Tom & Sue 2016 personal pilgrimage

Bonjourno:
Today is a travel day and we all got up by 5 AM, skipped breakfast, just coffee……we can eat at the airport in the lounge. We were down stairs waiting for our ride, which was late, so I asked this gentleman if I could use his  phone and pay him so thatI could call our driver.  He dialed the phone forme and as I got Tarek on the phone, he pulled  up.  We loaded the van and 40 minutes later we were checking in for our flight. It was a beautiful morning for a bus ride to the plane, again and  we knew we would be doing the same in Rome.

The highlight of our trip was a beautiful little 7-year-old girl sitting behind Susan and me.  Her name was Katia and she was just in Jerusalem with her parents looking for a cure for her.  They  went thru a barrage of tests, hoping she qualified for a new study for her  condition. She couldn’t speak, but her eyes said it all and she stole our  hearts.  She didn’t like the food they gave, her so Susan gave her her pasta and mom fed her and she ate it all. We joked with her and laughed. She held our hands which, her mom and dad were surprised, because she doesn’t ever do that. Katia understands and her mom says she communicates with her eyes and she knows what she needs.   The love that we could see and feel from Katia’s parents for her is hard to describe.  The patience and  tenderness of their caring for Katia …the calmness in their demeanors … the  spirit of their “hopes” for a cure and their dedication to their beautiful  daughter was an inspiration to us.

Katia even took our picture with the help of her dad and we got pictures with her.  We prayed over her and blessed her and told mom and dad that she was going to be on our intention list forever, praying for a cure  and a normal life for this little princess.

We  exchanged e-mail addresses and Katia was so happy that we were going to send pictures and write to her.  Words cannot describe how Susan and I felt about this  little “Angel”.  When you meetsomeone like this dear little Katia … I  think it is important to always remember her when things are not going the way one would like in life … what could we possibly have to complain about if this little girl who has no control over her body can smile and smile and smile as if she has not a worry in the world … just incredible and a true “lesson in life”! 

Please help us to Pray for Little Katia and her  parents.

Getting off the plane in Rome was the same, the bus to the terminal and customs which took no time at all.  Our driver was waiting for us and in less than an hour we were in our apartment after we found Alessandra, the owner, which took a few phone calls.

The apartment was great and big and belonged to Alessandra’s  mother and she rents it out for extra income.  The girls unpacked, and Sam and I went shopping for supplies at the large supermarket across the  street.  It took us 1½ hrs to figure out the store and get everything we would need for dinnertonight and breakfast in the morning and some snacks and wine and water and so on.

We had so many bags we had to stop every 100 ft to rest and we only  had a ½ block to go, uphill. UGH!

We relaxed in the evening, said our rosary and prayers for all of you, and made it to bed fairly early for our next day adventure.

May God continue to bless all of you,
Love Susan, Tom and the Kids

Mary, Help of Those in  Need

Holy  Mary,
help those in need,
give strength to the weak,
comfort the  sorrowful,
pray for God’s people,
assist the clergy,
intercede for  religious.
Mary all who seek  your help
experience your unfailing  protection.
Amen.

May God Bless Each and Every One Of You!

Tom &  Susan Melillo
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (USA)

E-Mail:

_TSMelillo13@aol.com_ (mailto:TSMelillo13@aol.com)

 

 

Shalom:

Today is our last day in Israel….boy did the time go by fast. We were invited this morning by Father Eamon Kelly, a friend of Deacon John’s, that Susan has been communicating with, to 7:00 AM English mass at the Holy Sepulcher on Calvary and to breakfast after at the Notre Dame Hotel and center.  This was perfect since Susan and I had a meeting with the Latin Patriarch, the head of the Knights of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher, at 8:15 to receive our Pilgrim Shell as a Knight and Lady of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher (thank  you John H. … we are most grateful!).

So we were up again  before 6:00 AM to try to find a cab to bring us there.  It’s only a 20 minute walk but none of us were really ready for that, especially when it only cost $5 or $ 6 for the 4  of us in a cab.  With the invitation, I got out of cooking again, to the delight of all since the tuna and peanut butter were still on the counter. It took awhile to  find a cab and we had started walking just in case.

We arrived at the Damascus gate since that was the shortest walk with no steps to the Holy Sepulcher and we got there in time to venerate the unction stone and say a few prayers.  The earlier mass finished and we climbed up to Calvary, I can’t imagine carrying a heavy cross up there when I have pull myself up by the rails.  We got the seats we had the other day and sat as two Priests entered.  Fr. Kelly went right up to Sam, said hello and introduced himself, and went down the line to all of us.  Sam look perplexed since he didn’t know that Father was getting the trip reports and photos.

Again, being here in this holy place was overwhelming and was even more special as Father asked if I would read when it came time.  We stood together and he showed me the readings and psalm and asked if Susan wanted to do the second reading…..that wasn’t going to happen, so I got to read them  all.

Somehow, reading at mass back at the Cathedral will never be the same. Father Kelly walked with us to the Latin Patriarch’s headquarters so we wouldn’t get lost or be late again as we missed our appointment on Friday. Sam and Johna got to come up with us  as Father Kelly went to the chapel to pray.

Bishop Williams came  to meet us after we were given our capes and were ready for the ceremony.  He was wonderful, and as we sat there and talked, coffee was served with some great chocolates. He then got up and blessed Susan and I in the ceremony that several of you may have done.

It was very special and when we were having coffee he explained how important the support of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher was to Jerusalem, not only for the Care of the Holy Sepulcher its self  but for all the programs and education that benefit from the money the Knights  raise and send here.

