Church of St. Anne/Pools of Bethesda

"Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie--the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years."

This narrative in John's gospel is the story of the lame man, healed by Jesus amidst the crowds by the pool of Bethesda. It also sets the background for our most impressive stop today. The actual structures from Jesus' time cannot be seen today, but, as our instructor says, "once a holy site, always a holy site." The conquering Romans in 70 AD converted the pools into asite for pagan worship. Later Byzantium claimed the area and used the area pools for themselves. The Byzantine structures (though broken down) are the most recent. However, traces from as far back as Roman days can still be seen. Though mostly taken over by weeds and plant growth, the ruins are still explorable. We ducked under arches and even explored a Roman cistern.

Before reaching the pools, you have to walk through the complex of the church of St. Anne. The front gates open into impressive gardens, the walk leading up to a large stone church built by the Crusaders. Though the site of the pools is legitimate, the church was built on tradition. Crusaders thought a cave they found to be the birthplace of Mary to her parents Anne and Joachin. In honor of the grandmother of Jesus, they built a stone chapel. Amazingly, when Saladin did not destroy either of the sites upon his takeover. Over time they just fell into disrepair until the British Mandate.

We stopped a while at the church to reflect on our own faith, the chapel having an amazing tranquility (not to mention great acoustics). We spent time in personal and public prayer, followed by a time of song. Thousand of years have past since Jesus walked that land, yet somehow we still felt so close to the heart of God in that place.

--Jenni