Shalom y'all!!

Hi everyone,
Jem here -- I haven't posted much due to technical impairment, but I think Dunc downloaded some of our pics. Of course, our camera is now on the fritz (!) so we're relying on everyone else to take pics; but there's no way pics can really transmit the experience of travel anyway. Neither can words, but suffice it to say that standing in so many places that are mentioned in the Bible is beyond surreal...
Even though I'm not Christian, some of my favorite places we've seen so far are those significant to Christians. I saw TWO-THOUSAND-YEAR-OLD olive trees in the Garden of Gethsemane. To me, these short, thick, gnarled, dusty, silver-green trees inspired the same awe as a Sequoia might in the U.S. They seem so peaceful and wise that it's easy to see why Jesus might have rested beneath them when they were young.
Another serene place was Our Lady of the Arc of the Covenant, a convent/ church built on the top of a mountain above an Arab town. This is where the Phillistines are supposed to have brought the Arc to get rid of it when they thought is was bringing them bad luck :) I could imagine an ancient temple of Athena perched there. Sitting in the garden underneath the three story statue of Mary, you could see all the way back to Jerusalem. In this part of the world, it's a new culture and city from one hilltop to the next.
Finally, I got some small olive wood souvenirs for Christian friends at home, and took them to be blessed by touching them to the Rock of Unction (where Jesus' body was washed after his death). Kneeling there on the ornate floor of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, I was shocked to experience a jolt of energy as I touched the slab of stone where so many worshipers have come to pray.

The really amazing thing about Jerusalem to me is how the three major religions all claim it, yet disagree so stridently on what it all means. Pope John Paul II reportedly donated a statue of a three-limbed olive tree that stands at the Tomb of King David. The three limbs represent Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, and all the branches growing from the limbs represent the various sects and denominations that have sprung forth over the centuries; but the point is that the tree has only one trunk that leads to the same roots. 'Nough said!
Anyway, I'm really looking forward to getting on to Haifa and learning more about the Ba'hai (sp?) religion -- I like the idea of a faith that is famous for it's gardens! Love to all at home -- J