The United Methodist Church in Mission

Easter in Jerusalem

Easter Sunday. Early in the morning, we gathered on top of the Mount of Olives for the sunrise service marking the empty tomb. It was a blessing to hear the message of Christ as the sun slowly rose over the mountains of Jordan and brought to life the Dead Sea. On coming down from the Mount of Olives, a few of us went to the Holy Sepulcher--the site where Christ was crucified and rose again. Inside that church, two Easter services--Catholic and Armenian--and a Greek Orthodox Palm Sunday procession were going on simultaneously.

After lunch, I headed back to Bethlehem. When my bus reached the outskirts, it came to a stop, letting most of us out. Bethlehem was closed off to its own inhabitants so that Jewish people could pray at Rachel's Tomb during Passover. My wonderful day was crushed. I, among many Palestinians, had to walk into Bethlehem while buses carrying Israelis were allowed to go freely.

Later that same night, I had a dinner invitation that included a short worship service beforehand. I was very thankful for that. It was renewing. The priest said: "God does not provide the solutions, but the means of dealing with the problem."