The Hopes and Fears of All the Years

Last Saturday I took a trip to Bethlehem. I hadn’t yet been, despite the little town being only a 20 or 30 minute trip from Jerusalem. We started with the Church of the Nativity (built over the cave where, as the name implies, Jesus was supposed to have been born). I have to say, I was underwhelmed with the place, despite the incredible religious significance. The church itself is really impossible to identify (no signage directing you there or marking the door or anything), the entrance was a door that could not have been more than 4 ½ feet tall. When I have to significantly bend over to get through a doorway you know it’s too small. The church opened up into a little entrance room with absolutely nothing in it whatsoever, just wooden beams on the roof (trying to look like a barn, perhaps?). The sanctuary was also very odd—it was huge but very plain. There was an altar and really ornate decoration in the front of the church, as you would expect out of any kind of cathedral, but the rest of it was very very plain. It was as if they were trying to make it super beautiful and threw in every possible holy or even remotely-religious sign into the altar and then lost interest and left the rest empty. Every square inch was either totally overdone or completely left alone. We had to go around the back and down some stairs to the shrine that marks the birthplace of Jesus. We waited in line to kneel down and see the star that marks the magic spot, and luckily it was pretty empty that day so we didn’t have to wait for long. Again, the whole area was just very strange. There was ugly cloth hanging everywhere and strange chandeliers that were only half lit and a bizarre cage around part of the wall—I was just very confused the whole time. We continued to follow the corridor and it opened up to a very beautiful sanctuary that was clearly much more modern. I liked that one a lot. We also followed a staircase down into “the grotto” which consisted of a cave with random tables, chairs, crucifixes, and latin phrases all over the place. Again, there was no signage or anything explaining what was going on. I decided to start making up a significance for everything. At that point the visit got a lot more fun.

Our next stop was the Milk Grotto which, if you can believe it, was even stranger. The story of the Milk Grotto is that Mary and Joseph stayed there while they were fleeing from Herod’s slaying of the baby boys. While encamped there, a drop of milk fell from Mary (while she was feeling the baby) and turned the ground white. Now there is a convent and church on this ground. Our favorite part of this shrine was the plaque that said “Cryptus Lactus”. That was funny. There was also a pretty complex on the roof with a cemetery and a nice view of the city.

Aside from the disappointment of the religious sites, I really liked Bethlehem a lot. It’s a small and pretty city, with peaceful streets and a buzzing but not bustling local population. We walked through the market a little bit and got a good feel for the vibe of the place, which I enjoyed very much. We also checked out some of the olive wood carving shops, and I got a really nice ornament that I’m excited to add to our collection. I figured when Bethlehem, it’s pretty necessary to get a Christmas accessory. The trip also made me really excited for Christmas despite the 8 month wait…there were banners and Christmas lights everywhere. Christmas all year round doesn’t sound like a bad thing to me!

Now just to inform you of what’s to come: On Thursday my Spring Break commences!! I’m spending the first chunk of time up north, the Galilee, Nazareth, Akko, and Haifa are the big places I’ll be hitting. Then I go down south for the Passover Seder with my family (and RONI IS COMING) and I’ll spend a few days after with them as well. Then I’ll be back in Jerusalem for a few days Good Friday through Easter (potentially braving the crowds at the Church of the Holy Sepluchre for Easter?) and on the Monday after Easter I fly to Istanbul for 6 days!! It will be a busy 2 ½ weeks but I’m SO excited about what’s to come!! So stay tuned for what’s sure to be a plethora of stories and pictures from the next couple weeks!