Last day of Hanukkah

It rained the whole day and night - what a blessing! but yesterday it stopped. The sun was up from a few hours; but the clouds came and swallowed it up. The gusty winds brought the temperature down again.

Yesterday evening the Salesians here celebrated the 150th anniversary of their foundation. They had a solemn Mass at the Basilica of Gethsemani (the only church in Jerusalem big enough to hold a few hundred people). It was celebrated in a mixture of languages - arabic, italian, english. There was a big crowd of Salesian sisters and alumni. And the seminarians' choir was very good.

And today is the last day of Hanukkah. Being also the Sabbath, the streets are very quiet, the shops are closed (no jelly doughnuts) and everyone is warm in their homes, lighting the last candle on the Hanukkah menorah. For us Christians, the light is coming ... in a few days .... the true light of the world comes as a helpless baby in a manger.

I'm moving ahead with my research but Fr Buscemi, my 2nd moderator has pointed out a new direction that I have to take in the research. So more studies and writing.