"Far, far away on Judea's plains,Shepherds of old heard the joyous strains:
Glory to God, Glory to God,
Glory to God in the highest;
Peace on earth, goodwill to men,
Peace on earth, goodwill to men!" -John Menzies Macfarlane
The Shepherd's Fields outside Bethlehem was our first stop in Israel (on Christmas Eve no less)! It's pretty amazing to be standing in the fields that Bedouin shepherds heard the angels sing of the birth of the newborn Baby Jesus.
And, worth noting that with Jerusalem in the backdrop, many people would have heard the angels chorus but it was the lowly shepherds who heard the voices and went. Many others in the city of Jerusalem would also have heard but not bothered (too busy, not interested, etc.). Do I listen and follow or hear but just carry on? Can I learn something from the shepherds?
We wandered through Jaffa Gate last night, our first venture into Jerusalem's Old City. We happened upon an Armenian Eucharist Mass on Christmas Eve (a cool coincidence) and watched some of their processional, steeped in tradition. After leaving the Old City we found a fancy kosher restaurant with great middle eastern dishes for a delicious Christmas Eve dinner!
It's wonderful to experience the Holy Land, but especially at Christmas!
