Wednesday in Israel

Shalom! We are the Tel Aviv airport for the second times in two days. We arrived yesterday on an El Al flight from Rome and stayed the night at a hotel near the airport. Our flight was high adventure as we went through four layers of security starting with a thorough check of our luggage at the Rome Airport. The first security person was an Israeli Army Reservist who frequently spends his reserve time in Las Vegas at Nellis training military personnel from all over the world. He was a nice guy with a relentless security wand that probed every inch of our luggage. That was only "round one." It is great fun to see the variety of families arriving at the airport...the ultra-orthodox families arriving from NewYork and other places with MANY children in tow, etc. We took a few pictures of a bomb-sniffing dog walking forward through the luggage from our flight as it circled around in the luggage carousel. For their safety, we weren't allowed to take pictures of the soldiers. There are many of them! The woman who sat next to us on the flight told us about the two to three years of volunteer service required of all young women and men after high school. Later that day, we saw some of them on break....the Israeli men were all eating McDonald's hamburgers with huge piles of fries and the women were eating pizza and Japanese food. We were enjoying Israeli food....chicken, couscous, cucumbers, tomatoes, and hummas. The Israeli woman who sat next to me  (Pr. M.) on the flight and I had a wonderful conversation! Our first-born children are the same age. Her mother was a Holocaust survivor who was transferred around Europe for three years during the time she was thirteen to sixteen years old along with about 100 Jewish girls. They were from a variety of European nations and were protected by a careful cadre of people who wanted to make sure they survived the war. When the war ended, her mother discovered that none of the other members of her family had survived. She said that her mother was "a shadow of a person for the rest of her life." Such evil..what we as humans do to one another.

We returned to the airport today to meet the rest of our tour group...English-speaking tourists  arriving from a variety of departure points. Many of them will likely feel like we did a week ago! This is the part of the trip for which we are the most excited! For us, it is more than a trip. It is a pilgrimage into the roots of our faith. For pastors, we can't begin to find the words to describe the depth of joy and privilege we feel to finally be in the places that have been the source of our preaching, teaching, and faith for years. It feels like a journey into our very souls!

Catacombs...the first churches

In ancient Roman times, no one was allowed to be buried within the walls of the city. While pagan Romans were into cremation, Christians preferred to be buried (so they could be resurrected when the time came). But land was expensive, and most Christians were poor. A few wealthy, landowning Christians allowed their land to be used as burial places. The approximately 70  known catacombs are scattered outside the ancient walls of Rome. From the first through the fifth centuries, Christians dug an estimated 375 miles of tomb-lined tunnels, with networks of galleries as many as five stories deep. The volcanic tuff that Rome sits atop — soft and easy to cut, but hardens when exposed to air — was perfect for the job. The Christians burrowed many layers deep for two reasons: to get more mileage out of the donated land, and to be near martyrs and saints already buried there. Bodies were wrapped in linen (like Christ's). Since they figured the Second Coming was imminent, there was no interest in embalming the body.The underground tunnels, while empty of bones, are rich in early Christian symbolism, which functioned as a secret language. The dove represented the soul. You'll see it quenching its thirst (worshipping), with an olive branch (at rest), or happily perched (representing paradise). The shepherd with a lamb on his shoulders was the "good shepherd," the first portrayal of Christ as a kindly leader of his flock. The fish was used because the first letters of these words — "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior" — spelled "fish" in Greek. And the anchor is a cross in disguise. A second-century bishop had written on his tomb, "All who understand these things, pray for me." You'll see pictures of people praying with their hands raised up — the custom at the time. In the tombs we visited it is estimated half a million Christians were buried.  These were also the first churches where Christians worshipped to avoid persecution. In fact, a service was going on while we were there some 60 feet under ground. Roman law forbade groups to gather in public, so at great risk, the early Christians went instead down into the catacombs. When Christianity became "legal" with Constantine in 300, churches began to be built above ground.  Some of the earliest Christian symbols are found in the catacombs. Interesting to learn the "cross" went into vogue later. The first symbols were the fish, pictures of Jonah being spit by the whale (a sign of resurrection) and the anchor, which was the precursor to the cross.

