Pastor Joan's Sabbatical 2007

More pictures

2007-07-02T12:11:00.000-04:00

Along the way, I collected brochures and postcards - in case my photos didn't turn out and to help me remember information about the photos.

http://picasaweb.google.com/joansulser/PostcardsBrochures

Photos

2007-07-01T19:36:00.000-04:00

You can link to photos from my journey by clicking on the following:

http://picasaweb.google.com/joansulser/IsraelPartTwo

http://picasaweb.google.com/joansulser/IsraelPartOne

http://picasaweb.google.com/joansulser/Italy

http://picasaweb.google.com/joansulser/ArkansasTexas

I'm home!

2007-06-29T22:50:00.000-04:00

At 6:30pm, 25 hours after leaving Tantur, I arrived home. Travel was very smooth, with no problems at any of the passport checks, customs, plane connections, luggage handling, ticketing, seats, etc. Amazing when all the pieces necessary for international travel fall easily into place.

It's good to be home. Everything is so beautifully green - a welcome sight after so much stone and aridity. I've looked at most of the mail, but that's all for tonight. Tomorrow I'll unpack, tend to the yard, get groceries and begin readjusting to life in Wisconsin.

I'll start sorting through photos in the next few days and posting them, along with some reflections. Right now my bed is calling my name.

Too darn hot

2007-06-25T14:26:00.000-04:00

Our little streak of below-average temperatures has ended. It's been in the mid-90's to upper-90's the past several days. Tomorrow and the rest of the week, it's supposed to drop into the mid-80's to upper-80's. I wonder if I'll feel a difference. I'm very glad I'm here for the June session ... I wouldn't want to be here in July!

Today we went to the Negev Desert, south of Jerusalem a ways. It was 110 there - in the shade. This was the trip we were supposed to do last Wednesday but was postponed due to our group's virus. I couldn't believe we went! Our tour guide talked very long at each site, most of it very repetitive, while our brains broiled. Then we'd have a little time to actually see the site, before going by bus to the next place. We left Tantur at 7am and began tromping through the desert by 9am. We were still tromping at 4pm! Of course, we weren't in the desert all that time, sometimes we were in our bus (whose air conditioning was struggling to keep up). I figured out the whole thing could have been done in 3 hours less time if he had done his speeches on the bus as we traveled to the site. Then we could have gotten out, spent 30 minutes touring the site and headed to the next one. We would have been done by 1pm, before it got extremely hot.

At 12:30, after being in the sun for an hour, he led the group down into a canyon "to experience the silence of the desert for a few minutes." I decided I could experience the silence just fine in the breezy shade of palm trees near the park entrance. They were down in that canyon for almost 45 minutes! We arrived at our final site at 3pm. He led folks up to the top of the stone ruins, read to them from various parts of the Bible for an hour, and then led them on a tour of the site. You notice I said "they," not "we." As we got off the bus at 3pm, I considered all the tips I know for survival in the desert at 3pm on a blazing hot day. I chose to follow Tip # 1 - don't enter the desert at 3pm on a blazing hot day. A few others followed my example and we stayed with the bus driver on the bus. If I had gone, I could have walked on some of the same stones that King Hezekiah walked on around 2,500 years ago ... but I'll save that for another time in my life.

We did get to experience what the Israelites experienced as they spent 40 years traveling from Egypt to upper Israel (although I bet they didn't travel during the hottest part of the day) - we were especially in sync with "the people murmured and grumbled and complained in the desert."

I'm trying to remember what we saw ... ruins of a fortress from King David's time (he was several kings before Hezekiah) ... ruins of a Canaanite village from 5,000BC ... ruins of a major town on the old trade routes of camel days ... after a while, I confess, all the ruins start to look alike to me. I am NOT cut out to be an archeologist! You'll be reassured to know that I did NOT take zillions of photos at every corner of every ruin.

Tomorrow we have our last field trip - to churches and holy sites in Jerusalem. A few of us plan to eat lunch together and do some final shopping in the Old City. Wednesday morning is our final lecture. Thursday is evaluations and packing. I'll be in La Crosse by Friday night.

I'm ready to be home. On Saturday night I went into the Old City for a free chamber music concert. It was beautiful music, with free wine and sweets afterwards. By the time I headed to the bus station, almost all of the buses had stopped running for the night. I was the only non-Arab in a very Arab section of town, and I was the only woman alone. Since I can't read, speak or understand Arabic, and since there were lots of young single guys around, I was a little nervous. Everything worked out fine ... I got the very last bus that ran to my part of town and there was one other woman on it. Not knowing the language becomes very tiring. Of course, there are many other reasons I'm ready to go home. I've very much enjoyed my time away - first in Italy and now in Israel. It's been an incredibly rich experience and I feel very fortunate I've been able to have the time and ability to do this.

That's all for now ... my brain is still a little fried.

