The wilderness of Sinai, the embryo of a sacred scene.
An endless emptiness, silence and tranquility, zealously safeguarded by the desert nomads,
the Bedouin desert tribes.
It was from here that an ancient people emerged.
It was from between these shattered rocks that the voice of the Lord was heard.
Crosses stand out against the mountain peaks, a house of prayer bathing itself in the sun,
a fortress, a monastery, Santa Catarina extends mercy to believers.
And he gave unto Moses upon Mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tablets of stone, written
with the finger of God.
And it shall come to pass in the last days that the mountain of the Lord's house shall
be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and
all nations shall flow unto it.
For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
The Holy Land may be small in size, but has played a great role in human history.
It is the land in which lie buried the ruins of some of the most ancient civilizations.
It is the land of the biblical prophets, the land of Christ, the land of Mohammed.
It is from the soil of this land that an appeal goes out.
Justice, hope, peace.
And living as a symbol of peace.
The harvest which prepares the bread of life.
The river Jordan, which baptizes the faithful.
The desert in which mankind suffered.
The Sea of Galilee, a reminder of miracles of hope.
The Mount of the Beatitudes for the true believer.
Capernaum for those who seek redemption.
Herodion, a memorial to a tyrant king.
Nazareth, site of the Annunciation.
And Bethlehem, the birthplace of hope and of eternal peace.
And on the mountaintops, Jerusalem, city of faiths, city of peace, the eternal city.
Here the prophets preached, here the word of the Lord was heard.
Within these walls are sacred sites, a reminder of the heartbeat of those who dwell here.
The Jews, the sons of Abraham, an ancient people, a new born people, a people who are
blessed with the tablets of the law, a people who pray before the last remnant of their
temple, the western bull, a people with a long history and an even longer future, a
people following the word, bearing its light.
Jerusalem is a holy city and all the peoples of the world regard it with awe.
The church bells of Jerusalem echo throughout the Christian world and from the four corners
of the earth they come to pray and to follow in the footsteps of the Son of Man, to share
in his suffering, to pray for his return.
The dome of the rock stands over the site of the rock on which Abraham was ready to
sacrifice his son to the Lord.
Today the Moslem Muzin calls the faithful to prayer.
For all those who hold peace in their hearts.
Beersheba, the Bedouin market, the capital city of the Negev desert.
Here you can see their arts and crafts.
Here the trading takes place as it did in ancient times.
Desert dwellers from the distant Orient, the guardians of the dawn of human history.
Get thee out of thy country unto a land that I will show thee.
Those were the words that Abraham the Patriarch heard from the Lord.
Up to this day the Bedouin are well known for their generous hospitality towards their
guests, fragrant coffee, hot flat bread, and endless tales about the distant past when
their nomad ancestors wandered from place to place.
The tent represented rest for the night and the camel the journeying by day.
And their wanderings brought them to the chosen land, the land of Canaan.
The Muzin, the Bedouin, and the Muzin, the Muzin, the Muzin, the Muzin, the Muzin, the
Muzin.
In the city of Hebron, in the very heart of the land of Israel, stands an ancient building
in the form of a magnificent shrine.
This houses the tomb of El-Halil, the Patriarch Abraham, common forefather of both Jews and
Arabs, both of whom pray to his memory.
In the cave beneath the building, the cave of Machbela, also lie buried Isaac and his
wife Rebekah, and Jacob and his wife Leah.
Two great religions pray for their ancient ancestor, Abraham El-Halil.
And in the north of Israel, the holy city of Nazareth, with its intricately carved souvenirs
of local olive wood, recalling the joyous Annunciation heard here some two thousand
years ago.
The Basilica of the Annunciation commemorates the famous words, Hail, thou that art highly
favored, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women.
Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and he shall be great,
and shall be called the son of the highest.
The word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.
The Basilica of the Annunciation commemorates the famous words, Hail, thou that art highly
favored, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women.
A little village in the Judean hills called Ein Karim, the spring in the vineyard.
It was to hear that Mary, already with child, came to visit her cousin Elizabeth, who was
also expecting a baby.
It was here, it would seem, that they met.
Here, Mary exclaimed, My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God
my Savior.
The Church of the Visitation in Ein Karim commemorates that happy encounter.
It was to hear that Mary, already with child, came to visit her cousin Elizabeth, the spring
in the vineyard.
It was in Ein Karim that Elizabeth gave birth to John the Baptist, later to go forth into
the nearby wilderness of Judea, far from his brethren, closer to his God, in order to prepare
himself for his mission.
It was he who was destined to proclaim the coming of the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth.
