Posted on October 24, 2009 in 2009 Pilgrimage to the Holy Land - 0 COMMENTS
Day Three
by Rev Fr Chris Flesoras
We packed-up our bags and departed from the hotel in Tiberius at 8:30am. Joseph, our guide – an Orthodox Christian from Jerusalem – informed us that we are returning to Cana to visit the Church of St George, which is believed to be the spot where the Lord celebrated the wedding Feast.
It was a beautiful monastery Church. The courtyard had would liked a relatively new canopy and font for the blessing of the water, in addition to a beautiful fountain and mosaic and icon of Sts. Constantine and Helen (a reminder of the joy that they had in discovering the Precious Cross).
The Church itself was gorgeous. In the left of the nave was a prominent icon of the Wedding of Cana. To the right of the nave was a prominent icon of the Lord blessing the Children (a reminder to us of the great blessing of marriage, the bearing of children who in turn receive the blessing of the Lord). There were also two large clay containers, which are believed to be the clay pots that contained the water turned to wine by the Lord.
In addition to offering our prayers in this church, the faithful were reminded of two valuable lessons thanks to the priest who was to offer us hospitality:
1) A holy site, a monastery, a parish are entrusted to the care of both the clergy and the laity. It does not belong to us, but to God, we are custodians of a blessing that God has entrusted to our care. In turn, we are to welcome al those who come into our midst with love and kindness, as Abraham and Sarah received the three angels.
2) Whatever the demeanor and or ability of the priest, the Grace of God flows through him equally. St. John Chrysostom wrote that like a vessel with which to pour water, whether clay or gold, both hold and pour water.
On our way to Jericho, we passed through Samaria, a region despised by the Jews. Shortly after the time rule of Solomon, the Kingdom was divided. Ten tribes became the northern Kingdom, while the tribes of Benjamin and Judah were in the south. The tribes in north, because of their disconnect with the Jerusalem, worshipped on Mount Gerizim and set aside Shecam as the capital city. They intermarried, created their own priesthood, and re-introduced aspects of pagan worship to their Temple.
The Jews had such a distain for the Samaritans that they would prefer to walk around the city than pass through. The Lord however walked through Samaria and stopped at Jacob’s well. Here, he spoke with a Samaritan woman who would come to believe, so much so, that in addition to taking Him to her village, she became a disciple and was baptized taking the name Photini.
We transitioned from Samaria to the Jordan Valley. The Jordan Valley is part of the Syrian-African Rift, which is below sea level, the deepest portion being the Dead Sea, 1,500 feet below sea level. Soon, we will enter the Judean Desert or Wilderness.
Prior to passing through a checkpoint and entering the West Bank (approximately, 98% of the population is Muslim, with 2% Christian), we saw numerous orchards of olives and dates. I did not realize that date trees were either male or female, the female producing the fruit. Mike our drive asked, “what did the male tree say to the female tree? Want to date?”
The Monastery of St. Gerasimos was beautiful, very much an oasis both spiritual and physical (albeit constructed like a fortress) for every pilgrim. The Monastery itself is situated a few miles outside of Jericho. St. Gerasimos had it built upon an earlier monastery that was once lived in by St. Sabbas, the founder of St. Sabbas Monastery. The existing monastery was built in the 18th century, which was founded upon two other monastic foundations.
Upon entering the exterior wall of monastery, we stood in a beautiful courtyard. There was a small chapel to the left side of the entrance in which is found a large icon of the Virgin Mary nursing Christ. It is the tradition of this monastery that the Virgin Mary, Joseph and Jesus stopped here on their flight to Egypt for an overnight stay. The bones of the monks who were attached to this monastery are found in one of three reliquaries.
The main Church is dedicated to St. Gerasimos. A wonderful older nun, Eulogia, who shared much of the history of the monastery with me, greeted us. Although relics of St. Gerasimos are not to be found here, many miracles have occurred through his intercessions. We will return in the morning for Liturgy.
Our next stop was the Monastery on the Mount of the Temptations. In the Gospel, we learn that after the Lord’s baptism, He departed for the wilderness. He remained in the Judean wilderness for fasting and praying for 40 days. Here, the Lord was tempted three times by Satan.
The Monastery is built into a steep hillside accessible either by walking or by a tram (although it only takes pilgrims to a plateau that is approximately 300 large steps (1/2 mile) away. It was a magnificent structure, filled with sacred history. The treasure of the Monastery is found in the chapel. It is the rock on which the Lord stood when He was tempted; it is found at the base of the altar.
I can imagine no better place in the world to confront one’s demons. In reality, each of us is assaulted throughout our years by so many darts that are insidiously thrown at us by the devil, to quote a prayer from the Great Compline Service. What a blessing it was to kneel in front of the rock and to ask God to strengthen me so that I may too rise above any and every temptation. Humbling, very humbling.
Our final stop after lunch was the Church of St. Zachaeus. Within the walls of the Greek Orthodox Monastery is the tree that Zachaeus climbed to get a better view of the Lord as He passed by! The Church, like the other Orthodox Churches we have visited was beautiful. Like her sister churches throughout the region, the Monastery Church possessed some other unique icons not normally found in our parishes. Fortunately, we have many a photograph from our group to share upon our return home.
We arrived at the Intercontinental Hotel in Jericho. It’s hard not to be tempted by all of the amenities that this hotel boasts. We’ll enjoy dinner, go off to sleep, and then arise to depart for the Monastery of St. Gerasimos at 6AM.
