When you spend the entire day alone (I’m learning), weird thoughts abound and goofiness gets a free pass. I read this passage today and, after speaking with one of the nuns at the convent, learned that the village/town I’m currently living at the top of the Mount of Olives is (and always has been) Bethphage. Cool.
Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, aying to them, ‘Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord need them,’ and he will send them at once…” (Matthew 21:1-3)
Problem is, God, I can’t find a donkey anywhere in Bethphage. I’ve literally everywhere. I asked the kind man with the goatee who was smoking a cigarette at the entrance of his storefront. I said, “Do you have a donkey? Actually, I need a donkey and a colt…could you spare the pair?” He neither blinked nor responded. Just took another long drag on his heater. I shrugged my shoulders, said, “Salaam”, and moved on. I found some kids. They will carrying the trash from their apartment to the massive dumpster in the middle of the street. One of them smiled, revealing dark windows into his tonsils. I hope the tooth fairy has been good to him. He said, “Shalom.” Dang, do I really look Jewish? That’s bad news for me, because Jews don’t hang out in Bethphage. I’ve heard they get rocks thrown at their cars. I corrected him, “Salaam, little buddy. Could you tell me where I might find a donkey and a colt? The Man has come to town and, well, He needs to borrow them (actually He never said borrow, so we may need them for keeps).” Nothing. Apparently his Hebrew is better than his English…pretty amazing for an Arab boy.
I walk on, up the hill, around a couple of corners, until I come to the Mount of Olives Bazaar. Bizarre. No donkeys, no colts, just some cheap rugs hanging on the wall. They’re for sale. Why don’t they put a price tag on anything? Seriously, if they told me what it actually cost, I might consider buying it. As it stands, I hate confrontation (that’s why I work in a church) and would rather swallow a tablespoon of boiling olive oil than barter.
No donkey. No colt. What am I going to tell JC? He’s gonna be peeved. I mean, He could take a taxi down the Mount of Olives and into Jerusalem. It would only him cost four shekels. Then again, Judas keeps the money purse under lock and key. Good luck getting that sneaky punk to part with taxi fare for thirteen people. Anyway, apparently the colt and the donkey are important. When all those people, the shopkeeper, the little kids, and the guy trying to get me to buy the rug, they’ll remember Zechariah,
Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble and mounted on a donkey and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden. (9:9)
I return to the shopkeeper. “Got any horse meat?” A blank stare. Eh, it was worth a try.
Sorry Jesus. I suppose you’re going to have to do this one yourself.
Hey dude, cool post….I can’t imagine how cool this is for you and a little daunting at the same time. Even though I was in Germany which is much more like home than Jerusalem, I can identify with the feeling of being alone. You can make what seem to be really good friends very fast. Dealing with the loneliness of being abroad alone is a pretty big character building experience. I went through almost two months pretty much alone in one stretch and even though it was hard, I think it was one of the best times of my life. I explored the city I lived in, knew every nook and cranny, wrote and read voluminously. Later on when you are settled down with a cutie in the burbs and a couple of puppies you will look back on this time and say to yourself “man, remember when I was skulking around the Mount of Olives and Jerusalem living in a convent???”
Hope all is well dude…..keep writing!!!
Brian
Thank you for the blog. Sounds like you are being stretched. Good to hear that you are meeting good people in and around Jerusalem. I’ve been praying that your time there will deepen your understanding of the faith we have in Jesus. I really enjoy hearing the perspective you have stepped into with your friend/brother Raed.
Rich and James,
Thanks guys. Rich, yeah, I definitely have the sense that though some aspects of this new-found solitude are difficult and even painful, they are formative and working to establish ballast in my heart.
James, yeah, I’ve met so many amazing people. As of yesterday I’ve started to hang out at this coffee shop near the Old City. Today it’s cloudy and a bit rainy (the first such day since I’ve arrived…although this is how it’s always supposed to be during January) so I’m held up in here hoping to meet people, form some new relationships and, hopefully, have the opportunity to share the Gospel with some folks. It’s funny how many people speak English here. So many transplants from the US who have chosen to make a home in Jerusalem.