Back to school

Accounting course today

Today was the 2nd session of the Advanced Accounting course organized by the patriarchate for all religious and staff working in catholic institutions and congregations. The 1st session was last Friday. About 60 participants came from all the different Orders and congregations in the Holy Land.

Nuns

It was important for us to know the laws of Israel and Palestine regarding Church finances, donations, employee-employer duties. It also taught us how to plan financially for a sustainable fund. The ethical aspects of transparency and honoring donors' wishes were also taught. Most of us have been doing it without realizing it ... or made explicit. And the organizers included a free lunch for us all as well! Some of the participants have come as far as Haifa and it would be terrible for them to return 280km without eating the whole day. 

Cloistered Orders like the Carmelites, Carthusians, Benedictines and Trappists also came. It was a nice surprise. It was back to school for everyone.

The next sessions will be held in May. I'm sure it'll be a success as well.

Hamsin

Olive flowers

A heatwave hit us today. It was significantly warmer the past 2 days but today was a typical hamsin - the south desert winds that blow during this time before Pentecost. Hamsin in arabic and Hebrew means 50 (pentecost). When I came out of the library from work, it was like entering an oven. Hot, dry heat was suffocating me. Inside the library it was a lot cooler as the thick stone walls keep the heat out. The hams brings in fine desert sand, making the sky look yellow. And the fine sand gets into your mouth and eyes and ears. Walking home became difficult from the oppressive heat.

Iris

However the autumn fruit trees need this hams to pollinate their flowers. Dates and olive trees are flowering profusely. Soon the pomegranates and other fruit trees like apples, apricots, pears, peaches will also flower. I guess for the sake of good harvest we'll have to put up with this hams for the next month. 

The municipality has reworked the gardens around the Old City. Lots of grass and lavender and irises. Right now is the season for iris to flower so there are beautiful white and purple flowers lining the tramways. Unfortunately they last for only a day. The delicate flowers wilt in the heat. How different the reaction to the hear among the flowers. I guess it's the same with humans. It reminds us we're all different and react differently to the same things. A little respect, a little understanding goes a long way.

Wild plants

Wild plants

Every day when I go and return from work, I must pass by the park at Damascus Gate. I always stop and see the various wild plants growing in the most hostile areas ... in the cracks of the pavement, on the walls, in utterly dry hard clay. All around the date palms and olive trees. And there are a large variety of these incredible plants. The most profuse is the dandelion which is so useful in all its parts. I pluck the leaves for JJ and Dudu to eat. And there are so many more types that I can't identify but I recognize from the shape of its leaves or its flowers.

I don't think they should be removed or eradicated because they serve an important role not just to fertilizing and loosening the harsh soil, but also provide nectar and a hiding place to insects and birds. They are really beautiful close-up.

Wild barley along the roadside

One thing we all agree on about these plants - their life force is very strong. They grow despite adverse conditions. And though they seem to die each winter, they return with greater force next Spring. All they need is a little rain from Winter, and life returns. It's amazing even wild barley, oats and mustard carpet entire plots of land and sides of streets.

I think there's a lesson to learn here.

Baby bulbuls

3 fledgling bulbuls

The previous evening our gardener messaged to say a nest of bulbul nestlings had fallen as he cut off the jasmine vine along our house. He left the nest in the sisters' refectory and I came home to find them sleeping. Luckily I always keep a tin of hand feeding formula in the fridge as Spring and Summer always find nestlings abandoned by accident or attack. Usually they're sparrows and an occasional parakeet (crows attack the nest and eat the nestlings. Those that escape jump out of the nest and are injured). I usually would walk through the muslim cemetery in Mamilla among the undergrowth to see if there're injured birds on the ground.

These 3 fledglings are big eaters, They're probably 7 weeks as they are learning to fly. They're too big for imprinting so they don't recognize me and are afraid to eat from my hand. JJ and Dudu help because each time they fly about, the fledglings think its their mother and open their mouths. That's when I quickly shove in a bit of food. Once they're mature, I'll let them loose. I can't afford to keep 3 bulbuls and 2 cockatiels at the same time. And bulbuls are becoming quite rare due to the crows and mynahs (both invasive species from overseas) eating their eggs and nestlings. So Larry, Mo and Curly Joe (3 Stooges)  will be my contribution to preserving this species in our country.