When we were done we met Father Kelly, he waited for us because he wanted to make sure we didn’t get  lost. (If he only knew how many times we have been lost-but we always manage to  get to where we were going.)  His schedule was tight and he wanted to spend some time with us so we went to the Notre Dame Center and hotel and had a wonderful breakfast with him.  He’s is very funny in dry sense of humor  way.  When he says something you have to pay attention or you end up scratching your head.

After breakfast we  went to the chapel to meet up with him again (very busy as Vicar General).  He explained the chapel and we went up to the roof, where you can see almost all of Jerusalem.  From one side you face the Old City and as we were there he gave us a 3 minute explanation of the bible……..from before Moses, when he arrived with the chosen people of God to their land of Milk and  Honey.  It was all within 5 miles of  where we stood and was quite interesting.

From there we went to the Shroud of Turin exhibit and he also gave us a quick tour and chronology of the Shroud. (See Photos) Father was pressed for time and we bid farewell. We were  going to go back to the Old City but decided to go back to the Apartment to finish packing and getting organized for themorning.  Again up at 4:30 to meet Tarek our driver to the airport.

Johna and I went to the mini market for a few things.  We ate in, too tired to go out and went to bed early.  See you in Rome.

Bona  Serra.
May our Lord Jesus  answer all your prayers and petitions.

God Bless all of  you
Susan & Tom &  the Kids
Sub Tuum Praesidum

We fly to thy  patronage, O holy Mother of God;
Despise not our petitions in our  necessities, but deliver us always from
all dangers,
O glorious and blessed Virgin.
Amen.

May God Bless Each and Every One Of You!

Tom &  Susan Melillo
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (USA)

E-Mail:

_TSMelillo13@aol.com_ (mailto:TSMelillo13@aol.com

 

 

Bonjurno……..I’m out of here (but not yet).

Practicing for the next stop, ROME.  We leave tomorrow morning at  6:00 AM, but I am getting ahead of myself again.

This is Sunday morning and we got up again at 5:30 to get to the 7:30 mass on the Mount of Olives.  We weren’t sure how long it would take to get a cab. Everyone passed on breakfast, as I had 2 cans of tuna on the counter as well as the peanut butter. Now I  know how to get out of cooking!

We went to the Pater Noster Church, which was closed on Sunday, but the Carmelite Nuns had Mass in their chapel there.

They are cloistered, so we were in the side section of the chapel with three other people and we made it just in time. We brought our readings with us, so Mass in French was beautiful and meaningful.   After we lit candles and prayed for your intentions, we were locked in and finally found our way out.

We went up the hill to the Dome of the Ascension of Jesus into Heaven.  In the rock there, it is said that the imprint is from the foot of Our Lord.  Pretty awesome thought, as we all had the chance to lay our hands upon it in reverence to our Lord.

From there we proceeded down the mountain to the next stop, Dominus Flevit Church, where Jesus wept over the fate and future destruction of Jerusalem. This little teardrop-shaped church (the shape recalls Christ’s grief), offers a panoramic view of Jerusalem and is halfway down the Mount. This event took place on the first Palm Sunday, during Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, when crowds threw their cloaks and palms on the road in front of him and shouted  “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord”.  Walking down this Mount was no easy task….at least we were smart enough to start at the top.

After  leaving, further down we came to the spot where Jesus had to wake the three Apostles, Peter, James and John, as they fell asleep out of grief while Jesus was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane just a short walk away.  The Garden area is still well preserved  and the olive trees date back to the12th century, but all eight trees are possible descendants of one that was in the Garden at the time of Christ and that tree  would have been 2300 years old.  The  historian Flavis Josephus reports that all the trees were cut down by the Romans for their siege equipment before they captured and destroyed the city in A.D.  70.

We went  into the tomb at The Church of all Nations where the rock that Jesus is believed to have prayed on the night before he was crucified where his sweat became like  great drops of blood falling down to the ground. We got to venerate the stone. Surreal and beautiful!!!

Access to the rest of the grotto was closed, but we did get a picture.We back-tracked from there to the Church of the Assumption and the tomb of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Off to the right not far from the tomb and next to the closed area of Gethsemane is a chapel where Judas betrayed Jesus and he was  taken away. We did that first, since I thought we would spend sometime in the church with Our Blessed Mother.

As we  entered the tomb of Mary, I didn’t know how I would feel. I brought an extra handkerchief just in case. We climbed down the 50 steps into the crypt area, which has three altars, all small and with many depictions of the life of Jesus Mary and Joseph. A niche altar half way down is dedicated to Anneand Joachim, Mary’s parents.  The large crypt that remains at the bottom, containing the empty tomb, is all that remains of a 5th century church, making it possibly the oldest near-completed religious building in Jerusalem.

The tomb resembles the Holy Sepulchre where Jesus was laid to rest. There is a small opening for both entry and exit.  Inside the crypt, cut mostly into solid rock, is dark.  The smell of incense fills the air and the ceiling is blackened by centuries of candle smoke. To the right of the tomb as you enter is a small alcove seat. (I think it’s for the Angel that protects the holy site).  After kneeling and  praying I asked him to move and sat there with my right hand on the small edicule and contemplated the life of the Blessed Mother.  Like Her Son’s crypt, this was not a sad place, for her body remained there only the same amount time as Jesus laid in the  tomb and the body was then assumed into heaven the same hour as the Resurrection of Jesus. (From The Mystical City of God)  There was a great peace there and I could have stayed for hours.   More  people came so we went over to 4 chairs that were waiting for us and prayed the Rosary. What better place than this?

