Feast of the Sacrifice

Damascus Gate ready for Eid al Adha

Received the sad news this morning that our former principal of St. Gabriel's Sec. School passed away - Bro. Emmanuel. He's legendary in the Gabrielite circle of schools. Requiscat in Pace.

I made a mistake about Eid al Adha. It actually starts tonight and not yesterday night. Apparently they can't see the new moon so the date changed accordingly. The streets are filled with temporary stalls selling everything. And there're lots of balloons. And guys are lining up ... I saw it myself ... like 20 over guys ... lining up to get their hair cut. And everyone is buying new clothes ... of course the guys will have to go to swanky Mamilla Mall and buy Israeli or American branded clothes to show off. You get the same thing without the brand in East Jerusalem ... but that's not classy enough. So much money is thrown away for a couple of days ... I can't believe it. It's so wasteful.

Israel has always been participating in catastrophe rescue. This time in Houston, trauma-specialists are sent to the flood victims as well as other rescue workers.  https://www.timesofisrael.com/haredi-female-psychotrauma-pioneer-heads-to-houston-with-israeli-medics/

Balloons for sale

The ultra-orthodox rabbis are going overboard with exclusion of women ... this time on the pilgrimage to the famous Ukrainian tomb of Rabbi Nathan which is traditional for the New Year (Rosh HaShanah). Don't think that Islam is the only religion that puts down women. The rabbis are calling for jewish pilgrims not to buy from shops served by women, or stay in hotels with women employees and to prevent women from going near the tomb. https://www.timesofisrael.com/bratslav-elders-seek-to-keep-perimeter-of-rabbi-nachman-gravesite-women-free/

St. Miriam Bouardy

Altar of the Milk Grotto

Yesterday was another very busy day ... it's all work and datelines and meetings. I wonder if that's how I'm going to end my days ... working. Luckily the weather has cooled a lot so heavy work like moving boxes of books are so difficult.

The muslim feast of the Sacrifice "Did el Adha" or you may know it as the "Haj" should take place tonight but I hear it's been postponed to Friday night because the moon cannot be seen ... I think. Well the feast will be very welcomed because then all roadworks will stop. Day renovations in our house will stop so there'll be less dust and noise. And night roadworks will stop that means we can sleep. The last week has been harrowing ... with 24 hour noise of jackhammers ... literally 24 hours. I had to spend time sleeping in the library of the other monastery otherwise I'd be without sleep for a week.

Relic of St. Miriam
on the altar

Well to make up for the sleepless days and nights, I got to visit the Milk Grotto (away form the noise)  in Bethlehem. The relics of St. Miriam Bouardy, the first arab carmelite nun and foundress of the 4 Carmelite monasteries in the Holy Land, was placed at the altar there for the next few weeks. It will then be brought to other churches and shrines in a pilgrimage through the Holy Land. The relic consists of a cloth with the blood of St. Miriam's stigmata.

Well for the good news: Israel's Rambam Medical Center has discovered how to treat Parkinson's tremors. And the Cheesecake Factory may start its first shop here in Jerusalem .... really looking forward to that!!! And the really Israeli summer thing about going crazy .... there are so many protests and demonstrations about everything that a social media site played a joke by calling for a demonstration in support of a TV character in "Friends" ... and there were actually crowds coming to demonstrate!!! This is Tel Aviv!!!!!  http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Culture/Dozens-of-Israelis-stand-up-for-Friends-Ross-Geller-in-Tel-Aviv-protest-503537

St. Augustine Day

Greek Orthodox confession at
the Holy Sepulcher

It's the memorial of St. Augustine of Hippo today. Not that I'm a great fan of his theology. He was quite a testy guy and had several clashes with St. Jerome - a dalmatian by birth and temperament - hence it was quite heated.

The Haj (pilgrimage) to Mecca is beginning for the muslims. The feast itself - eid al Adha, the sacrifice of Ishmael by Abraham - falls on the evening of August 30th and ends the evening of the following day. While the main event will be in Mecca, and we are told that 2 million have already arrived, local muslims who cannot make it there will celebrate it at the Al Aqsa mosque. Sheep will be brought into the compound and slaughtered. Part of the meat is eaten by the family and the rest is offered to the poor. After the Haj to Mecca, many pilgrims also stop by Jerusalem to visit the Al Aqsa. So we can expect a crowded week ahead in the Old City. Security you can be sure will be super tight.

Meantime news is out that a tourist has died at the Dead Sea. In fact most tourist deaths occur at the Dead Sea ... more than any other place in Israel. It could be the combination of the intense heat, the fatigue, the sulfuric fumes ... all play some part in tourist deaths. And to add to the trauma, transporting the body back to the country of origin gets even more complicated. Non-jewish people must be hired to carry the body on board the place from the mortuary as jews do not want to handle a gentile dead body. http://www.timesofisrael.com/uruguayan-tourist-collapses-and-dies-at-the-dead-sea/

Yesterday while at the Holy Sepulcher, I witnessed a group of Greek Orthodox nuns confessing to a priest. Though I've studied how they celebrate this Sacrament, I've never actually seen them do it. Yesterday was my first life experience.

Bethlehem Sunday

Iconic Bethlehem BBQ chicken

Today was a little different from other Sundays ... I had to accompany a friend to Bethlehem and show him around. But first it was Sunday Mass at the Armenian Cathedral. Then it was settling up work in the library before going to Bethlehem at 12pm. The weather was rather cool ... 32 degrees with a breeze compared to yesterday's 38 degrees in Galilee. The bus ride was nice and there were few commuters at that hour. Once in Beit Jalah terminal, it was a 1km walk into the Basilica.

