Palm Sunday in Israel

Palm Sunday Walk.  On the Sunday before Easter, April 17, some of us walked a similar path to that Jesus may have taken to Jerusalem over the Mount of Olives during his last days in mortality.  It was a spiritual journey for us.

 Starting at our lower JC gate, we found buganvilias in full bloom on our way.

We walked toward the 7 Arches Hotel, about 1/2 mile from the JC.  Its view of the Temple Mount and Old City is almost as spectacular as ours.

Soon we were joined by some BYU students, branch members and 15,000 other Christians.  They had started their walk from Bethpage -- a bit longer than ours.

Shari Ohman paid 5 shekels for the longest palm frond of the day.

The narrow path was packed with people, but we didn't mind. 

All had a mood of joyous celebration, with singing & instrumental music.

Odeh Marcous' family from Bethlehem also came for this event.

Our BYU students really got into the act.

On the first Palm Sunday, the Lord mounted a young donkey in Bethpage and entered Jerusalem as a king.  (See John  12:13, Luke 19:35, Zech. 9:9, 1 Kings 1:38).   People acclaimed him their promised Messiah, with songs & shouts of Hosanna   They also spread their clothes & palm branches in his path.

Along the way, however, we passed the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives -- a grim reminder of the Savior's impending death, just four days after this Triumphal Entry.  Jews honor their dead with stones rather than flowers that wither and die.

We passed several churches and the Garden of Gethsemane -- where the greatest redemptive suffering of Jesus Christ began.

Our walk finally ended at Lion's Gate.   Note its similarity to this artist's depiction. 

This is also called St. Stephen's gate -- where the first Christian martyr after Jesus may have died and had the heavens opened to him (Acts 7:55-60).

Our joy was tempered by the sober reality of the painful atonement.  But our joy returned as we contemplated the resurrection and promise of eternal life. 

[For more on our Easter week, see updates on Dec. 2010 post, "Last Days of Jesus," and May 2011 post, "Jerusalem with Melissa"]