Michael KellyIrish Catholics walked in the footsteps of Christ in prayerful solidarity, writes Michael Kelly
It’s not every day that a plane load of Irish pilgrims depart Dublin airport for a direct flight to the Holy Land. In fact, there are no scheduled flights from Dublin to Israel. But the inaugural Christian Solidarity Pilgrimage – led by Primate of All-Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin – was quite unlike other pilgrimages.
So high was the demand for places, that MAP Travel were able to organise a special charter flight to take the 175 pilgrims direct from Dublin to Tel Aviv rather than the usual transfer between Frankfurt, Istanbul or London.
Pilgrims had come from almost every corner of Ireland – 25 of the 32 counties to be precise – to travel in what was described as “prayerful solidarity” with the Christian community in the Holy Land.
First stop
The first stop was on the shores of the Sea of Galilee where pilgrims were able to visit many of the sites in that region where Jesus carried out much of his public ministry and undertake a boat ride on that lake made famous by so many of Jesus’ miracles. Biblical towns like Nazareth and Capernaum came alive in a fresh way for the pilgrims.
Next stop was Bethlehem where the pilgrims were welcomed to the birthplace of Christ and by the mayor of the city Vera Baboun.
Ms Baboun – a Catholic in a region where Christians make up a tiny minority – welcomed the pilgrims as a beacon of hope. She pointed to the suffering that the people of Bethlehem face as a result of conflict and tension due to the ongoing lack of a peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinians.
The Irish pilgrims “do not come to offer simplistic solutions to a complex conflict” Archbishop Eamon said. But, pointed to the “great blessing of God that is the peace process in Ireland” as evidence that “resolution and reconciliation are possible and that violence and conflict can be overcome and replaced by peace and security.”
After a few days in Bethlehem, it was on to Jerusalem to visit the places particularly associated with the final week of Christ’s life: the Church of Dominus Flevit, the Garden of Gethsemane, the Via Dolorosa and on to the place of the crucifixion and the tomb where Christ was laid before the resurrection.
While in Jerusalem, the pilgrims were welcomed by Bishop William Shomali of the Latin Patriarchate – one of the bishops of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land. Archbishop Eamon spoke for all the pimgrims when he said: “We have become more and more conscious during our visit that Jerusalem is not only a holy city for Christians, Jews and Muslims, but it is also a wounded city.
Conflict
“Conflict and injustice have taken a toll on this city and on its residents. We want to join our voices as people of Ireland to those speaking up and working for peace. We encourage you to keep on hoping, to keep on working for reconciliation and we thank you and all in the Catholic Church of the Holy Land for your tireless efforts and pleas for peace, justice and mutual understanding,” he said.
Archbishop Eamon underlined the importance of the trip for the Irish visitors: “Our pilgrimage to the Holy Land has been much more than simply a visit to holy places; it has been an opportunity for us to have a personal encounter with Our Lord in the places where he was born, lived, taught, healed, suffered, died, rose again and ascended into heaven. We have been able to encounter Him especially in the celebration of the Eucharist at Magdala, Nazareth, Gethsemane and other churches here in Jerusalem.
“We have heard God speaking to us in His Word which has been coming alive to us in new ways as we read it in its original setting. We have also met the Lord in the people of these Holy Places – the ‘Living Stones’.
“To meet with you and your people, to hear about your joys, your struggles and your pain stories, and then to communicate these messages back to our parishes, communities and families in Ireland, that is what makes this a pilgrimage of Christian solidarity,” the archbishop said.
As the Irish pilgrims returned to their families, parishes, communities and places of work it was with a renewed sense of God in their life and a commitment to do more to support the Holy Land’s Christian community.
There are plans for further such Christian Solidarity Pilgrimages and hope that Irish parishes may want to twin with parishes in the Holy Land. If you would like more information please email michael@irishcatholic.ie