Shabbat Shalom: Our First Day in Israel

In the hill country west of Jerusalem resides a Franciscan monastery known as Saint John of the Desert.  It is high on a wooded, rocky hillside and is believed to be where John the Baptist lived “in the wilderness of Judea.”  There is a church, a spring flowing out the side of the mountain, and a grotto which is the cave where John lived.  On the monastery property about three hundred yards up the mountain there is a little stone house.  Known as St. Elisabeth’s, the house was built in the twelfth century on the site of the tomb of the mother of John the Baptist.  Around her tomb is built a small beautiful chapel.  Above the chapel are our living quarters.

Small groups of tourists and pilgrims visit the chapel at St. Elisabeth’s almost daily.  As residents for the next few weeks, Linda and I have sacristy duties which include keeping the candles fresh, trimming and lighting the little hanging oil lamps, and keeping the place tidy.  We also take care of the garden, the house, and the two resident half-wild cats. 

In the photo below I am eating one of the beans from the Carob tree, also known as St. John’s Bread, Ceratonia siliqua.  It is similar to, and probably a relative of, our honey locust and black locust trees in North America.  When the Bible says John the Baptist “lived in the wilderness and ate locusts and wild honey” (Mark 1:6), it is referring not to an insect but to this bean pod which can be found on the ground here.  Eating it is like chewing beef jerky, only the flavor is sweet and almost like chocolate.  Yum-yum!

I am glad that our first day in Israel has been a Sabbath day – a day that is seriously observed here.  I am glad because Sabbath is a day to stop and get yourself oriented, or reoriented in life.  Today we began to get oriented to our new surroundings, starting with a long rest at St. Elisabeth’s followed by a visit to St. John’s cave, where we sat silently and admired his bold ministry and grieved his senseless death.  This hill country is indeed a very special place.  Shabbat shalom.