Tea seller

Th Basilica is still under conservation but areas of ancient mosaic can be glimpsed and they look awesome. After a visit there, we went to visit the Milk Grotto. Went to say a prayer for a friend. It was quite quiet there today so it was nice. On the way home I couldn't resist buying the iconic boneless barbecued chicken of Bethlehem. They use to sell this everywhere but now there's only one stall selling it. I expected prices to rise but it still cost 35 shekels. A full chicken de-boned and flat-roasted. Very tasty ... and risky because no food is allowed to be brought into Israel ... but luckily at the checkpoint, the police did not check our bags.

And there are so many tea-sellers in Bethlehem ... all dressed in traditional Ottoman costumes. There were at least 4 along the road to the Basilica. In Jerusalem we only have one at Damascus Gate.

There were clashes yesterday between ultra-orthodox jews and police again. This time the haredim as they are called ... even attacked journalists and secular jews who took videos and photos of them. Not a good sign  http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Police-haredim-clash-at-religious-coercion-protest-503479

The untold tragedy in Yemen of cholera killing thousands and the govt air raid that killed just as many has shocked us all .... and worse, no mainstream media is carrying this news.  http://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/1.809096

Off day

The ravine of Wadi Qelt

Today Sabbath was spent outside of Jerusalem ... in fact way out ... into Galilee. I had to wake early at 3am to organise myself. By 6.30am the coach came to pick us up for the tour. I was accompanying a group of MC sisters working in the worst places in our region ... to have a break from the pressures and horrors. Or as the Archbishop said : to rest and relax. They have sacrificed so much to serve the poor ... now they need some refuelling.

Boat shaped altar in Magdala

We stopped first at Wadi Qelt to see the amazing ravine and monastery of St. George Kosiba. Then it was up north to Beth Shean and walked for over an hour in the Roman City. The sun was relentless and we had to drink so much water. Then we celebrated Mass  at Magdala and the Legionaries of Christ were very kind to let us eat lunch in the privacy of the sacristy. There was no other place available as buildings were still in the construction stage. The altar of the chapel was in the shape of a boat. After that it was a visit to Kursi (ancient Geresa), Bethsaida (home of Peter, Andrew and Philip) and Chorazin (see Mat 13).

We managed to cover quite a lot in a short day that was very hot. And considering that I haven't done this in 3 years ... and with my illness ... I must say I did pretty well. So I guess it was some sort of an off day ... a one day summer holiday.

Weekend

Amazing dog with
bi-colour eyes

The weather has been mellowing ... daytimes are 30 degrees with a cool breeze and the nights are 20+ degrees with a chilly wind. Quite agreeable ... even for walking to and from work. It's less distressing on my poor heart. Which was just as well because I've been having lots of social obligations. Today I had to meet up a community leader to update on activities; then off to say goodbye to a good friend and colleague who has finished his tenure and will leave Israel next week. Then it was collecting a heavy bag of books back to the library (1km away) ... then 2 other meetings this afternoon.

In between running from one place to another this morning, I passed by Cafe Hillel and there was a husky with one blue and one brown eye. It was really amazing ... though multicolored eyes is common in huskies. It was a nice break from the hustle and bustle to stop and stare at the dog. I think it got bored with me.

School starts in a couple of days ... and we read from the newspapers that the govt. had confiscated trailers and mobile classrooms from bedouin communities. Students came to "school" all the same, sitting in the open space and studying in the open air. The 6 trailers were funded by the EU and the "kindergarten" was a tin shack. Israel has countered that it was illegal.
http://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/palestinians/.premium-1.808527   and   http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/IDF-destroys-two-illegal-EU-funded-Palestinian-schools-503252

And as islamist extremists are tearing down statues of ancient religions ... and modern as well .... in the US they're tearing down statues of Confederates ... and now Turkey wants to tear down statues of Greek philosophers. When will this all end??? It's modern day iconoclasm.    https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.co.il/2017/08/turkish-islamists-demand-removal-of.html#VuSIvidhAHKfctbz.97

St. Bartholomew Day

A cartload of ka'ek

It's St. Bartholomew Day and for us it's a big feast day because he's one of the "local boys" born in Cana in Galilee. In other countries this feast is probably no more than a name of some distant apostle mentioned in the Gospels ... but here his memory is never far and his village is just a driving distance away. We had ka'ek for breakfast ... that's the long sesame bagel made by arabs. We usually have it on Thursdays and I like it as it's light. And today being a feast day, it felt a little more special eating it with some laban which is local cottage-cheese. Simple pleasures in life.

After a heavy day of work, I had the pleasure of meeting up with an old friend and classmate from 25 yrs back. He celebrated his birthday 2 days ago and earned his PhD in England. So after all the celebrations with his family, he finally found time to come out with me for a simple dinner. We had a lot to catch up ... and laughed ... and talked about our futures. His 2 kids are big now so he has little to worry about. It's good to see him doing well. At least one of us is moving ahead.

