Remembrance Day eve

Sunset in Jaffa

It's Sunday and this evening Remembrance day will begin. At 8pm the sirens blared throughout the country and most people stood for one minute's silence. I think the count of soldiers who have been killed since the founding of the State of Israel is 97,000+. The country owes its existence to the tenacity of its army ... and every soldier is respected. Crowds have come to the Wailing Wall where there is a special service to remember the Fallen. Smaller ceremonies are being held throughout the country especially at memorial centers. Tomorrow at 10am another siren will sound for a minute's silence. Many of my jewish security friends have lost at least one friend, relative or comrade to the recent violence and wars. It'll be a sad day for them to remember the Fallen.  But eh way the border with Palestine was already closed yesterday night and will last till Tuesday midnight.

Yesterday I was called to work as sacristan at our Jaffa monastery. Everyone there was out on their chaplaincy work so no one was available to watch the sanctuary and prepare for pilgrims to celebrate Masses at the various altars. I left Jerusalem at 5am but there was a dreadful traffic jam. Managed to reach Jaffa only at 6.30am. Started work at 8am till 5.30pm with 3 Masses booked, and one special tour inside the Crusader section of the monastery by an australian group. There was also another australian group originally from Egypt ... and one of the members left her backpack in out church. I brought it out to the group before they left but everyone said it's not their bag. 3 hours later the guide called to say the bag belongs to someone in his group. So how stupid can tourists be? You can't recognise your own bag when I brought it out to you 3 hours earlier? Well the group lives in Bethlehem and will not come back to Jaffa so I had to carry the bag back to Jerusalem and leave it at St. Saviour's monastery and the guide would pick it up the next morning.

My 4 students who professed
their promise yesterday

Yesterday morning 4 of my students professed their promise to their congregation "Missionaries of Africa" or popularly called "White Fathers" (not because of nationality but because of the white habit they wear). Really proud of them. This morning some of them came to help me with the Armenian Mass at the 3rd Station. The other students - Salesians - will make their profession mid-year. Pray for them.