Fighter jets roared overhead all night. A reminder that violence is not far away.... 90km south only. The City was rather calm with no increase in police presence despite the Iranian attack. In fact the govt has told everyone there is not need for red alert ... everything will go on as usual. Well up till tomorrow when the Jews celebrate Passover for 8 days. Today there were more police in the streets ... and 3 were stationed outside New Gate, which rarely happens unless something signifiant calls for it. I was coming in from buying medicines and saw them manning New Gate. I know one of them ... he used to work as security at the Tunnel. So we greeted and chatted briefly. 

Summer

Sunrise in summer

After 8 days of going to the Clalit clinic every morning to clean my infected finger, the doc has finally said it's ok to remove the bandage. The finger is still swollen and purple, but there is no danger of gangrene. I usually need a ride up to the clinic which is at the border of Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood and Mt. Scopus, 4km away and uphill. My heart is not strong enough for me to walk that distance uphill. And anyway with my sporadic lost of memory, I might get lost. Twice I almost forgot to go celebrate Mass for the Ivrea sisters, and once went to the MC convent by mistake. All that took place last week.

Summer night

The weather has leapt into summer ... daytime hitting 30 degrees but evenings dropping to 16 degrees. You must always carry a jacket with you, as you won't know when you'll need it. The Spring flowers are all dead. The trees have all lost their flowers and growing leaves and fruit instead. I expect alot of summer fruit on sale soon. It'll be expensive though, as most things are nowadays. I remember seeing a menu in a chinese restaurant in Tel Aviv ... US$20 for a plate of fried beansprouts (towgay) and chives. Unbelievable.

BTW there were 3726 views yesterday ... it's getting scary.

R.I.P.

Goodbye Sr. Agnese

It was a sad day yesterday. A good and old friend was buried after suffering a stroke a couple of years back. She's a Carmelite nun, prioress for 3 terms I think ... at least that was what she was when I first met her 33 years ago. Very soft-spoken, always smiling and cheerful. That's how I remember her. 

She asked to see me several times this year and I went to visit her in Nazareth twice. As she was immobile, I was allowed to enter the cloister and into her room. She would be seated in her wheelchair, lifting up head, smiling and eyes sparkly, and say "Lionello" (she's italian). I would talk with her, joke and laugh and she would share her food with me ... strawberries, a cake ...

Last week, Sr. Rita called me to say Sr. Agnese died peacefully. No struggle ... calmly and serenely as she had lived her life. I had to go for her funeral in Nazareth. It was difficult as the entire journey back and forth and the liturgy took almost 8 hours ... and I was suffering from diarrhea and stomach cramps from the medicines for my infected finger which still hurt. But I had to go. Sr. Agnese was good friend whom I could not leave alone at her last moment.

Goodbye Sr. Agnese

After Mass with 2 bishops and a dozen priests (mostly carmelites from Haifa), we accompanied her to the cemetery at the bottom of the monastery garden. There I recognised the names of several other nuns whom I knew in these 33 years ... Sr. Josephine from Hong Kong, Sr. Immaculata who always cooked pansit for me whenever I came to visit, Sr. Antoinette who died at 103 years old, Sr. Esther who converted from Judaism ... So much memories. Sr. Agnese was superior of them all ... now she joins them in restful peace as fighter jets flew overhead every other minute in this dreadful war.

You never know when your time comes. It will come for sure ... as Bishop Rafik reminded us in his sermon ... we just need to be ready.

Wild night

Wild barley and oats

At 1.35am or about, I was woken up by explosions in the south of the City. From my window I could see volleys of missiles flying southwards like shooting stars, and anti-missile fire going upwards to intercept. Explosions in the sky. It was almost 5 minutes later that sirens began wailing. I went out to our terrace to video the star war. Downstairs in the streets people were running home for shelter. Some muslims were still celebrating the end of Ramadan with their families. It was a good 20 minutes when this volley of missiles ended. The air smelled of chemical explosives. Israeli fighter jets and drones were flying overhead. It was like back in the Gulf War 30 years ago.