Some heartwarming news - an arab bus-driver found $10,000 on board and  gave it back to the jewish owner. Everyone here is touched ... and social media reaction is: how come he was not rewarded? And it's jewish readers who are asking for it.  http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5006942,00.html

There was a social experiment in Hamburg, Germany to see how racism affects daily life. A supermarket removed all goods made from foreign countries and kept only the German-produced ones. The supermarket was practically bare ... and shoppers were shocked to find that if they kept out all foreign goods (hence people), they cannot survive.  http://www.boredpanda.com/supermarket-removes-foreign-groceries-racism-problems-hamburg-germany/?utm_source=CB13&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=SAW

Stromata

AFC dinner

It was a full day's work yesterday that ended late. I was very hungry. Luckily a White Father seminarian called to say he was coming to see me so I told him to get AFC (Arab Fried Chicken) in my office for dinner. It's pretty messy eating it ... especially on my office table filled with books and forms. And the thing about AFC is they cook the chicken only when you order, so its piping hot and you burn your fingers and tongue trying to bite into it because you're very hungry and can't wait for it to cool. But it's always a great lifesaver whenever it's a late working night and you need dinner urgently and cheaply.

The roadworks continued last night outside my window. The noise was a little less rowdy than the previous night ... but the exhaustion knocked me out I only faintly could hear the noise. In fact I was so tired I couldn't remember what day it was.

It's the New Moon ... and the jews usually have special prayers during this time. It's also the monthly rally of some jewish women who want egalitarian rights at the Wailing Wall. They want to wear phylacteries and prayer shawls like men, and carry the Torah scroll and proclaim it publicly. All these are forbidden by normative Judaism. And these women who try and do otherwise at the Wailing Wall each New Moon are met with clashes.  http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5006635,00.html

An incredible find outside of Damascus Gate (north of Jerusalem) near the American Consulate ... a 6th century Byzantine mosaic dedication from the time of Emperor Justinian who built the largest church in the Middle East here in Jerusalem to commemorate the Council of Ephesus. The dedicatory inscription appears to mark a pilgrim hospice built at the same time the enormous church (known as the Nea/New church) was built in the south of Jerusalem.   http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Israeli-archaeologists-uncover-rare-1500-year-old-Jerusalem-mosaic-503199

Another sleepless night in Jerusalem

Looking down my window ...
major roadworks at 3.30am

You won't imagine this in your life ... but yes, the roadworks on our street starts at 10pm and ends at 5am. Jackhammers smashing up old paving stones, electric saws screeching to cut stones to size, 7 workers talking at the top of their voices, tractors that rumble like thunder .... all through 2am, 3am, 4am ... then the Muezzin starts singing the call to prayer ... and the workers try to compete. To all these, add the fact that it takes place less than 10 meters from my room. And they're going to do it all over again tonight. Kyrie eleison.

Tapestry of M.
Teresa

Today the Missionaries of Charity celebrate the foundation of their Society. They do such great work ... work which no one is willing to do; and in places nobody wants to go. They are true heroes. And you can help them. I celebrated the solemn Mass for them and had been preaching to them the past week. They gave me a tapestry of M. Teresa which is very beautiful. I showed it to the Archbishop (my classmate back in the 90s) and he loved it. But I'm not giving it to him. hahahahahahahahahahahna

After that I had to rush off to an important meeting and then work. I'd like to finish work early tonight and try to sleep early because by 10pm the roadworks will begin and I'll be awake till 5am tomorrow.  And the night has become chilly. I noticed people wearing pullovers in the evenings now .... wow ... autumn is early. I felt the chill last night at 3.30am when I just couldn't take the noise anymore and went out to the terrace to see what was happening in the streets. The wind was strong and cold. Nothing like daytime 30 degrees. It was about 20 degrees or less.

Yesterday I dread an article recounting the death of a 60+ woman who was allergic to  prawns but ate some anyway and died. I thought about my own food allergies and how many times I played with death by eating "just a little" and got sick. Sometimes the game plays you ... and it's game over.  http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/womans-decision-to-eat-prawns-despite-allergy-turns-out-to-be-fatal-mistake?utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&xtor=CS1-10#link_time=1503314835

Another week starts

Colourful fruit

I noticed that last night's roadwork had replaced 2 large sections of our road. There's a lot more to go ... so we're expecting more sleepless nights as roadworks take place only at night. Thus a new week begins.

The roadworks don't seem to disturb some of the local residents as they're up all night. The night markets have stayed opened for much longer than usual. Hawkers sell mainly fruit ... the summer harvest has started and soon the autumn harvest feast of Tabernacles will begin. Despite the drought, the harvest is not so badly affected as we had expected. That's because a lot of water has been bought from overseas to meet this natural disaster. A lot of it has gone into food production, as this would crucially reduce the prices of food. As it is, Israel is a very expensive place to live in ... prices of almost everything is a lot higher than many countries. In fact prices of small/mini apartments are almost the same as in Hong Kong now. But while food is cheap in Hong Kong, over here it's double or triple the price.

There's a nice piece of news in the papers today: 91 children from Gaza were allowed to enter Israel and see the sights which they probably will never see again. It was part of a summer exchange program organized by the UN. Israel granted entry permit to over 100 Gazans to include teachers to accompany the students. I think this is an excellent initiative ... as the children will see for themselves the good Israel is doing in preserving religious sites, educational and medical facilities and amenities to help even Syrian refugees. Win the hearts of one generation and they will turn away from the empty-promises of extremists.   http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5005486,00.html

The US State Dept. has declared the ISIS persecution of christians and minorities in Syria and Iraq is a genocide. Yes christians are facing a genocide in the Middle East, and this genocide has spilled over into Europe. In last week's Barcelona attack, the terrorists had planned to blow up the Sagrada Familia Church with over 100 drums of gas. Will the West every wake up and see that they're getting destroyed?  http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/aug/15/isis-genocide-christians-religious-minorities/

Sleepless in Jerusalem

Road repairs at
St. Saviour's

Another Sunday ... Mass at the Armenian Catholic church (3rd Station) and then work in the morning. Afternoon was preaching a recollection and then more work in the library. Did someone say "It's summer holidays"?

