It wasn't quite the usual Monday morning feeling for the pilgrims. After breakfast, many pilgrims took the last opportunity to visit the Church of the Nativity if they had not already done so, to see the spot where tradition says that Jesus was born.
Renewal of Baptismal Promises at the Jordan
After this we waited for our coaches before heading to the River Jordan and the site of the Baptism of Jesus. At the site all pilgrims renewed their baptismal promises and were sprinkled with blessed water from the Jordan. Fr John explained the importance of John the Baptist saying: "All four Gospels begin the public life of Jesus with the encounter with John. They want us to see the essential difference between Jesus and John."
A prophet in the wilderness
"For John, the Messiah will draw the lines between the good and the bad. However after John's arrest John begins to doubt whether Jesus is the Messiah. John sends Jesus a message 'Are you the one or should we expect another?' Jesus' reply is 'Tell John the blind see, the deaf hear and the lame walk'. This is quote from the prophet Isaiah. the significance of this is John sees himself as in terms of Isaiah 'a prophet in the wilderness' but has been thinking about the Messiah in a different way. Jesus tells John to understand the Messiah in terms of Isaiah, the greatest prophet." "The difference between Jesus and John is that John calls first for repentance and then grace. Jesus brings grace first, then repentance." Fr John explained that "God's grace and salvation are free gifts. Fr John suggested that in order to be disciples of Jesus we need to first be disciples of John and to avoid evil. Yet, Christ does offer us much, much more and we mustn't forget that."
The Visitation and Jericho
We then went to Jericho where we celebrated the Mass of the Visitation- when Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth We celebrated this in the Church of the Good Shepherd, and Mass was offered for Archbishop Nichols who had left the pilgrimage the day before to return to England for the Bishops' twice yearly conference. As it was the Mass of the Visitation Fr John explained that Luke's account of Mary's visitation to her cousin parallels the journey of the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark contained God's promises to Israel, and Luke is making it clear that Mary is the new ark.
Fr John went on to say that "every single thing about Mary makes God seem bigger. I'm sure we have all met people who make God seem more real and bring us closer to Him. That is what Mary does. In giving honour to Our Lady we do not detract at all from God; she is God's most perfect creation." Mass was led by Mgr Phelim who asked us to pray for all those who have asked for our prayers and for those who need our prayers.
Temptation
We then had lunch at the Intercontinental Hotel which was enjoyed by all pilgrims before continuing our journey. We stopped briefly at the Mount of Temptation, where several pilgrims were tempted by the souvenirs on offer. We also drove past the tree of Zacchaeus (Luke 19), or what is believed to be the Tree of Zacchaeus! It then took us a couple of hours by coach to get to Galilee. Many pilgrims remarked on how quickly the day had gone when we arrived at our hotel. Over dinner many pilgrims were in a reflective mood as this is the final stage of our pilgrimage. They discussed highlights so far and what they have found particularly moving. For many it was our first experiences in the Holy Sepulchre and in Jerusalem, However, for others, the visits to the mil Grotto and St Catherine's Church next to the Church of the Nativity have been favourites.
