Today Is Ascension Day

Today is Ascension Day or the fortieth day of Easter.  For forty days, Jesus appeared to his disciples in a variety of settings and with various proofs of His resurrection.

According to Luke 24:50, this appearance of Jesus takes place outside Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives.  There are two traditional locations where Jesus' ascension is remembered.  The one pictured here is also associated with Mohammad.  Today it is a Muslim holy site as well.

A second location is more atop the Mount of Olives and in closer proximity to Bethany.  A Russian Orthodox chapel crowns the site.

Wherever the ascension might have taken place, the event challenged the minds and inspired the hearts of the first Christians.  Ten days later on the Day of Pentecost, the Church exploded forth to the four corners of the earth.  

The Church awaits His coming again in glory with open minds and hearts.  "Even so, come Lord Jesus!"

Retracing the Final Week I

Over the next two days, our group from Mississippi will be retracing Jesus' final week in Jerusalem. In the Church, we refer to this period of his ministry as "Holy Week."

By beginning the day in Bethany, we realize that the retracing can't be on true chronological lines. Nevertheless, the sites visited are crucial in understanding the drama of Jesus' final hours.

Bethany was the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Perhaps, another Mary (who anointed Jesus' feet) lived here. Yet another of Jesus' friends who lived in Bethany was Simon the Leper.
The combination of such acquaintances attracted Jesus to Bethany often. Tradition holds that Bethany was Jesus' base for the crucial days before Passover.

From Bethany, we made our way to Bethphage located where the ancient road in the Wadi Qelt opened onto the Mount of Olives. Here we remembered Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem on what the Church today calls "Palm Sunday" (Mark 11). We spent time seeking out the meaning of what appears to be a diliberate claim of kingship, albeit a different kind of kingdom. It was not difficult to imagine a pompous procession from the west by Judea's prefect, Pontius Pilate. What a contrast it must have been!

Leaving Bethpage, we walked down the Mount of Olives to Dominus Flevit Church which commemorates Jesus' pause to weep over the city. "O Jerusalem! O Jerusalem!" the cry continues.

In the garden of Gethsemane, we prayed in the Basilica of Agony or the Church of All Nations. The architect, Antonio Barluzzi, has captured a sense of night inside the church even on the brightest of days. Nearby is the cave where the disciples might have slept through the cold night.

The afternoon was spent on Mt. Zion at the traditional site of the Upper Room, the tomb of King David, and St. Peter in Gallicantu (the place of the crowing of the cock). Between the garden of Gethsemane and Mount Zion, we were able to set the context of the events of Maunday Thursday. Some of the group took time to visit the grave of Oscar Schindler in the Protestant Cemetery.

The final stop of the day was to view the Second Temple Model of Jerusalem. This model is located now at the Israel Museum. Although it is not, the model appears of a larger scale and even more impressive in its new location. The model remains one of the great teaching tools in this land.