A Diocesan Pilgrimage
led by
Peter Hill - Archdeacon of Nottingham

22 - 31 October 2010

(Jordan pre-tour option 19 - 22 October 2010)

Day 1      Friday, 22 October

TRAVEL TO THE HOLY LAND

Our pilgrimage will begin with an evening scheduled flight from London Heathrow to Ben Gurion airport, Tel Aviv. Dinner in-flight.

Day 2      Saturday, 23 October

Chorazain – Mt of Beatitudes – Tabgha Bethsaida – Sea of Galilee

We arrive at dawn where we will be met by our Lightline guide then driven north to Tiberias and our hotel, the Holiday Inn by the Sea of Galilee. During our stay at the Holiday Inn the spa is open to us to use. We then meet up with the rest of our group from Jordan and begin our pilgrimage with a visit to Chorozain, condemned by Jesus for its lack of faith. Like Capernaum, there is a partially restored C4 AD synagogue but unlike Capernaum the building material is black basalt. We drive up to the beautiful octagonal Church and Garden of the Mount of Beatitudes which conveys an impression of immense tranquillity. Its shady gallery is the best place from which to contemplate the spiritual dimension of the Sea of Galilee and see virtually all the places Jesus lived and worked in. From the church we will walk down the Mount to the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes at Tabgha with its beautiful mosaic floors and celebrated mosaic of two fish flanking a basket of loaves. A special fish lunch will be taken on the furthest shore of the lake before our visit to the recently excavated site of Beth Saida. Peter, Andrew and Phillip came from Beth Saida and Jesus performed his most important miracles here. The day will draw to a close with our crossing of the Sea of Galilee near sunset..

Day 3      Sunday, 24 October

Peter’s Primacy – Capernaum – Nazareth - Mt Carmel

After an early breakfast we will celebrate the Eucharist in the open air at St. Peter’s Primacy on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. After walking along the shore of the lake we come to Capernaum, the ancient fishing and trading village, where Jesus stayed in Peter’s mother-in-law’s house. We will explore the C4 AD synagogue built on the foundations of the synagogue that Jesus may have taught in. From Capernaum we drive to Nazareth to visit the modern Basilica of the Annunciation, two interconnected churches one above the other and Mary’s Well located within a Greek Orthodox Church. In the afternoon we drive over Mount Carmel which creates the Bay of Haifa and had such a great impact on the Old Testament prophets. If time allows we will drive along the scenic road on top of the ridge, through two Druze villages to Muhraqa, the traditional site of Elijah’s contest with the prophets of Baal.

Day 4      Monday, 25 October

Megiddo – Samaria – Nablus - Jerusalem

Leaving Tiberias this morning we drive to Megiddo, ‘the royal box of the great theatres of history’ where many ancient armies have engaged in battle on the flat stage of the Jezreel Valley. This area, known to some as “ Armageddon” has become the symbol for the battle to end all wars, as mentioned in the Book of Revelation. The complex site has twenty superimposed cities. For the first time in many years we are now able to travel through Samaria. We visit the Palace of Ahab, the C9 BC King of the Northern Kingdom. A deep well located on the eastern edge of Nablus, ancient Shechem, is venerated as “Jacob’s Well” and the place where Jesus encountered the Samaritan woman. If time allows we will drive up on to Mount Gerizim where a one of two tiny communities of 300 Samaritans live. From here we drive on to our Christian hotel, the Gloria, situated within the city walls of Jerusalem.