Thistles

I was sleepless after that. It's all calm again and we don't expect any more attacks. Life is back to normal. I went to the hospital early at 7am and the doctor said my infected finger is a lot better. No danger of gangrene now. I walked the 4km home while having a bad diarrhoea ... which I think is the result of the medicines I'm taking. It wasn't a pleasant experience but I didn't know which bus would bring me home, so it was safer walking. Luckily I didn't need the toilet on the way back ... there was none available as all the shops were closed.

I enjoyed the walk home though, as I saw many wild plants growing along the streets and in empty plots of land. There were lots of wild barley and oats ripening ... in time for the harvest feast of Unleavened Bread. But thistles are also growing profusely. They are beautiful purple flowers with soft spikes. But once the flowers dry out, the spikes harden and become very dangerous. 

Busy day

Rainy day

We expect to see the new moon tonight. That means Ramadan will be over. However if it's cloudy and the new moon cannot be seen, then the fasting will continue for another day. And that's a possibility because yesterday it rained! Yes in April, the late Spring/early Summer shower which has become quite rare these past decades. 

It was rather cold because of the rain and I did not wear enough clothes going home yesterday. It's the 2nd time this week that temp dropped almost 10 degrees. Many people are sniffling and catching colds. I'm keeping myself safe from all that as my resistance is low. My finger is being treated by Clalit, my insurance company. Because I'm diabetic and under anticoagulants, it may become gangrenous so I must return to the hospital everyday for 5 days to check on it.

Dr. Frumin lectures on our
ancient books

Yesterday was one of the longest working days I've had. 18 full hours without break. Starting at 4am (3am solar time) for class followed by a whole series of meetings, work and more classes, ending with an exhibition of our ancient books to a group seminar in Russian organized by Beit Avi Hai. I returned home at 9.30pm very tired.

And ... 1002 viewers yesterday ... this is scary.  Very unusual as my usual viewership is no more than 40 a day.

Octave

Stone of Unction

It's the last day before Eid el Fitri, the end of Ramadan. It's been a kind Ramadan in a way ... the days are shorter than summer Ramadan, so the fasting time is shorter each day. It's less hot. The police have lifted many restrictions; younger people are allowed to enter the City and the mosque, people are allowed to sit and picnic on places previously forbidden, temporary hawkers are allowed to set up stalls.

But there was a terrorist attack thwarted at Damascus Gate though; a young man strapped a knife on his body but never got to use it. Anyway I must say the authorities and police are doing a great job. They keep the order discreetly and even moving away when people break their fast. Let's hope Eid el Fitri will go peacefully as well.

I celebrated Mass in the Empty Tomb during the Easter Octave. Remembered you all there. Now the Octave is over and we're heading to Ascension Day. The Jewish Passover is round the corner. So is the Orthodox Easter. April is full of feast days.

Feast

Crowds at Damascus Gate

Last night was Laylat el Khader ... the night of mercy when Allah forgives sins and hears all prayers. I was told 200,000 muslims were allowed to enter the Old City and mosque. It was peaceful. The police left after the crowds entered the City. People were allowed to sit and picnic anywhere, even removing the barriers that closed off the park grounds.

There were scuffles inside the mosque during the night though, but nothing serious. Tear gas was fired but only 1 injury was reported.

Damascus Gate crowds

Roads along the northern wall of the City were closed to traffic. And thousands of muslims were walking and celebrating, picnicking and eating. It was a happy sight ... a little normalcy like past years instead of the fear and terror that enveloped this city. 

My infected finger has become so bad I finally went to the hospital. 2 clinics of my health insurance refused to deal with it as I'm diabetic and under anticoagulants. They insisted I go to hospital which I need. Not my health insurance hospital because it's Ramadan and a feast day so outpatient clinics close at midday. I went to our Catholic hospital and they quickly drained the abscess. The pain was excruciating. And the bleeding still has not stopped. I was warned several times of risk of gangrene due to diabetes. And the doc warned that I must wash the wound clean twice a day or it'll be amputation.

