| We were following the traditional
Via Dolorosa, the Way of the Cross, which marks the fourteen Stations
of the Cross where Jesus is supposed to have stopped as he made
his way from his trial to his crucifixion and death.
This is, of course, associated with Roman Catholic piety, and
each Friday the Franciscan friars lead a pilgrimage along this
route for the Catholic faithful. This was a Tuesday, however,
and we were dutifully following our guide, a Korean pastor who
is also a doctoral student at the Hebrew University.
Then, without warning, came the haunting call to prayer from
the minaret of a nearby mosque. While Palestinian shopkeepers
closed for prayer, we walked on singing a hymn together and stopping
at small Catholic churches and shrines along the way. As we walked
along, it suddenly struck us that this was a moment of ecumenical
grace. Here we were, a group of Korean Presbyterians following
a pilgrimage route set up by and for Roman Catholics. We were
singing a gospel hymn even while listening to the Muslim call
to prayer. All of this was taking place in Old Jerusalem at the
very center of Jewish religious history and life. And somehow,
at that moment, and in that place, these religious differences
seemed to lose their significance. What was taking place seemed
to make perfect sense, for this was, after all, the Holy City
where Jews, Christians of all traditions, and Muslims have lived
and worshiped together for centuries. As we look back on that
moment of ecumenical grace all we can say is "Thanks be to
God."
And now once again we come to the Christmas season. Even as we
visited the Holy Land there were terrorist bombings in the Philippines
and in Bali, a suicide bus bombing in Israel, a hostage crisis
in a Moscow theater, a series of sniper shootings in the Washington,
D.C., area, and the gathering clouds of war in Iraq. It seems
as if moments of grace are all too rare these days, and yet at
Christmas we celebrate what is the most meaningful moment of grace
of all—"The Word became a human being, and full of grace
and truth, lived among us."
There is not much good news these days, and so we cherish those
moments of grace which come our way, whether through a former
student in Athens, or through a pilgrimage walk in the Old City
of Jerusalem with our current students. We realize too, that these
moments of grace came our way only because God came and lived
among us as a human being full of grace and truth. May we share
this moment of grace with our world and may we be open to those
moments of grace which, from time to time, come our way.
At this Christmas and New Year season we wish you the best of
God's grace and blessing!
Faithfully in mission,
Carol Chou Adams / Daniel J. Adam
The 2002 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, page
181 |