The Lord's Day in Rome

Dave wanted to experience a Sunday morning mass at St Peter's Basilica while we were in Rome. So after a European breakfast at our hotel, we took the subway to St. Peter's Square. Thousands of people were gathered in the Square facing a window with long, regal cloth hanging from it. Being relative quick studies, we learned that the Pope appears at the window on Sundays at noon to bless the people and deliver a message. It was fun to be in a crowd that wasn't cheering their favorite ball team, but a leading spokesperson for the Christian faith! We left to attend the 12:15 mass in the Basilica. Believers from "many nations, languages, and peoples" (for my Revelation Bible study students) were in attendance. Because the liturgy was in Italian, many participants had a hard time following it. There was an older man with his children and grandchildren around him in the first pew of the church. He was totally relishing the privilege of worshipping with his family at the holy of holies for Catholics! We took our clues from him as to when to stand and sit. Some of the younger generations seated behind us were taking their clues from us. So, it was like a "Mr. Bean" sketch watching the waves of parishioners engage in a series of false starts and stops with the whole standing and sitting thing! In spite of the humor of Christian aroebics, "the St. Peter's wave," there was something profound about the mystery of the mass...a liturgy that one can follow even if you can't fully understand the language in which it is being spoken. That being said, I can only  imagine the antics in the pews, especially for families with children, throughout the 2000 years of Christianity as countless millions of mothers and fathers tried to entertain their kids when the mass was in a language no one understood...Latin. Oh what a best selling book that would be! I found myself comparing the opulence of St. Peter's Basilica with the simplicity of  Jesus' message...what a contrast! The Beatitudes....blessed are the poor, peacemakers, the persecuted for righteousness sake, etc. Any church is made holy by the presence of God's Holy Spirit...whether in an open field, a grass hut, a functional building in Henderson, Nevada, or any other place on God's earth! Oh, I forgot to mention that the people's responses to the liturgy were supported by a small group of Italian men in suits...no women. After worship, Pastor Dave took the elevator up a portion of the way to the Cuppola (domed tower of St. Peter's basilica) and then walked the final 320 steps to the top. He took fabulous pictures from that perspective, which we can't attach to this posting, because they are on our camera instead of this IPad. then we took the subway to the stop for the Church of Santa Maria Della Concezione. It houses a museum where the bones of hundreds of deceased Capuchin monks decorate the walls and ceilings. Some have even been made into elaborate chandeliers. Lest we cling exclusively to this life, neglecting the longevity of the next, their saying is: " What you are, we once were; and what we are, you shall be." It was a sobering reminder that no one escapes returning to dust!  After lunch, we walked to the Spanish steps, then walked back to our hotel for the night.

Pompeii uncovered

On Saturday, we took a bus to Pompeii, about 3hrs south of Rome.  Recall Pompeii was covered by ash...up to 25 feet of the stuff with the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, which is about a mile upwind.  A very small volcano compared what you find in Hawaii for example.  Pompeii is about 3/4 excavated and it is amazing to behold.  Imagine a whole city about the size of 1/2 of our Coventry neighborhood.  It gives one a sense of what life was like in Italy at the time of Paul.  The streets are laid out as if by a civil engineer. There was water that flowed through a complex plumbing design. Public drinking fountains showed the wear of hands leaning left or right into them (see picture below with our 87-year old guide explaining the fountain to us).  The central gathering plaza had markets, a couple of temples, and two ampitheaters. A brothel complete with pictures on the walls left little to one's imagination! We found no evidence of Judaism or Christianity. Though there was a basilica...which our guide said became the model for later churches.  All of the homes had an entrance from the street called a vestibule, which then entered into a courtyard, around which then were bedrooms, a kitchen, dining room, ang gathering room...almost exactly like our home in Henderson (last picture in the sequence from the perspective of the living room looking back into the courtyard and the entrance). One of the homes had a "beware of dog" mosaic design on the floor of its entryway (see third picture below). We realized that we live in a home built in 2001 that is a Mediterranean model of a home dating back to the first century.  Each home also had a little shrine in the courtyard where Roman gods were venerated and worshipped.  It's also fascinating to note that the destruction of Pompeii happened the same time as the Romans destroyed Jerusalem...probably a coincidence, but it does make one wonder.  Just finished breakfast and now we are to experience Sunday mass at St. Peter's.