Well the weather has cooled a lot so major public and private works have restarted. Lots of roads are being dug up ... not sure why. The Municipality seems to be putting in new cables ... perhaps for security. But now New Gate is totally impassable: Freres Street is being dug for an archeological remain which might have been part of a crusader fortress. To the left of New Gate is the entrance to St Saviour Monastery ... the road was dug up to be upgraded to asphalt I think. The old paving stones have mostly collapsed and were a hazard to pedestrians and vehicles alike. Then we received news that  Via Dolorosa street will also be closed for repairs .. at least closed for the nights. It'll take one month for this upgrading. Right now they've started working ... pneumatic jacks noisily removing the paving stones. That means one month of no sleep. What a way to end summer ... no holidays for me and now no sleep as well.

There's a piece of local news saying a couple of off-duty soldiers were beaten up by jews because they were mistaken for arabs. Horrors. It's dangerous to be an arab or even mistaken for one in some neighbourhoods of Israel.  http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5005198,00.html

Well tomorrow is another busy day. Will have to wake up early for another holiday-working day.

Of flowers and food

Sunrise in Jaffa

Soon after the Spanish terrorist attacks, there was another in Finland and then within 24 hours, another in Russia. When will the world wake up and realise the terrorists that are slaughtering christians and minorities in the Middle East are now attacking the heartlands of Christianity in Europe? No ... I don't think the europeans want to know that. Meantime we received news that persecution of Christians have spread to Turkey. The govt there is confiscating hundreds of thousands of square meters of church property ... mainly from the Syrian Orthodox Church. The Syrian Church is the oldest and original church of that region.   http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/07/turkey-syriac-christians-fear-land-dispute.html

Car-ramming's and stabbings .... we've seen all that in Israel for 2 years now. Anyone who thinks it's an Israeli phenomenon should wake up and realise it's in your country now. I really hope it'll not be too late for things to turn around.

Chinese sisters and their first vase
of flowers

I've been suffering from food poisoning since yesterday afternoon. I ate a rotten peach for lunch ... was very hungry and thirsty after work ... and a cold peach was very nice. I noticed it was black inside but it didn't taste bad so I ate the whole thing. Then I had and still have severe diarrhoea, vomiting and fever for 36 hours now. It's awful and painful as the stomach cramps are really bad. Still I had work to do today ... left at 5.30am for Jaffa to be sacristan in our sanctuary of St. Peter. Luckily the chinese sisters came along and took over for several hours while I rested because physically I was  exhausted. They bought along lunch which I managed to eat a little ... and then I had to teach them how to arrange flowers for the church They have never arranged flowers in their life.

Well I survived the hour long trip to and from Jaffa without incident so am very thankful for that. Tomorrow begins another day and I hope I'll survive. At least I hope the food poisoning goes away.

Friday

Guru at Damascus Gate

The car ramming and suicide bomber terorism in Spain is in the news ... but it's not ruffling any feathers. After all this cr-ramming terrorism started here 2 years ago. We've had at times one a week. Then it spread to Europe and strangely it lessened in Israel. What we're dealing with is stabbings ... and with the coming muslim feast of Adha next week, the atmosphere will be tense but no one really expects attacks. The muslims don't want to spoil their holiday with closures and curfews. They'll play by the rules ... at least for 3 days.

I was very very happy last evening to meet my former cameraman and his wife again after a long time. He was very adventurous and would go to all the wartorn areas of the Middle East. Now he's been made the head of the foreign correspondents in Israel. And his wife is expecting their first child ... a girl to be called Sophia. His wife will soon return to Italy to give birth and so they wanted to see me before they left. It was very nice that they remembered me.

2 beggers in their usual places

Yesterday I saw a strange sight ... what appeared to be a Hindu guru meditating on the steps of Damascus Gate. Well he could have belonged to some minor muslim sect, for all I know. But it was nevertheless a strange sight and I quickly took a photo of him. It's not very clear though.

On the other side of the steps, muslim beggars were taking their places. They jealously and aggressively defend their positions and would even fight others off. After a few weeks, you know who is where along Damascus Gate begging for money. Women beggars try to hide their faces by wearing the face-veil ... but we all know who they are. During normal days they don\t cover their faces. Well these are the people who don't want closures and curfews because their livelihood depends on public generosity.

Right now I'm feeling extremely ill. Nausea, dizziness and diarrhoea. Could have been the fish e ate for lunch. Am feeling very weak and need to lie down.

Entertainment

Colourful summer fruit

So the big news in the street is not about the war in the north or in Gaza but Trump's redoubling on the Charlottesville tragedy. What a drama!!! It's not a question of Republican or Democrat, rich or poor, migrant or indigenous ... it's about character and personality ... something which Trump doesn't have. What a clown ... utterly inept, unfit and would do anything for applause. I've seen circus elephants and sealions do better than Trump. Haaahahahahahahaha ... well all I can say is: America you voted him ... you deserve him. Live with that!!!

