In Jerusalem

Psalm 128,5: “The Lord bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life”. Here am I in this holy city. Today was quite special for me in the sense that I visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher twice and went up the Golgotha three times. Why? The first time was this morning: it was in my heart that the first thing I wanted to do in Jerusalem was to visit this most sacred of places where the Son of God made man gave himself for us, entered into our death and, on the third day, he rose from the death, giving life to all who believe in him. It was a very special moment. There were so many people (pilgrims and tourists) but I still manage to find a space for myself to pray. I thanked the Lord for his love for me. St Paul in his letter to the Galatians has that very beautiful expression: “I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (2,20). The song Take control came to my mind which I sang in the silence of my heart:

My heart, my mind, my body, my soul

I give to you, take control

I give you my body, a living sacrifice

Lord, take control, take control.

Then I visited the other places within the Church itself associated to the Passion, death and resurrection of Jesus.

In the afternoon I followed the Way of the Cross through the narrow and crowded streets of the Old City of Jerusalem. It was very hard to follow as there are so many different distractions. However, at the same time you see people who are trying to pray, people who just do not bother with what is happening, people who might be somehow directly against what is happening for reasons of their own. There was also one shopkeeper who was trying to sell water to those participating in the procession. (Yes, it was hot and humid!)

The procession ends in the Holy Sepulcher where the last Stations of the Cross are prayed. It was very suggestive to pray the Way of the Cross on those same places which Jesus trod, burdened by the cross: “He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows … he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities” (Isa 53,4.5). There we prayed and sang. It was so uplifting to be surrounded by so many people from around the world who came here to honor the Lord!

Once the Way of the Cross was over the Franciscans make another procession which is similar to the Way of the Cross. This time the procession goes round the different altars and spaces of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This procession is done daily: this tradition comes down from very early on (Egeria – a pilgrim of the 4^th Century who left a very important diary of her pilgrimage speaks of this procession). It helps the pilgrims to be able to visit and pray in the sacred places associated with the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus, our Saviour. Some of the Latin songs which accompanied the various moments try to convey the message associated with the particular stop. For those interested to read more, you can go to: http://www.holysepulchre.custodia.org/default.asp?id=4149. The procession ends with a reflection on the Risen Jesus encountering his Mother and then the benediction with the Blessed Sacrament, the living Jesus giving himself for us today.

A final note: at the end of the procession, an Italian woman came up to me and asked me whether I was from Malta and whether I was called Nicola, to which I answered ‘yes’, obviously. Right at that moment I recognized her as the mother of two dear friends of mine whose wedding I celebrated some 15 to 20 years ago. The world is so small! It was certainly a very pleasant surprise.

A shot of the Holy Sepulcher and the Golden Dome
from the Terrace of Sal Salvatore where I am hosted by the Franciscans.

People venerating the place where Jesus died on the Cross.

A crowd of pilgrims and passers-by attending the Way of the Cross.