April (Web-only) 2009

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Today's version of Jerusalem is a collage of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. The Jewish Temple Mount is topped by the Muslim Dome of the Rock. Views of the Western Wall include sightings of mosque minarets and church cupolas. Pilgrims and residents representing the three religions weave through many narrow and crowded passages of the streets inside the walls of old Jerusalem.

I traveled as a Christian pilgrim to Jerusalem to focus on where Jesus walked, and to have a spiritual encounter with him. But I was surprised that one of my most profound experiences was at the Western Wall. As I wore the required yarmulke with the Christian men in my group, I found myself praying a life-commitment prayer much like the one I prayed at age 18 the day I accepted Christ.

Finding the footsteps of Jesus was much harder than I thought it would be. We went up the 2,000-year-old steps on the South Wall of the Temple Mount, where archaeologists believe Jesus used to enter the temple with other commoners. He probably went up them on his way to clear the temple right after his triumphal entry. Today, the Mount of Olives has more graves than olive groves. A few small clusters of olive trees remain, including some thick, gnarly ones that may date back to the time of Jesus. The graves belong to Jews who want to be the first ones resurrected at the appearance of the Messiah.

The Via Dolorosa (Latin for "way of grief") is more a symbol than anything. It's unlikely that it was the route between Jesus' scourging and Golgotha, and the ground of Jesus' time is well below where we walked. But both Catholic and Protestant pilgrims still find the winding, shop-lined Via Dolorosa to be a reminder of what Jesus experienced on the way to the cross. Amid the crowds within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, we saw a wide variety of responses to the site's shrines.

But for me, the Garden Tomb outside the old city walls was most moving. In this serene patch of green intersected with winding paths lined with trees, shrubs, and outdoor chapels, it was like being greeted in heaven. We were met by a tall, soft-spoken Anglican priest with a distinct British accent. He had recently become a Pentecostal. He escorted us to a site that looked like it could have been the real Golgotha. Afternoon shadows on the rounded hill certainly made it look like a skull. We then walked several hundred yards to a 2,000-year-old tomb carved out of the rock promoted as the one owned by Joseph of Arimathea. Scholars almost universally disagree with that claim, but as I sat there, I was deeply moved thinking about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus on my behalf as my Redeemer. The climax of this visit was a sign inside the tomb proclaiming, "He is not here, for he is risen."

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Christianity Today wrote a cover package on the surprising rewards of Christian travel. Other stories in the package include "He Talked to Us on the Road," "While You're There," "Pilgrim's Regress," and "Pilgrimage Today."

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