As for me, I'm more ready to live with an event like the ISIS suicide bomber at the Gaza border killing a Hamas officer than with Trump as president because at least the former is predictable .... the latter is not only unpredictable, he's a mystery even he himself can't fathom.  http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5004007,00.html

With all the weird things coming out from America these few days .... there's actually one weird thing that I am looking forward to - the film Inhumans. It should premier on Sept. 1st but here in Israel it'll probably arrive half a year later ... if it gets the kosher certificate. What a lot of entertainment we're getting out of the USA.

Meanwhile besides the good laugh we're all enjoying over the US presidential circus, we're enjoying the luscious summer fruit. This year's plums and peaches and figs are exceptionally large. The open market at Damascus Gate is full of bedouin women selling these fruit ... and also prickly pears (the fruit of cactus). Nice to have something sweet in a hot summer's day.

Cool weather

Damascus Gate night market

Wednesday and all is well ... no major incitements and the heat was more bearable. Last night was much cooler than usual. For once this summer I didn't need to use the portable aircon. A cool breeze kept blowing all night and it felt more like autumn. The night markets at Damascus Gate and Musrara neighborhood were crowded with people ... something that was not possible 2 weeks back when the riots and demonstrations caused the area to be closed. Life is coming back again ... let's just pray that nothing bad occurs to ruin our summer nights. We want to be able to go out and buy fruit and eat ice cream and enjoy the breeze ... please don't spoil our summer.

Meantime children and youths are making the most of these last 2 weeks before school begins. Summer camps are winding up and most kids are free and want to go shopping and mall-hopping with schoolmates. For the israeli students it's school for only a month before the great feasts begin: Rosh HaShana (New Year) on September 21-22, Yom Kippur (Sept. 30), Sukkot (Tabernacles) on Oct. 5-6, Simchat Torah on Oct. 13. It's a very long series of feasts and school and most public institutions will be closed. The muslims on the other hand have their feast of Arafah (beginning of the Mecca pilgrimage) on Aug. 30-31; and Eid el Adha (Sacrifice of Ishmael) on Sept. 1. So both religions are having their major feasts soon and school will close just as soon as they open.

As for me it's the same everyday ... school or no school. Holiday is still a vague unattainable dream.

Assumption Day

Parents dancing with son on his
Bar Mitzvah

It's Assumption Day and it's a holiday. No work in both libraries so less stress today. There was the solemn Mass down in Gethsemani where the Tomb of Mary is situated but I didn't go. I had to preach a conference at the same time. There was an lively discussion on the Assumption and I rather enjoyed it. It was intellectually provoking. After the talk I had half an hour to rest before having lunch with our greatly reduced community. We're down to 7 but that's typical of summer holidays. But that doesn't lessen the feast day lunch ... the cook is always great and we never lack anything. In fact we're grateful for the good stuff that we eat everyday. And the food has been done in ways and with ingredients that I am not allergic to. So I'm eating more often now. Only thing I still don't eat is pork.

Bar Mitzvah boy
reading from the
Torah Scroll

Yesterday I passed by the Wailing Wall and there were Bar Mitzvahs being celebrated. It occurs every Monday and Thursday, when boys at 13 yrs celebrate their coming of age by publicly reading from the Torah scrolls. It's a big family event and those who can afford will pay for traditional drummers and trumpeters to herald the event. It was good to watch them rejoicing on their big day ... but under the blazing sun ... that's too much. Many of the people carried umbrellas and the Wailing Wall administrative. provided huge sunshades as well. These mornings the temp rises to 30 degrees by 9am and by afternoon it becomes scorchingly hot. I've stayed mostly at home during those hours and go do my work only in the early and late hours to escape heatstroke. Even so it's made me quite sick. I try my best to reduce any strenuous work but as it's holidays and there's no one to help me, I have to do it slowly ... like carrying heavy boxes of books to and from the Printing Press for binding and repairs.

There's an incredible news that in China's universities there is a boom in students wanting to study latin and greek. Europe on the otherhand is abandoning it's classical heritage. Our professors say in the near future the world's latin and green scholars will undoubtedly come from China because of this unprecedented interest in the classical languages and culture.  https://classicalstudies.org/scs-blog/yongyi-li/amphora-new-incarnation-latin-china?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook

Assumption Day eve

Police stop and search
arab youths at road corner

Today passed off quietly without major incident. The heat is still quite unbearable and military presence in and around the Old City remains high. Stop-and-search by police continue at all road junctions. It's not pleasant being an arab at the moment. You're suspect of everything.

Well problems are not just limited to the arabs. Handicapped israelis have stopped traffic on Highway 4 in Ashdod a southern coastal city. They're demanding a raise in their disability benefits which at the moment is even lower than the minimum wage. Sad. 4 protesters were arrested for assaulting the police.  http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5002255,00.html

I've been busy today giving a whole morning's conference to the MC sisters, then in the afternoon another series of talks to the Chinese sisters. I'm working just as much as on a normal school day. People are still asking when my summer holidays begin. A vague dream.

Tomorrow is the Solemnity of the Assumption. This evening there was solemn vespers sung at her tomb in the Kidron Valley and tomorrow there will be solemn Mass there. Yes Mary did die and she was buried ... her tomb is still here with us in the Kidron Valley. From this tomb her body was assumed into heaven. Great catholic secret. Few people actually know this. Well we'll be having a busy day with the liturgies and ceremonies tomorrow. And I still have to go and preach conferences ... so I'll go prepare now. Work never stops ... not even for solemnities.