In the wilderness prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
An enchanted lake on the eastern edge of the Judean desert, a sudden blue sea which swallows
up the waters of the River Jordan, never to let them go again, a salt lake, the Dead Sea,
situated more than 1200 feet below the level of the oceans, the lowest spot on the face
of the earth.
The sea shapes strange salt statues, forms salty pearls in long-forgotten caves.
A magic lake, its center, death, its shores alive.
Fresh abound in the freshwater springs, a Dead Sea with a life of its own.
Waterfalls roar down from the heights of the Judean hills.
This is the nature reserve of Ein Gedi, marking the place in which David sought refuge from
the wrath of Saul, the blooms of life, the colors of belief.
Here at the mouth of the holy River Jordan, John baptized, was himself immersed, and preached
the holy word.
Amongst the ancient cities of Judea, Bethlehem, Bet Lechem, the house of bread, so known because
of the plentiful wheat fields which surrounded it.
And its rich pastures, where shepherds grazed their flocks.
And in those days, Joseph took Mary, who was already large with child, out of Nazareth
into Judea, to the city of David, called Bethlehem, to be taxed according to the decree of the
Roman Emperor Augustus.
For Joseph's lineage was at the house of David.
But the town was crowded, and they found refuge in a cave, and she gave birth to a son, Jesus.
And there were in the same country shepherds, keeping watch over their flocks by night.
And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about
them.
And the angel said, I bring you good tidings of great joy.
Ever since, each year at Christmastime, thousands
of the faithful from all four corners of the world make the pilgrimage to Bethlehem the
birthplace.
They come to worship, to celebrate the joy of the Holy Family, and to pray for peace.
The various congregations pray according to their own liturgy, according to their own
traditions.
It is a great occasion, and the joy is overwhelming.
It is a great occasion, and the joy is overwhelming, and the joy is overwhelming, and the joy is
overwhelming, and the joy is overwhelming, and the joy is overwhelming, and the joy is
Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan, and to John, to be baptized of him.
And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up out of the water, and lo, the heavens were opened
unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove.
And a voice spoke from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Ever since, hundreds of the faithful come daily from all over the world to share that
same experience, baptism in the waters of the holy river of Jordan.
And Jesus, being full of the Holy Ghost, returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into
the wilderness.
Here in this rocky landscape, he was tempted by Satan, who offered him all the riches of
the world.
But Jesus rejected him, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan.
It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
Here on the slopes of the Mount of Temptation stands the monastery of Karental, in memory
of Jesus' forty-day fast in the wilderness.
The Greek Orthodox monks devote their lives to humility and prayer.
The monastery of Karental, in memory of Jesus' forty-day fast in the wilderness.
Jesus returned to begin his mission in the landscape of his youth, on the shores of the
enchanting Sea of Galilee, in the north of the land of Israel.
To this day, there are still fishermen, and St. Peter's fish is still a popular item
on the menus of ancient Tiberias.
The fishermen know the Sea of Galilee in all its moods and moments, the migrating birds,
the way in which the city is growing on those same hills on which Jesus chose the first
of his disciples, and the churches on the northern shore which commemorate those events.
The monastery of Karental, in memory of Jesus' forty-day fast in the wilderness.
The Church of the Apostles, in memory of Simon and Andrew.
Capernaum, where Jesus preached about the coming kingdom of the Lord, and also cured
the daughter of Jairus.
The Church of the Loaves and Fishes at Tapcha, commemorating the feeding of the multitude.
Mensa Christi, where Jesus reappeared to his disciples after the crucifixion, and offered
them yet again bread and fish.
The Sea of Galilee is indeed magical. Memories of past suffering mix with prayers for a peaceful
future.
Close by, the village of Cana, site of Jesus' first miracle, the changing of the water
into wine.
This church stands on the very site of that same wedding feast, at which Jesus first showed
his miraculous powers.
There can be no Jewish wedding without wine.
The bride could only be blessed with wine.
The miracle was essential.
This is a wedding of the Jews of Yemen, an ancient tribe, driven into exile some two
thousand years ago, which maintains its ancient traditions to this very day.
The bride is dressed in finery and jewels, her hands anointed with ch'ina, a herbal charm
to protect her from the forces of darkness.
All dance before the bride and groom.
And then comes the blessing of the wine, a symbol of God's covenant with his people.
The glass is smashed as a reminder of the destruction of the temple.
Bride and groom are blessed, as are all the guests in the eyes of the Lord.
It was to this spot that Jesus gathered his disciples, gazed on the green hills round
about and preached what is perhaps his most beautiful sermon, here on the Mount of Beatitudes.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.
