Also my first attempt to load video to this blog!
‘Dead’, ‘bitter’ or ‘better’ – Three ways in which we will come through this crisis.
'All things pass' said Teresa of Avila. This too will pass. There are three ways in which we can emerge. We have some measure of control over the first way (but not a lot) but we have a bigger measure of control over the second two possible outcomes and that is why I'm writing this... Continue Reading →
Seeing something BIG in something very small
Seeing something big in something very small is sometimes known as 'catastrophising' - I think this word now exists. And catastrophising is bad, not a helpful habit for your mental well-being. It is literally a case of getting things out of perspective. But I'm talking about a positive ability to see something good and something... Continue Reading →
Holy Land Pilgrimage: reflections and thanksgivings
So now we have all been home for a week - what did we all learn? How will we be different as a result of having visited? Might anything there be different because we came? I am fairly sure that everyone of us has been changed in some positive way. Some of our group have... Continue Reading →
Final day in Jerusalem
Our final day in Jerusalem began very early with a wake up call at 5 am! By 5:30 am all of us were outside the hotel and beginning to walk to the start of the Via Dolorosa. It took us about an hour and a quarter to walk stations 1 to 10, which brought us... Continue Reading →
Monday in and around Jerusalem
On Monday our first visit was to the Wailing Wall, or the western wall as it is also called. This is all that remains of the Jewish temple which stood in the time of Jesus. Today it is one of the most holy Jewish sites. And above it on the Temple Mount are two of... Continue Reading →
Jerusalem Day 2
Today was Sunday and most of our pilgrims had a lie in. Then we made our way to join in the worship at Saint Georges Cathedral. We were privileged to join a festival Eucharist service to celebrate the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Saint Georges College in Jerusalem. The preacher was the Rt Rev... Continue Reading →
Bethlehem to Jerusalem
This morning began with a visit to the "School of Joy", (www.schoolofjoy.org ) a School for children of primary school age with special needs. This school looks after 70 children and is supported by the Friends of the Holy Land Organisation. We greatly enjoyed hearing about it and were glad to offer our support by... Continue Reading →
Bethlehem
We have had another wonderful day here in the Holy Land. This morning we visited Saint Vincent's orphanage where we held service of Holy Communion Before hearing from one of the sisters who helps to look after the children. We then had a joyful and uplifting half an hour spent visiting and seeing the children,... Continue Reading →
The Jordan River
This afternoon we visited the site of the baptism of Jesus where we were able to renew our baptism vows and (as you can see from the photo) some of us chose to get wet. Because the level of the river was so high, we weren't allowed nearer, but we could chose to stand under... Continue Reading →