Sunday calm

Latin Archbishop with a chinese group
of priests and nuns

The military presence in and around the Old City continues to be heavy today after the stabbing attack yesterday. Arabs continue to be stopped and searched in the streets and I witnessed several this morning at Damascus Gate. There was also a large group of arab children on an excursion ... about 7 yrs old. Many were crying because they ere afraid of the many soldiers and the rough stop-and-search techniques.

Our Latin patriarchate has been getting a boom of chinese visitors recently. Chinese catholic groups have been asking for audiences with the Archbishop (we have no Patriarch at the moment) and the Custos. The chinese tourists have grown by over 200% and is in fact the largest group of foreign visitors the past year. They will play a crucial role on the next decade in keeping the local Holy Land Church alive with its visits and contributions both spiritual and financial.

Dates fruiting on the palms

The Greek Orthodox church on the other hand is back in the headlines ... this time the Patriarch Theophilos vowing to fight the Israeli Court for admitting the sale of 3 huge church properties at Jaffa Gate to a jewish occupation agency. The sale which was made several years ago by the deposed Patriarch Irineos for his own personal financial gain was violently opposed by the greek orthodox faithful who are mostly arabs.They see it as a betrayal to enrich the greeks and entrench the jews in the Christian Quarter of the Old City. It led to the patriarch being pelted with eggs during Easter at the Holy Sepulchre and eventually his dethronement that was recognised by the world's greek churches. Since then the Greek Church has fought to prove that the sale was illegal but today the High Court ruled that it was legal and the jewish agency will take over the properties. Let's see where this will all end. It's ugly that's for sure.  http://www.timesofisrael.com/greek-orthodox-church-aims-to-block-jerusalem-property-sales-in-court/

Well despite all this, I'm happy that summer is giving us lots of lovely fruit. Plums and peaches are still in abundance, the first grapes are being harvested and the dates are beginning to ripen. It's a bit early for these fruit but I think the autumn harvest feast "Tabernacles" should occur early as well so it shouldn't be a major problem. In fact today the Armenians are celebrating the grape harvest and priests bless the grapes offered in church. I tasted the first fresh dates last week ... I like it very much. It's crunchy and sweet ... but better than the dark over-sweet preserved version. And the melons and grapes ... chilled ... are perfect in this hot weather.

Kindness appreciated

Sunset today

Another stabbing attack today ... tho time at the tram station outside Damascus Gate. The female terrorist was apprehended and the victim was slightly injured on the shoulder. The City Gates were closed for several hours and no one was allowed to go in or out .... even though the attack took place outside of the Old City. Let's hope it's not the beginning of another string of similar violence. We're tired of it. We don't want anymore closures of the City Gates. We want freedom of movement. No more violence!!! After having said that, I passed by the ultra-orthodox jewish neighbourhood of Mea Shearim just 100 meters from where the attack took place earlier in the morning ... and numerous ultra-orthodox jews were taunting and jeering at Israeli police and soldiers, throwing stones and any stuff they can get hold off. They have been doing that everyday for almost a week now because they protest against compulsory drafting to military service.

The weather is still very hot and the sun is relentless. You would have thought it would have deterred any street violence ... but today proved me wrong. Let me observe and study some more and come up with a new theory.

Chinese pilgrims donate food

Meanwhile not everything is negative. This afternoon a group of chinese pilgrims arrived for Mass before going to the airport to fly home. They were booked for an early dinner but felt they didn't need it. Given that the meal was already prepaid, they decided to pack it up ... 35 packs ... and gave it to the poor to eat. That was really very kind of them and it restores hope in humanity despite the terrible violence around us. I brought all the food to the Sisters of M. Teresa to be distributed to the poor.

Feast of St. Clare

Volcano in the City

Friday today was relatively quiet. No incidents. I guess the heat played a major part in deterring violence in the streets. Unfortunately the heat does not deter work in the libraries. We still trudge on stock checking, cataloging and moving books around. In fact there's a lot more to do now that there are no users in the libraries. No holiday for me.

Well it's midsummer and strange things are happening all over the City. The day before I noticed a weird mound above the Armenian building at the jaffa Street Junction. You can't miss it ... it's enormous. That same evening I saw what it was doing .... smoke and lightening emanating from it ... it was a volcano. I don't think anyone knows why it was built there ... but it's Jerusalem and anything and everything can happen. So we have a volcano spewing smoke all evening while pedestrians and trams pass by beneath.

Expresso and spoon

Things are also weird in Tel Aviv ... well things usually are over there. A couple of the brothers and I had gone out for coffee ... an expresso to be exact ... and we landed up with a teaspoon 5 times longer than the cup. In fact we all had long spoons for a "short" expresso.

I've been to our Jaffa house to work these few weeks. It's not a holiday although the change of atmosphere and city is quite refreshing. Still there's lots of work to be done there due to shortage of personnel in summer. But I also have to reside at the Armenian Mass on Sundays so I'll be oscillating between Jaffa, the Armenian Church and the libraries. Summer holiday? Bah!

Poor Clares in Jerusalem on Feast of
St. Clare

Well it's the Feast of St. Clare today ... no holiday for me though everyone else has gone to the Poor Clare Monastery in Talpiot south of Jerusalem. It must have a big celebration. The italian Poor Clares have replaced the french Colettine Clares who suffered from a severe vocation shortage and could no longer serve the Monastery. The Colettines are reformed while the italian Urbanist Clares (as they are called) are not ... yet the Urbanists are very strict with their poverty and enclosure while the reformed Colettines have gone very relaxed. Strange state of affairs. Well anyway today they're united in their foundress' feast day.

