Post for February 27, 2009
Yesterday was gorgeous. We started early, with mass at the church of the Holy Sepulchre at 5:30 am, and then after returning for breakfeast we set out for the summit of the Mount of Olives, to visit the shrine of the Ascension. From there we descended to get a beautiful view of the old city of Jerusalem — the classic view, with the Dome of the Rock gleaming in the light. We descended further through a Jewish cemetary to the church that commemorates Jesus’ apocalyptic discourse as he lamented over Jerusalem. Then, we crossed the Kedron valley, passing Absalom’s tomb, and climbed up into Jerusalem proper.
It must have been a special day for field trips, because the streets were loaded with kids. Security was tight, especially to where we were going: the Temple Mount, home of the Al-aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock. Once up there, though, I must confess I was very moved. It was wonderfully peaceful and tranquil. Mothers walked with their children, elderly men sat on prayer mats and studied the Quran, and I even wound up helping an arab family fix their digital camera (the menus were all in English, which they couldn’t read). I’m hoping my pictures will turn out.
Today, however, was another story. It rained. It POURED. So we all got soaked, in part because we had to walk and walk and walk. Israeli security, it turns out, closed off most access points into the old city, to prevent large crowed from getting to (you guessed it) the Temple Mount. Friday, of course, is the Muslim prayer day, and the soldiers (again with very big guns) were worried about possible riots. What might spark such a riot, you might ask? Well, as it turns out, tomorrow 80 Palestinian homes are slated for demolition to make way for a park, just outside the wall of the old city. So things were a little tense.
But nothing can stop the power of tourism! 
We had mass in the grotto of the Mount of Olives right next to the Garden of Gethsemene, where Jesus would have spent the night while visiting Jerusalem. Then, after some rain-soaked hiking, we saw the Cenacle (the so-called Upper Room) where Jesus held the last supper and where the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples. Of course, the original building has since been long demolished, but tradition holds that this was the place (and there are no competing locations!) Finally, we went to visit a church dedicated to the Dormition of Mary, as well as the church built over the house of Caiaphas, the High Priest when Jesus was arrested and crucified. Was this really his house? Actually, it made sense, thanks to excavations which were recently done which made discoveries corresponding to ancient traditions about the house (e.g. the house being built over grottos, with multiple mikveh purification baths outside, and remnants of an ancient road that led directly to the Temple Mount of the old city).
Tomorrow: the Via Dolorosa.
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Post for February 26, 2009
Hello friends, I’m afraid the hotel where we are staying is having connectivity problems. The internet connection keeps cutting out, so I’ll have to try and post again later (I’m writing this from a cell phone, believe it or not).
In brief, here are today’s highlights: early mass at the Holy Sepulchre; walking on the Mount of Olives; seeing the Dome of the Rock up close on the Temple Mount. A full day!
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Post for February 25, 2009
We visited Bethlehem today. It wasn’t easy: the city is located in Palestinian territory, so we needed to bring our passports and we were even refused entry at the first checkpoint. It was just harassment, pure and simple, as we just proceeded to another entrance where there wasn’t even any security.
While the holy sites were impressive, what was even more impressive was the Wall. Israel erected a wall that cuts through the occupied territories, cutting the people of Bethlehem off from much of their lands. You really get the impression you are in a bad Kurt Russel film (where is Snake Plissken when you need him?)
Vespers is about to start so I have to go. More on this later.
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Post for February 25, 2009
I’ve deactivated an anti-spam plug-in, because it was preventing me from logging in to write posts. This means there might be some spam comments popping up over the next few days. Hopefully none will be too salacious. Sorry in advance.
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Post for February 25, 2009
I’m checking the blog from a PC in the hotel, and it looks terrible: the yellow column starts only after all the white blocks on the right hand side. Thing is, this wasn’t how it looked on my PC at home, so I was wondering: is this what the rest of you are seeing?
Do the yellow text blocks start at the right spot, i.e. right under the boat graphic?
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Post for February 24, 2009
Hello friends, I’m writing from my room in the Jerusalem Ritz. Thank goodness for Wi-fi hot spots! It has been quite a trip so far. The highlights:
Nazareth: the village well, only natural source of water (and therefore where Mary went to get water for the holy family. As well, the basilica of the annunciation, where we said mass.
Galilee: The Sea of Galilee is really amazing and very beautiful. My highlight was a boat ride on the lake, which really gave you a sense of the area in which Jesus did his ministry.
Capernaum: To visit this ancient town was to know that you were walking on the same ground where our Lord walked. Yes, even the site of the ancient synagogue, where Jesus did so much teaching, is known. Very special.
Mount Carmel: I presided mass in the Carmelite chapel at the summit. Given the Carmelite side to my spirituality this was significant for me.
Caesarea: A city built by King Herod, it was the official residence of the Roman governors including Pontius Pilate and Felix. We stood in the old palace where Saint Paul was put on trial.
There are lots of other places we visited, and all were nice in some way, but what made these special was that you *knew* these people *really were* in these places. It’s not just a pious guess.
Tomorrow: Bethlehem!
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Post for February 16, 2009
One thing I haven’t mentioned yet on the blog: I leave for Israel on Wednesday for 12 days. Any prayer requests while I am gone?
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Post for February 16, 2009
I’ve been teaching THEO 331 this term (also known as the Christian Understanding of God). It has been a lot of fun, I’m really enjoying it. Today I hosted my traditional study day in a coffee shop close to school.
Of course, apart from mere academics we often get into other discussions regarding religious faith. The students who came to see me today were Ukrainian Orthodox, Pentecostal, Ismaili Muslim, and yes even a couple of Roman Catholics. One student mentioned he was in the process of converting from Islam to Orthodoxy, after having originally been an agnostic.