Not far from Nazareth, Mount Tabor rises to a height of some 1600 feet, as if a watchman
and guardian over the veil of Jezreel.
This church atop the mount commemorates the moment when Jesus took his disciples to the
top of a high mountain, and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the
night.
This is believed to be the site of the transfiguration.
And here, Jesus and his disciples set out on their fateful way to Jerusalem.
On their way through the Jordan Valley, they stayed over in Jericho.
One of the most ancient cities in the world, Jericho is marked by an archaeological hill,
Otel, which includes traces of a city wall built more than 6,000 years ago.
Could these be the ruins of those walls which Joshua felled to the sound of trumpets?
Jericho is an oasis, a source of freshwater springs in the midst of the desert, known
from time immemorial as the palm frond city.
Here the prophet Elisha purified the wells, here Jesus healed the blind, here Zacchaeus,
the tax collector, became converted.
It is said that Jericho dates are among the sweetest in the world, a desert oasis between
the Dead Sea and the eternal city, Jerusalem.
Not far away from Jericho, the ruins of Qumran, home for a sect of puritanical Jews, the Essenes,
who chose the desert rather than the holy city in order to fashion their own lifestyle
strictly according to the laws of Moses.
It seems that John the Baptist dwelt with them for a time, perhaps drawing inspiration
from them regarding the baptism of purification and the humility demanded of man.
They diverted their efforts to painstakingly copying the scrolls of the law and to calculations
which might reveal the time of the coming of the Messiah.
However when the Roman conquerors came, the Essenes took their most precious belongings,
their parchment scrolls, and hid them away in nearby caves.
They themselves, being peacemakers, were slaughtered by the Romans.
The stone jars in which the scrolls were stored survived to tell the tale.
Two thousand years later, some thirty years ago, shepherds chasing after straying flocks
discovered a jar containing the words of the prophets.
This was the revelation of the Essenes dead sea scrolls, the word of the Lord in the Judean
wilderness was heard again in the twentieth century.
A very special resting place was designed for these scroll fragments, the shrine of
the book in the Israel museum in Jerusalem, the word of the Lord out of the wilderness
of Judea.
A proud tower rises up in the Judean wilderness bearing witness to long lost life.
The visitor can reach the summit by cable car or on foot in order to go back two thousand
years into the past.
This was King Herod's fortress.
This were the granaries and warehouses rich in food supplies.
This was the bath house, and this the northern palace of the king.
It was here that a band of Jewish zealots made a last stand against Roman oppression,
refusing to be slaves.
Here they chose to die as free men rather than live as conquered subjects.
And here, Israel's warriors swear allegiance to that same ideal, that the Jewish state
may live in freedom, not in slavery.
But as always remember, Masada shall never fall again.
And on the shores of the Dead Sea, a nature reserve, a little Eden for both man and beast.
The spring of David, recalling David's flight from the wrath of Saul.
Towering cliffs, cooling springs, and proud desert ibexes with their heavy horns.
This is a tiny oasis next to the Ein Gedi kibbutz.
And in the Aravah desert, man is redeeming the salt-laden land.
From long-forgotten reservoirs deep below the Negev desert, sweet water is piped to
parched fields, which in return give of their precious fruits to man.
And a new generation surges across the sands, and a new song is sung by all and sundry.
A new meaning is added to man's prayers.
To live and love in peace, to create a better homeland for our children.
Some of the wonders of such a strange sea.
The Dead Sea is so salty that nothing can sink below its surface.
This black mud is worth its weight in gold.
It can cure arthritic complaints, and patients come from all over the world seeking a cure
in these salty waters.
A strange sea, the Dead Sea, with a new life thriving on its shores.
The wilderness of Judea, here the Bedouin nomads rule, riding their ships of the desert,
masters of the landscape, companions of the desert winds.
The road leading up from Jericho to Jerusalem is trodden, as always, by monks.
Over the centuries, the faithful, seeking humility and purity of the spirit, have followed
in the footsteps of Jesus on his way to Jerusalem.
There were monks here as early as the fourth century, copying out the Holy Writ and living
amongst the desert nomads.
Humble cave dwellings developed into monasteries, clinging to the face of the cliffs.
The caves were abandoned, but contained treasures for the coming generations.
A simple affirmation of faith, a painting on the wall.
One of the finest of such monasteries is situated in Wadi Kelt.
The monastery of Marsaba, the Greek Orthodox monks who inhabit it, today are the descendants
of those who first came here at the beginnings of the era of Byzantine rule.
