The bus will always be a part of me…

Saturday morning began our long journey from the Holy Land back to the places where we all began this journey, and, true to the spirit of the trip, we made use of every available moment that remained to us before we boarded our flight to the U.S.  We began the day  by visiting the Herodium, the tomb Herod built for himself on his self-made mountain, then saw the model version of Jerusalem and had a too-short visit to the amazing Israeli Museum,  a stop at the Garden Tomb and a closing communion service, followed by a visit to the Tomb of Lazarus in Bethany, a walk along the Mediterranean at…
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Living the dream…

Each day on our journey here in Israel has been, for me, a day of dream fulfillment.  But none so much as the last two days, and in particular today.   I can still see the room where the orientation meeting for my first try at going to Israel was held at the University of Missouri - Kansas City when I was 20 years old -- I can see Dr. Schulz and Dr. Klausner talking about what the trip would be like.  And I can remember the feeling of disappointment when the trip was cancelled for some reason that I do not recall.  And I can remember just this last fall my feeling…
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Good morning, Galilee…

Greetings, one and all, from the shores of the Sea of Galilee.  After a very long day of travel (well, more than a day), I am here safe and sound, and, after a great dinner and a decent night’s sleep, I am ready for our first day of exploration.  It is hard to call it sightseeing and I don’t feel quite holy enough or at the moment theological enough to refer to it as a pilgrimage. But what I can tell you is that I am here…and true to form, I feel nothing that I expected to feel.  As usual, it took some sleep and a little exercise to bring…
Read More

A pilgrimage…of sorts

Lately, I have been very interested in a way of thinking that is often referred to as the "ancient-future" view of Christianity, one that seeks to recover what we know and can know of the ways of those first Christians, struggling in faith, struggling to live together before the creation of the institution that we know as "church", and to take that knowledge and use it to forge a way of Christian living in the 21st century.  It is this view of faith that has led to such movements as the New Monasticism, among others. I however, have been approaching this interest, not by moving into a big house with…
Read More

The bus will always be a part of me…

Saturday morning began our long journey from the Holy Land back to the places where we all began this journey, and, true to the spirit of the trip, we made use of every available moment that remained to us before we boarded our flight to the U.S.  We began the day  by visiting the Herodium, the tomb Herod built for himself on his self-made mountain, then saw the model version of Jerusalem and had a too-short visit to the amazing Israeli Museum,  a stop at the Garden Tomb and a closing communion service, followed by a visit to the Tomb of Lazarus in Bethany, a walk along the Mediterranean at…
Read More

Living the dream…

Each day on our journey here in Israel has been, for me, a day of dream fulfillment.  But none so much as the last two days, and in particular today.   I can still see the room where the orientation meeting for my first try at going to Israel was held at the University of Missouri - Kansas City when I was 20 years old -- I can see Dr. Schulz and Dr. Klausner talking about what the trip would be like.  And I can remember the feeling of disappointment when the trip was cancelled for some reason that I do not recall.  And I can remember just this last fall my feeling…
Read More

Good morning, Galilee…

Greetings, one and all, from the shores of the Sea of Galilee.  After a very long day of travel (well, more than a day), I am here safe and sound, and, after a great dinner and a decent night’s sleep, I am ready for our first day of exploration.  It is hard to call it sightseeing and I don’t feel quite holy enough or at the moment theological enough to refer to it as a pilgrimage. But what I can tell you is that I am here…and true to form, I feel nothing that I expected to feel.  As usual, it took some sleep and a little exercise to bring…
Read More

A pilgrimage…of sorts

Lately, I have been very interested in a way of thinking that is often referred to as the "ancient-future" view of Christianity, one that seeks to recover what we know and can know of the ways of those first Christians, struggling in faith, struggling to live together before the creation of the institution that we know as "church", and to take that knowledge and use it to forge a way of Christian living in the 21st century.  It is this view of faith that has led to such movements as the New Monasticism, among others. I however, have been approaching this interest, not by moving into a big house with…
Read More

