PILGRIMS  REMEMBER …       

Elisabeth and Pierre Loth -

          I was totally blown away by my first view of Jerusalem. The golden glow of the city on hills surprised me. Later I found out that the glow is because of the lime stone used for the buildings. (A British mandate).

          Masada and Caesarea were the other two places I liked the most. The histories of these two places were easy to grasp and understand. These places were excavated and left in ruins. No other buildings were built on top of others etc.

          Pierre was in awe of the ability of scientists to go back to more than 2000 years and discover the history and also actually see the various historic events as written in the bible. It still boggles the mind. Just the fact that Jerusalem was destroyed several times and rebuilt on top of the old city and one can actually see that.  

Rose Kukla -

          The Israel pilgrimage can best be described as exhausting and at the same time exhilarating!  With our fantastic tour guide, Rivka, we explored Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Jericho, Tiberius, Nazareth, Capernaum, Caesarea, Masada, the Dead Sea, the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River and more.   The views were breathtaking, the churches filled with amazing tile work and frescos, the ruins of thousands of years ago, and the opportunity to quietly contemplate the stories of the holy land was, at times overwhelming, but always soul stirring.  

          Imagine viewing the site where Jesus may have been held captive, where he may have been crucified and waking into the tomb where his body may have been laid.   Imagine standing on the shore of the Sea of Galilee near the place where Jesus appeared to his disciples for the third time after the resurrection.  And, perhaps, best of all imagine sharing the experience with folks from our church family.  It was truly an amazing and memorable adventure.  I look forward to sharing more details about the trip with everyone and if I am lucky enough, perhaps someday going back to Israel.

Marge Landwehr - 

          For me the entire trip was an awesome experience and to pick out one or two special moments is difficult. However, after spending some time in pray and just processing all that we saw, I would have to say that our trip to Masada, and swimming/floating in the Dead Sea were right up there as top experiences. Also, being by the Sea of Galilee, especially at Peter’s Primacy where Jesus appeared to the disciples for the third time on the beach and cooked them breakfast was a precious moment for me. We got to put our hands in the water and enjoy the breeze coming off the sea.

          One other memory came to me and that is early one morning I was sitting having breakfast with our tour guide, Rivka, and she asked me about my story. It was wonderful to share something of myself with this person that I hardly knew.

For me after days of listening to the historical facts of each place we visited, it was nice to put things on a more spiritual plane and speak of what God was doing.  It helped me to remember that this was a pilgrimage I was on, and not just a vacation.