Butterflies

From Holy Land

There are two spots in Jerusalem that people visit as sites of Jesus’ death and burial. One is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which is the traditional site. Today, the church is home to Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism. The church is very crowded and dark and hard to get a feel for what might have happened here. Below is a picture of the stone where they believe Jesus’ body was prepared for burial.

From Holy Land

The Garden Tomb is a more recently promoted site. It too can make a good case that it was actually where Jesus died and was buried but what is better about this site is that it has been restored to look and feel like it might have been in 33 AD. You can actually walk into a burial cave and see where a stone would have covered it. You can see a skull in the stone formations near by and it was obviously once a garden (which is why the Mary’s thought Jesus was a gardener).

This was one of our last stops on the trip so we decided to partake in Holy Communion while we were there. As our liturgist was reading the service, I looked around at the beautiful garden. I prayed for my friends and family, particularly one who had asked for healing who was heavy on my heart that morning.

As I looked over toward the rocky side of the tomb, I could see the shadow of the flowers from the garden. And for just a brief second I saw the shadow of a butterfly. I’d been looking for a butterfly for my friend the entire trip and found it here at the site of the resurrection. I knew in that moment my friend would be ok. Jesus would pull her through and that our bond was brought together by God so that we could hold each other up.

On the way out I found what I had been looking for: butterfly note cards. I bought them for her to let her know that healing is always nearby if we just reach out and ask for it.

Until Everyone Hears,