Day 5      Tuesday, 26 October

Today we gain our bearings by viewing the City of David from the Promenade in Bel Byutto, south of Jerusalem. We begin our exploration at Warren’s Shaft, a rock-cut sloping tunnel leading to a vertical shaft through which a bucket could be dropped by rope into a pool fed by the Gihon Spring providing secure access to water when under siege. Some 250 years later as Jerusalem was at risk of attack from the Assyrians King Hezekiah cut another tunnel to bring water into the west side of the city. The outlet was closed and hidden from the eyes of the invaders. Hezekiah’s Tunnel from the Gihon Spring to the Pool of Siloam is in the shape of a huge “S” and measures 538m.For those who would like to it is possible to walk through the tunnel. The rest of the day will be spent walking around part of the Old City on top of the ramparts providing a unique perspective on the life of the city. We will view the Temple Mount excavations and visit Haram esh-Sharif (“The Noble Sanctuary”), the 3rd most important site in Islam and previously the site of the Jewish Temple in Jesus’ day. The jewel of Jerusalem architecture, the Dome of the Rock, graces a vast esplanade whose quiet spaciousness is the antithesis of the congested bustle of the surrounding narrow streets.

Day 6      Wednesday, 27 October

Herodian – Bethlehem

With its conical summit resembling a volcano, the Herodium stands in the wilderness of Judea, 5 miles south east of Bethlehem. The crater is man-made and in its cup lie the ruins of a magnificent fortified palace built by Herod the Great. Later this morning we enter Bethlehem, through the enormous nine-metre high Partition Wall, to visit the Church of the Nativity, below which is the cave venerated as the birthplace of Jesus. Nearby is the serene Milk Grotto, a complex of beautiful chapels commemorating the place where Mary spilt her first breast milk. We will visit the Bethlehem International Christian Centre for lunch and later hold a Eucharist in Shepherds Fields.

Day 7      Thursday, 28 October

Jewish Quarter - Western Wall - Jericho Israel Museum

This morning we will walk through the Armenian Quarter of the Old City into the Jewish Quarter to see the Roman Cardo Maximus, the main north-south artery of Byzantium Jerusalem before arriving at the Western (Wailing) Wall where Jews pray and lament the destruction of the Temple built by Herod the Great in 20 BCE. We will drive to Jericho for lunch and gather at the foot of the Mount of Temptations to remember Jesus’ testing in the wilderness. On the way back to Jerusalem we visit Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were first discovered by an Arab shepherd boy and hope to visit the Israel Museum to view one of the scrolls.

Day 8      Friday, 29 October

Mount of Olives - Gethsemane - Kidron Valley -
St. Peter in Gallicantu

The most spectacular panorama of Jerusalem is from the esplanade above the Mount of Olives some 100m above the city. Here we will visit the chapel of the Ascension, the traditional site of Jesus’ Ascension and the Church of Pater Noster on the site associated with Jesus’ teaching. We begin the descent of Olivet on foot, visiting the tear shaped Church of Dominus Flevit on a rock designated as the place where Jesus wept over Jerusalem. We will continue down the Mount of Olives to Gethsemane with its ancient olive trees where Jesus was betrayed. The Church of All Nations is located on the traditional site of the garden in which Jesus prayed before his arrest. A short walk from Gethsemane are three free standing rock monuments, the Tombs of Absalom, Zachariah and Pharaoh’s Daughter. Crossing the Kidron Valley we drive around the walls of the Old City to St. Peter in Gallicantu where tradition has it that Peter denied Christ. We will be able to view the recently excavated steps and pathway which is the likely route Jesus would have taken into the City of Jerusalem when he was arrested. The rest of the afternoon will be free for shopping or perhaps a visit to the Garden tomb, one of the two sites associated with the Resurrection.

Day 9      Saturday, 30 October

Via Dolorosa – Holy Sepulchre

This morning we will walk through the colourful markets and bazaars of the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem to visit first the loveliest church in the city, the Crusader Church of St. Anne. According to Byzantine tradition the crypt enshrines the home of the Virgin Mary and her parents Joachim and Anne. Next to it are the ruins of miraculous medicinal baths, the Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus healed the man who had been crippled for 38 years. Close by on the foundations of the Antonia Fortress, named after Mark Anthony and built by Herod the Great to protect and control the Temple is the Convent of the Sisters of Sion. Within the convent is the pavement at ground level at the time of Jesus upon which are carved games played by the Roman soldiers. From the Ecce Homo arch we will follow the Stations of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa, through the busy streets of the Old City, the traditional way followed by pilgrims over the centuries to Calvary within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where we will celebrate the Eucharist. This ancient church also covers the place of the resurrection of our Lord, marked by an edicule, which we shall be able to enter.

