Sunday, November 02, 2008

First evening in Jerusalem - Garden of Gethsemane


We arrived in Jerusalem at sundown. After a quick panoramic view of the city from the top of the Mount of Olives, we drove down to the Garden of Gethsemane before it closed.

Gethsemane means olive press, and this garden is on the route between Bethany and Jerusalem, so churches have been built on this site since the fifth century as the site of the Garden of Gethsemane mentioned in the Bible - where Jesus went to pray after the Last Supper, the site of his betrayal and arrest.

Several of the olive trees in the garden have trunks 5-6 feet in diameter, so scientists estimate they could be 2,000 years old.

It was very powerful to pray in the Garden like Jesus did so long ago.

No comments: