Welcome to Saint Mary of the Assumption
a culturally rich and diverse Catholic family; through our worship, educational, youth and outreach ministries, we endeavor to welcome, to love, to evangelize and to serve, making Jesus Christ present in Word & sacrament.
Our parish pilgrims left on Sunday, August 19, 2018 taking their non-stop flight from Boston to Tel Aviv. Upon arrival, they were met by our tour guide Maher Nahhas, a Melkite Catholic who is a native of Galilee. From Tel Aviv, our group traveled by coach to the Mount of the Beatitudes for their accommodations at the retreat house there. They returned safely to our parish on Thursday, August 30th. Each day our pilgrims posted their daily activities and photos here. Follow their journey and be part of walking in the footsteps of our Lord.
A perfect and sunny day. The bells are ringing as we offer our first pilgrimage prayer for God’s guidance and protection. And then we are on our way to Logan. There we will meet the other dozen pilgrims and prepare for our flight.
Traffic moved along and we were met at Logan with our support person named Scott. With the need to answer many questions we made it through to check in and then to security. Once that was done we had time to grab a bite and begin our trip by enjoying each other’s company. It was then that Fr. Peter was given ‘traveling gifts’ from a pilgrim from last year for this journey. Two details he hadn’t shared about that trip is that when I he made cup of tea at the hotel he couldn’t wait for the water to boil so once it was hot He made his tea. The next day he missed the evening activities because he got sick during lunch. The second is that on our final night there was a folk dance demonstration at the farewell dinner by a local Arab dance school. At the end they got the group on the dance floor up to teach them the dances. All went well until he crouched down during the dance and heard his pants rip right along the seam. So his gifts were anti-diarrhea medication and an emergency sewing kit! That’s what he’s opening before boarding the plane when he hides his face and then shows them to the camera.
Our flight had a few bumpy moments but mostly uneventful. Some of our pilgrims slept, not all. At the airport we met our guide Maher Nahhas. Boarding our coach we met Anwar our driver. Luggage loaded we were on our way for the 2 hour ride to Galilee. Once we reached the Mount of Beatitudes we had a delicious dinner with chicken, rice and cabbage. For dessert we sang to Linda who left the US one age and landed in Israel a year older, and in a different decade! We then finished our day with. Mass for our safe arrival and for we have left home. A long day and a long journey. An early night to rest for tomorrow. If you can see all of us there are 23 counting Fr. Peter on the right and Maher our guide on the left. If it’s an early morning, check tomorrow to see who’s up for sunrise on the Sea of Galilee.
The sun rises over the Sea of Galilee as we begin our day at the Guest House for the Mount of the Beatitudes. This is a peaceful spot overlooking the Sea of Galilee.
We set out today for Nazareth. As we entered the city, we saw Mary’s well, where Our Lady would have drawn water daily for the needs of her household. We then went to the Convent of the Sisters of Nazareth to view the excavations beneath their convent where it is believed that the house where the Holy Family lived ad the tomb of Joseph the Just One is located. From there we walked to the workshop of Saint Joseph where we celebrated our Mass. Afterwards we went to the crypt to explore the place where our Lord grew in wisdom and obedience working at the trade of his foster father. From there we visited Mary’s House where the Angel of Lord brought the invitation to be the Mother of the Eternal Word and her yes echoes through all the ages. We blessed rosaries and each pilgrim received one as a keepsake of their visit to this sacred shrine and holy place on earth. We returned to the covent for a wonderful lunch. Afterward we walked to the site of the synagogue of Nazareth where the event described in Luke 4 takes place. From that moment, Jesus leaves Nazareth and does not return.
After this we traveled to Cana where in the Chapel of Saint John the Evangelist the married couples in our group each renewed their vows. Our longest married is at 58 years and the youngest married is 28, and varying years of married bliss between them. There were many tears shed, a few wavering voices, and lots of smiles as we witnessed this wonderful gift of love. We prayed for those who spouses are now in God and those who didn’t make the journey, that their love would know God’s continued grace as well. We toured the lower church where one of the water cisterns is located ad learned the details of this first and important miracle in the Gosepl of Saint John. A bus ride of half hour brought us back to our Guest House where we enjoy dinner and gather for evening prayer. A day. A tiring day, especially with the heat, But an amazing day to be in these places where so may important moments of our faith have occurred. We have been touched and graced to walk where the Holy Family lived, praying to bring their grace back to our families at home.
Today we missed the sunrise because it was overcast from the moisture that rises from the Mediterranean and then condenses over the mountains to the Sea of Galilee. Still it was an amazing day. We travelled only the distance of 8 miles, but it involves about 80 per cent of the public ministry of our Lord. We began at Tagbha, the site of the seven springs that feed the Sea of Galilee where the testimony since the first century claims one of the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fishes occurred. From here we travelled to Capernaum, where we walked the area where our Lord lived after he left Nazareth. We had Mass in the chapel that is built over the original house of Saint Peter. Not fifty yards from the church is the syagogue where the discourse on the Bread of Life was first given. Having heard this gospel over the last few weeks and being here to remember it being said while we were celebrating Eucharist made our faith so profound and real in that moment - a true blessing already of this journey.
From Capernaum we travelled to the site of the Primacy of Peter, the Mensa Christi where Jesus prepared breakfast for the apostles after the resurrection and charged Peter to care for his flock. In 1964, Blessed Pope Paul VI was the first pope since the first Pope Peter to step here. He was so overcome with emotion he dropped to the rock to kiss and they feared he had fallen until they realized his action was deliberate because of his emotion in being in the same spot as his predecessor, the Apostle Peter. From there we enjoyed a lunch of Saint Peter fish (tilapia) and the travelled to the site of continuing excavations at Magdala, the hometown of Mary Magdalene. It is the site of a uniquely preserved first century synagagoe. The town was abandoned during the mid-first century after a conflict with the Romans ad undiscovered until less than a decade ago. There is construction for a new guest house and the chapel is already built with a beautiful setting of the Sea of Galilee as the backdrop.
From here we traveled to the Kibbutz of Genassor to sail on a replica of a first century fishing boat. While on the sea we read the story of Jesus walking on the water and reflected on the storms in our own lives. The view from the sea is very different from the shore, and we were able to take in that perspective. We sang, danced and prayed as we took in this relaxing experience of where our Lord also once walked with his disciple, Peter. Following this we toured the museum of the salvaging of the fishing boat discovered covered in mud that was the basis for the boat that we sailed on. With full hearts and tired feet, from a long hot, and inspiring adventure we headed home. After a fine meal, we gathered for evening prayer and shared our experiences. In just 48 hours we are amazed at all that we have done and taken in. It is a lot to process, and tomorrow is another day and another adventure, but God is blessing us in wonderful ways. The needs and prayers of so many are part of our remembrance and daily journey.
Though half of our group rose early for the sunrise, it was overcast with the moisture from the Mediterranean and we were once again disappointed. But it did spoil the rest of our day. We left the Sea to travel up and beyond Nazareth to Mount Tabor. From the fourth century, this solitary mountain visible from the hills of Nazareth has been venerated as the site of the famous event of the transfiguration of our Lord. A modern church completes what Peter expressed and never accomplished. There are three booths, the large main church in recognition of the Lord, and a smaller chapel to each side, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.
Our Mass reminded us of the glory of Christ within us that can be revealed or disfigured by the choices that we make along life’s journey. Coming down from the mountain we returned to our buses and journeyed to the Magdala restaurant right next to the sight we had visited just yesterday. We had a delicious gourmet meal and then took 0ur coach along the Sea of Galilee to the baptismal area of the Jordan River.
This baptismal area is not where John baptized. In fact, it’s not even near it! But it allowed us to step into the river, renew the commitment of our faith and be baptized with holy water from the Jordan River. From there, we returned to the Guest House by riding along the ‘other side’ and crossing over the Jordan River where it empties into the Sea of Galilee before we returned home. After dinner and some time for discussion we pack our bags. In the morning we leave early for our journey to the hotel in Bethlehem.
Our last morning in Galilee. We take in the last sunrise over the sea, pack our bags, and head south along the river valley. As our group departs from Galilee, it travels along the Jordan River valley seen in the first photograph. They stop in Jericho to see the Mount of Temptations. This is the high place Satan took our Lord to when he asked him to do him homage. This is recognized by the rectangular shape on the top of the mountain that are the walls of a Russian Orthodox monastery. The group had Mass in a classroom at the school of the Good Shepherd Parish which now has only 150 members. From here we stop for lunch, lamb or chicken kebabs. Then a visit to the sycamore tree to remember Zaccheus and buy some head scarves from the vendors.
Leaving Jericho our group climbs up from below sea level. We stop at an overlook to Saint George’s monastery. In these photos in the middle you can see a trail on the opposite ridge. This is the ancient Messianic trail used by Jesus in the first century to leave Jericho and arrive in Jerusalem. It was probably also used by our Lady to visit Elizabeth and by the Holy Family to travel to Bethlehem. From here they travel through the desert and climb toward Jerusalem, stopping in Bethany on the way. Here is where Jesus enjoyed the hospitality of Martha and Mary, who anointed him after he raised Lazarus from the dead. We climb down the slippery steps to visit the tomb of Lazarus. From here the group travels through the Palestinian territory to check in at the hotel in Bethlehem.
An early start to today. After enjoying a buffet breakfast at the hotel, it’s onto the bus to enter the Holy City. To do so, the bus must pass through a check point, a border security between the Palestinian state and Israel. The guards have one question, where are the tourists from. The answer, ‘Americani,’ waves the bus through immediately. The first stop is at Bethpage, the house of the unripened fig. Access to here is through the city of Jerusalem since the border wall has blocked access from where the group was yesterday in Bethany. Stopping at the church, the interior is decorated with images from the story of the procession of Palm Sunday. There is a decorated stone, found from the fourth century that some claimed was used by the Lord to Mount the donkey, but the certain atruth is that here is where the donkey was tethered that the Lord rode into the city as recorded by Saint Luke.
The bus climbs the narrow streets, there is some tight maneuvering and the group is over the hill and descending the Mount of Olives as it slopes to the Kidron Valley and the Temple Mount now in clear view. The group stops at Dominus Flavet, meaning ‘the Lord wept’ as he looked over the holy city and considered its failure to accept him and therefore its impending destruction. Mass is celebrated here at a samall altar overlooking the valley and the Temple Mount. The group has its official photo taken here overlooking the Temple Mount.
From here the group descends to the bottom of the Mount and enters Gethsemani, meaning the ‘olive press.’ They are given admittance to a private garden where the story of the Agony is read and the group has a half hour in silence to meditate and pray surrounded by the olive trees whose roots were clearly here at the first century. Following this, the group tours the magnificent Church of All Nations. Built following World War I it was intended to be a collaborative to create a global unity and eliminate the need for another war. It is dark, brooding and profound, the perfect place to meditate on what happened here. In front of the altar is the bedrock that the testimony claims is where our Lord suffered his agony that night. From here he was arrested and taken to the house of the high priest, Caiaphas.
The group leaves this holy site for a buffet lunch at Notre Dame Center and then travels to Mount Zion. The first stop is at Dormition Abbey to commemorate where our Lord Lady fell into sleep. Then her body was carried to a tomb at the Kidron Valley where it was assumed into the glory of heaven. In the crypt, gathered around the wooden image of our Lady, the group offers a special prayer for our parish, in this Jerusalem location of our patroness, Saint Mary of the Assumption. Leaving here, the group turns a corner and climbs a stairway to reach the traditional site of the Upper Room. The actual room was destroyed in 70 AD with the destruction of the city, but strong testimony places it at this spot in the city. The group prays here remembering the institution of the priesthood, the institution of the Eucharist and the gift of the Spirit at Pentecost, all occurring on this site.
The last stop of the day is at Saint Peters in Gallicantu. This is a modern church built over the site of the house of Caiaphas. Adjacent to here are the steps that our Lord trod with his disciples on the way to the garden. Did he look, and did he see Judas through a window arranging the last minutes details of his arrest? He would ascend the same stirs bound by the high priest guard to stand trial in what is now the lower church. In the courtyard outside, Peter would warm himself by the fire and three times deny that he knew who Jesus was. The rooster crows, in Latin Gallicantu, thus the name of this church. The last visit is another level below the crypt to a cistern used as a prison. Here our Lord was lowered into this holding cell with ropes tied around his shoulders. Waiting in the dark, no food or water, abandoned by his friends, the light of day would bring his trial and crucifixion. It seems unquestionable that this pit was where our Lord spent his last night on earth. Silence. Tears. One pilgrim said as leaving, “My sins are in that pit.” The sins of all of us are in that pit! A full day, there is a buffet dinner and processing followed by a well deserved rest. Tomorrow will be Christmas for the group!
The sun rises over the town of Bethlehem as our pilgrim’s observe the Lord’s Day in the place of his birth. The days begins with a buffet breakfast at the hotel and then a short trip just beyond the town to Shepherd’s Field. The testimony is that it was here the angels appeared to share the good news of the Savior’s birth to the lowly shepherds caring for their flocks. After some confusion about where the group could pray, they were directed to the first cave and the group began the day with prayer, being mindful of the wonderful story from Luke about the appearance of the angels to the shepherds at this site. Then the group moved to the permanent church designed to have the appearance of a Bedouin tent. Here the group admired the artwork that tells this story and were treated first to ‘Silent Night’ in Arabic and then joined in English.
The next stop was at the parish church of Our Lady of Fatima in Beit Sahour. Here they joined the local Arab community in their regular Sunday worship. They were warmly greeted by the priest, Fr. Ibrahim, who is an assistant to the Latin Patriarch and who was filling in his home parish. The group was reminded of the importance to teach the gift of our faith to succeeding generations. He especially appreciated the presence of our pilgrims who came to find Jesus not among the ruins or the empty tomb but here in the living face of Christ in the brothers and sisters of our Christian faith who live in this ancient time. Carefully dressed, there were ten altar servers in the sanctuary who served with dignity and joy during the Mass. Our leader, Fr. Peter, concelebrated and offered two of the prayers of the faithful in English. After Mass, our pilgrims were warmly greeted by the local community who could not express enough their appreciation that our pilgrims took time from touring to encounter the living Christ in the Holy Land. At the end, Fr. Peter presented our pilgrim gifts, a copy of the book that is a biography of Bethlehem and some of the miraculous oil from Little Audrey’s House in Worcester and the prayer for her cause to become a Catholic saint. Fr. Ibrahim was appreciative of the gifts offered by our pilgrims and one parishioner, Konstantinos, who had written his own book on Bethlehem was most interested in the gift.
From here our pilgrims traveled to Manger Square. Sunday morning worship was still in process so our pilgrims enjoyed a delicious meal with fresh made pasta in the Casa Nova. Following this they traveled to the Greek side of the church, waited in line for 45 minutes to venerate the actual site where the Lord was born. While waiting they prayed the rosary and then prepared their hearts for the opportunity to touch or kiss the spot where the Lord entered into our world. From here they toured the church, touching each finger of their hand into the holes in the column from the early centuries of the church, joining perhaps tens if not hundreds of thousands of pilgrims in this very spot. The Church of the Nativity is the oldest continuous Christian church in the Holy Land left untouched when others were destroyed because there was a mosaic with the Magi and being dressed similarly as the conquerors they left it rather than destroy it. It is presently undergoing repairs and renovations, funded by the Palestinian government, to renew its grandeur and preserve its hoistorical character for future generations.
After the Church of the Nativity, our pilgrims tour the Roman Catholic Church of Saint Catherine. This is the site of the Midnight Mass televised from Bethlehem each Christmas Eve. They descend to the crypt to admire another side of the cave where our Lord was born as well as the place were Saint Jerome with his companions worked o the translation of the Bible from its original Greek into Latin, known as the Vulgate.
Finishing their touring for the day is a stop for souvenirs at a local Christian gift shop with beautiful articles in olive wood, jewelry, icons and other local artifacts. A buffet dinner on the panaroma floor of the hotel brings the day to an end.