Summer madness

Sombreros in the street

The heatwave continues to beat down on us and we're practically in midsummer. I don't know if I can survive more heat for the next 2 months. It's the 3rd heatwave to hit us in a month and with a drought year declared and waters in the Galilee Lake at its lowest so far ... things don't look too good for us. It's so hot even the road barriers need to wear sombreros .... something that can happen only in Tel Aviv.

Tu B'Av was celebrated last Monday. It's the jewish equivalent to Valentine's Day but I noticed it was much more subdued this year than in previous years. Perhaps it's the poor economy that's affecting the people from celebrating. And there wasn't much love going around either. The Israeli army seized and confiscated solar panels from an arab bedouin school even though the High Court issued a restraining order for the confiscation. http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.806053

And there's also little love in the Palestinian side when the Palestinian leader cut finance and permits for very sick Gazans from seeking help outside of war-torn Gaza. Absolutely deplorable when politics play with human lives.  http://www.timesofisrael.com/palestinian-authority-slashes-permits-for-sick-gazans-un-health-body-says/

Armoured Personnel Carriers in
front of Notre Dame

And to top it all up ... this evening I saw armoured personnel carriers rumbling up our main street ... a awful sight ... the last time I saw such war machines on our roads was during the 1st Intifada 25 years ago. It rings alarm bells and jostles memories of the dreadful times. I think the heatwave must be responsible for all this madness today. I shall try to keep way out of trouble and out of the heat. Stay indoors. That's the best advice.

War and Peace

Kaufman road that links Jaffa with
Tel Aviv at 4am

Another exhausting day gone. Thank goodness. I was up at 1.30am this morning because I was afraid I might oversleep ... I had to go to the airport at 5.30am to send off some visitors. However I must first pick them up at their hotel. No taxis at 4am so I had to walk 4 km from St. Peter's in Jaffa to the heart of Tel Aviv. Frightening thought as it's not safe. Big surprise for me to find the beach still with people ... even families with toddlers playing at Clore Park, strolling with prams ... and there was a police car patrolling the shore. It felt safe and I got to my destination safe and sound. By the time I got home in Jerusalem at 10am I was utterly exhausted and slept till now ... 5pm.

Jewish and muslim teens at the beach

There were some tensions the other day in the Old City ... not because of clashes but because King Abdullah of Jordan came for a visit. The Muslim Quarter was under lockdown. Then yesterday there were actually clashes but out in the New City ... not with arabs but with ultra-orthodox jews against the Defense Minister who came to visit. He's been pushing the ultra-orthodox community for mandatory military service (which they have dodged for the past 60 years) and the community came out to throw stones at him and the police. Israeli implosion ... something I've constantly warned. And to add insult to injury, ultra-orthodox jewish women carried Palestinian flags. They do not recognise the zionist State of Israel and believe it is God's Will that they should live under the arabs and only the Messiah can establish a jewish State.

Well such enmity within and without Judaism is not apparent in Tel Aviv, especially at the beach and in summer! Yesterday I saw a group of conservative jewish teens in black kippa (skull caps) playing volleyball with a group of muslim arab teens. After that they shared drinks and cigarettes and took photos together. Peaceful co-existence is possible ... let the younger generation lead the way. The older generation has too much baggage to open new horizons.

And then Gaza attacked Israel with missiles rockets last night. Israel responded by firing missiles back into Gaza. Possibly a prelude to an autumn of violence. http://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-jets-hit-hamas-targets-in-gaza-after-rocket-strike/

New tensions

Soldiers in full
combat gear

As the heatwave continues to beat down on us, so likewise the tensions continue to bother us in the Old City just when we thought everything was calm once again. As I was going out to the other library yesterday (yes even Sunday is a workday), 2 platoons of soldiers in full combat gear rushed down our road toward Bab Hutta neighborhood - the place where all the violent clashes took place the past 2 weeks. Roads in and out of the Old City were closed and traffic were re-directed. I had no idea what happened till today when people told me arabs had burned a jewish house in the village of Silwan (ancient Siloam) and clashes had occurred in the surrounding areas.

It's like this here and we're getting used to it .... not knowing when roads and streets will be closed; not knowing if you can go out or come home. Everything is so unpredictable, it's become predictable.

Man with balloons

I'm so exhausted running around in this heat I've become quite sick. Been having severe diarrhea and vomiting out of stress. Well my heart no longer is what it used to be ... with the asthma medicine affecting it badly. It's supposed to be my holiday ... but I am working double the time. I should never take holidays anymore ... they kill me.  Utterly stressed.

But there were funny moments as well. Yesterday I saw this man carrying a whole load of balloons walking down the tram tracks. It was quite funny and people were giggling. When I stopped to take a photo of him, others then had the courage to do the same and snapped photos of him with their cellphones.

Cute bull terrier

Then there was this bull terrier at New Gate ... very very playful. His owner was carrying the leash and he was loose but he kept biting the end of the leash and following his owner. It was all white with 2 black eyes like a panda. I wish I could play with him ... but you never know how owners feel so I didn't try.

Samaria

Archaeological ruins on Mt. Gerizim

The heatwave in Italy and Spain has brought temps soaring to above 40 degrees. This will flow towards us by next week. I can't imagine what it'll be like as 35 degrees now is already unbearable. I have several conferences to deliver next week so I hope I can stay indoors.