We  climbed back up and tried to get a cab for the short ride to Mount Zion, two miles  away.  Neither of the two taxi’s sitting there wanted to take us.  Finally, this one driver got us a cab and as we got in he said 60 shekels for a normal 20 shekel ride.  I told  the driver 20, he said 50, and I said I will report you and he said 25. I said OK…..he said don’t be so nervous.  I  said you shouldn’t try to rip people off. He said don’t be so nervous.  He took us to the cenacle and asked if he should wait and we negotiated him waiting and taking us back to the apartment.  100 shekels ($25) not bad, this ain’t New York.

The cenacle is a building outside the Zion gate and is accessed by a neighboring  building, up an enclosed staircase and across an open terrace………..and is almost empty of adornment and furnishing.  In the cenacle two major events in the history of The Church took place: the last Supper and the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles.  It is close to the Church of Dormition, where the Blessed Mother died or “fell asleep” as the name suggests.  The cenacle is not universally accepted as the site of the upper room. Now, I believe that they should be one and the same, since in the Mystical City of God, that is how it is explained by the Blessed mother herself. So we missed the cenacle and went to the church.

Below the main church is the room where the Blessed Mother stayed and used during the last supper and waited for the Resurrection of Her Son.  She spent all but 2 years of the 22  years she remained on earth in this place.  It was here that Jesus appeared to her after His Resurrection and here where she prepared the Apostles for the coming of the Holy Spirit. ( I am sure some of our priest friends may not agree, so I suggest you read the book and decide for yourself.)

Again,  this was a special place, and during our visit a woman with an angelic voice sang  the “Ave Maria”.  Everyone had tears flowing; it was so beautiful and appropriate.  We lit candles and prayed for all our intentions and left wondering if our driver had waited for us or gave up without  any money.  But he was there and got  us close to our apartment.

Today was Jerusalem day (national holiday commemorating the reunification of Jerusalem and the establishment of Israeli control over the Old City in the aftermath of the June 1967) and the streets were closing and traffic was impossible but we made it back and for dinner.

Sam and Johna went to our favorite restaurant and got 2 pizzas. We dined in, watched all the youth march by and went to bed early for  tomorrow’s adventure.

Editor’s note:  We have put these photos of the parade in here because of the importance of the Jews re-claiming Jerusalem and its relation to prophecy.

 

Now it’s time to write up my trip report for the day….hope you are enjoying traveling with us.

We are keeping all of you in our prayers.

 

 

(Thanks Fr. Eamon for the heads up)
Ciao
May God  Bless all of you and the grace and peace of Christ rest in your heart.
Love
Susan  & Tom and the Kids
MY FATHER, IF IT BE  POSSIBLE, LET THIS CUP PASS FROM ME:  NEVERTHELESS NOT
AS I WILL, BUT AS THOU WILT.
Matthew  26:39

 

 

 

 

Boker  tov (again):

I say again, because I had this trip report done and lost it, so “play it again Sam”.

I made peanut butter sandwiches for breakfast. I am really wowing them with my culinary talent!  We were running late and our guide and driver was probably down stairs waiting for us. Rami was our Guide and Tarek our driver.  Rami was highly recommended  and as our trip progressed we knew we had made a good choice.

We got thru the  border without being stopped, while it took Rami almost one hour to come thru to  get us. Bethlehem is only 5  miles from our Apartment, in Palestine. Lots of rules here. Tarek pulled into a  parking lot right in front of the Church of the Nativity.  There weren’t any busses yet and only a few cars, which was unusual.

 

We had to bend to get in the church which is under renovation and not very impressive  at first glance.  We stopped at the  pillar of intentions, where you put your fingers in the five holes embedded there.  We all did (Sam had to get  help LOL) and prayed for all of you.  Rami got us to the entrance of the grotto almost in front of the Cave entrance where Jesus was born. There were a few people in the line in front of us and a few that started to fill in behind us to enter the Grotto.  The steps down into the Grotto are very steep and dark and dangerous.  Some people began to try  to jockey for a better position to attempt to get closer to the front of the line. As we were led in and proceeded down the stone steps, this big man behind us was trying to push ahead  of us and started to fall.  If  Susan, Sam and I had not caught him … he would have sky-rocketed down the steps and knocked all of us and everyone in front of us down along his way!  He wasn’t even apologetic, but he did wait his turn after all!

When you reach the  bottom and enter the Grotto through a small alcove and into a chamber where,  immediately on the right, is an Altar with an opening below it with a beautiful  star inlayed in the ground floor to mark the spot where Our Savior, Jesus Christ, was born.  Three people were kneeling down when we arrived.  We assumed that they were venerating the stone.  Instead, they were just under the Altar talking to each other and taking photos (ugh!).  The guard had to finally come and demand them to get up. Another man behind was yelling to the three people and, when they left, he pushed his way in front of us so that he, too, could take some photos.  This man departed without even reverencing the site … so much for reverence and Love of  Christ.

We then took our turns kneeling under the Altar and venerating this most Sacred Area where Christ was Born.  I don’t know about the others, but it was an experience that I cannot explain in words quite yet.  It was difficult to leave the area after such a short stay, but the lines had become long and, out of respect for others,  we moved on.

