Layers

Dear Friends in Christ -

Layers and layers of history, layers and layers of Mystery. This is what we have encountered in the ten days we've been on pilgrimage in Israel. Each day has been so full - the wake-up call comes at 6:00 a.m. and we finish with our final activity around 9:00 p.m. - that I have not been able to fully pull my thoughts together in order to write.

The vertical layers we've been encountering are in people of the present. Jews and Muslims and Christians, Jewish Israelis and Palestinian Israelis, and people from all over the world (Australian, Japanese, British) who have come here to work and to pray. Peace is on everyone's mind and lips, and in spite of the stories of oppression and struggle (the Israelis on both sides have many such stories) there is hope flitting about like the swifts winging overhead as we prayed at the Western Wall.

The horizontal layers we've been encountering are about people of the past. These layers are literally written in stone, civilization upon civilization. We've walked on stone roads built 4000 years ago, 2000 years ago, 1000 years ago, 500 years ago, 100 years ago and 4 years ago. We've learned about people who thrived and people who have struggled to survive - and learned many times over that no civilization lasts forever.

But devotion does last. Devotion to God, to community, to beauty. These commitments have left lasting changes in the very landscape. These commitments are the ones that press into Mystery - and lead to peace.

This thought about devotion is the beginning point for a discussion of so much of what I've experienced here. And I'll enjoy connecting this thought with stories about specific experiences I've had here in Israel (and Jordan, where we went a few days ago to see Petra).

But I'll miss the bus if I don't get to breakfast, so for now I'll just have to say . . .
Shalom!

Blessings,
Janet+