The birth of peace

Today we returned to the Palestinian Territories visiting the Bethlehem area. As we were following in the footsteps of the magi our morning prayer focussed on them. 

After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the reign of King Herod, some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east. 'Where is the infant king of the Jews?' they asked. 'We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.' When King Herod heard this he was perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, and enquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 'At Bethlehem in Judaea,' they told him, 'for this is what the prophet wrote:

And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
you are by no means least among the leaders of Judah,
for out of you will come a leader
who will shepherd my people Israel.'

Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared, and sent them on to Bethlehem. 'Go and find out all about the child,' he said 'and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage.' Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out. And there in front of them was the star they had seen rising; it went forward and halted over the place where the child was. The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and falling to their knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. But they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, and returned to their own country by a different way.
- Matthew 2:1-12

Gold for a king
Frankincense for one who is Divine, the one who is the Son of God
Myrrh for He was to die to set us free from sin and death.

If you were the fourth of the magi, what gift would you bring, that says something you and something of the child?

But there were two other gifts the Magi brought. Most important of all was there presence at Bethlehem, a true gift of self.

But there was another, unexpected gift... The current Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem was rebuilt in its present form in the 6th century on the initiative of Byzantine Emperor Justinian I after earlier being destroyed. The Persians under Khosrau II invaded Palestine and conquered nearby Jerusalem in 614, but they did not destroy the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. According to legend, their commander Shahrbaraz was moved by the depiction above the church entrance of the Three Magi wearing the garb of Persian Zoroastrian priests, so he ordered that the building be spared so that we could be there today.

Meanwhile King Herod wanted the child to be destroyed. So in this beautiful celebration of the Son of God's birth as the Babe of Bethlehem there was at the same time a lurking evil the wanted to destroy the Prince of Peace. Over the centuries peace has evaded this land as successive powers want to destroy some in the land.

Our prayer for the day was one of peace.

And so we made our journey beyond the separation wall into the West Bank and the Palestinian Territories singing...

O come, all ye faithful,
joyful and triumphant!
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem!
Come and behold him,
born the King of angels.

O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord!

Mass was held in a cave at Shepherd's Field at Beit Sahur...

There are numerous caves here and it was normal for shepherds to keep their sheep in caves at night to protect them from wolves and thieves. And it was normal for a number of shepherds to keep their flock in the one cave. The sheep would be at the back of the cave with maybe thorn bushes to provide a fence to keep them in. The shepherds would stay at the front of the cave where there was more fresh air. In the morning the gate of the sheepfold would be opened and the shepherd would call his sheep and they would follow them and this is the image Jesus gives of himself as the Good Shepherd in John's Gospel...

Jesus said: 'I tell you most solemnly, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but gets in some other way, is a thief and a brigand. The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out his flock, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They never follow a stranger but run away from him: they do not recognise the voice of strangers.'

I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for my sheep. And there are other sheep I have that are not of this fold, and these I have to lead as well. They too will listen to my voice, and there will be only one flock, and one shepherd.

- John 10:1-5, 14-16

The people that walked in darkness has seen a great light;

on those who live in a land of deep shadow a light has shone.

You have made their gladness greater, 

you have made their joy increase;

they rejoice in your presence as people rejoice at harvest time,

as people are happy when they are dividing the spoils.

For the yoke that was weighing on him, the bar across his shoulders,

the rod of his oppressor, these you break as on the day of Midian.

For there is a child born for us, a son given to us

and dominion is laid on his shoulders;

and this is the name they give him: 

Wonder-Counsellor, Mighty-God, Eternal-Father, Prince-of-Peace.

Wide is his dominion in a peace that has no end,

for the throne of David and for his royal power,

which he establishes and makes secure in justice and integrity.

From this time onwards and for ever,

the jealous love of the Lord of Hosts will do this.

- Isaiah 9:1-7

Caesar Augustus issued a decree for a census of the whole world to be taken. This census - the first - took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria, and everyone went to his own town to be registered. So Joseph set out from the town of Nazareth in Galilee and travelled up to Judaea, to the town of David called Bethlehem, since he was of David's House and line, in order to be registered together with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to a son, her first-born. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them at the inn. In the countryside close by there were shepherds who lived in the fields and took it in turns to watch their flocks during the night. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone round them. They were terrified, but the angel said, 'Do not be afraid. Listen, I bring you news of great joy, a joy to be shared by the whole people. Today in the town of David a saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. And here is a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.' And suddenly with the angel there was a great throng of the heavenly host, praising God and singing:

'Glory to God in the highest heaven

and peace to all who enjoy his favour.'

