Truemors
I have lived in Israel and visited most of it, including Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Megiddo, (supposed to be the eventual site of Armageddon) Jericho, Bethlehem, Hebron and Masada.
I've also walked the length of the Via Dolorosa at Easter - which I found to be both awe inspiring and ethereal at the same time.
Thousands of Christians walked the stone alleyways of Jerusalem's Old City to mark Good Friday, retracing the route Jesus took to his crucifixion.
Some pilgrims carried wooden crosses as they walked the Via Dolorosa, or Way of Sorrows, stopping at 14 stations that mark events that befell Jesus as he was led to his death.
Other pilgrims crowded into the ancient Church of the Holy Sepulcher, traditionally the site of Jesus' death, burial and resurrection. Some chanted hymns. Others prostrated themselves on a smooth stone slab marking the spot where Jesus' body was placed after being removed from the cross.
Police said thousands of security personnel were deployed around Jerusalem because of Good Friday and Purim.
To Christians, the narrow, ancient, pebbled street known as the Via Dolorosa and the church is meant to be the Holy Grail of all places to visit in Israel.
It is the street where Jesus carried the crucifix on his back and it's also where you're able to visit each location of the 14 Stations of the Cross, including where Jesus stumbled.
Whether a person believes that these events happened or not, all the Biblical movies I'd ever seen, came flooding back to me as I walked the Via Dolorosa, simultaneously feeling the hairs on the back of my neck rise.
At the Church of the Holy Sepulcher we were stopped from entering because we were wearing shorts, which apparently were too brief to wear into the Church.
A friend of mine handed me a pretty shawl, which she suggested I wrap around my hips, I looked at the cleric, he smiled, nodded and we entered.
Walking silently as people filed into the tiny church and available pews, I looked behind me, only to find people also lining the walls and the back of the church - it was jam-packed.
While we didn't come specifically for this purpose, it was the reason for many of the foreigners coming to Jerusalem at Easter.
My very lengthy (incredibly enjoyable!) visit (6 months) to Israel had been capped off beautifully - and all that remained was to perhaps one day tell the story of what it was like in Jerusalem over Easter.
Source:
The Jerusalem Post
Thousands of Christian Pilgrims Mark Good Friday in Jerusalem's Old City
AP
Wikipedia
Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Image Sources
Holy Land Network
Jerusalem Gallery
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