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2010 J2A Holy Pilgrimage
We give thanks to God that, once again, a group of youth
from St. Martin’s will be venturing to the Holy Land. Those of you
familiar with the Journey to Adulthood program will know that the J2A
group makes a “holy pilgrimage” at the end of the fourth year of the
program. In both 2006 and 2008 our “holy pilgrimage” was also to the
Holy Land.
A group of ten of us (including Bishop Garrison!) will
be departing Grand Island on Sunday afternoon, July 11, for Pearson
Airport in Toronto, catching a late afternoon flight to Tel Aviv. The
ten of us are enrolled in the Youth Course at St. George’s College
Jerusalem, which begins at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, July 12. We know of at
least two other groups who are enrolled – a group of fourteen from the
Diocese of Olympia (Washington state) and a group of six from a church
in Newfoundland. We also will be joined, at least part of the time, by
Palestinian Christian youth.
Our pilgrimage will be nine nights and ten days in the Holy Land,
where, in many places, we will be walking in the steps of Jesus. Here’s
a synopsis of our tentative itinerary:
Sunday, July 11
 | Depart Toronto at 5:00 p.m. |
Monday, July 12
| Land at Ben-Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv at
11:00 a.m. |
| Arrive in Jerusalem at about 1:00 p.m. |
| Brief tour of the Jerusalem area |
| Youth Course begins at 6:00 p.m. |
Tuesday, July 13
We’ll be visiting areas a few miles south of Jerusalem
| Visit the Herodian (a fortress a few miles
south of Jerusalem which was built by Herod the Great) |
| Bethlehem – Shepherds’ Field, Church of the
Nativity |
| Deheisheh – Palestinian Refugee Camp in
Bethlehem |
Wednesday, July 14
We’ll be visiting areas around the western side of the Dead Sea
| Climb Masada (a fortress along the Dead Sea
built by Herod the Great) |
| Qumran (the famous Dead Sea Scrolls were found
in the mountains overlooking the ruins of this Essene community) |
| Float on / Swim in the Dead Sea |
Thursday, July 15
We’ll be visiting places in and around the Old City of Jerusalem
| Dome of the Rock (the third most holy site for
Muslims – after Mecca and Medina) |
| The Western Wall (the most holy site for Jews
in Jerusalem) |
| Southern Wall Excavations (area below the
platform on which formerly the Jewish Temple was located) |
| The City of David (the area originally settled
by King David when he made Jerusalem his political and religious
center) |
| Yad Vashem (the Holocaust Memorial) |
Friday, July 16
We’ll be visiting places in and around the Old City of Jerusalem
| Zedekiah’s Cave (a five-acre underground
quarry below the Old City of Jerusalem) |
| The Ramparts (walking the walls around the Old
City)
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Saturday, July 17
We head north today to Galilee
| Caesarea Maritima (ruins of the fortress built
by Herod the Great along the Mediterranean Sea) |
| Nazareth / Basilica of the Annunciation (site
where tradition says that the angel Gabriel told the Virgin Mary
that she would bear a son) |
Sunday, July 18
We spend the entire day in Galilee
| Capernaum (ruins of the village that was
Jesus’ adult home) |
| Caesarea Philippi (site in the Golan Heights
where Peter identified Jesus as the Christ) |
| Holy Eucharist along the Sea of Galilee |
Monday, July 19
We follow the Jordan Valley as we return to Jerusalem
| Mount Tabor (site, south of Nazareth, of the
Transfiguration) |
| Beth Shean ruins (old Roman ruins, south of
the Sea of Galilee) |
Tuesday, July 20
Final day around the Old City of Jerusalem
| The Way of the Cross (an early morning
devotional walk through the Old City) |
| The Church of the Holy Sepulchre (where Jesus
was crucified, buried, and raised) |
| Explore in and around the Old City of
Jerusalem |
Wednesday, July 21
| Depart Tel Aviv at 12:30 p.m. |
| Arrive in Toronto at 6:00 p.m. |
| Return to Grand Island in the evening |
Please keep us in your prayers.
For more information on St. George’s College, check their website
at:
www.sgcjerusalem.org
For more information on the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, check
their website at:
www.j-diocese.org
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Control them, O God,
gently, pervasively, irresistibly, increasingly,
so that they walk the pilgrim way
steadily, and in a sure light.
Control them, O God,
so that they neither dally nor disobey,
nor slip aside, nor stand still, nor sink down.
Control them, O God,
by the pulse of your Presence,
by your brightness around them.
Control them, O God,
by the spur of spiritual longing
after your holy praise,
after the image of your Son.
Control them, O God,
so that they move onward and upward
with a song and melody in their hearts.
And then, O God, change control into embrace,
lest they ever deny your truest will,
so that they cannot forget or fall away,
so that the world cannot entrap them
and steal their glory.
Amen.
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