Their life is ruled by ritual and by prayer, and their libraries house untold treasures
of art and of literature.
On their way up from Jericho to Jerusalem, Jesus and his disciples paused in Bethany.
There Jesus learned that Lazarus had died and been buried.
Then they took away the stone from where the dead was laid.
And Jesus cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.
And he that was dead came forth.
And Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life.
He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.
After this, Jesus asked for a donkey as a steed on which to enter the holy city.
Ever after, it has been the custom of pilgrims from all over the world to reenact Jesus'
triumphant entry on Palm Sunday.
On the next day, much people that would come to the feast when they heard that Jesus was
coming to Jerusalem took branches of palm trees and went forth to meet him and cried,
Hosanna!
Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna, hosanna!
Jerusalem, the holy city, the heartbeat of the world's three great monotheistic religions.
All of its legends are open to all believers, church bells, religious ceremonies, a pathway
of suffering for the salvation of mankind.
Even today, one can find in Jerusalem believers of every kind, and their habits have hardly
changed.
Jerusalem's markets still offer the lure of the Orient, spicy foods, veiled women, Jewish
Bible students, freshly baked cakes of bread, and a refreshing drink made from desert fruit.
And above all, on the summit of Mount Moriah, over the foundation rock, site of Abraham's
intended sacrifice, the Dome of the Rock, gleaming in the sunlight, its walls decorated
with elaborate verses from the Islamic Quran.
From here arise the prayers of the faithful.
Five times each day, the devout Muslim reveres the name of God and of his prophet, Muhammad.
Five times a day, he raises his eyes in the direction of Mecca, from whence the prophet
flew in one night on his horse, Al-Burak, to this, the holy city, Al-Quds, Jerusalem,
bringing a message of peace to the world.
Shoulder to shoulder, a wall of sacred stones, a wall of memories, last remnant of the second
temple which once stood upon the mount before the Romans destroyed it, a prayer and an appeal
slipped between the stones.
Will the Lord hear man's supplications?
Here a young Jewish lad celebrates his bar mitzvah, his coming of age, his oath to observe
the laws of Moses, a reminder of past glory, a promise for the future.
Long ago, this was the site of a house of worship made of pure white marble, brilliant
in the light of the rising sun.
And the sound of the ram's horn calls the faithful to prayer, in a holy city, with prayer
in its heart.
For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
Now the feast of the Passover drew nigh, and Jerusalem was filled with pilgrims, and Jesus
sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare us the Passover that we may eat.
When you are entered into the city, there shall be a man to meet you, and he shall show
you a large upper room, furnished.
There make ready.
And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you, before
I suffer.
The Jewish Passover feast is based on the symbols of unleavened bread and wine, recalling
the freeing of the tribes of Israel from the yoke of slavery in Egypt.
The unleavened bread recalls the haste with which they departed.
The wine is a symbol of the Lord's covenant with his chosen people.
And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, This cup is the New Testament in my
blood which is shed for you.
And he took bread and break it, saying, This is my body which is given for you.
This do in remembrance of me.
These were the foundations of the New Testament, and of the ceremony of the Holy Communion.
The body and the blood of Christ.
And after these things, Jesus and his disciples went out to the foot of the Mount of Olives,
to a place called Gethsemane, Gatshmanim, the olive press.
These olive trees are believed to be derived from shoots from those same trees that served
the olive press some two thousand years ago, those trees under whose shade Jesus underwent
his agony.
And he kneeled down and prayed, saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me.
Nevertheless, not my will, but thine, be done.
And in this church, known as the Church of All the Nations, the faithful recall that
it was here, in the Garden of Gethsemane, that Jesus was betrayed and handed over to
the Roman rulers.
And it was during the night that he was taken across the Vale of Kidron and up these ancient
steps to the house of the high priest Caiaphas for judgment.
Every Friday, the faithful assemble in the courtyard of the El Amoria High School, preparing
themselves to walk in the footsteps of Jesus along the Via Dolorosa.
They walk over ancient stones, the pavements of the Antonia Fortress, seat of Roman rule
in those days.
There are other pavements, such as these within the convent of the Sisters of Zion.
Here Roman soldiers scratched out their dicing games.
Here it seems, Jesus was crowned with thorns.
And here, an arch across the street, part of an earlier era, in which the Roman governor
Pontius Pilate could stand before the people and declare, e che homo, this is the man.
This is the start of the Via Dolorosa, the pathway of the sorrows.
And they took Jesus and led him away, and he, bearing his cross, went forth.
The third station on the Via Dolorosa marks the spot where Jesus' mother saw him fall
under the weight of the cross he had to bear.
