Good Friday

The Good Friday service today affected me much more than usual. Perhaps it was because, this year, I could actually picture the places where the passion and death of Jesus occurred.
* Caiaphas' place- where Peter denied Jesus, was just near where Oscar Schindler's grave is now.
* The praetorium where Pilate interrogated Jesus was believed to be directly below our place of residence - "Ecce Homo" - "Here is the man."
* Calvary/Golgotha - now part of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

I visited the site of Calvary a number of times, the most moving were on the Jewish Feast of Yom Kippur, and on my last night in Jerusalem.
Today I was transported back in time to this place, the site where Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice for us, and I was moved, not only by the deep emotion and comprehension of this fact, but also by the realisation of the great privilege that was given to me last year to visit the Holy Land, and to worship and pray at this most holy of shrines.

Gethsemane Revised

Today has brought back many memories for me of my time in Jerusalem last year.
This morning at our school Stations of the Cross, the introduction spoke of early Christians visiting the via Dolorosa to reflect on the last hours of Jesus' life.
It brought home to me just how lucky and privileged I have been to actually visit these sacred sites - the Upper Room, Gethsemane, and Calvary.

As I sat quietly at the altar of repose tonight, my mind took me back to the days where I visited the cave at Gethsemane to pause, reflect and pray.

Over the next three days, during the sacred Triduum, I know that the liturgies will be so much more meaningful for me, as a result of my time in the Holy Land.