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- What is the Jerusalem
Cross?
Greer Jalbert, Troy, Michigan
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Photo: Gila
Yudkin |
Photo: Gila
Yudkin |
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Station Five of the Via Dolorosa |
Annunciation Church in Nazareth |
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The
Jerusalem Cross, with four small crosses surrounding
a large cross (with all the bars equidistant from
the center), was first used as a coat of arms for the
Latin Kingdom in Jerusalem, established when the
Crusaders conquered the Holy City and the Holy
Sepulcher in 1099.
Some say that the large cross represents Jerusalem
and the four smaller crosses represent the four
corners of the earth to which the four Gospels
spread. Another explanation is that the five crosses
represent the five Crusader armies (Great Britain,
France, Germany, Italy and Spain) who came to
liberate Jerusalem. Yet another explanation has it
that the five crosses represent the stigmata, the
five wounds of Jesus.
You will see the Jerusalem Cross decorating gates
and chapels belonging to the Roman Catholic Church. The Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth has a
stunning rendition of the Jerusalem Cross in stained
glass. It is also a very popular shape for a gold pendant,
sometimes decorated with ancient Roman glass. |
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- You see postcards
with salt pillars appearing above the Dead Sea –
are these real and if so, where were the photos
taken?
Richard Stoller, Rancho Santa Fe, California
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| The Dead Sea, called
the Salt Sea in the Hebrew Bible, is the saltiest
body of water on earth, with approximately 33%
mineral salts. In the southern basin, which is only
6 to 9 feet deep, the salts are extracted for the
manufacture of potash and bromine. The salt
formations you see in old postcards, sprouted right
up from the bottom of the sea and were tall enough
to poke above the surface of the water. People
would float around the pillars and be photographed
hugging them. But as they interfered with the
extraction of salts from the water, the
Dead Sea Works manufacturing company
constantly
vacuums the bottom of the lake to prevent the
formation of these very scenic pillars. |
By the way, on Mount Sodom, we do have a pillar of
salt, reputed to be “Lot’s Wife” (Genesis 19). We
pass "Lot's Wife" en route to start our tour in the
Wilderness of Zin.
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Photo:
Courtesy of Carol Tunney |
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Carol Tunney reading The Jerusalem
Post while floating in the Dead Sea |
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| If you
are interested in knowing more about the Dead Sea,
look at Gila's highly
recommended books on the Holy Land. |
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- Did Pope John
Paul II visit the Mount of Beatitudes on
his Holy Land Pilgrimage?
Bob and Dottie Youngwirth, San Diego,
California
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| Yes, when
the Pope visited the Holy Land in March,
2000, he celebrated mass at Korazin,
overlooking the Mount of Beatitudes. Over
100,000 people attended the outdoor mass –
50,000 Christians from all over Galilee and
an estimated 50,000 pilgrims who converged
on the holy land from all over the globe for
the Pope’s visit. The majority of pilgrims
were young, with many bringing guitars and
tambourines. If you didn’t know better, you
might have thought it was a music festival! Many groups were accompanied by young
priests, testifying to the vibrant appeal of
John Paul II to the youth. |
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| As Thomas
O’Dwyer, a Catholic commentator, put it,
“John Paul, a former theater |
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producer and playwright, once again achieved
a dramatic unity of form and purpose with
his Mass of the Beatitudes, for the Holy
Land odyssey actually began on Mount Sinai,
where Moses took the law, and reached its
climax here, where Jesus took the law on a
new journey. Jesus had the revolutionary
chutzpah to expand on the Ten Commandments
that God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai,
emphasizing the spirit as well as the letter
of the laws.” |
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“Blessed are
you who seem to be losers,
because you
are the true winners: the kingdom of
heaven is yours. These words present a
challenge which demands…a great change
of heart,” pronounced John Paul II,
in addition to the traditional
beatitudes.
As Pope John
Paul II spoke to the crowds |
| in 7
languages, the multitudes responded, |
Photo:
Gila Yudkin |
| “Viva Papa.” |
Pope John
Paul II in Nazareth, March 2000 |
The photo (above right) shows Pope John Paul
II visiting Nazareth during his
pilgrimage in March 2000. This photo
was displayed before the altar of the Church
of the Annunciation during the mass
celebrated in Nazareth at the time of the
Pope's funeral in Rome. |
- See
Pilgrims Talk about Nazareth for a
testimonial about visiting the Church of
the Annunciation during the mass
coinciding with the Pope's funeral in
Rome.
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- Please ask for permission before
reprinting anything from "Ask Gila."
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Send me your
questions about pilgrimage,
Jerusalem, the Holy Land, Judaism, Hebrew, or
archeology, and I'll post the answers here in this
forum. |
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Read about "Gila on the
Mike" or what
Tour Leaders say about
Gila. |
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