound. The Wall invoked them in me and tried to sit with them for a few moments before rejoining my companions. I will go back to this sacred place and when I do, it will be to reflect more deeply on these impressions that came today.

Jeremiah's prayer of lamentation is followed by a confession that brings hope to the readers that he has lead to despair by his Lament:

We recognize, O LORD, our wickedness, the guilt of our fathers; that we
have sinned against you. For your name's sake spurn us not, disgrace not the
throne of your glory; remember your covenant with us, and break it not. Among
the nations' idols is there any that gives rain? Or can the mere heavens send
showers? Is it not you alone, O LORD, our God, to whom we look? You alone have
done all these things. (Jeremiah 14:21-22)

The Peace that has alluded Israel for so long, robbed from Jerusalem by every passerby, will be the work of The LORD, our God and him alone.

After Our time of prayer and a wonderful lunch in the Muslim Quarter, we headed across to the Mount of Olives to visit some of the Christian Holy Sites there. We visited the Tomb of the Blessed Virgin on the Mount of Olives, from which she is said to have been assumed body and soul into heaven. We visited the Garden of Gethsemani and the Church of All Nations which commemorates the Agony in the Garden. [This Church is called the "Church of All Nations" because donations from Catholics in 12 countries, including the United States, funded its construction. There are 12 domes in the church commemorating those nations. On the inside of each dome is a symbol recognizing the nation - the US's dome bears the Eagle Coat of Arms of he United States of America).]

From there we walked along the Kidron Valley - Fr. Gregory pointed out other holy sites we would want to visit in our free time. We stopped by the excavation site at the "City of David" where King David's Palace is being excavated now. By this time, the afternoon had worn into evening and we made our way through the Dung Gate and back across the Old City headed for home. We stopped at a rooftop restaurant in the Muristan Market for a quick beer and a little rest.

Psalm 121, a Psalm of Ascent speaks of the LORD as the Guardian of his people, especially those on pilgrimage: "The LORD will guard your life, the LORD will guard your goings and your comings..." Verses 5 and 6 say "The Lord is your shade...With Him beside you at your right hand, the sun shall not harm you by day nor the moon by night..."

Good promise for pilgrims in these sun-intense months. But I must be doing something wrong, because the Lord did not protect me form the harm of the sun. I did not reapply sun screen quickly enough in the afternoon and ended up with a little sunburn. Oy vey! The sun will not harm you by day, if you do not forget to reapply your SPF 50 sunscreen occasionally. :)

Be sure to check out the additional pictures I uploaded today at Picasa: http://picasaweb.google.com/FrBart/Jerusalem2009