A Holy Land Pilgrimage Day 5
When we ask our pilgrims what places
in the Holy Land have made an indelible impact on them, often they mention the
Wilderness of Judea. Some countries have vast deserts, but Judea’s is fairly
small. Still, it is desolate, affording little vegetation except for scrubby
sage and the occasional glimpse of a gazelle. Bedouin still tend their flocks
and live in shanty dwellings among the camel-colored hills. We don’t know
exactly where Jesus spent the forty days and
nights after his baptism, but Christian tradition says it was here.
When St George’s College pilgrims follow our Lord
into the Judean Wilderness we speak first about the early centuries of
Christian monasticism, some of whose 5th century buildings are still inhabited by
faithful monks. Then we read the gospel accounts of Jesus’ fast and temptations
during the forty days. Finally, we enter into silence to meditate as our senses
are stripped bare by the landscape and our hearts are more attuned to listen
what God is saying to us. Some monastics call their monasteries “deserts” even
in rainy climes, for a desert can be a place of encountering God when all other
distractions are gently let go. In these waning days of Lent, where is your
desert? What is God saying to your heart?