Cannon

Our friars with free fast-breakers

Tonight is Laylat el Khader, which the muslims believe the heavens will open and God forgives sins and hears all prayers. Even from last night, pop-up hawker stalls filled the lower Muslim Quarter, and thousands more muslims from overseas and local villages have packed into the Old City to reach the Al Aqsa Mosque. The police have made a discreet presence. Though numerous, they only show up when muslim prayers begin and end. Then they move away when usually they would stay guard at both towers flanking Damascus Gate. Their absence relieves the tension. People are even allowed to sit on the Damascus Gate cavea which was previously (for the past 5 months) was forbidden. I myself had a machine-gun laser  aimed at my chest because I sat on one of the benches because I had an asthma attack. It was very mean and cruel of the police to bully the old and sick.

Hawkers selling kebab

Yesterday evening I stayed at Damascus Gate to video the shooting of the cannon. I missed it by a second the day before because the advertised time and the actual firing was 5 minutes difference. Yesterday I was more prepared. However I aimed the camera at a wrong place so I only caught part of the explosion on the left side of the screen. Will try and do it again tonight.

While I was there I was happy to see our brothers offering free water and dates to muslims breaking their fast. It's almost an annual tradition now. It's a nice gesture of friendship. But I don't see them reciprocating during our Easter feast.

Last night the noise in the street was very loud. It was good to be wakened by that because so far it has been dead silent for the past weeks of Ramadan. Crowds were buying kebabs to eat before the fast began at 4.57am. Though the festive lights are missing, the crowds and smell of roasting kebabs gave a sense of normalcy.

Spring flowers

Spring flowers

With the major celebrations over, things should calm down. Except now there's a backlog of work from the past 2 weeks. The metal bookshelves that we ordered from Italy arrived during Holy Week when no one was working; they were kept in storage and now we had to collect and organize them.

Then there are books to collect from our printery that were sent for binding. And consign more books for rebinding.

Spring flowers

The Commissary of Spain came unexpectedly and presented an important book on a 16th century pilgrim's diary that was only published 3 years ago. Then he had a lot of questions ... and that took up 2 hours of the morning. Afterwards I'll have a meeting with the finance department of the custody to evaluate cases asking for aid. The financial situation of many christians is dire as the lack of tourists means they have no work. Electricity and water are cut off of they do not pay the bills; medicines need to be bought, health insurance went up significantly, rent also. We're working in collaboration with the Aid Department of the Patriarchate, St. Ives Legal Aid agency, St. Vincent de Paul Society and various other institutes so that co-ordination can avoid duplication of aid, and also in verifying each case. There's a lot to do ... and each case is studied individually.

The weather has warmed up very much ... and the Spring flowers are all blossoming profusely. If only this were a harbinger of good news and peace for this Summer. We can only pray.

Easter

Rolling stone in an
ancient tomb

The past week - Holy Week -  was extremely busy. I was supposed to serve the Chinese community and help with the Indian communities. But as it turned out, the Filipino chaplain injured his foot and was on a wheelchair so I was asked to substitute him as well. The week was therefore extremely busy with services, confessions and Masses one after another. On the Easter Vigil the last Mass ended at 2am. I am very tired today.

One surprise was the Gujarati community on Holy Saturday. They don't have a chaplain of their own, so they join other language Masses during the year. This year we decided to celebrate the Vigil for them in English and Hindi. We expected about 50 people. Instead over 150 came. There was no room in the hall and latecomers stood outside. It was a pleasant surprise.

Good Friday in Gaza

Then on Sunday the English Mass was also overcrowded. There was not enough communion hosts to distribute and luckily we had extra in the tabernacle. An incredible crowd. 

I need this week to rest. It was very tiring but also very fulfilling. My ministry is fulfilled. 

Despite the war and starvation, the surviving parishioners in Gaza celebrated Holy Week with hope. Please don't forget them. Donate and help our Christians caught in the war. It's still not too late.