In 2011, I was able to make a pilgrimage to Israel. I think about it often, but mostly during Lent. The scenes we read about take my mind back to sites we visited.
Yesterday as we read of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem and the concluding, haunting words when he wept over it, I thought of Dominus Flevit, the chapel Rev. Pietila mentioned a few weeks' back. I thought of being in that chapel and looking across the valley, the same valley Jesus looked across, and seeing the ramparts that he knew would be patrolled by warriors with a purpose far different than God's purpose. I thought about the hatred and fighting that some have engaged in over those very places, some convinced it is God's desire for them, and some because God is an easy excuse for entirely ungodly motivations.
Jesus looked at this location, a piece of earth where Solomon prayed God would hear and respond to Israel's prayers, as well as foreigners' prayers (2 Chronicles 6), and he wept because the prayers are hard to hear over shouting. He wept knowing that despite his years of teaching and modeling, few still understood the things that make for peace. He wept, I think, knowing that his entering that scene in order to make peace would result in his cruel death.
As we begin this week with knowledge of what Jesus did in order to bring peace to our souls and seeking to inspire peace in how we relate to others, I hope we'll weep with heartbreak over the things that prevent peace, and with gratitude for his willingness to give all he had to bring it.
I hope to see you at the following services this week to remember his sacrifice and honor his life:
As we begin this week with knowledge of what Jesus did in order to bring peace to our souls and seeking to inspire peace in how we relate to others, I hope we'll weep with heartbreak over the things that prevent peace, and with gratitude for his willingness to give all he had to bring it.
I hope to see you at the following services this week to remember his sacrifice and honor his life:
- Lenten Service, Wednesday at 12:30 PM: Due to a family emergency (her father is gravely ill), Rev. Kelli Taylor is unavailable to preach this service as planned. Thanks to Rev. Blackwelder, the Reverend Chris Lollis, pastor of Trinity UMC in Darlington, will be preaching this service.
- Maundy Thursday at 7:00 PM
- Good Friday: Stations of the Cross at 10 AM; Service at Noon