The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light

Yesterday, the 4^th, we again went into the Palestinian Territories. The first stop was to the Herodion, a palace built by the King Herod the Great (the one who wanted to kill the baby Jesus) at the edge of the Judean Desert.  The palace was built about 20 BC upon an artificially built hill.

The Herodion Palace - the poor slaves who had to drag the rocks up this hill.

Looking over Palestinian Territory.

Fromthere to the Shepherds’ Fields – the cave area in which the shepherds lived. This was really quite interesting. It was common in this area for people to live in the caves. The sheep were kept at the back of the cave – while the people lived near the entrance where there was fresh air and also where they could protect the sheep.

Often the cave had a ventilation hole at the back… and so this makes sense of Jesus saying – I am the gate of the sheepfold (the one who is at the entrance of the cave to protect the sheep) – while “‘anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit.” (John 10). So when the Scriptures talk of there being no room in the inn or living space (the house above the cave or the front of the cave), the logical place for Mary to give birth was away from the crowd, with the sheep, at the back of the cave.

I am the good shepherd... my hseep here my voice

A lovely little cave chapel at Shepherds' Field... one of the many caves that are in the hills around there 

Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit (John 10:1)

 Of course there is something missing in Luke 2:8... the correct quote is In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night while sipping their cappuccinos...

Then into Bethlehem where we have the explanation of the Church of the Nativity. And again, this is where some of what we were told made sense of the church.

The entrance to the cave at Bethlehem... this is in the Catholic part of the church

Sight of the manger (above) and the birth (below) in the Greek Orthodox part of the church

 

Our final stop was to the Aida refugee camp and the Wall. The refugee camp was set up following the creation of Israel in 1948 though a lot more people came there following the 1967 war when Israel annexed the West Bank. Some of the people still hold the keys to their homes in the hope that they will get back to them some day. The Israelis called it the Wall of Separation while the Palestinians call it the Wall of Occupation and Annexation. It really is dehumanising… Rather than being built to protect Israeli settlements on the West Bank it has been extended to cover vast areas of Palestinian owned lands. The Palestinians are refused access to the land which is ultimately annexed for Israeli settlements. Water is another big issue. 85% of the West Bank water goes to Israel and 15% is for the Palestinians. In summer there water can be cut off for 2 months! Hence they have water tanks on their roofs. Then there is the checkpoints which effectively keeps most Palestinians imprisoned behind the wall.   

The ugliness of the wall, here deeply intruding into Bethlehem to keep Rachel's tomb in Israeli territory

The key, symbol of the Palestinian hopes to regain their homes and peace. Below the UN school in Aida Refugee Camp. The windows facing the street have been boarded up so that bullets won't enter the classroom.

 

The irony was, some two thousand years ago, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, a town which lived under Roman occupation and oppression. In this seemingly hopeless situation of today hope was once born and he remains that hope today...

The people that walked in darkness

has seen a great light;
on those who live in a land of deep shadow
a light has shone.
You have made their gladness greater,
you have made their joy increase;
they rejoice in your presence
as men rejoice at harvest time,
as men are happy when they are dividing the spoils.
For the yoke that was weighing on him,
the bar across his shoulders,
the rod of his oppressor,
these you break as on the day of Midian.
For there is a child born for us,
a son given to us
and dominion is laid on his shoulders;
and this is the name they give him:
Wonder-Counsellor, Mighty-God,
Eternal-Father, Prince-of-Peace.
Wide is his dominion
in a peace that has no end,
for the throne of David
and for his royal power,
which he establishes and makes secure
in justice and integrity.
From this time onwards and for ever,
the jealous love of the Lord of Hosts will do this.


Isaiah 9:1-7 - Midnight Mass of Christmas