Day 14 - July 4, 2008

This morning we started off with a group photo at the Mount of Olives. After snapping a quick pic we traveled up the mount to the BYU Jerusalem Center. It began with a short video introduction about the center itself, then we attended an organ recital. The room where we listened to the recital overlooks the city of Jerusalem. It has such a beautiful view! Walking through the gardens we found many plants that were around during the time of Christ. The restrooms were also a hit. They were easily 6 ½ stars on a 5 star scale.

A small scale replica of the city of Jerusalem is at the Israel Museum. It was great to be able to put places in perspective and exciting to recognize different sites we had visited the day before. While we were at the Israel Museum we were privileged to be able to see the original Isaiah scrolls on display. Normally replicas of the Isaiah scrolls are shown to the public; however since it is the 60^th anniversary of Israel the originals are on display. They are approximately 2200 years old. It was such a humbling experience to think that those scrolls were written near the time the Savior walked on the earth.

There was a sadness and mellow feeling that came over our group as we walked through the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum. Our tour guide Roley allowed us to see the exhibit at our own pace with a one hour time limit. This was much appreciated as the other tour groups drove us crazy. It was quite crowded and difficult to see all that we wanted. The children’s memorial was touching. Over 1.5 million Jewish children were killed during the Holocaust.

Our journey then took us to the city of the Savior’s birth…Bethlehem. As we were traveling into an area governed by the Palestinians our guide did not travel with us. We met a Palestinian guide, Sam, once we entered the city. Our first stop was the Christmas Tree Restaurant where we were able to choose falafel or shawerma. Most of us are at the point that if we didn’t have one of these again we would be grateful! In Bethlehem we also made stops at St. Catherine’s, Jerome’s Grotto, and a Christian gift shop. St. Catherine’s church is the traditional location for the birth of the Savior. Jerome’s Grotto is where the Bible was translated from Hebrew and Ancient Greek into Latin. The product is the Vulgate Bible the Catholic Church now uses. This event was the precursor to our English King James Version of the Bible. Olive wood and trinkets galore were seen and purchased at the Christian gift shop. Once again we were also given a welcome drink… very yummy!

After a short scouting trip by Brother Gunnerson and Roley we stopped at a shepherd’s field overlooking Bethlehem. We had a short meeting with hymns we normally sing at Christmas and read the Christmas story from Luke and Matthew. This was also one of the highlights of the trip!

Our last stop of the day was the Wailing or Western Wall where the Jews were welcoming the Sabbath Day. This was our second trip to see the wall. There was quite a variety of people who were worshipping and observing. We also said goodbye to our guide Roley. We learned so much from her and are grateful for the time she spent with us. Love you Roley!!!

After dinner at our hotel a few went out shopping, some tried to get to bed early, and others just spent time together. Our last full day is tomorrow. We are a bit sad at this, but are excited about the sites we will be able to see.

Happy 4th of July! We did not have really any celebration to commemorate our nation's birth, however we were able to remember our Savior's birth which truly makes us free.