Pilgrim Testimony

Jeannie and I just underwent the deepest, most profound religious experience of our lives while on a recent pilgrimage to the Holy Land. We immersed ourselves in prayer and spiritual events before we left, and throughout our time in the Holy Land.

People living in the Holy Land say that it is the 5th Gospel. We all read Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. We conjure up some image of the places when we read or listen to the readings. When you visit the Holy Land, the other Gospels come alive with context and meaning when read. For example, we all know about the Sermon on the Mount. We stayed on the Mount of the Beatitudes, and read this scripture while standing where Christ stood when He gave this sermon.

We also had our awareness of some of the problems of Palestinian Christians and other Palestinians living in the Holy Land.

Jeannie and I are processing all this, and I am sure we will for months, and even years to come. - Deacon Gene Townshend