Our Visit to Bethlehem

Dear Family and Friends,

On the Monday before the fall students arrived we were able to go to Bethlehem for a visit to the Church of the Nativity built over the supposed site of the birth place of Jesus.  It is one of the oldest and most important churches in the Holy Land. It was first built by Constantine the Great over a cave where, according to tradition, Jesus was born. Before Constantine, pagan rites had been practiced there.  Constantine's edifice was destroyed in the 6th century, whereupon Justinian built a new church which portions of the building in general survives to this day.  During the Crusader period (12th century) the building was revitalized and elevated to cathedral rank and used for the coronations of kings of Crusader Jerusalem. Bethlehem lies in the Judean highlands, on the Patriarchs Way, about 5 miles south of Jerusalem.  lehem means "bread", Bethlehem signifies "house of bread" in Hebrew.  John 6:35,  Jesus said, "I am the Bread of Life."  This is no coincidence - the relationship between the meaning of the town and our Savior being born there.  Also,  in the Old Testament times King David was born in Bethlehem.   Nearby in AD 400, Jerome translated the Bible into Latin.   

Today Bethlehem is a Palestinian city, its population is half Christian, half Moslem.  You have probably read or heard about the Separation Wall.  It surrounds this beautiful little city and according to the Palestinians they are "prisoners" in their city.  They are not allowed to cross the "border" to visit family and friends in Jerusalem five miles away.  Sahar Qumsiyeh, (in the stripped shirt) grew up as a Christian Palestinian.  She became a member of our Church while attending BYU Provo on scholarship.  BYU Jerusalem Center gives a full-ride scholarship to a qualifying Palestinian high school student.  It is a great honor to win this award and Sahar was one of the recipients a few years ago.  She has her Ph.d. in Statistics and teaches at Bethlehem University.  Because of this Separation Wall she cannot attend church in Jerusalem.  She invited us to her home to meet her mother and have some yummy cake she had baked.  They took us out on their front porch and showed us the Sheperd's Field off in the distance- the location where the Sheperd's were tending their sheep the night the Angel appeared announcing the birth of our Savior.  What was once a lovely view with beautiful trees is now populated by "settlers" - Israelis' who find an empty piece of land and build a huge settlement.  This is happening all over Israel.  Reminds me of the way subdivisions are springing in Mesa, Gilbert, etc.  Sahar's family are of course concerned with what is going on.  When you hear the Palestinian side of the conflict it's very sad.  We were also able to meet and visit with another member of the Church, a young Palestinian man who joined the Church while he was living in England.  He is married and has 2 little children.  He too would like to come to church and bring his family but cannot cross the border.  We are not to get into any political discussions but according to these two wonderful people they are living under worse conditions than those who were involved with Apartheid.  

Just a random picture Dad took of a Palestinians man and his donkey.
This is the holiest site in the church.  It is marked with the Star of the Nativity.  Above it is a mosaic-embellished 12th century altar.  The manger itself is down a few stairs; opposite it is a chapel dedicated to the Three Wise Men.  Most of the other mosaics and ornamentation around the Church are of Crusader vintage and few are Byzantine.

This column has five indentations where a person can put their fingers and hopefully receive good luck.!! 

This is Sahar's brother, mother and her cousin on the right hand side of her. This picture is taken in their home.  It was very nice to visit them.  Her mother is a Christian as is her cousin.  Her brother is not involved with religion but he is very much involved with the political issues of the Palestinians.  Infact, we would stay he is very passionate about it. 

This is a devout Christian lady kissing the Star of the Nativity.

Dad still hoping for good luck!!

We are in the home of George Lamas.  He is a very famous wood carver. The popular items are nativity sets.  His work is lovely because of the detail to the faces.  He claims to have had Prophets and General authorities come to his home to purchase his beautiful carvings.  We have 17 months to make a decision...and there are several other carvers that cater to the LDS buyers with items like Nephi, Liahona, etc.  Meanwhile, we will just "window shop".

We love you all,

Dad and Mom