Visit to the Holy land etched in our memories ...

by Lal RANJITH

It is any Christian’s cherished wish to visit the Holy Land and walk in the places where Jesus lived and perceived for oneself what it feels like to follow the footprints of the Master.

Through divine providence, this defining moment dawned and became a reality in my life and that of my family when we decided to embark on a trip to the Holy Land with Dev Suwa Sewava.

The spiritual ethos that prevailed prior to the beginning of the trip was uplifting. Each step of the journey was planned in prayer. Prior to embarking on the journey a fervent prayer chain was held and all dates and particulars pertaining to the itinerary in the Holy Land were identified and the entire journey was committed to the hands of God.

Jerusalem

Prior to departure a day’s retreat was organized. This helped to make spiritual preparation and make renewal of the mind. All people participating were given a time for spiritual introspection. The motive for the pilgrimage including the short term targets and long term goals were identified and the spiritual enhancement and effectiveness of a person’s Christian life after participating in the pilgrimage was considered. Team activities to unite the pilgrims and to enhance the sense of camaraderie took place. The retreat ended with a service and Holy Communion.

Spiritual preparation

The next important stage was getting ready for the much anticipated pilgrimage. The spiritual preparation was provided by Dew Suwa Sevawa and the travel arrangements were ably looked after by the travel agency and attention was given to the minutest details that included obtaining of visa, passport, airport transit details, visiting places of interest in the Holy Land and acclimatization with Israeli culture.

All pilgrims to the Holy Land were courteously received at the spacious travel agent’s office and A-Z of the entire trip was methodically and meticulously explained. After the briefing a session of questions and answers were held and any question we had was clearly answered. All devotees were given two travelling bags, a badge, a belt and a hat to wear.

Each day of the pilgrimage was a spiritual odyssey. The wake up call was given at 4 am and we had got up by 5 am. This was followed by prayers and a sermon for the day. Next on schedule was sightseeing of the Holy Land scheduled for the particular day.

We encountered no delay and the expert guide who chaperoned us made visiting very enjoyable with a Biblically based running commentary.

We were given very important and relevant historical details about the important landmarks. Some of the highlights of the trip were the visit to the garden of Gethsemane where Christ spent His last moments before the ordeal and ultimate sacrifice, the site of transfiguration where Jesus’ divine nature was revealed and at all these important places the relevant scripture portion was read and prayers offered.

Pope’s visit

An added bonanza was setting sail on the Sea of Galilee with the Sri Lankan flag hoisted on board a boat to the familiar strains of the National Anthem. Later we did shopping for various curio and souvenir items and during this period the indepth tourist finesse of the tour group leader was exceedingly worthwhile. We were taken to the best places to shop for quality items at an affordable price.

Also, the painstaking effort given to planning our trip to the very last detail was evident when our visit to Jerusalem coincided with the last leg of the Pope’s visit to the Holy Land which brought him to visit the Sepulchre at Jerusalem and with it the customarily stringent security arrangements into force.

But the accompanying person was unhampered by it and kept us unruffled by making instant alternative arrangements to make a detour and relieve us of the sudden interruption that would have taken place due to the Pope’s visit.

We were taken to a different area to see different aspects of Jerusalem and came back to visit the temple of Jerusalem later on with ease of comfort and travel.

In retrospect, I feel that this entire pilgrimage was by divine appointment.

The spiritual nourishment we received and the experience of really having been to the Holy Land boosted our Christian maturity.

It had regenerated our faith and brought rich blessings. The blend of the spiritual talents of Dev Suwa Sevawa with the travel acumen of the agency proved to be an unbeatable combination indeed.

I’m grateful to God for all He has accomplished in my life, the family and other devotees through this erstwhile pilgrimage that will be forever etched in our memories. To God be the glory!.