Tag Archives: Gethsemane

Israel Trip, Day 10

The tree that gives the Olive Tree Hotel its name

The tree that gives the Olive Tree Hotel its name

Back to the travelogue of our June trip… our tenth day in Israel was a Sunday. We were staying in the Olive Tree Hotel in Jerusalem, not far from the old city.


We went first to the Mount of Olives. Near where the bus let us off we saw a room full of ossuaries, the boxes where they would put the bones of the dead. We walked down to the Dominus Flevit church, traditional site where Jesus was to have wept over Jerusalem. Along the way we saw groups carrying palm branches, re-enacting the triumphal entry. The altar of the Dominus Flevit building has an image of a chicken gathering chicks under her wing; worshippers see the temple mount and the city behind the altar.

Dominus Flevit (Jesus Wept)

Dominus Flevit (Jesus Wept)

Seal on altar of the Dominus Flevit church

Seal on altar of the Dominus Flevit church


I was surprised to see how close the Mount of Olives and Gethsemane were to the Temple Mount. Hadn’t realized how the temple would have dominated your view while there.

Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives

Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives

Skyline of Jerusalem

Skyline of Jerusalem


Mustard seeds

Mustard seeds

From there we made our way to Gethsemane and the Church of All Nations (Church of the Agony), built on the traditional site where Jesus was to have prayed in the garden. There is a large stone inside that is the focal point of the church.

Church service in Gethsemane

Church service in Gethsemane

One of my favorite things came next. We had reserved a private part of the garden for our Sunday service. It was a garden mainly of olive trees, looking much the way Gethsemane would have looked when Christ was there. It was very moving to take the Lord’s Supper in that place.

Garden of Gethsemane

Garden of Gethsemane

Gethsemane means olive press

Gethsemane means olive press


Next we went to the Israel Museum and the Shrine of the Book. We were able to visit with Dr. Adolfo Roitman, who is the curator of the Shrine of the Book and the Dead Sea Scrolls that are housed there. He is Argentine and was able to visit with our group in English and Spanish. I got to interview Dr. Roitman in Spanish for the radio program that I do.

We couldn’t take pictures inside, but the documents housed there are very interesting. The highlight, of course, was seeing some of the Dead Sea Scrolls that were on display.

Dr. Adolfo Roitman

Dr. Adolfo Roitman

The Shrine of the Book. It's shape mimics that of the tops of the canisters of the Dead Sea Scrolls

The Shrine of the Book. It’s shape mimics that of the tops of the canisters of the Dead Sea Scrolls

Model of Temple at the Shrine of the Book

Model of Temple at the Shrine of the Book

Scale model of ancient Jerusalem

Scale model of ancient Jerusalem

Two Argentines: Carolina with Dr. Roitman

Two Argentines: Carolina with Dr. Roitman