Scottish Catholic Observer

When I told people I was travelling to Israel this summer, the response was always the same. ‘Be careful.’ It was universally felt that by accepting the invitation of the Israeli tourist board to visit sites of religious and historical interest within their borders I was taking a rather hefty risk.

So I was surprised to find myself wandering through the streets of Jerusalem on a Saturday night, well after the coolness of dark had arrived, feeling considerably more comfortable and safe than I would have in the same position in Glasgow, Edinburgh or Dundee.

In this, as in many other respects, Israel was not what I expected.

Holy Place

My thoroughly half-baked expectation of a desert country pregnant with the threat of religious and ethnic conflict did not match the reality of what I found on my five-day trip.

Within Israel itself I found an attractive modern country, well designed and attractive cities, filled with friendly people and surrounded by astonishingly lush and fertile countryside.

It is also the land where Jesus walked, and it is impossible to play down the impact of that to any Christian who comes here.

The knowledge that this was where Jesus preached and performed miracles is what has brought Christians to this country for thousand of years, braving war and conflict, and will keep bringing them back for thousands more.

As you walk through the streets of Jerusalem it is impossible not to feel the weight of history upon you. As you pass through the four quarters of Jerusalem’s Old city, Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Armenian, and visit places like the room of the last supper or travel along the Via del Rossi it is impossible not to be struck by the sheer scale of the place. How large it looms in the history of the world.

As a Holy place for three great religions it is like nowhere else on earth. There is a presence of belief that seems to be in every molecule of air you breath. To this end the wailing wall, and the Dome of the Rock are impressive sites that should be seen but the Church of the Holy Sepulchre will be more important for Christians.

Though the church itself is almost always crowded with pilgrims and its proliferation of chapels devoted to different Christian denominations can be overwhelming. Being in the spot where the Crucifixion and Resurrection happened has an unquestionable charge.

History

If pilgrimage is the main reason to travel to the Holy Land the fascinating history of the region provides an interesting diversion.

The ancient city of Ceasura, is a classic example, where you will find Roman Ruins from the time of King Herod, including a restored amphitheatre sit long side the remains of the city the crusaders built to try and hold back the ‘Muslim hordes.’ For millennia different cultures, religions and armies have fought over this narrow strip of land and the remnants they have left behind are visible everywhere.

The places of the early Christians are among the most fascinating however and somewhere like St Peter’s house which is thought to be one of the first places Christians gathered together to celebrate Mass is truly fascinating.

More recently the country is scattered with hundred of churches many of which are over surpassing beauty.

Particularly worth visiting is the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth. Built upon the site of the Annunciation it is a huge truly magnificent Church that demands reverence from the visitor. In addition the walls around the Church and within it are adorned with pictures of the Madonna and Child from countries all over the world. The Scottish one, is of course stirring, but it is fascinating to see the hope other cultures, like Japan’s and Ethiopia’s picture Mary and child.

Natural beauty and hospitality

If visiting Nazareth it would be foolish not to stop at the Sea of Galilee, a truly beautiful location. In particular the Mount of the Beatitudes is home to a stunning modern octagonal Church that was visited by Pope John Paul II in the millennium year.

From the Mount of the Beatitudes one has a stunning view of the Sea of Galilee and one can feel a serene spirituality that is sometimes missing amid the bustle of Jerusalem.

This was well articulated by Bishop Terrance Brain of Salford, who I met leading a group of pilgrims from Manchester.

“I would have liked longer here in Galilee,” he said. “Jerusalem and other cities change over time but we know Jesus was here, that he looked upon these waters and walked among these hills.”

The city of Tiberius is an ideal point from which to explore Galilee and Scottish pilgrims may well enjoy a small taste of home at the Scots Hotel there. Run by the Church of Scotland, it is a beautiful hotel that used to be a hospital. Some may find the fact the wine bottles are dressed in kilts a touch odd however.

The excellence of that hotel was echoed in all the hotels we stayed in Israel, and the quality of amenities is generally excellent. The roads are new and smooth, the shopping centres decorated with beautiful statues and paintings, the museums well planned and equipped with the latest technology and Tel Aviv airport is most pleasant and best planned I have ever encountered.

Not all smooth sailing

While in Israel, however, I discovered that travelling to Bethlehem that lies within the Palestinian authority, is a difficult and expensive experience. Travelling across the huge and forbidding ‘security wall’ it is difficult not to feel like one is entering a giant prison. Once across the wall the relative poverty is clear and the atmosphere is different, angrier, more threatening.

Several Palestinians I encountered wear grimly fatalistic about the situation.

“There will never be peace here,” an elderly Palestinian Christian who had left for America but was returning to visit relatives told me. “All through history people have fought over this land, The Romans, the Ottomans, the Arabs, the Crusaders, It will never stop. There will never be peace.”

Back on the Israeli side of the wall it was difficult to forget his words. It did feel safer but it was harder to ignore the young IDF soldiers who stand with their submachine guns on nearly every street corner. Yes it does feel safe but it is difficult not to feel it has been bought at too high price.

One Israeli expressed his bafflement to me that people would not go to Israel because they deemed in unsafe.

“Do you know how many murders there have been in Washington DC this year?” he said. “We’ve had three in all of Israel so far this year. What could be safer than that.”

In a way he is right, you can go to Israel on pilgrimage without fear of being in danger, but until there is real peace in the Holy Land, some people will think of the wall, the soldiers and the Palestinians, and think again.

— Ian Dunn flew with El Al airlines and stayed at the Leonardo Plaza Hotel in Jerusalem, the Scots Hotel in Tiberias and the Crown Plaza Hotel in Tel Aviv