The darkness of the night has been covered by the sunlight. Another day has begun. A new view framed by the window of our rooms can be admired. It is our first morning in the holy city of Jerusalem. Our faces reflect the joy of being here, as it says in Psalm 122: “I rejoiced that they said to me, let us go to the house of Yahweh. At last our feet are standing at your gates, Jerusalem!”
Our pilgrimage continues. We are now in the walled city which retains in itself that which makes up our history as Christians.
Today, many of us took our first walk throughout the city. As soon as we tread the streets of this beautiful city, we witnessed the cultural and religious diversity that is so prominent as the three monotheistic religions, each with distinct cultures collide. Echoing off the cavernous streets were the cacauphonus sounds of the three heavily used langauges spoken here.
In this setting, it was easy to call to mind the passage of Jesus of Nazareth and his triumphal entry amidst a cheering crowd as the Son of God. It was the beginning of the Paschal Mystery that lies at the heart of our faith: the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Being here has given us a new perspective of this story, and of many other passages in the Bible that took place here. It is like something in our minds and in our hearts clicked. We can imagine Jesus walking, preaching and showing everyone the mission that was entrusted to Him – that of the hope of salvation, given to men at the expense of his own blood. It forced us to consider what our mission in the world is.
We must remember we are pilgrims in this world: “Man is like a breath; his days are like a fleeting shadow.” We continue our walk, but taking into account that our final destination is the holy city, the New Jerusalem, heaven itself.
In the meantime, let us enter in our pilgrimage today. Let us try to achieve our mission for our time in Jerusalem. Remember that Jesus invites us to bring us into this adventure of knowing, of encountering, of walking along with Him. Keep in mind that we are here "to fill our hearts with the Spirit of the Risen Christ." So, let us continue joyfully on our journey.