This morning I had to make a visit to Nablus in the Samaria region on short notice. It's over 65 kms north of Jerusalem ... in the heart of Palestinian Territory. My worry was having to pass through the dangerous border checkpoint of Qalandya where riots and violence is an almost daily event. Well the taxi driver knew better and entered the Territories through another checkpoint. All went smoothly. Then it was an hour long journey through mountainous wilderness bordering the desert.

Staircase in church leading to
Jacob's Well

Nablus is the arabic corruption of the greek Neapolis (in Italy it became Naples) - the new city which the greeks and romans built in place of ancient Shechem. The city is much more modernised than I last visited it. Lots of high-rise shopping malls ... but the roads were still narrow and crowded with too many cars. Infra-structural renewal is very much needed here. At various corners of the roads and buildings there are remnants of greek and roman buildings or columns or tombs. It's a very historical place but the arabs here don't know how to harness history for tourism and economic advantage. Too bad.

I also visited the Greek Orthodox Church that is built over Jacob's Well. For 2 millennia pilgrims have come here to venerate this site. The Well itself is below the pavement ... a type of crypt. You must descend a flight of steps in front of the altar in order to reach the Well. The well continues to have cold fresh water. It is here that Jacob dug this well and Jesus met the Samaritan woman.

Then there was a short stop over to the convent of M. Teresa's sisters to see their work, give a donation and the sisters packed some curry and bread for my meal as I was journeying all day without food. It was really very nice.

Bethlehem

Restored mosaics in the Bethlehem
Basilica of the Nativity

The past 2 days had been very busy. I had to give several conferences and confessions in various places. However I had the chance to visit the Nativity Basilica and the Milk Grotto while on one of these rounds in Bethlehem. I have not been to Bethlehem for a long while and especially by bus. It was a long ride down to the town of Beit Jallah and then a 1km walk to Bethlehem centre where the Basilica is. The Basilica itself is still under restoration. Most of its remaining mosaics on the have been cleaned and the gold is brilliant. However not much can been seen as the scaffoldings are still in place. There was not much of a crowd lining up to enter the Grotto of the birthplace so I went down and revered the spot where the Word was born and prayed for you all.

Altar of the Milk
Grotto

Then I went to the Milk Grotto some 100 meters behind the Basilica. That's where the Holy Family was believed to have lived for 2 years before fleeing to Egypt. Tradition says the Virgin Mary while breastfeeding the Infant Jesus spilt a drop of milk and the entire cave turned white as a result. Since Byzantine times pilgrims came to gather the white chalk form the cave wall and drank it with water in the belief that it helps miraculously those who cannot conceive. Well it must be working because there is a hall filled with voice offerings and letters and photos from all around the world testifying to the birth of children otherwise scientifically thought impossible. I prayed for you all as well there.

Luckily there were no riots yesterday ... being Friday. It was rather calm and I took the bus back. The weather was hot though ... the heatwave from Europe has reached us and so temperatures were above 35 degrees. I found it very oppressive.

Int eh evening I had to organise a meeting between local catholic youths with a group of chinese youths. It was meeting to exchange experiences. I guess it went successfully off as I did not stay for the whole meeting. I was very exhausted. Well any thought of a holiday is pure fantasy has I still have 2 series of conferences to talk for the next 3 weeks, many more groups to meet in the evenings ... and the non-ending tedious meetings with banks and lawyers. I am working more than on normal working days.

Portiuncula Feast

Walking barefoot
on Tisha B'Av

Yesterday's Tisha B'Av commemoration saw some scuffle that let to the arrest of 3 israelis and 1 arab near the Bab Silsila entrance to the Temple Mount or Al Aqsa compound. Thousands of jews, possibly the first time this century, entered the compound to see the esplanade that once stood the Temple. Not every jew was happy ... the Chief Rabbis and other authorities have forbidden jews from entering the compound because it is not sure where the Holy of Holies once stood and might walk over it ... thus desecrating the holy ground. nevertheless there were numerous zionist rabbis who defied it and called for their followers to enter the esplanade. This of course comes in the wake of the riots the past week when muslims demonstrated violently to show who has authority over the compound. The jews gave a response yesterday. But all in all there was very little disturbance and that was a relieve for all of us.    http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Jews-visits-to-Temple-Mount-jump-15-percent-this-year-501280
and   http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Police-make-violent-arrest-outside-Temple-Mount-501317

Now news is out that evidence seem to point to Iran as the background instigator of last week's riots. Not sure if this is verified but read it yourself.   https://watchjerusalem.co.il/2017/08/02/irans-fingerprints-are-all-over-the-temple-mount-turmoil/

Bro. Nelson and the Pilgrim Centre

Like I always uphold ... the weather plays an important role in all this. With the heat rising above 32 degrees again ... nobody feels like causing a fight out in the sun. I went out to St Anne's Church to visit a student. He showed me the new Pilgrim Centre they had build ... a large hall that serves as a chapel and also a meeting place. Entry is through a vineyard luscious with purple, red and green grapes. I tasted some and they were delicious in this dreadful heat. I liked the place very much.

Sweet grapes at St. Anne's Church

Well today is the feast of the Portiuncula ... or better known as St. Mary of the Angels. It's the little chapel which St. Francis rebuilt with his own hands and a place beloved dearly ... so much that he told his friars ever to leave that place. Rome gave the special privilege of an indulgence not just to visitors of this little chapel but all chapels so named throughout the world ... and in extension to all franciscan churches. I celebrated Mass in our chapel and remembered all of you applied the indulgence to all of you.