Princess Basma Hospital & School
Today we visited a hospital and school for Palestinian children with special needs from Jerusalem and the nearby areas.
The children in the hospital stay for anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months. Their mothers stay with them, going home on weekends to see the rest of their family. The equipment used in the hospital is all through donations. Unfortunately some equipment, including the hydrotherapy pool are not able to be used because there is not enough funding to keep them functioning. There is also a problem getting children from the West Bank into the hospital because their mothers need a permit to enter Jerusalem, which is not easy to get.
Staff for the hospital and for the school is made up of Israelis and Palestinians. Currently, 720 kindergarten through 12th grade students are enrolled in the school. Their very first graduating class was last year in 2010. In addition to the school there are opportunities for vocational training, including basket weaving and wood work.
Yad Vashem - Holocaust Museum
Most of us have been to a holocaust museum previously, but this museum was quite different. Some of the things we found interesting included the amount of printed propaganda and other printed materials, like photos from the time, that were shown at the museum. They also had an
entire hall dedicated to artwork that was created in the Jewish ghettos and camps, which was very interesting to see.
One of the most moving parts on the museum grounds was the Children's Memorial, a tribute to the approximately 1.5 million Jewish children who were killed during the Holocaust. When you enter the display, it is entirely dark. As you continue forward, you begin to see candlelight reflected in mirror upon mirror.
"Walking through the memorial, the visitor hears the names of murdered children, their ages and countries of origin in the background." -Visitor's Guide to Holocaust Museum
Garden Tomb
Our final visit to a holy site in Jerusalem was to the Garden Tomb. For most pilgrims, this is the traditional site of Golgotha and of the tomb where Jesus was buried. Although there is much debate about the authenticity of this site (probably even within our own group), we all know that where Jesus was buried is not the important idea, but rather the fact that Jesus rose from the dead!
We joined together with our entire tour group in worship, singing songs and sharing in communion as the rain lightly fell across the garden. Bishop Keaton reminded us that after this amazing time in this amazing place, it is important to remember what God has done for us. But more than that, after seeing so many sites - some well-identified, some merely a guess by historians - it is important to remember that it is not just about what God has done, but about what God IS doing and WILL do in our own lives.
Amen!
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