Now when the angels had gone from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, 'Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.' So they hurried away and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been told.

- Luke 2:1-20

Shepherds in Jesus' time were considered uncouth and unclean, not like the romantic image of shepherd we have in our parish church's Nativity scene. They were considered dirty and people tended to avoid them. They certainly didn't go to the Temple except to sell their sheep for the Temple sacrifices.

And yet it was to this unlikely group that angels appeared announcing the birth of the Saviour. They were so overwhelmed and given angels appearing to them was the most amazing thing that happened in their lives they abandoned the sheep they were supposed to watching to the mercy of wolves and thieves and went to Bethlehem to see this was the Lord had made known to them.

Some years ago Pope Francis said priests should have the smell of their sheep... in other words, to be a true shepherd you have to be with the flock.

Imagine the surprise the shepherds received when they found the Saviour they had been told about,  Christ the Lord, in the back of the stable, the cave, in a manger, the feeding trough for the sheep. The Saviour smelt like the sheep, the Saviour smelt like them, he was truly one with them.

And that is the mystery of the Lord's birth, he truly becomes one with us and as we any baby he longs to be held close to our heart as he holds us close to our heart. And it is this Lord and us holding each close to our hearts that allows Christ to be born in us anew each day, and for the Word to take flesh in us.

Inside the chapel at Shepherd's Field, the Sanctuary of the Gloria in excelsis Deo, dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima and St. Theresa of Lisieux...

An illegal Jewish settlement in Palestine Territories of the West Bank

Another cave in the area

Then like the shepherds we went to Bethlehem to see the Church of Nativity and where the Christ was born...

The Church of the Nativity in Bethehem

The cave where Jesus was born

The place where Jesus was born

The place of the manger

From the Church of the Nativity to Bethlehem University for lunch and a little background on the life and studies of the students there, an opportunity much appreciated by our group. It was great to catch up with De La Salle Brothers Br Peter Bray from New Zealand and Br Mark McEwan who worked at Holy Cross Seminary for some years...

After lunch we tried to visit the entrance to the cave Jesus was born in at St Catherine's Catholic Church but it was closed while Mass was on... Then on for some olive wood shopping and to catch up with Bassem Giacaman... a great place for New Zealanders turn left after coming out of the Church of the Navitity, turn left on the street at the edge of Manger Square and the last shop on the right... 

While we were waiting for the big shoppers some of us went to the Milk Grotto. Christian tradition says is the place where the Holy Family found refuge during the Massacre of the Innocents, before they could flee to Egypt. The name is derived from the story that a "drop of milk" of the Virgin Mary fell on the floor of the cave and changed its colour to white.

The space, which contains three different caves, is visited by some in hope of healing infertile couples, the shrine allegedly being a place where prayers for children are miraculously answered. 

It is a nice place to contemplate Mary feeding Him who feeds us with his Body and Blood... a lovely image of Eucharist.

By this stage it was getting late and we didn't get a real chance to look at the ugliness that is the Separation Wall... but we did decide as a group to walk through the checkpoint to Israel... Meanwhile the checkpoint closed without warning for cars and buses and our bus had to cross at another checkpoint.

Another confronting day. And as we contemplate the birth of the Prince of Peace, who joins heaven and earth, again we pray that He might give birth to peace in the Holy Land and join peoples together so that the children and young people of Palestine and Israel maybe able to sleep in peace and harmony.

Silent night, holy night!

All is calm, all is bright.

Round yon Virgin, Mother and Child.

Holy infant so tender and mild,

Sleep in heavenly peace,

Sleep in heavenly peace

Silent night, holy night!

Shepherds quake at the sight.

Glories stream from heaven afar

Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia,

Christ the Savior is born!

Christ the Savior is born

Silent night, holy night!

Son of God love's pure light.

Radiant beams from Thy holy face

With dawn of redeeming grace,

Jesus Lord, at Thy birth

Jesus Lord, at Thy birth