Simon of Cyrene was forced to bear the cross in his stead.
And there followed him a great company of people and of women, which also bewailed and
lamented him.
But Jesus said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves and for
your children.
Jerusalem wept for its children's loss of innocence, and the faithful carried the cross
to Golgotha, site of the crucifixion.
And they took Jesus and led him away, and he, bearing his cross, went forth.
And, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a good man and just from Arimathea, who went
on to Pilate and begged the body of Jesus, and he took it down and wrapped it in linen,
and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid.
And he took it down and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn
in stone, wherein never man before was laid.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was first built in the fourth century, when Christianity
became the authorized religion of the Byzantine Empire.
According to tradition, it was Queen Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine, who came
to the Holy Land in order to discover the holy places, who established this as the site
of the crucifixion and the burial.
Queen Helena's statue is preserved in the Armenian chapel.
Next to the hill of Golgotha, we find the stone which split when Jesus died, the cave
of Adam, and above Golgotha itself, outside the city walls where the cross was placed,
where Jesus returned his spirit to God the Father.
Here, in the very center of the sepulchre, the empty tomb.
Only a few minutes away, we find the garden tomb.
Protestant Christians believe that this is the garden of Joseph of Arimathea, and that
this is the empty tomb.
And as the Sabbath goes out, a wondrous ceremony.
The Greek Orthodox Patriarch enters the Holy Sepulchre.
The holy fire bursts forth.
Thousands of candles are lit as a remembrance.
I am the resurrection and the life, he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall
he live.
I am the resurrection and the life, he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet
shall he live.
Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre,
and they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre, and they entered in and found
not the body of the Lord Jesus.
And the angels said unto them, Why seek you the living amongst the dead?
He is not here, but is risen.
Remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee.
Jesus, it is said, reappeared many times before his disciples.
Eventually they all returned to the Mount of Olives.
There on a site marked by the Pater Nostra Chapel, he described to them the end of days.
Then he gazed on the city of Jerusalem, which had caused him so much agony, turned to his
disciples and said, But ye shall receive power.
After that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and while they beheld, he was taken up, and
of the world's most ancient sepulchre, Jaffa, one of the world's most ancient seaports,
here they unloaded the cedars of Lebanon used to build the first temple in Jerusalem.
From here Jonah fled to Tarshish, avoiding the word of the Lord.
Here St. Peter heard the word of the Lord, ordering him to preach to the heathens.
Today Jaffa is a fun town, a place for culture and entertainment, and a place in which the
fishermen still find a good market for their catch.
The
land of Israel today, fertile fields, fruitful orchards, and well-filled reservoirs of water.
Acre, another ancient walled city, a seaport, a fishing port, dominated by the El-Jazar
Mosque, named after a tyrant.
Its street markets offer all the scents and flavors of the Orient, and, once upon a time,
the crusaders were here too.
Slightly further south, what was once the major Roman port and regional capital, Caesarea.
Its major attraction today remains the Roman amphitheater, but instead of gladiators, we
now hear concerts at sunset.
And there's a certain stone with an inscription which recalls Pontius Pilate, a painful memory
of the distant past.
And it was from here that St. Paul set sail to spread the word of the Lord.
And the Roman aqueduct is still mostly sunken in the sand.
So much history still waiting to be discovered.
The Holy Land, with its memories of so many religions, all of whom lay claim to it.
And today, the younger generation can ride the wave through its seas, or the desert survivor
can climb its cliffs, or slide on its snows, or even fly.
Tel Aviv, always up to date, center for shopping, the arts, the crafts, the museums, and, as
ever, the beach.
Haifa, Mount Carmel and the Mediterranean Sea.
Haifa, Mount Carmel and the Mediterranean, and a golden dome where the Baha'i religion
found a home.
Elat, the country's southernmost tip, sun, sea, luxury hotels, and an underwater wonder
park.
One land, three great religions, and Jerusalem as their heart.
On the hills around her, churches recalling the life story and the suffering of Jesus.
The golden dome of the rock, atop the holy Mount of Moriah, and the western wall, washed
by weeping, witness to everlasting belief.
And the pilgrims, endless in number, who come to taste this city and its special meaning
for mankind.
And the faith of the youngsters, that their generation will know peace, peace for all,
all the kids, for what could be better than the old saying, let us all sit together as
brethren.
Jerusalem, three religions, three prayers, one city, for out of Zion shall go forth
the law, and the word of the Lord, from Jerusalem.
Lalalalalalalalalalalala.
Lalalalalalalalalale.
Thanks for watching!