Posted on October 27, 2009 in 2009 Pilgrimage to the Holy Land - 0 COMMENTS
Day Six
by Rev Fr Chris Flesoras
This morning, we departed the hotel at 6AM to arrive at the Church of the Tomb of the Virgin Mary for Liturgy. Fr. Demetri and I were under the assumption (not a pun), that I would be the celebrant this morning and that he would lead our group in chanting the Liturgy. To our common surprise, I would be one of four priests serving.
As I vested next to an icon of the Theotokos and Christ found behind the tomb, next to the Prothesis, I thought I recognized the elder priest. When a few of the brothers went to receive his blessing, I remembered where I had seen him before; I had once received his blessing at the Skete of St. Anna on the Feast of the Three Hierarchs. Father is the Abbot of Great Lavra, the first among equals of all of the holy monasteries of Mount Athos. What a joy it was to again receive his blessing and to serve at his side in the tomb of the Virgin Mary.
The youngest priest of the group was Fr. Matthias. He hails from Cologne, Germany and is currently assigned to serve the Monastery of St. Spyridon in the Old City (Jerusalem). He has been ordained a priest for the past year, having previously been serving or attached to the Holy Sepulcher.
I did not have an occasion to meet the third priest with whom I was serving until the elder was communing the faithful. He asked where I was from and to which Metropolis did I belong. I informed him that I was from California, the Metropolis of San Francisco. Father informed me that he was from Mount Athos. I then mentioned that I served the Parish of St. Anna. He then informed me that his name was Fr. Antipas and that he also commemorated Saint Anna as a Matron Saint! I assumed that he was from the Skete and shared that I have been blessed on a number of occasions to be the guest of Fr. Cherubim and Fr. Theophilos at the Skete. He then informed me that he was at a small cell attached to Great Lavra that was dedicated Saint Anna.
Remarkably, I already knew of Father, in fact, I had even received his blessing in February, albeit, over the phone. When Fr. Luke and I were in Cyprus, we received the hospitality of a kind monk at Kykkos Monastery, Fr. Ephraim. During our stay, Father’s phone rang and it was Fr. Antipas. Fr. Ephraim noted that one of the priests he was with from America served the Church of Saint Anna and hoped that on one occasion that the two of us could visit Fr. Antipas at his cell. Fr. Antipas welcomed us and sent his blessing. Now, to think that I was serving Liturgy in the Tomb of Mary, which is also the burial place of Sts. Joachim and Anna with another priest who commemorates St. Anna and with whom I had already indirectly met, was a great gift from God indeed; it was simply remarkable. I had a permanent smile on my face the rest of Liturgy.
Liturgy was beautiful. To be honest, I have yet to process that I was serving in the tomb of Mary, which is a blessing that only Orthodox priests enjoy. The altar, which houses the tomb, was probably equal in length to the storage closet in the Narthex, but about half the width. Half of this space was taken up with the marble funeral bier, so you may be able to imagine how tight the space was for four priests.
The Church itself is magnificent. Processing into the Sanctuary from the street level, we descended approximately 40 steps. Vigil lights were to strategically placed throughout the nave and the altar. In front of the tomb is a second altar that is used by the Armenian Orthodox each day after the Greek Orthodox faithful celebrates Divine Services. Once they are concluded, the Church is open to pilgrims.
After breakfast, we were off to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem to receive the blessing of His Beatitude, Patriarch Theophilos 3rd. Our group was received with two other groups – one from the Ukraine and the other from Bulgaria. His Beatitude gave a beautiful talk in which he recounted the blessed history of this land, the responsibility of Orthodox Christians in Jerusalem, and the blessing of being pilgrims. He was extremely kind and sincere; it was a memorable visit for all of us.
After a few photos, His Beatitude asked Fr. Demetri and me to join him as he welcomed another group to the Patriarchate. The Serbian Prime Minister was visiting with a small group to receive His blessing and to thank him for his support and prayers. Again, I was amazed at the insight of the Patriarch as well as the sincerity of His words. At the close of this gathering, we were able to spend a few more minutes with His Beatitude in his office.
Our next stop was the Monastery of the Palms. We were greeted by Gerontissa who welcomed us to the Monastery, let us in the Church to light a candle and say a prayer, and directed us to venerate the rock, which is believed to be the rock that the Lord stepped on as he mounted the donkey to process into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday).
We met Fr. Aristodolos of the Patriarchate who would be our guide for the remainder of our trip. We will be walking through the Via de la Rosa, the way of suffering of our Lord. Our procession began at a Roman Catholic Church. Here, we reviewed the footsteps of the Lord, walked on a stone floor some 2000 years old and saw a sword etched game on the floor of the Church (considered to be the game that the soldiers played when they divided the Lord’s garments and/or kept watch over Him.
The next stop was the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Anna, which is the birthplace of the Theotokos. The actual house of Joachim and Anna is found a few levels down below the street level church (accessible by two flights of stone steps). It was amazing walking down a standing in a very primitive dwelling carved completely out of stone. And, to think that the Theotokos was born here was simply overwhelming. Needless to say, this was a very special visit for us to call Saint Anna Parish our spiritual home.
We then proceeded to the Greek Orthodox Church of the Pratorium. I’m embarrassed to say that I didn’t know that this Church existed. After walking in from street level, we were able to descend a number of flights of stairs to the prison cells were Barabbas was kept. Above this location, through a few stone doorways and passages, we found ourselves in a small space, which is believed to be the place where Christ was kept. The rock formation was designed to have the feet slip through two rock holes, to then be chained together down below. There was a beautiful mosaic above the stone that depicted the Lord imprisoned in this location. A vigil light was burning in this location, the oil being made available to us at the close of our visit.
We then processed a Cross-through the streets of the Old City as we chanted “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.” Sadly, the little streets are packed with shops, cafes, and vendors. There is little holy or awe-inspiring on this walk, at least for me. I can only imagine the spiritual impact that this once had on the faithful as they piously walked the streets, processing from one Church to the next, during the Great and Holy Week of the Church. I can only pray that as we walk through the Great and Holy Week this next year, that the piety and reverence of the Via del la Rosa will manifest itself for us in Roseville.
Tomorrow morning we depart for Mount Sinai.