We were standing just  past the Grotto speaking with our guide Rami as he explained that the area in front of the Grotto of the Birth of Our Lord (about 15 feet away), there was  another step-down alcove.  This was where Jesus’ Manger had been that Jesus was laid in his Manger and watched over by Our Blessed Mother. By that time, the Shrine was jammed as Sam and I went over to try to take a peak.  People were pushing and shoving trying  to get in and out of this second Grotto Altar.  We decided to stand and wait until a small group of people inside were finished and we just might have a chance to go in and Pray, even though it might have been for a very short period of  time.

As we stood there, a  guard came and made everyone leave the Alcove of the Manger and this younger Priest with an elderly woman were escorted down the steps and into the Alcove near an Altar.  The Priest placed  his Chalice on the table and began preparing for Mass.  He sat his mother on a rock bench directly  next to the Manger where we found out later Our Blessed Mother
sat  while watching and caring for the Baby Child, Jesus, after his  birth. Since there was no  one else in front of us, we asked the Priest if it was at all possible for the four of us to join him for Mass along with his Mother and, in perfect English, he  said “of course”.  I ran back and  told Rami that we were going to attend Mass and I grabbed Susan and Johna to rush them into the Alcove.  Rami  looked “clueless”.

Johna and Susan sat on a stone wall directly in front of the Manger.  Sam and I sat on the entrance in and  entrance out steps.  There was  barely enough room for the Priest to turn around as we all stood and he began  Mass. The pushing and  shoving began again with people trying to snap photos andenter the Alcove  during Mass (with no room left).  They were speaking loudly and very irreverent.  Unwilling to accept the fact that they  could not get in, they got rowdier and rowdier … Sam and I have the footprints on our backs to prove it (LOL).  Sam  played “Usher” and turned around and scoldedeveryone.  The guard came over and finally quelled  the crowd and the noise. I  saw a small smile on the Priest’s face.  Mass continued, giving us an opportunity, now, to realize where we were and the great honor and “gift” we had just received by being able to attend Mass in this Sacred Place of the Birth of Our Lord, Jesus  Christ. Three of the biggest  offenders of the bedlam that had ensued actuallystayed on the steps of the Alcove for the remainder of the Mass and very respectfully participated in the Mass.  Father accommodated them for  Communion by breaking the Hosts to provide enough for  them. Father’s Mother did the readings in Spanish (we learned they were from Argentina).  I think it was the only time during the  Mass that constant tears were not flowing from her eyes as she sat on the rock  bench of Our Blessed Mother who had watched over our Lord … as this lovely woman watched her son celebrate Holy Mass in this Sacred Place.

The experience was  different for all of us, I am certain, as our minds and hearts could not really  grasp what was happening or what had just happened.  After Mass was completed, we hugged the  Priest and his Mother and took photos (of course).  We learned that the Priest’s Mom has been suffering with Parkinson’s Disease for 8 years and we promised her our Prayers on our Special Intention Prayer List.  Father was a very “holy man” with a very soft character and we could not thank him enough for the great honor he had bestowed upon us.

As we departed, we touched the walls of the Grotto knowing that many, many holy people, Popes &  Saints had been there before us (hoping some of it might rub off on us!).

We left the Grotto and Rami was there waiting for us.  He was amazed that we had been able to attend Mass … telling us that it  was very, very unusual for something like that to happen.  We felt Blessed.

Rami continued on with our tour.  At that point, the  four of us were
still “in another world” and just followed his lead to the Cave of St. Jerome. All I could think about was Mass at the Manger and the fact that The Holy Family had been there with Our Blessed Mother and Saint Joseph standing and sitting their caring for our Savior … not to mention receiving Communion in this Sacred Site … beyond  words of explanation even now.

The Cave of Saint Jerome was very interesting and we could not imaginesomeone living there as a hermit for 33 years.  However, his only job was totranslate the Bible and we thank him for that.

We departed the  Shrine and Rami & Tarek took us to Shepherd’s Field.  On the way, we stopped to see our friend, Rami’s (of Boca Raton and fellow Holy Sepulchre Knight) father, who lives in Bethlehem.  “Boca Rami” is the one who was gracious enough to assist us with all of our plans for the West Bank  … and we are grateful.

We shared words and laughs with his dad, who also played a key role in arranging this wonderful Palestinian and Ein Karemexperience for us.  We promised to see Rami’s dad again in  Boca Raton, Florida when he and his wife travel there to visit “Boca Rami” and  his family.

Shepherd’s Field  (which was just around the corner) is where the Angels announced the Birth of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, to the Shepherds in the Fields.  We walked the field and entered a cave  to see what it would have been like during that time. After our visit to the Field, we went to  the Religious Store to pick up a few mementos.

We decided that, at that point, it was time for a break and some lunch.  Rami walked us around a couple of streets until we reached this huge restaurant with tables the size of king-sized beds (well, maybe not quite that big) and cushioned bench chairs on all four  sides.  We didn’t look at a menu …at the direction of Rami, the food just started coming.  In total, about 20-25 different types of  salads, dips and breads that were placed on our table.  We said Grace and dug in.

When there were enough dishes to remove, a large (extra large) platter of grilled lamb, beef,  chicken, onions, tomatoes and French Fries arrived. Johna stuck with the salads since she  does not eat meat on Fridays. We saved her a “doggie bag” but Sam made a sandwich with it that night so poor Johna “lost out”. Rami ordered the  local drink … lemon juice, sugar, water and mint leaves…..it was delicious and we managed to finish the pitcher. The bill for the five  of us, with tip, was $300 Shekels (about $15.00 US per person). Incredible and everything was just outstanding.  (Not quite as good as our last trip to Krakow, but placed a close second!).

We decided to have  Rami take us to Ein Karem and headed out of Bethlehem for the 30 minute  drive.  Again, we cross over the Palestinian/Israeli border, but we were not stopped at the checkpoint.Tarek (our driver) pulled up to a side street and we hopped out.  We had to walk to the stairs of the walkway to the Church Shrine of the Visitation (Mary visits her cousin, Elizabeth).  Rami then informed us  that we had 133 steps to climb if we were “up to the task” and, of course, we  said “let’s go”.  Undaunted by the 95 degree weather and the sun beating down up us, we began our ascent to the Shrine.  I must say that it wasn’t  easy but it was well worth it!

The Lower Church of the Shrine of the Visitation is where Saint Elizabeth took St. John the Baptist during the Slaughter of the Innocents and it is believed that the large enclosed  rock in this Shrine which shows the indentation of a young baby is where the  Angels placed St. John to protect him.  The Upper Church of the Shrine is where Our Blessed Mother proclaimed the Magnificat, as the Sanctification of St. John the Baptist was conferred through the unborn Jesus Christ in Mary’s womb.

The four of us Prayed four decades of the Rosary in the Lower Church until a large group of pilgrims came in, so we went to the Upper Church to complete our Rosaries. Today, the word “Sacred” took on a whole new meaning for each of the four of us.  As we Prayed the Rosary, each decade became alivein our minds, our  hearts and our souls!

When we exited this Shrine, our faithful Rami was sitting there waiting for us and suggested that we walk to the Church of Saint John the Baptist, where he was born, and where Zachariah proclaimed his Canticle at the circumcision of Saint John the Baptist.   As we departed, going  down the steps was a lot easier. I had not realized that Rami was going to make us walk to this second Shrine.  He had told us that there were not a lot  of steps.  I told him that if there  were 10 or more, his tip for the day was gone … magically, there were 9 steps up and down into and out of the Shrine so the tip was safe … he lucked  out!

editor’s note: Tom is not really that mean….he would have given him the tip if turned out to be a hundred steps.

While in the Shrine,  we were Blessed to be able to venerate the spot where St. John the Baptist was  born … again with another symbol imbedded into the floor of the Shrine.  After spending some time in Prayer, we all felt it was time to return to our apartment … after a full and emotionally  charged day.

On the way home, we  asked Tarek to stop at an ATM because we didn’t have enough Shekels to pay them  (LOL).  If you ever come to The Holy  Land … be sure to bring US Dollars … they love our dollars here instead of  Shekels … wish I had known that. Tarek stopped at a Bank and I quickly crossed the street with no fighting of traffic because it was the Shabbat (Sabbath) and everything was closed (except for ATM machines).  Mission accomplished, we were safely returned to our apartment.  We shared words, hugged, thanks and said  our good-byes.  We hired Tarek to  return to pick us up on Tuesday very early in the morning to take us back to Tel  Aviv Airport.

We “floated” up the  stairs to our apartment … well, I actually “floated” taking the very small elevator since my leg was killing me from all of the walking and climbing.  Needless to say, it wasn’t over yet  !!!!

After drinking a lot  of water, Susan and I headed out to try to find a supermarket, if possible, to  pick up some supplies of food and drinks.  It was still the Shabbat and everything was closed, no cars on the streets and very, very few people walking.  We walked and walked and finally found a very small (and very expensive)  mini-market but at that point we didn’t care.  We had to buy enough supplies for the evening and get home and in our jammies with our shoes  off!

We had a delightful meal of “we don’t remember since I am writing this two days later”.  All I do remember is that we had  purchased a microwave package of Raman Noodles with Vegetables for Johna to eat,  Sam ate the leftovers from lunch and Susan and I finished Susan’s left-overs  from dinner the night before … a true “pilgrim’s gourmet extravaganza”!  At that point … and after I told Sam and Johna that we needed to leave for our destinations the next day before 6:00 A.M. in order to get to Mass … I thought that they were going to erupt and make the 6-Day War look calm!  However, when we told them we wanted to get to the Holy Sepulchre Mass for 7:00 A.M. morning  Mass, and what we were going to see, they calmed down and everyone got to bed early in  anticipation of the next day … Saturday.  Since Johna is always the first to awake in the mornings for her shower,  I gave her the alarm clock with instructions to get us all up by 5:00 A.M. (She  told us the next day that at 2:30 A.M., she began waking up every hour on the  hour to be sure she did not fail in her appointed duty to get us all up for fear  of missing Mass … thanks, Johna!).

Layla  Tov!

P.S.  Now you might understand how I felt this morning…….after having written this Trip Report, tried to finish this morning (Sunday) to get it out to all of you and all of a sudden IT DISAPPEARED OFF OF  MY SCREEN!  So after our return today, I began to re-write this Trip Report and Susan finally took over the  typing as I dictated. enjoy!

God Bless all of  you
Love
Susan, Tom and the  Kids
The Magnificat (Canticle of  Mary)

My soul proclaims the  greatness of the Lord, my spirit finds joy in God my
savior; for he has looked  upon His servant in her lowliness; all ages to
come shall call me blessed. God  who is mighty has done great things for me,
holy is His name; His mercy is from  age to age on those who fear Him. He
has shown might with His arm; He has  confused the proud in their inmost
thoughts. He has deposed the mighty from  their thrones and raised the lowly to
high places. The hungry He has given every  good thing, while the rich He has
sent empty away. He has upheld Israel his  servant, ever mindful of His
mercy; Even as He promised our fathers, promised  Abraham and His descendants
forever. Amen.

May God Bless Each and Every One Of You!

Tom &  Susan Melillo
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (USA)

E-Mail:
_TSMelillo13@aol.com_ (mailto:TSMelillo13@aol.com)

 

 

Boker Tov:

Just back from Bethlehem and a great story, but you have to wait, because today I will tell you about The sea of Galilee.

I made fried eggs for breakfast before we headed out for the day. Our first stop was the Mount of Beatitudes, site of The Sermon of the Mount, located just above Capernaum, Jesus’s home for a period of time.  The weather was beautiful and  driving was easy.

We arrived at the mount and not many tourists were around. This is  slow season over here. As we approached we were surprised at the size of the complex, which is a retreat center.  What a beautiful setting for that.  There is not much to see here but it was worth the trip.  The chapel was small andbeautiful and I got to kneel on the kneeler St. John Paul  II knelt on when he was here.  You could very easily picture Jesus  sitting on a rock and delivering the Sermon in these surroundings. The  peacefulness was extraordinary.

From here we drove down to Capernaum and the home of St. Peter. This is the place where Jesus cured the invalid and St. Peter’s mother.  The scriptures each day just become more alive with each place we go. Again the place was hard to explain, a mixture of ruins of the house of St. Peter and an old temple, which  was rebuilt twice, but you knew the whole place was very special.

We went down to the shore and found some beautiful stones to bring home, who knows……….Jesus could have walked on one! We sat under the trees, where the temperature was about15 degrees cooler, and just contemplated the life of Our  Lord.

Ten minutes away, we stopped at the church of St. Peter’s Primacy, called The Church of Mensa Christi, where Jesus appeared to the Apostles after His resurrection and had a fire and fish cooking for breakfast.  The stone in the church is believed to be the one that Our Lord sat on.  It was to overwhelming to venerate it. We lit a  candle for all of you.

Just a hundred meters away, we walked to the scene of the multiplication of the loves and fishes: there is a monastery there but poor signage.  It is shaped like an amphitheater with plenty of room for over 5000 people  that Jesus fed.

Our next stop was the Magdala Center where Mary Magdalene had her  home.  They are building a huge hotel welcome center for spiritual  retreats.  As they were digging to prepare the land they discovered ruins of a very old synagogue, where Jesus more than likely preached.  I reached over into the ruins and got another stone that was buried for almost 2000 years since the destruction of the building.

We went to 1:30 mass at the center’s chapel and the priest offered up the mass for all of our intentions.  Afterward we spent some time with  Jennifer, from Chicago, who lives in the area and is the lay apostolate of  Regnum Christi and works at the center.  Susan and she had communicated before we got there and she had set up a tour for us.  In the main part of the church the altar was made like a boat and I told Sam that it was pieces of wood and recreated from the time of Jesus.  He went to the altar and  took pictures and stood there asking the Lord how they all 12 fit with the nets and the fish.  Too funny.

This sounds like a whirlwind tour but we didn’t leave our house until  9:30 AM. and we went at a nice pace.  Everything is so close and parking is not a problem.  It was around 3:00 p.m. and we were hungry so we went to a restaurant and had an early dinner and shopped for a few things to pick on that night and food for breakfast.  Home we went, finished laundry and packed and  then relaxed for the evening, anticipating tomorrow.

Layla tov:

God bless you all;

Love Susan, Tom and the Kids
Mary’s Peace  Prayer

Mary,  Mother of God my mother, Queen of Peace, ask your Son Jesus to
give me the gift of peace. Pray for me for peace; peace in my heart,  peace
of mind and of soul, peace in my family, peace with all whom I meet,  the
peace of Jesus.
Jesus, my Lord and Savior, my Brother, King of  Peace, I come to you
with Mary, Queen of Peace, to ask you humbly for a new  outpouring of the
gift of peace. Pour out on me your Holy Spirit of  Peace.
Give me peace, Jesus, peace within myself, peace in my family, peace  in
my everyday life. Give peace to my nation, and to all nations, peace  among
all peoples, peace in the world.
Jesus, my mediator with the  Father, take me to the Father to pray for
peace.
Father, Father of  Jesus, our Father, my Father, I come to you with your
Son Jesus. In Him and  with Him and through Him I pray for  peace.

May God Bless Each and Every One Of You!

Tom &  Susan Melillo
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (USA)

E-Mail:
_TSMelillo13@aol.com_ (mailto:TSMelillo13@aol.com)

 

 

 

Boker tov:
I made everyone a large pepper ham and cheese omelette, hoping that would get us thru the day until we got to Jerusalem. Our first destination was Mount Tabor, the place of the transfiguration.  We planned to stop at Ein Karem the home of St. John, the Baptist and  the site of the Visitation, if time permitted, but after we got lost because of road construction we were almost an hour off schedule.

There is a reason for everything……..as we approached the mountain entrance to the shrine, we stopped for coffee and to stretch our legs.  The place was filled with tour busses that had just come off the mountain.  It was divine intervention for sure because when you see the first few  photos you willwonder, as we did, how we could have gotten buy a bus as it came down and we went up.

Johna was more scared than Susan but she wouldn’t admit  it.  I kepthearing sighs and other noises from the back seat.  Sam may have chimed in once or twice too.  Susan was just white knuckled as we  ascended. I was in my glory at each S-turn, until we got behind Grandma Moses, going 5 MPH and stopping at each turn, no one else seemed to  mind.

