December 2003

From the Far Side

Dear Friends,

Greetings and blessings from the Middle East during this season of great joy! From our family to yours, we hope and pray that the joy of Jesus Christ’s birth is within your households at this time of the year.

Every month, I try to bring to you some insight into our lives and the lives of peoples here. To say the least, the life here is not an easy one. With the political and social problems of the Middle East always in the forefront of our minds and prayers, I often feel the need to share this reality. However, this month, I thought that we need not focus on the misery which seems to incorporate life here. Instead, I thought I would share about something that brings us great joy: the birthplace of Christ.

As I write this letter to you, I sit in the cave where Christ was born in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, which has been a pilgrimage site for Christians for two thousand years. Many in the West think that Bethlehem is a little town in the middle of the desert. In reality, the town of Bethlehem sits on the top of mountains and is today a city of about 50,000 people. The whole city is built around the Church of the Nativity.

We begin our walk through the square in front of the Church of the Nativity, which is filled with people on their way to and from. In front of the church are cobblestones that were placed there farther back than anyone currently here can remember. When we get to the door of the church, we must bend down so as not to hit our heads on the frame. It was made low so that people could not ride their horses and donkeys into the church.

We go down steps into the cave. There, crosses were carved into the stone entrance by Crusaders on their most holy of crusades. The door frame itself is white marble several hundred years old. We walk down steps and come upon a curtained altar. Under that altar is a star born into stone. Around that hole is a brass star that marks the exact place of Christ’s birth. The smell is of an incense that we rarely smell in the United States, perhaps only on Christmas, if we are lucky. The walls are blackened from years of candles burning. If you concentrate and open yourself up, you can feel the presence of angels. There is a cool air coming in from outside, which makes you wonder how it must have been during that night that the Christ child was born.

The cave itself is not a large space, but it was a good size for a shelter during the cold winters here. It is about 30 feet in length and 8 feet wide. There are lots of candles and oil lamps lit and many unlit. A few tourists come in and take their pictures, oohing and ahing. I wonder if these people really understand the significance of this holy place or if it is just another tourist spot for them to visit on their tour. A priest comes in and lights some candles and sits down next to me and opens up his Bible and begins to read, he turns and looks at me and smiles. He knows the significance of this place. A local Palestinian Christian comes in and bends down on hands and knees and kisses the spot of His birth. She too knows the significance of this spot. You feel a presence here that can not be explained. Granted, the holiness of the place is real, but the history is living here as well. It’s all so fulfilling.

Leaving the cave, we go up a set of steps on the opposite side from where we entered. In the church itself there are altars for the Armenian, Assyrian, and Coptic Orthodox denominations. All are richly decorated with hand-sewn curtains and hand-painted icons. It’s a place that everyone should visit if they have the opportunity.

We leave the church the same way that we came in and feel fortunate for this visit. At this time of the year, our focus and prayers are on Bethlehem and on the life in Christ that began at this spot. Aren’t we blessed?

With Many Blessings at Christmas,

Chris, Hala, Nadiim & Adeeb

The 2004 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 318, 321, 323