We started our day well before sunrise today so that we could make the Way of the Cross through Jerusalem before things got busy. Although the streets have been rebuilt many times over the years, we can still follow the steps of Jesus to Calvary. This route is also known as the Via Dolorosa, or “Way of Sorrow.” It begins near the Temple Mount where Pilate would have condemned Jesus and ends in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on the original site of Calvary. We make this “way” spiritually so many times in our churches back home. It was an incredible experience to to follow the actual way that Jesus would have walked 2000 years ago.
After completing the Way of the Cross, we got to celebrate the resurrection in the most beautiful way. We had Mass in the very tomb of Jesus. Just as the body of Jesus appeared alive again in the tomb on Easter Sunday, so I watched as he was made present in the Eucharist as I concelebrated the Mass. As I prayed in the tomb, I kept meditating on the words of St. Paul, “I seek to know Christ and the power flowing from his resurrection,” (Phil 3:10).
In the past year, the chapel structure built around the empty tomb underwent a major preservation project. Earthquakes had weakened the building and the whole thing was being held up by steel beams. During the renovation, conservators removed the marble slab covering the spot where Jesus’ body had rested. They found the original rock still there. Radar scans of the walls revealed the even parts of the original cave walls were still there. Most fascinating, scientists detected a strange concentration of radiation coming from the stone. As I rested my head there in prayer, I kept repeating those words of St. Paul.
With the rest of the morning I went to visit the museum of the history of Jerusalem housed in what is known as the “Tower of David.” I have to go to museums by myself because I like to read everything and learn as much as I can. This museum has some great models of the development of the city of Jerusalem over the centuries. I really like seeing how the city would have looked at the time of King David and Jesus. Much has changed, but you can still see Jerusalem today and make out the places where history happened.
We ended out day with a visit to the Pool of Bethesda where Jesus cured a blind man and then our daily rosary at the place where Jesus was condemned to death by Pilate. The Scriptures call this place Gabatha or “The Stone Pavement.” Archaeologists have found the original first century stones where Jesus would have been on trial. It was a powerful place to pray and think about the pain of Jesus. You can still see carvings in the stones where the Roman soldiers would have played games and mocked prisoners such as Jesus. Being in this place brought me very close to Jesus and the sadness he would have felt being unjustly accused and condemned at that spot. The bloody scourging would have also taken place in this spot. O God, for the sake of his sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.