The Church of the Transfiguration at Mount Tabor is beautiful, and Mass was going on at one of the outside chapels, as well as in the church.  It was too late to ask thegroup if we  could join so we quietly prayed for a while and did the tourist thing, albeit quietly.

The views from here were spectacular, if you had something to look at. The countryside is a lot different from Europe, although very hilly. We spent a little more time in this truly holy place and  made our way back down the mountain and to Jerusalem.  About 2 hours away depending on traffic, which didn’t get heavy until the city.  You really don’t want to drive here unless you can be reckless and  ruthless…….and I thought I was a nice guy!
We arrived at our apartment and I parked just like an Israeli………blocking one lane on a 2-lane street, so we could unload the luggage and get it in.  Susan guarded the car and programmed the  GPS so we could get the car returned and the three of us did the rest.  Ten minutes later, Sam and I were off for the return.  We got right there, but after they checked us out, they told us we had take the car to the parking  garage. I never heard of anything like that and I almost left the car, but being  that nice person (again) we took it back the way we came and dropped it  off.

The girls were almost settled when we got back and we relaxed for a bit before going to this great restaurant that our cab driver suggested.   We had a wonderful dinner, but then we had to  walk back up the steep hill to our apartment.  UGH!

I finalized arrangements for the driver and guide we hired for Friday to take us to Bethlehem. Looking forward to the day coming  we went to bed and slept gloriously.

Layla tov;
God bless all of you
Love
Susan, Tom and the Kids

Prayer to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

O Immaculate Heart of Mary,
full of goodness,
show your love towards us.
Let the flame of your heart,
O Mary, descend on all people.
We love you immensely.
Impress true love in our  hearts
so that we have a  continuous desire for you.
O  Mary, gentle and humble of heart, remember us when we are in sin.
You know that all men sin.
Give us, by means of your  Immaculate Heart, spiritual health.
Let us always see the goodness of  your motherly heart
and may we  be converted by means of the flame of your heart.
Amen.

 

Partially refreshed after that tough travel day, and after getting Susan and Sam out of bed, we had coffee and piece of coffee  cake, loaded the car and headed out.  Our first stop the Stella Maris  Monastery of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.  A lot of you know the special affection we have for Our Lady and the Brown Scapular so this was a perfect  starting point for this Holy Land
pilgrimage.

As we were to find out, parking close  to these shrines is next to impossible. Stella Maris was our first  encounter with several turns up and down the mountain.  On the last pass we all said a hail Mary and just as we turned the corner there was an  end spot across the street from the front door.  It wasn’t even a real spot,  but the car fit, and someone was in it before…..and I’m not shy!

The Monastery is very large  and is the Carmelite headquarters for the whole order throughout the world.  The chapel is beautiful and perched high above the altar sits Our Lady holding Her Son and the Scapular in hand.  Below this altar is the cave of Elijah where he was said to have lived.  We spent very some special time in prayer with our Lady for all of you and your intentions.  It was very moving to be here at last.

We spent a few shekels in the gift store  and headed down the mountain on this beautiful day. Our next stop was  Nazareth and we were all anticipating how we would feel being were the Annunciation took place and where Jesus spent most of his life with His  Mother and St. Joseph. Nothing could prepare
us for this experience  and the emotion of it all.

Our GPS took us up and down the hills in Jerusalem and we were close to the Basilica so as we turned on a new street the  on the end of a row of cars was an empty spot, unbelievable in this area.  We stopped for coffee and the shop owner was  great. He told us we had a 5 minute walk to the Shrine and were very lucky to be  able to park.  He taught us some Arabic since many of the people in  the area are of Arab descent.  We voted Sam to be the interpreter so we  enjoyed our coffee as he wrote down all the words the owner taught him.

Everywhere he goes now he whips out his sheet because he can’t remember if he is  speaking Arabic or Yiddish.  He’s too funny…… I’ll stick with  English.

Upon entering the Basilica we heard beautiful chanting as benediction was ending in the grotto where the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary.  We fell to our knees and the tears flowed as we  contemplated where we were.  The word Sacred took on a whole  new meaning.  Mesmerized and light headed we went down to the grotto after  the priests left and the few tourist in the Basilica took their photos’s and  left.  Again we knelt and prayed and took a few tourist photos.  A  young college student we had met walking to the shrine was there with his  friends and came down to the grotto with us.  He asked me to explain everything to him, because he wasn’t sure what he was seeing.  His friends  were upstairs being tourists. They all went to school in Miami.

I told him the story of the  Annunciation as I had read it out of the Mystical City of God.  He was  truly moved and I asked if he was Catholic. He was and was from Brazil, as well as his friends who were also catholic, but didn’t practice.  I told him he  was now the teacher of the group we all hugged gave him our e-mail and he re-joined his friends.

After an very emotional stay we went to explore  the upper church, stopping at Mary’s well on the way.  Inside was the group  of students, this time together they were studying the depictions and statues on the walls and Enrika, our friend, was talking and trying to explain  what he could.

After looking at the ruins of the home of Mary we went on to the Church of St. Joseph were his home and workshop were said to be.  It was a spiritual place filled with love. The photo’s help, but being here is  incredible.

As we headed back to the car the school was  letting out and there was no way we were going to get out easily so we went to a  local rest. across the street from our car for lunch.  We were starved and  ordered 3 large portion meals with side plates to split.  Susan ordered  chicken livers, and everyone but me passed on sharing.  Sam was trying to  communicate in Arabic to the staff and we were all laughing. At lunch like kids  we began to make up our own words for things and we laughed so hard we and the staff were all in tears.