The bus will always be a part of me…

Saturday morning began our long journey from the Holy Land back to the places where we all began this journey, and, true to the spirit of the trip, we made use of every available moment that remained to us before we boarded our flight to the U.S.  We began the day  by visiting the Herodium, the tomb Herod built for himself on his self-made mountain, then saw the model version of Jerusalem and had a too-short visit to the amazing Israeli Museum,  a stop at the Garden Tomb and a closing communion service, followed by a visit to the Tomb of Lazarus in Bethany, a walk along the Mediterranean at…
Read More

Living the dream…

Each day on our journey here in Israel has been, for me, a day of dream fulfillment.  But none so much as the last two days, and in particular today.   I can still see the room where the orientation meeting for my first try at going to Israel was held at the University of Missouri - Kansas City when I was 20 years old -- I can see Dr. Schulz and Dr. Klausner talking about what the trip would be like.  And I can remember the feeling of disappointment when the trip was cancelled for some reason that I do not recall.  And I can remember just this last fall my feeling…
Read More

Good morning, Galilee…

Greetings, one and all, from the shores of the Sea of Galilee.  After a very long day of travel (well, more than a day), I am here safe and sound, and, after a great dinner and a decent night’s sleep, I am ready for our first day of exploration.  It is hard to call it sightseeing and I don’t feel quite holy enough or at the moment theological enough to refer to it as a pilgrimage. But what I can tell you is that I am here…and true to form, I feel nothing that I expected to feel.  As usual, it took some sleep and a little exercise to bring…
Read More

A pilgrimage…of sorts

Lately, I have been very interested in a way of thinking that is often referred to as the "ancient-future" view of Christianity, one that seeks to recover what we know and can know of the ways of those first Christians, struggling in faith, struggling to live together before the creation of the institution that we know as "church", and to take that knowledge and use it to forge a way of Christian living in the 21st century.  It is this view of faith that has led to such movements as the New Monasticism, among others. I however, have been approaching this interest, not by moving into a big house with…
Read More

The bus will always be a part of me…

Saturday morning began our long journey from the Holy Land back to the places where we all began this journey, and, true to the spirit of the trip, we made use of every available moment that remained to us before we boarded our flight to the U.S.  We began the day  by visiting the Herodium, the tomb Herod built for himself on his self-made mountain, then saw the model version of Jerusalem and had a too-short visit to the amazing Israeli Museum,  a stop at the Garden Tomb and a closing communion service, followed by a visit to the Tomb of Lazarus in Bethany, a walk along the Mediterranean at…
Read More

Living the dream…

Each day on our journey here in Israel has been, for me, a day of dream fulfillment.  But none so much as the last two days, and in particular today.   I can still see the room where the orientation meeting for my first try at going to Israel was held at the University of Missouri - Kansas City when I was 20 years old -- I can see Dr. Schulz and Dr. Klausner talking about what the trip would be like.  And I can remember the feeling of disappointment when the trip was cancelled for some reason that I do not recall.  And I can remember just this last fall my feeling…
Read More

Good morning, Galilee…

Greetings, one and all, from the shores of the Sea of Galilee.  After a very long day of travel (well, more than a day), I am here safe and sound, and, after a great dinner and a decent night’s sleep, I am ready for our first day of exploration.  It is hard to call it sightseeing and I don’t feel quite holy enough or at the moment theological enough to refer to it as a pilgrimage. But what I can tell you is that I am here…and true to form, I feel nothing that I expected to feel.  As usual, it took some sleep and a little exercise to bring…
Read More

A pilgrimage…of sorts

Lately, I have been very interested in a way of thinking that is often referred to as the "ancient-future" view of Christianity, one that seeks to recover what we know and can know of the ways of those first Christians, struggling in faith, struggling to live together before the creation of the institution that we know as "church", and to take that knowledge and use it to forge a way of Christian living in the 21st century.  It is this view of faith that has led to such movements as the New Monasticism, among others. I however, have been approaching this interest, not by moving into a big house with…
Read More