Day 10      Sunday, 31 October

Abu Ghosh - Tel Aviv Airport - London

On our final morning we leave Jerusalem en route to Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv calling at the beautiful village of Abu Ghosh which the Crusaders located as Emmaus. This is one of the few places in Israel where Jews and Arabs live together in perfect harmony and so it is fitting that we should have our last act of worship in this place. The Crusader church has a slightly tragic air with peeling frescoes, precious relics from a time when Eastern and Western churches were in harmony. After lunch in the village we continue to the airport for late afternoon flight to Heathrow.

JORDAN

Pre-tour optional extension

19 - 22 October 2010

Day 1      Sunday, 19 October

Travel to Jordan

Our pre pilgrimage tour will begin with a daytime scheduled flight from London Heathrow to Ben Gurion airport, Tel Aviv (Israel) and onward connecting flight to Queen Alia International Airport, Amman (Jordan). Here we will be met by our Lightline representative and guide and driven to our hotel, the 5* Land Mark in Amman.

Day 2      Sunday, 20 October

Madaba – Mount Nebo

This morning we will discover the beauty and artistry of Madaba’s mosaics visiting the Mosaic School, the Archaeological Park and finally the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George which houses a sixth century mosaic map with Jerusalem at its centre and the pilgrimage route through Bethany clearly shown. From Madaba we drive 10km to Mount Nebo, on the western edge of a plateau with spectacular views across the Jordan Valley to Jericho, Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. Here Moses is said to have been shown the Promised Land and there is a Franciscan Church protecting the ruins of fourth to sixth century churches with spectacular mosaics. This afternoon we will drive down to the Dead Sea to enjoy a bathe in its mineral waters.

Day 3      Sunday, 21 October

Bethany beyond the Jordan - Machareus

Today we spend some time where the revealed Abrahamic faiths – Christianity, Judaism and Islam trace many of their original moral foundations. After the Exodus Moses camped in the Plains of Moab around Bethany before ascending Mt. Nebo to die. Joshua miraculously crossed the Jordan River near Bethany and hundreds of years later the Prophets Elijah and Elisha again halted the waters of the river and walked across. Elisha cleansed a leper and made iron axe-heads float in the river. Tradition going back thousands of years identifies a small hill at Bethany as the place where Elijah ascended to heaven on a chariot and horses of fire and where God appeared to Elijah and Elisha in a whirlwind. Nearly a millennium later John the Baptist emerged to launch his ministry of baptism of repentance, starting his prophetic mission from the same place as Elijah had ended his. Above all this is where John’s baptism of Jesus marked the start of Jesus’ public ministry. We hope Dr Mohammed Waheeb, who has excavated the site, will join us for some part of our visit. If time allows we will drive south of Madaba to Mukawir, ancient Machaerus. This was the fortress built by Herod the Great and passed to Herod Antipas after his death. This is where he imprisoned John the Baptist and Salome danced for Herod and was granted her wish that John be beheaded. The remains of the fortress’ thick walls destroyed by the Romans dominate Mukawir which has a splendid view across the Dead Sea.

Day 4      Sunday, 22 October

Pella – Umm Qais - Tiberias

Today we leave Amman driving north to visit two of the Decapolis, Graeco-Roman cities of northern Jordan. Pella is one of the largest and most important archaeological sites with most of the visible structures dating from Roman, Byzantine and Islamic periods. There is ample evidence of earlier human occupation dating back to Neolithic and Paleolithic periods. Of comparable importance is Umm Qais (Gadara). Gadara is the site of Jesus’ miracle of the Gadarene swine, and commands magnificent views over the northern Jordan Valley, Sea of Galilee and Golan Heights. If we have a clear day we will see the snow covered peak of Mt. Hermon. We leave Jordan via the northern crossing into Israel and drive around the southern edge of the Sea of Galilee to our spa hotel, the Holiday Inn in Tiberias.