Thoughts about Rome, the Sistene Chapel and St. Peter's

Standing inside the Sistene Chapel is like standing inside the Bible. This is the room in which the cardinals are sequestered when a new pope is elected. The first observation is that it is not very large.  In  fact, tradition says it is the exact dimension of Solomon's Temple.  So here's what struck me (Pr Dave).  As the pope is being elected, the cardinals are literally sitting inside the Bible...facing the altar on which they place their ballots, the left side of the room features key stories from the Old Testament. The right side has an equal number of key stories in floor to ceiling paintings from the New Testament.  The ceiling, painted by Michaelangelo, depicts the creation through Noah, with the most famous painting of God's finger reaching out to touch Adam's finger smack dab in the middle.  Behind the altar on the front wall is Michaelangelo's famous painting of the Judgement and the end of the world.  This is called the pope's personal chapel and his apartment is literally a door or two away (though the present pope, Francis, has chosen to live in a humbler apartment). Imagine being called to make a prayerful decision on the new vicar of Christ being immersed fully in Gods word...awesome!
St. Peter's Basilica is literally the largest church in the world.  It took 1500 years to build, which kind of puts our New Song adventure of 10 years into perspective.  When you walk in you discover that the architecture is the message...it literally draws your eyes and spirit into an awareness of God's majesty and glory.  For us Lutherans, it carries a double edge...for this is the church that sparked Luther's resistance and the Reformation. Recall what ticked Luther off was the selling of indulgences, which were a scheme to raise funds to build St Peters.  Here are a few thoughts about Rome.  It is a place of deep meaning fir Christians. Paul's letter to the Romans was written to the Christians several years before he was brought here to die in captivity. It contains Paul's core theology and is what Luther was translating and teaching when he had his significant theological breakthrough (word alone, grace alone, faith alone, etc). Paul died here after spending three years under house arrest after appealing to Caesar.  Recall, Rome was also in charge at the time of Jesus' life and death.  And finally, this the place where the disciple Peter was crucified, upside down, because he felt he was not worthy to die as Jesus did.  In fact, tradition claims Peter's bones are buried under St Peter's dome.  Jesus said: "on this rock I will build my church"...and such is the case...for this is the main church of the pope, Christendom, and the world.  We are planning to attend mass there on Sunday.

The Vatican

Today, we went on an afternoon tour of the Vatican. We walked through the Sistine Chapel, where Michelangelo frescoed two masterpieces: the ceiling with the stories of the creation of the world (1508-1512) and the end wall with the Last Judgment (1536-1541)...think Matthew 25. Now we understand why Martin Luther was all in a dither about the indulgences that were being sold to Christian peasants throughout Europe to fund the building of the largest church in the world! The Catholics on our tour are very excited about the new Pope, Francis.  If he is true to his predecessor, Francis of Assissi, he will call the Church to its serving roots, rather than its preoccupation with pomp and ritual! Pr. Marta had a conversation with him on that and other topics. We also visited St. Mary's Basilica of the Angels and the Martyrs earlier this morning. This ancient church was very moving....paintings and sculptures of those who lost their lives for the faith, like St. John who was beheaded for his  faith. Many of the younger generations of tourists who visit these sites have no faith connection. But, to the faithful, you can tell what "a religious experience it is for them!" A young couple listened into our conversation over dinner. "Lean into God's amazing love affair with humanity, dear ones, and know life!" We've also enjoyed several conversations with police officers...who are more than happy to pose so that Captain Cassell of the City of Henderson Police Department will have great pictures of law enforcement agents in other countries! One even gave Pr. Marta a badge from his uniform (attached by Velcro). She took two pictures, because other buddies want to join them for the photo!  Tomorrow we travel to Pompeii and Naples for the day. Blessings and peace, dear ones. KEEP THE FAITH!

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Day one - Rome

Well, in spite of good intentions to rise early, we woke at noon because the hotel was doing a fire alarm test. Good thing given the time change for us.  Today we took a bus tour of Rome. What is immediately apparent is that the ancient and present coexist in downtown Rome.  There are ruins and walls and pillars dating to many years before Jesus coexisting with advertisements to see the latest American movie release, in this case, pixars Monster Academy.  We spent a good amount of time touring the Collesium, which has ruins that go back to the time of Christ. This is where gladiators fought, and according to tradition, Christians were sacrificed.  It is an amazing feeling to stand in the midst of the Collesium and imagine the history of the place.  At the north end is Constantine's Gate...if you recall he was the emperor who made Christianity the religion of the empire in 300 AD.   Ruins of Nero's Palace are close by; he died about 60 AD, thirty years after Jesus, and was known for persecuting Christians. In fact, the revelation of John, last book in the NT, paints Rome and Nero as pretty bad stuff.
Other observations...lots of street cafes and everybody is selling pizza...which for us, is really flatbread with a little cheese and ham on top.
On a fun note, "prego" means "you're welcome "in Italian.  So today we are out and about, and someone serves us a drink.  Pr Marta, thinking she has it down says "you are welcome" this way: "Ragu."  Think about it for a moment, and you'll figure out why I couldn't stop laughing.