I pray for my students regularly, not simply that they do well in this course, but in their personal spiritual and religious journey. Their exam is on Wednesday. Say a prayer for them too, will ya? Thanks in advance!
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Post for February 15, 2009
St. Brendan’s parish had a special fundraising luncheon this afternoon, so I went. The parish had access to a banquet hall, and the food was all-you-can-eat genuine homemade Italian pasta. WOW, was it good — I went back for seconds! There was also entertainment in the form of Calabrese dancers and Ukrainian dancers. The first troupe was more folk/family style, while the second you could tell were semi-professional. Both were very impressive and lots of fun. I left after three hours and I honestly had the impression the party was just getting started! What was nicest of all, mind you, was how the parishioners were so glad just to be together for something fun. Congrats to Father Paul and to Connie for a successful parish event.
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Post for February 14, 2009
I spent some time today chatting with a young man whose work includes digging graves. Unfortunately, yesterday there was a slight mishap. The cemetary map indicating where people were buried was badly marked, and the backhoe carved directly into a coffin buried only a year ago. He had to look in to assess the damage, and came face-to-face with a badly-decomposed body. It was like out of a horror film, and he was fairly shaken up.
What shook him up the most, though, was not the physical visual, but the mental realisation that one day he too will be in a grave. All he saw was death, with no hope. So his instinct was to talk to a priest. I pointed out to him that his work is not part of death, really, but part of eternal life. His job is a ministry to the families seeking to live the rites of mourning, rites that are very important to process well the tragedy of the loss of a loved one. If we bury people, it is not to put them out of sight, but as a testimony to our faith in the Ressurection.
We prayed, and I also gave him some tips on how to deal with the after-effects of the shock (e.g. exercise helps a lot). I’d ask you folks to pray for him too.
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Post for February 13, 2009
I’ve been helping out at the Chinese Catholic Mission recently, and last night was a Bible study meeting. I gave people a brief presentation on the life of Saint Paul, and then we dove into the question box to see what was there.
One question dealt with the Rapture, and whether Catholics should believe in it or not. For an excellent summary of the questions involved, I’d like to point people to the Catholic Answers tract on the questions of milleniannism the Rapture.
We also got into the question of the morality of file sharing and downloading. Again, I’d like to point people to something I myself have written, called Don’t Download that Song? I don’t give a definitive answer, but explore some of the issues involved.
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Post for February 12, 2009
I just got out of a meeting with a missionary who has been working in Papua New Guinea. Now for those of you who don’t know, Papua New Guinea is one of the last places on earth where cannibalism was frequently practiced (heck, even up until 10-15 years ago). So this missionary tells me this story:
He was having a group meeting of some parishioners, and at one point asked the people, just out of curiosity, how many had tasted human flesh. They were nervous about answering, because nowadays cannibalism is illegal in that country. So he reassured them he wasn’t interested in having anyone go to jail, and a few older people put up their hands.
“And what part of the human body is the tastiest?” he asked.
The answer: “Ladies thighs”.
So the next day he made sure to tell the nuns not to go and visit certain villages.
The things you learn in this job!
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Post for February 11, 2009
Having a blog is like having a garden: leave it untended long enough, and it needs weeding. I spent part of yesterday cleaning up things like my blogroll (half the blogs listed were out of commission). Also, I learned how to add a second widget bar, so now the “search box” is found at the top.
But I’m realising that it is about more than just having a tidy blog. I find that I actually *like* the appearance of this blog now, and it makes me want to come back to it. Coming back to it makes me want to write on it. And writing on it makes it come alive again. Kinda like that garden: once cleaned up, you want to start planting.
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Post for February 10, 2009
I’ve been fighting a cold for the past few days. Nothing major, but my head feels like a blimp. I took the afternoon off from work (well, more accurately, I worked from home) and cancelled my class for tonight. Hopefully I’ll be ok for tomorrow.
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Post for February 9, 2009
I was chatting with a former seminary professor of mine today, and we got on to the topic of pastoral practices in Quebec related to sin and the forgiveness of sins. He was of the opinion that one of the major reasons that many brother priests don’t hear confessions anymore is because they don’t want to have to pronounce themselves on moral issues. For myself, I think a major reason is a faulty soteriology (theology of salvation).
Simply put, Christian universalism is on the rise, especially in Quebec, in which people basically believe that everyone is saved no matter what (i.e. Hell is a merely theoretical reality). In this view, what we do here on Earth matters, but only to those here on Earth; individual sin is only problematic in terms of the negative social structures it produces; and confession is essentially a form of therapy.
Now it may be that the faulty soteriology is in place because people don’t want to hear confessions, and not the other way around. After all, self-justification through fancy theories does occur from time to time. But since the theology of salvation is THE theology that drives all others, at least in terms of developing a pastoral approach, we do need to get a grip on it.
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Post for February 8, 2009
May, 2005. The sun rising over the Philippine Sea. As for the boat, we went whale watching in it. Didn’t see any whales, but the sunrise alone was worth it.
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Post for February 6, 2009
I’ve changed the harsh green background for a softer background graphic, as well as centred the blocks of text. Personally, I think it looks much better. Next step: getting a banner picture.
UPDATE: Well, a banner picture is in, but I think I’ll replace it once I find a picture that is currently stashed in my archives. The graphics for the categories are also coming along, although I find I am spending a lot of time cleaning up the posts in said categories.
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Post for February 2, 2009
…but at least comments are working now. Don’t let the small size of the article boxes worry you – that is my test for visualisation on a QVGA screen (like what you get on a Blackberry). I’ll have it back to a normal size soon.
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