The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

We visited some more sites in Jerusalem in the morning on the 27th...

We started out by going to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which marks the spot where Jesus supposedly died (Golgotha) and the tomb where He was buried and rose from.  It was a huuuuge church.

I can't remember if I posted anything about this before, but it is pretty interesting going to all these "Holy Sites".  I find myself being pretty skeptical sometimes that that big rock in the middle of the church is actually the EXACT spot where Jesus' cross was placed, or that the tomb is the legit tomb.  Either way, it is nice that it is commemorated.  But even that sometimes frustrates me.  There are so many Catholic decorations and icons all over the place that it kind of takes away from the purity of the places themselves (if they are indeed the exact places).  I feel like it would mean so much more to stand on the hill of Golgotha and know that this is the place where Jesus was crucified, instead of standing in a huge, decorated church looking at a slab of rock under a glass.  So many people pilgrimage here to see these sites and I look at them and take pictures and don't feel all that moved.

But I keep reminding myself, these places may be called the "Holy Sites" but they themselves are not holy.  It us, the Living Stones, that are holy in the eyes of God.  It is Jesus Himself alive in us that is Holy.  The places where I have been most amazed and moved is when we have been in places like the Negev Desert and I go "whoa...this is the same desert that so many Biblical figures would have trekked across."

At the end of the day, it is the stories I hear and the people I meet that really move me.  It's the voice of God as I seek Him here in the place where He was born, lived, was crucified and rose again that impacts me - not a piece of rock under a glass.  And I am so very glad that that is so.

Anyways, after the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, we had a little bit of free time to check out the Old City so that was cool.  We wandered through the streets, which was fun and Nikki and I looked at some cool jewelry.  Nikki bought some dates and I got a sweet bready date thing that was delish, so we sat by Jaffa Gate and waited for everyone else for a little bit.