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A letter from Christian visitors to Israel
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Comments
1
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scott
said:
I felt pretty much the same way about my 3 week trip to Israel in '03. Except for two aspects: 1. Getting robbed at the Dead Sea spa and finding out police don't give a damn in Israel ... IF they are even available. 2. Litter. I was shocked to find trash everywhere. All along the roads. Every vacant lot. Piled up in the alleys. Thick below the walkways and railings around the Western Wall. It looked like Tijuana, Mexico.
Posted by: scott on November 9, 2005 07:31 PM
2
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Bill Narvey
said:
Trash, litter, risk of robbery and police that could be more helpful have not kept the hordes of tourists from Tijuana, so why should all that keep tourists from Israel?
I think it important to focus on the positives about visiting Israel and there are far more of those than the negatives like a little dirt and trash.
People go there to walk with their G_D and refresh their spirit or if agnostic or atheist to walk on the land that gave birth to Judaism and Christianity. The significance of that and its impact on history is in itself awesome and awe inspiring.
Posted by: Bill Narvey on November 9, 2005 10:33 PM
3
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georg von mecklenburg
said:
My best trip to Israel was the time that I was accosted by 3 Arabs due to my making a false turn in Jerusalem. The road signs were non existant, and the ones that were there were in hebrew. The end result was the 3 Arabs pelted my car with stones and broke the windshield. I simplky got out of the car, picked up a few stones and bashed the head in of 2 of the Arab youths. I figured that if they hate Jews so much, they will hate one more Jew. A lesson that we all should follow... Defend yourself against the enemy. Do not appease him/her unless they are willing to sit down in peace and discuss their lives with honesty and forthrightness.
Posted by: georg von mecklenburg on November 10, 2005 10:45 AM
4
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Joseph Alexander Norland
said:
1. To Scott and Bill: It is important to air complaints, otherwise there is no hope of improvements. I believe that you, Scott, will render Israel a service if you sent a copy of this comment, or a separate letter, to the tourism authorities in Israel.
2. To Georg: I fully concur with your conclusion.
Posted by: Joseph Alexander Norland on November 10, 2005 05:29 PM
A letter from Christian visitors to Israel
We are Christians who went to see our local Passion Play about the Death and Resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. We happened to see a brochure about the International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem and the annual Feast of the Tabernacles that they sponsor every year during Succot.
My wife thought this might be a great opportunity to go to Israel (I had been twice before, when I was in the military, but this would be my wife's first trip). Unfortunately, when I checked my work schedule, there was a conflict with the dates for the trip. To my surprise, my wife asked if I would be willing for us to make the trip on our own. I thought it was a great idea and so we purchased our plane tickets and started making our plans.
Our home base was Jerusalem where we stayed at a great bed and breakfast in Yemin Moshe. Jerusalem was MUCH more hilly than I remembered and the weather was warmer than we expected. My kingdom for a flat walk, shade, and a breeze. LOL.
We went to Our Lord's birthplace, Bethlehem, where we had our first introduction to check points. We visited Yad Vashem and vowed never again in ours or our children's children's lifetimes; saw Masada and understood why it must never fall again; and visited the Ein Gedi spa where we floated in the Dead Sea and gave ourselves mud baths. We went to the top of the Mount of Olives, visited Dominus Flevit, marvelled at the beauty and Agony of Gethsemane, saw Mary's tomb and visited Mount Zion where we saw the room of the Last Supper and King David's tomb. We walked the Via Dolorosa stopping at all the Stations of the Cross and were overcome in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre knowing that this was where Jesus gave up his life for our sin and salvation. We visited the Garden Tomb and rejoiced in the message "He is not here for He is risen".
There was something very special about being in Jerusalem for Yom Kippur and seeing the Jewish Faithful praying at the Western Wall. We walked through the different quarters of the Old City more times than I can count, walked the ramparts, and did massive shopping. We became temporary locals and when the time came to leave, we stopped to see shop owners that we had come to regard as friends to say good-bye. We went on to Galilee visiting Nazareth, Capernaeum, Tabgha, and Yardenit. For us, this was a pilgrimage.....not just for our Christian faith, but to show our support and solidarity for Israel and the Jewish people.
We love Israel and have made it a point to tell everyone that if they have the opportunity they should travel there. Everyone we met was so hospitable and the weather was just great. Good food and spice smells abounded around every corner in the Old City. The red wines were excellent, especially Latrun, and Maccabbee beer was still as good as I remembered. I'd be happy to comment on our favorite restaurants, markets, etc. upon request.
Please ignore our biased Western media that can't get through a day without negativity and just go and experience everything that Israel has to offer. Our only disappointments involved not being able to see David's Citadel and Temple Mount due to conflicting information regarding opening times due to Yom Kippur and Ramadan. Still, it was a GREAT trip and if the opportunity presents itself, we will return again someday.
Will gladly answer more questions or write more as requested. We loved our trip and I don't think we can talk about it enough.
Wayne Barbour
Virginia Beach, USA
Posted by Joseph Alexander Norland at November 9, 2005 05:46 PM