Lunch was great and we headed out for Mt.  Precipie where after the announcing of the Kingdom they tried to throw him off  the cliff but he passed thru there midst.

It was getting late so we headed to Cana and the  site of the first public miracle of Jesus.  This town was tough and the GPS  took us thru some very steep and narrow streets to get there, and there was no  parking.  We asked for help and a kind soul directed us to the parking area  just around the corner which we had passed a couple of times. LOL  Cana was  special and we had to light a candle and pray for a special friend who  proposed to his girl friend there in Jan. while everyone else in the group had  their wedding vows renewed.  A renewal of vows with a group from Africa was taking place so wewatched for awhile and left for Tibeiras and our Beautiful  Mountain Home with a view.

The home was pretty good with 5 bedrooms, baths kitchen, laundry and great patio and balcony with views of the sea of Galilee.  Sam and I went to the supermarket for supplies and had  everyone in the store laughing as we tried to figure out what everything  was since it was all labeled in Yiddish.  Mission accomplished, we went  back to the house and spent a great evening reminiscing our day.

Layla tov

May God bless all of you

Love Susan, Tom and the Kids

The Angelus
The Angelus is traditionally recited morning  (6:00 a.m.), noon and evening (6:00 p.m.) throughout the year except during  Paschal time, when the Regina Coeli is recited instead.

The angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
And she  conceived of the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary, etc.
Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
Be it done  unto me according to Thy word.
Hail Mary, etc.
And the Word was made Flesh.
And dwelt  among us.
Hail Mary, etc.
Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
That we  may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let  Us Pray

Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts,  that we to whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son was made known by the message  of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His  Resurrection. Through the same Christ Our Lord.
Amen.

May God Bless Each and Every One Of You!

Tom &  Susan Melillo
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (USA)

E-Mail:
_TSMelillo13@aol.com_ (mailto:TSMelillo13@aol.com)

 

 

Buenos Dias, Bonjourno and Boker Tov,

Today is travel day to the Holy Land. Confusing greeting, now you can get an idea of the day we had:  Madrid to Rome to Tel Aviv.

We got wake up calls at 3:00 AM plus I had the alarm set for 3:15, just in  case I fell back to sleep.  Sue and I laid in bed and we could tell by each others’ breathing we were not sleeping, both our minds racing.   Finally, we got up around 11:00 talked for awhile and Susan took half a xanax, but I didn’t want to…..afraid I would sleep thru.  Johna and Sam were having the same problem in their rooms, unknown to us as they watched  TV.

Susan’s breathing confirmed sleep and I laid there with one eye open as the clock struck 1.  Two hours later the phone rang, I answered and 15 minutes later I got up after the alarm went off.

The kids were up and ready to go just as I finished my shower. Our flight was at 6 Am and we were close to the airport but I had to get the kids and the  luggage to terminal 2 and then Susan and I had to return the beast to terminal 1 and walk to terminal 2, So we needed extra time.

Mission accomplished: we checked in and had one hour until the flight  boarded. As we approached the gate we still had time for a quick coffee and toast in the lounge.

The flight took off on time and we arrived in Rome ready to change planes in the same terminal.  The plane unloaded us on the parking  tarmac and we were bussed in. We thought we could go to the lounge and relax for the next flight, but we had to walk from one end of the terminal to the other, only toget on a bus to take us back to where we first landed.

Who runs these companies???

We just made it, but people were late and we sat in  the plane for an hour +, also having lost our place in line.  We all  slept until they shoved something that looked like food in front of us and a  baby two rows up started to CRYYYYY.  Three hours later we arrived in Tel  Aviv, one hour late and exhausted.

Customs wasn’t to bad and we got our luggage and I went for the car rental.  An hour later we were in the lot searching the for the car.   Twenty minutes later we were loaded and ready to go, but no one was around and 20 minutes later we took off after I figured out how to drive it and use the  controls and the I-pad they gave us for a GPS system.

4:00 pm and we were off for Haifa.  Traffic was a bear and we had to  take a pit stop and get water.  By 6:00 pm we were in Haifa at our condo, luggage ready to go down these long stairs, but nobody was home to let us  in.  Twenty minutes later, as we stood there, the owner came back and let us  in.  Amos was very nice and invited us up to his home for some wine and  cheese, which we did until we knew we had to get some food and get organized for  tomorrow.  The kids and I went to the Supermarket and Susan stayed at the  apartment to get our travel plans in order.

We finally made some sandwiches and ate, all of us exhausted and running short of patience ( I think it was me), so we went to bed, all of us praying that tomorrow would be a better day.  You will have to wait to find out.  We were so hassled, we only too 7 pictures all day. See below

Layla Tov,

God Bless you all

Love Tom, Susan and the kids

It’s not too late to send us your prayer intentions, we will present them at all the stops we make along the way:         TSMelillo13@aol.com   

   Prayer to Our Lady in Time of  Trouble

Holy Virgin Mary, you are reigning in  glory, with Jesus, your Son. Remember us  in our sadness. Look kindly on all who are  suffering or fighting  against any difficulty. Have pity on  those who are separated from someone they love. Have pity on the loneliness of our hearts. Have pity on the weakness of our faith and  love. Have pity on  those who are weeping, on those who are praying, on those who are  fearful. Holy Mother,  please obtain for all of us hope and peace with  justice.
Amen.
 
May God Bless Each and Every One Of You!

Tom &  Susan Melillo
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (USA)