Our final day in Israel was spent in the garden tomb. This is the non traditional site that many evangelicals believe could have been the actual place of Jesus' burial. Those who have bought into this idea point to a mountain face that is not far from here that looks very much like a human skull, which would explain why it was called "golgotha"- the place of the skull. And indeed it does look like a skull. You can stand at the edge of the garden site and stare at the rock face and see clearly what looks like two eye sockets, a nose and mouth. Maybe this was not the original place of the skull, but it certainly looks like it now.
That mountain today overlooks a very busy transit bus station and ironically is an ancient Muslim burial ground where many of the "heroes" from the siege of Jerusalem by Salidin in 1187 are buried. A huge stone fence was recently erected around the site that now stands above the skull with a newly in-scripted sign that reads "There is only one God and Muhammad is his prophet" in Arabic.
There is little doubt in my mind that this sign has been deliberately placed there as a way to send a message to the tens of thousands of Christian believers who flock to the Garden Tomb every year. They have put their fence at the very place where many Christians believe Jesus might have been crucified.
Our guide explains to us that this place was uncovered in the 19th century by the British explorer General Charles Gordon, who first reported seeing a rock face that was shaped like a skull. After digging around the area subsequent excavations uncovered a beautifully intact first century tomb that was surrounded by many indicators pointing to a first century garden. For instance, there is a large wine press and wine storage that indicates that this was once a garden for a very wealthy family. All of that evidence squares nicely with the biblical account found in John 19:41:
"Now near the place of the skull was a garden and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid."
The entire garden is beautifully manicured by British evangelicals who have constructed several areas for groups to come here and worship and meditate and enjoy the grounds. Unfortunately on the day we were here the weather did not cooperate. In fact, at one point we were hit with heavy rain and even small hail. But the weather cleared up enough for us to spend time at the tomb and see the grounds.
I really want this to be the place they say it is. My head tells me the actual spot is probably at the traditional site at the goddy Church of the Sepulcher, but my heart tells me it could be here. My heart wants it to be here. It is peaceful where the traditional church is chaotic. Seven different denominations regularly fight over various parts of the Church of the Sepulcher. The fiasco is so out of control that years ago the Israeli government stepped in and gave the keys to the building to a Muslim family to take the responsibility of opening the place up.
But this place is quiet. It is worshipful and serene.
We spent about thirty minutes in a small chapel for a time of worship and participating together in the Lord's Supper. We shared together what aspects of the trip really touched us. It was interesting to hear how various sites along the way had impacted people differently. It reminded me that we are all very different but one body. We were all one group experiencing this trip at the same time and the same places and yet each individual had their own very personal and significant experience with the Lord. Our group was very diverse and from many different walks of life and ages and personalities, and yet we really had formed a community together and very much enjoyed a special kind of unity. It reminded me of the insignia that has been found on the outside of the garden tomb that dates back to the fourth or fifth century A.D. It is believed that some early believers must have met here and perhaps even had some kind of church or chapel near the tomb. The insignia was carved into the rock face of the tomb- a cross made into the shape of an anchor. Those early believers used this symbol as a kind of confession. They had come to see that the crucifixion event as being like an anchor. It is I think a direct correlation of Hebrews 6:19:
We have this hope as an anchor for our soul, firm and secure... our forerunner Jesus has entered on our behalf..."
This cross, this empty tomb, this truth we bear witness to by coming here and seeing it for ourself, has become for us an anchor of hope. Of all the symbols I have seen graven into stone here in Israel, this is my favorite.
In our group we have many who have suffered terrible loss. Some who had recently lost loved ones. A couple of recent widows; two young adults still reeling from the loss of their father; a cancer survivor; a family whose grandparents recently died and left them the money to go on this trip; an elderly couple who recently buried their son.
And that is the reality that anchors our soul.
Prayer from the garden tomb: Lord God you have taken us on a remarkable journey these past 10 days together. We have seen wonderful and beautiful places that are that way to us because this is the land that you chose to enter in so that we could find a way. We have come here to retrace your steps and yet we have found something more. We have seen that these places are not the thing itself, but are particularly significant to us because they remind us of that thing. They point us to what is most important to us. And that is that you came to this earth and walked on this ground and lived among men and died a sinners death on a bloody cross and with that most significant event in human history you entered in where none of us could. And because you were willing to walk the walk we should have walked and die the death we should have died and take the curse we should have taken, we are given the right to be called the righteousness of God. It is that reality that has become for us an anchor to our soul, the grounds for our faith. Amen.
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