Disciple: To Be a Pilgrim
Thoughts from traveling the Holy Land
By the Rev. Velinda Hardy
On April 9, 2018, a group of about 30 met at the Raleigh-Durham Airport to embark on the trip of a lifetime: We were going to the Holy Land. For most of us, it was our first time traveling there, but a few were returning to refresh their spirits and reacquaint themselves with treasured memories. For our spiritual leaders, the Rt. Rev. Anne Hodges-Copple, the Rev. Sally French and the Rev. David Umphlett, the Holy Land is one of their favorite and oft-visited venues, and we all benefitted from their perspectives and knowledge throughout the journey. It was a pilgrimage, a walk “in the footsteps of Jesus,” intended to plunge us deep into the very roots of our faith and seal our relationship with our Lord.
BECOMING A PILGRIM
At every site we visited, we followed the same path of discovery. Our tour guide, Gus, and spiritual leaders shared facts and insights wherever we stopped. One of our leaders then prayed a collect, scripture was read, and then we sang a hymn. It didn’t take long for the pattern to have an impact on my mindset. I realized I was worshiping, praising God and giving thanks in remembrance of all He has done for us.
The familiar words of scripture came to life around us. We stood in Shepherd’s Field, so well described in the Gospel of Luke (2:8-11). Standing there, I joined the shepherds in their watch, and Luke’s story became my story, too. I will forever sing “While Shepherds Watched their Flock by Night” with a joy that is real and palpable. Such is the experience of a pilgrim. We came to be present with Jesus, to worship Him and claim our part in the great drama from Advent to Easter.
A pilgrim sees connections in the ancient and modern world. Upon visiting Jacob’s Well in the city of Nablus in Palestine, we remembered the story:
“A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink.’ (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?’ (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, ‘If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink,” you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.’” (John 4:7-10)
This passage opens the mind to many issues with which we still struggle. We could talk about racism, or we could talk about classism and hypocrisy. Jesus knew that the “waters were troubled” in this little town, just as the currents are wailing in troubled parts of the world right now. But we took—and can continue to take—hope from this passage because doors today are being opened and boundaries pushed back. Jesus still offers “living water.” The preserved well now stands inside of a church, so one of our pilgrims, newly baptized in the River Jordan, let down the bucket and drew up hope in its watery form.
BEYOND THE SITES
There were many other churches and memorable places such as the Mount of Beatitudes, the Wailing Wall and, of course, the Church of the Resurrection. But sites alone could not create the deep-rooted facets of our pilgrimage.
The topography served up many visual and tactile images. Travelling from Tel Aviv to Bethlehem on the first day, I was struck by the hills and mountains. No matter where we went, there were hills to climb, and I struggled to keep pace on uneven paths. The streets of old Jerusalem begged us to step back in time as their winding paths of rocks and stones challenged our every stride.
T
he buildings were constructed of the same types of stones, and the interior of some of them had been hewn into caves that served as living spaces. Called living stones, these stones have absorbed the history and struggles of many centuries. At Jesus’ command, these stones can “shout out” the wisdom of the ages. We, too, are invited to dwell in a spiritual house where Jesus is not only a “living stone” but the cornerstone.
“Come to him, a living stone though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:4-5)
Traveling throughout the Holy Land made real the journeys told in scripture. The trip from Jerusalem to Galilee took an hour and a half by bus, making me keenly aware Jesus’ travels were not short strolls. The fertile, rocky and thorny landscapes were the tangible images we read in Jesus’ parables, and simply standing in the waters of the River Jordan and the Sea of Galilee connected me to a life and faith lived thousands of years ago, yet guiding my own today.
We were not alone. We joined the company of pilgrims from Africa, India, Asia and all over Europe. Like us, they were praying and singing and worshiping God in their native tongues as the Spirit gave them power. The beauty of God’s children is spellbinding because in them we see Christ, just as they see his face in us.
A WISH FOR PEACE
It would be remiss not to mention what I observed of the struggle between Israel and Palestine. As we rode from Tel Aviv to Bethlehem, our guide pointed out the great disparity of Palestinians. The most obvious were the water tanks on the roofs of Palestinian homes as an emergency measure should the Israeli government cut off the water supply. There was no parity between the structures of homes; the pristine order of one neighborhood stood in juxtaposition to the disarray of another.
Perhaps the most telling part of this conflict was revealed when we visited Bethlehem University, a Christian university established for Muslims and Christians. We had the privilege of hearing from several very bright students who described the conflict as one having land solely at its roots. There is very little hope for peace, for neither side can envision an equitable resolution. There is no end in sight to the suffering and violence.
THE UNEXPECTED SOURCE
Our faith was unexpectedly taken even deeper as our group succumbed to at least two viruses as we traveled. No details are necessary, and no pilgrim was spared at least mild discomfort. But it had an odd effect: As our frailties became obvious, our need for Jesus was inescapable. We shared our woes, and our suffering bound us together and even more so to Jesus Christ.
That binding together and our deepening faith is why we traveled to the Holy Land, and to be a pilgrim there is a special thing. But if it’s not in your immediate plans, know you don’t have to travel to the Holy Land to keep close what we learned there. See the scripture alive and at work in the world around you—in the water, in the landscape, in our suffering, in our neighbors. Traveling the Holy Land brings scripture and Jesus’ journey alive, but his journey and its teachings are there for us to find and see everywhere, every day.
The Rev. Velinda Hardy is a deacon in the Diocese of North Carolina.
Tags: North Carolina Disciple
