Corpus Christi

Today the basilica of the Holy Sepulchre celebrates the feast of Corpus Christi. It differs form the normal calendar ... since the Basilica keeps the status quo and has its own liturgical calendar. Strange ... but it happens.

Fresh mishmish and jam made by
Firas and his mum

Well yesterday before leaving Bethlehem for Jerusalem, I made a stop over to visit my friend Firas and his family. I've met them only twice this year and his mum was telling me to come over this week because she made something great - mishmish jam. It's the apricots or mini-peaches that're in season right now and people of the Bethlehem area ... it's reputed that the best mishmish come from that area ... make jam out of the fruit. Well she made lots and lots mishmish jam .. enough for a year!!! And she gave me a bottle to try. It was out of this world. Smooth, fruity, tangy and tart ... and Firas helped to add the nuts of the mishmish pits into the jam as well ... it's an arab specialty. It gives the jam something to bite on, a nutty flavour, chewy in texture. Very very nice. Anyone wants to buy????  Honestly its very good ... I'm thinking of getting these stuff sent back home for sale. It'll help our arab christian families financially and you guys can have something nice to eat from the Holyland. Tell me what you think.

Meantime students throughout the country are having their exams. A tense time. But not as tense as the racial attacks on africans in Jerusalem ... last week's arson was meant to kill, not scare the eritreans living in the apartment. http://www.jpost.com/NationalNews/Article.aspx?id=272852  I'll need t talk to Hidri whom some of you are sponsoring for his seminary studies about this ... he needs to be careful otherwise he might be attacked. Well perhaps it's pretty telling about Corpus Christi - the Body of Christ ... all broken, beaten up, crowned with thorns, whipped, crucified ... and we all are going through it day after day physically or psychologically.