Day 37 - Bethlehem & Rachel's Tomb

Thursday, June 20, 2013

Another simple day turned into an unexpected adventure in dangerous territory.

Our plan was to visit the Garden Tomb first and then some other sites around the Old City.  But, we got a late start and found the Garden Tomb had just closed for a 2-hour lunch.  Since it is right next to the bus station, we decided to catch a bus to Bethlehem and back while we were waiting.  It is only about 6 miles away and there really isn't much to see, so 2 hours should be plenty of time, right?

The bus took about an hour to drive there with many side trips and traffic problems.  Then a fast-talking cab driver talked us into a big tour of the city for only 100 shekels (about $35).  He gave us a great advice and information and we were glad we took it, although it was kind of scary riding in a car driven by a Palestian refugee through a hotbed of terrorism.

First we stopped at a viewpoint to see the Shepherds' Hill, where the angels appeared to shepherds.  Now the hill is covered by houses, buildings and a special church.

Shepherds' Hill (center beyond road)

Next, we saw the Milk Grotto.  When Joseph and Mary were fleeing to Egypt they stopped to rest in this cave.  While Mary was nursing Jesus, a drop of her milk fell on the stone and turned it white.  So, now there is a church there with a cave hollowed out of white rock as its entrance.  For hundreds of years women have been eating bits of the rock to improve fertility.

The Milk Grotto

Then the main attraction of Bethlehem, the site of Jesus' birth in the Church of the Nativity.  The doorway of the church is very short, so you have to bow in humility to enter.

Church of the Nativity Main Entrance

The birthplace is at the far end of the large church.  We descended a small staircase to a cave lit by many beautiful hanging lights and crowded with pilgrims taking quick turns kneeling and sticking their heads into a marble nook to kiss the glass circle (about 6" diameter) covering the exact spot where Jesus was born.  Everything was beautifully adorned and the pilgrims were respectful, although cramped and rushed.  We were glad that our cabbie had told us how to bypass the lines of tour groups and get right in.

Cave of Jesus' Birth

Star with Glass Circle Marking Spot of Jesus' Birth

In the church we also visited the cave in which Saint Jerome wrote the Latin Vulgate and was buried originally before his body was moved.  There was a baptismal font obviously designed for immersion, burial sites of several other saints, and a door that appeared to be 1000 years old still in use.

Statue of Saint Jerome

Baptism by Immersion Font

Then our cab driver took us on a short tour through the Aida Refugee camp, showed us the largest key in the world, the Key representing the right of return for Palestinian refugees, and took us to a refugee assistance center where we watched a short video about the camp and got our questions answered.

The key issue, IMHO, was illustrated when the refugee asked me, "What would you do if someone came and kicked you out of your house and took your land?"  I told him that I would settle somewhere else and make a life for myself and that Americans move around a lot.  (Maybe I should have mentioned Nauvoo.)  But he replied that the Palestinians would never leave the camp until they can return to their fathers' homes in Israel.  He has the deed to his land issued by the Ottoman Empire, now safe on a CD, and even though he has never been there he will accept nothing but that land.  Sounds like his stubborness is forcing him to live in a slum.  Just my thoughts.  Now back to your regularly scheduled blog.

Art on Wall in Refugee Camp

Key to Palestinian Right of Return

The Wall We Came Through to Get Back to Israeli Control

Then our driver had promised to take us to Rachel's Tomb, but he couldn't quite get there because it was on the other side of the wall, so he dropped us off at the border.  We walked through two passport checks and a metal detector and got our stuff was x-rayed before we found ourselves back in Israeli controlled territory.  But where was Rachel's Tomb?  Nobody seemed to know.  Finally, a shopkeeper sent us to a yellow gate with a guard shack.  The guard said we couldn't walk because of the danger of Palestinian kids throwing rocks, but maybe someone would give us a ride.  Sure enough, the first car offered us a ride and we rode down the heavily fortified road with a Jewish couple.

We were expecting an ancient pile of rocks or cave, but we found a long building.  Women and men had separate doors and halves of the building.  It is the 3rd holiest site in Judaism, after Temple Mount and the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, and it is a very busy place, especially on the women's side.  Everyone was crowded around the Ark of the Torah on top of Rachel's Tomb, which was covered by a cloth made from the wedding dress of a young woman who was blown up by a terrorist in a cafe on the night before her wedding in 2003.  We are living about a mile from that bombing site.

Rachel's Tomb

After about an hour of worship, the Jewish couple gave us a ride back to the Old City and we went back to the Western Wall.  Bar Mitzvahs are common there on Thursdays, and although it was late there was a young boy who had completed it and was celebrating.

Boy Holding Giant Scroll at Bar Mitzvah

End of blog, start of editorial:
As I researched Rachel's Tomb I found that the Muslims claim it as one of their holy sites and demand control of it.  But we didn't see any Muslims worshipping there and when we asked directions of several Palestinians just 100 yards from the entrance none of them knew that it existed, including a cab driver.  It seems to me that they don't really care about it, but are just trying to use it as a bargaining chip.