Our day began with Mass in the desert in a landscape which can only be described as immense (see video below). The Mass, which commemorated John the Baptist, served as a perfect and memorable tool for understanding more deeply the notion of the Good Shepherd. In this vein, Fr John Farrell OP in his homily masterfully used the back drop to help us to reflect on this by compared our British notion of shepherding to the reality of shepherding in the desert at the time of Our Lord. The sheep would have been utterly dependant on their shepherd’s knowledge of the landscape to find water. Like the sheep, we must listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd who alone is the source and only way to find living water. The Good Shepherd, who is Christ Jesus, lays down His life for His sheep and in this we can, and indeed did, take solace and joy.
After Mass we drove through the ancient city of Jericho and we passed a sign on a shop which claimed: ‘Jericho: Oldest city in the world - 10,000 years'. At a pit stop from our journey through the West Bank to the River Jordan, we stopped at the foot of the 'Mount of Temptation'. This is popularly believed to be the place of Jesus' fasting and temptation by the Devil (Mark 1:12). On this mount accessible by cable car is a 4th century monastery perched precariously near the summit with only one priest in residence.
We continued to the River Jordan, not only a place of religious significance but a modern national border between two nations. Now merely metres away we are able to see a Jordanian flag reminding us of just how close we were to the neighbouring country. Fr John Farrell OP led us in a reflection in anticipation of the renewal of baptismal vows. He reminded us that a Sacrament is an act of Jesus Himself. 'In Cana’, he said, 'we reaffirmed wedding vows, as on the day of your marriage, you place your hand in the hand of your beloved and minister the Sacrament to each other in a beautiful way'. He reminded us that this is not merely a way of remembering an event, but in a sense, we are living out our baptismal promises. St Paul, Fr John explained, teaches that living out baptismal promises is about 'becoming what you are’ - that is to say leaving the ways of old behind in pursuit of our Christian dignity which comes from the newness of life in Christ.
Our final destination of the day was the Dead Sea, famous for its medicinal properties due to the high salt content. To give some perspective our guide told us that an average body of water, like the Mediterranean for example, has an average of 35g of salt per litre of water. The Dead Sea by comparison has roughly 250g of salt per litre. This gives the water the density to allow a surreal experience of floating effortlessly and does wonders for one’s skin. We were told, rather amusingly, 'the water is extremely healthy but extremely dangerous if swallowed'.
As we drove back to Jerusalem from the Dead Sea the day as a whole has largely been described as very tranquil and moving in equal parts.
At the end of the day, the Cardinal spoke from the edge of the Dead Sea:
To see more photos from today, please click HERE.
The Youth pilgrimage continues alongside the main Diocesan one. Read their latest update HERE.
