Okay, so we didn’t walk 500 miles. But we did do the math and we have walked 43 miles so far! That, my friends, is a lot of walking.

We stuck around the Old City today and packed A LOT in. In fact, we probably got a good 10 miles in of walking today alone.

We started our day early going to the Temple Mount. This mosque was seen when we went to the Mount of Olives, but today, we got an up-close and personal look. But first, there was a list of rules from the Palestinians, who have governing power over this area, that we had to adhere to:

-Loose-fitting bottoms or dress (loose skirt preferred over tight-fitting skirts/skinny jeans)

-Clothing must reach bottoms to ankles

-Long-sleeved shirts

-No Bibles

-No religious jewelry

We adhered to this attire for a majority of the morning.

Itai shared with us about the history/present-day tension between the Jewish and Palestinian people, which we got to witness first-hand.

As he spoke, a street sweeper and man riding a back hoe crossed in front of our group several times, making it difficult to hear Itai speak. It was a small action that spoke of a bigger issue and we all caught on to the message without a word being uttered.

On our way to the Temple Mount, we caught sight of the Western Wall (known by tourists as “The Wailing Wall”) and some Jewish people having morning prayer.

After we left the Temple Mount, we walked down to the Western Wall.

The reason that Jewish people do not pray on the Temple Mount, besides the religious tension, is because they aren’t sure where the Holy of Holies of the temple was. They’d rather take the next best thing than dare to desecrate where only priests were allowed to enter.

Men and women do not pray together, so a wall divides the two sexes. I was obviously on the woman’s side.

There were women praying, placing their hands or foreheads up against the wall, cradling tiny Tanakh’s in their hands. Pieces of paper with prayers scrawled on them were tucked into the cracks and crevices of the wall.

My favorite part was the books they had shelves in the back of the area. I pulled up a chair and let my curiosity run wild.

What I found did not disappoint. There was a book that held all of the Jewish prayers. Another was the psalms in Hebrew with English translations.

I could have stayed there for at least an hour, perusing all the books and pouring over this language I have to come to admire and be fascinated by.

We next visited the Church of St. Anne, which is a small chapel located next to the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-9).

It has some amazing acoustics, so we decided to test them out by singing a hymn. All 33 of us sang the 4 verses of “Amazing Grace” and wowzas, did we sound good.

As we exited, one of the priests bade us goodbye with a friendly smile as he sang “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”.

Next was the Rabbinical Tunnel, where pavements and structures from the Second Temple period have been preserved.

At the end of these tunnels is the area where it is believed Jesus was scourged, beaten, and crowned with thorns. This carving gave some insight into how this might have occurred.

This is called The Game of the Kings, a dice game Roman soldiers would play to pass the time.

They would roll dice to select a prisoner, then whoever was chosen would be given a a crown, robe, and scepter. They would pretend to pay homage as they beat and humiliate the prisoner and cast lots for their belongings before they’d take them out and kill them. Sound familiar? (Matthew 27:27-31, Mark 16:15-20)

For lunch, we stopped at a place that served pizza. Not being a pizza fan myself, I stuck with shawarma and hummus and it was the best I’ve had thus far on this trip.

What they were especially known for was their mint lemonade. After hours of being on our feet and walking in the sun, it felt lovely to be able to enjoy such a refreshing drink. I even got a refill!

Itai then treated us to a dessert called kanafeh.

Imagine a sweet mozzarella stick and you’d be in the ballpark of what this tasted like. I liked it better than I thought I would, but I wasn’t astounded.

Next was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where it is believed Jesus was crucified and buried (for three days).

To me, it was just another building full of ornate decorations that just focuses on the wrong thing.

I may sound severe in that summation. Please know that I am not striving to be unkind or cold.

Here’s where I’ve landed: if Jerusalem has taught me anything, it’s that ANY building can be destroyed. It doesn’t matter how elaborate or holy it is considered to be, it is just as liable to become a pile of rocks as the next thing. I’ve literally seen and touched so many examples of this.

So, why put my hope in it, you know? Ain’t nobody got time for that! If I’m going to dedicate time, energy, and emotion into something, it’s going to be something lasting. And what that boils down to is the Word and the souls of people, my friends.

Next up was Hezekiah’s Tunnel!

533 meters (or 0.3 miles) of dark, curving tunnel, this was a very reviving way to end the day of heat and movement.

Here is a vid Carly’s brother took in Hezekiah’s tunnel. You can see that it was a tight fit and the water level was mid-calf for a majority of the walk. At its deepest, it came up to my mid-thigh.

Later in the video, we turned off our flashlights and could truly appreciate just how dark it was in there without them. The thought of trying to navigate that with a lantern or a torch made me thankful for my little flashlight.

Now, a cool story. As we were walking to the restaurant, there was a man that was handing out free copies of the Quran to passerby. I declined, without much thought, and continued on.

Another person in our party stated, as I had begun to think the same thing, “You know, I half want to go back and get one, just so I can know what it says and defend my faith better”.

I mulled over this as we arrived at the restaurant, ate, then navigated a Palestinian bazaar on our way to the Church of the Holy Selpuchre. I wished I had gone back and gotten one, especially a free one. The Quran is not exactly something I want to pour money into when I don’t even think it is true or reliable.

Then, I realized that I could pray for another opportunity. So, I did. “Lord, please bring by another man handing out free copies of-”

Before I finished my prayer, I looked over at a stall and saw a sign posted saying “Free Copies of Quran Inside”. Let me tell you people, I couldn’t run fast enough in there and certainly couldn’t thank the Lord fast enough either.

This will be a tool to defend and affirm me in my faith. I’m looking forward to using it as an opportunity to share the Gospel with those that practice the Islamic faith.

Today’s travels included:

-Temple Mount

-The Western (Wailing) Wall

-Rabbinical Tunnel

-The Church of St. Anne/Pool of Bethesda

-The Church of the Holy Selpuchre

-The City of David

-Hezekiah’s Tunnel