I pity the poor folk who will have me working in their parish once I return!
“Now when ‘I’ was in Nazareth …..
“Walking along the Jordan river ‘I’ (with the emphasis on ‘I’) ….
“While strolling across the Mount of the Beatitudes while looking across to the Sea of Galilee ‘I’ ….
“The atmosphere ‘I’ felt in the tomb of Christ just by Calvary on Easter morn in the heart of Jerusalem……
“The remoteness of the land where the Dead Sea Scrolls was found caused ‘me’ (with the emphasis on ‘me’) …..
“The feeling I had strolling over what is now the Shepherds Field on the outskirts of Bethlehem ….
“Standing under the tree which Zacheus climbed to see Jesus as walked along the streets of Jericho ‘I’ was struck by ……
In few days I will be able to bore the people with:
“’My’ retreat in the Jordanian mountains where Moses is said to have gazed upon the promised land caused ‘me’ …….
&
“When ‘I’ saw the sorry state of the once great Cedars of Lebanon where the great Kings Solomon and David had the finest cedar lumbered to build the Temple ….
Yes. Tomorrow I leave for Jordan where I will stay in Mount Nebo and then continue on to Lebanon. There are a two provisos for this trip.
One. That I don’t get arrested and thrown into jail in Jordan for drug trafficking.
&
Two. That I don’t get arrested and thrown into jail in Lebanon for making a false declaration as I negotiate an M16 toting customs officer.
Honestly mum, it was not my fault – they MADE me do it. I am about to break those rules that are written in heavy lettering in that little book you get when you pick up your new passport. You know the one, it has a final line written in red that says ‘Australian officials will not assist you if you knowingly break these rules”. OMG!!!!
“But officer, everyone does it.”
Regarding Jordan: One of the friars who I will stay with in Jordan has a medical condition that requires medication that can not be purchased locally. When I was asked to bring across a few medical supplies I expected to carry a box of panadeine forte, and not a chemical lab. The look of horror when I went to the chemist to pick up the prescription must have shown “don’t worry” I was told “everyone does it”.
As for Lebanon: Now, if the Lebanese catch any hint of the fact that I have been in Israel then I will find myself acting as an involuntary human shield for a group of appreciative Hezbollah soldiers against the next Israeli onslaught. So, this is what I must to do.
- Destroy any paper with Hebrew lettering or any paper at all that identifies itself as having come from Israel. A big cheerio to that Lebanese friar who asked me to take across some mail – that he wrote on JERUSALEM letterhead.
- Mid flight I must sneak into the WC (dunny), place my ‘soiled’ passport with an Israeli stamp on it somewhere they can’t find it and replace it with my new ‘clean’ Australian passport. Then I must pray that they don’t notice that there is no Australian exit stamp on my ‘clean’ pass port, or do a cavity search
- Forget entirely the past 7 months of my life. I have been practising over and over again “Israel? I have never heard of the existence of such a country.”
Because of these dangers I have been strongly advised not to take my lap top or to ask them if they want to check out my blog.
The look of horror when I was told that this is what I must do must have shown “don’t worry” I was told “everyone does it”.
So ……… this will be my last blog and regular access to email for either a long time (3-6 weeks) or a very long time (3-6 years). Please pray that it is the former.
Happy Everything that I will miss out on.
- a most anxious and already repentant - Paul Ghanem
PS. Sorry still not able to get my pics posted, it is a problem with the host.
