The Church of the Holy Sepulcher . . . or

The most significant Christian site in Jerusalem is a Greek Orthodox Church that is shared by many different traditions, such as the Armenians, Coptic, Syrians, Romans and Ethiopians, to name a few. Mostly the different traditions can be thought of as the Eastern tradition (orthodox) and the Western (Roman). The western churches call it the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (or tomb), while the Eastern churches call it the Church of the Resurrection. Which sounds more hope-filled for a Christian?
We learned many fascinating things about the history of Jerusalem and the church that deserve more time than I can give now, but needless to say I learned quite a bit that will surely be inflicted upon you at some point.
Inside the church we first climbed up some rather steep stairs to Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified. It was very crowded and the crush of humanity was almost oppressive, as some were less than Christian about wanted to get their turn to touch the stone. During that time, as we made our way forward, I had a moment where it all hit me, that I was standing in the place that Jesus was crucified. I allowed the tears to flow as Bishop George stood behind me using his hat as a fan. It was almost surreal. By the time I got to the rock, which is under and altar (you have to stoop down and put your arm in a hole in the ground to feel the stone) I was so tired of the pushing and jostling that I took all of 5 seconds to feel it and get out of the way. The rock felt smooth from all those who have touched it before, but it was like touching any rock and yet I still know it was so much more. We then went immediately under that place to a small chapel that "the church remembers" (whether it is factual or not) as the burial place of Adam, which creates the typology that St. Paul offers of Jesus being the second Adam and fulfilling the law.
We then went to the Chapel of the True Cross, where Helena, Emperor Constantine's mother, said she found a fragment of Jesus' cross.
We bypassed the large Sepulcher, as our teacher explained that was not where Jesus was laid. We went to a small (and I mean small) side chapel dedicated to Joseph of Arimethea that is more likely Jesus' actual tomb. It was almost too much to take in.
This is a VERY short distillation of the day's events. It was an incredible day and worth the entire trip just for this. The Church of the Resurrection will be with me forever. Amen.

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