Still recovering

2007-06-21T06:54:00.000-04:00

Well, it appears we have a norovirus or "cruise ship virus" among us. Of the 21 in our group, only 3 have escaped all symptons (so far). Others who are staying here, and are not part of our group, have become ill. I'm fortunate in that I had only a slight touch of the virus, but I'm still dragging. We're very glad that the illness struck this week - we would have hated to miss the Galilee experiences. The schedule this week was for free time, two desert days and two lectures. We've managed one of each and will postpone or cancel the others. We all hope to be full of energy and health very soon. Overall, it's been a quiet week here.

Some links

2007-06-19T09:35:00.000-04:00

For more information about the Palestinian situation in Israel, here are links to a couple of web sites recommended by lecturers, each with a little different emphasis:

www.btselem.org/english
B'Tselem: the Israeli Informatin Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories

www.sabeel.org
Sabeel: Ecumenical Palestinian Liberation Theology Center

I'm sure there are dozens of other websites, with varying viewpoints.

Recovering

2007-06-19T08:12:00.000-04:00

It's Tuesday afternoon and very quiet here at Tantur. I don't know if it was how full and rich our trip to the Galilee was ... or how tiring it was to be together 24/7 ... but many of us were dragging on Saturday and Sunday. Yesterday morning I woke with a migraine and decided not to force myself to go on the day's field trip to Masada, the Dead Sea, and the desert. Instead I spent the day sleeping. Turns out that was a good move. Although folks enjoyed the outing, they said it was very hot with very bright sun. About 2/3 of those who went were sick last night and this morning with a gastro-intestinal thing. The rest of us fear we'll be next. Either a bug or bad water or the heat of the day or ... Tomorrow is supposed to be another all-day trip in the desert. Looks like that may be rescheduled or cancelled. Even if folks are recovered from their symptoms, they'll be delicate tomorrow and shouldn't go hiking in the desert. We'll see. One of our group was sick at the end of our first week here and ended up spending four days in the hospital. Another person needed to see a dentist and another needed to see a chiropractor, but basically we've been well until now.

The trip to the Galilee was amazing. There were green and fertile fields, due to great irrigation, and even some forests. Babbling brooks and flowing rivers made it feel like home, although the bird song was marred by the sound of shelling and machine gun fire. The Israeli army training, it seemed. On Sunday, a town we had passed through on Thursday was the target of shelling from Lebanon. At the Golan Heights we saw fortifications and bunkers from the 1967 war, and new troops touring the area.

Violence seems always to be present here - either in the background or the forefront. This morning we heard the story of one ordinary Palestinian Christian woman. She said that for Palestinians in the West Bank, the word "Jew" and the word "soldier" are synonymous - the only contact they have with Jews is a soldier pointing a gun at them at checkpoints or walking through town. I don't know how people who grow up in these conditions can possibly imagine a different life. I keep thinking of Desmond Tutu's book "No Future without Forgiveness" that talked of the ending of apartheid in South Africa. He wrote that apartheid hurt the blacks who suffered under it and also hurt the whites who inflicted it - that both oppressor and oppressed are hurt by injustice. I know many Israelis say the same thing - that the occupation is destroying the soul of Israel.

Certainly there are wrongs on all sides here ... and hurt ... and fear ... and injustice. Certainly there can be no peace without justice but I don't know what justice would look like here. It is very hard to see a solution to the situation. With the upheaval in Gaza, life for Palestinians throughout the country gets even worse. Everyone is praying the violence doesn't spread to the West Bank ... and afraid it will. I must say that the situation here makes our political problems at home look miniscule.

Sunday afternoon, I toured Yad Vashem - the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem. A sobering experience and a reminder of that horrendous terror. There were about 4 dozen soldiers touring it at the same time - young men of 18 or 19, crying as they went through the exhibits and displays.

The longer we are here, the more complexity we see in the situation. If there were easy answers, they would have surfaced by now.

Back from the Galilee

2007-06-15T13:36:00.000-04:00

I'm back from our five days in the Galilee region. Laundry is done, and I'm catching up on email before reading and falling into bed.

It was a great experience. I waded in the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River and swam in the Sea of Galilee. We stayed in a lovely hotel right on the Sea of Galilee, and did day trips from there. We saw ruins - Davidic ruins, Roman ruins, Biblical time ruins, Byzantine ruins, Crusader ruins. We saw churches - Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic - celebrating the Annunciation to Mary, the Annunciation to Joseph, the wedding in Cana, the feeding of the 5,000, the demons going into the herd of swine, Elijah's defeat of the prophets of Baal, the Transfiguration, etc. We learned about the Druze, the Circassians, the Judeo-Christians, the Malachite Catholics. We saw fortresses. We saw one of the rivers that feeds into the Jordan River. We saw where the Jordan River enters the Sea of Galilee and where it exits. We saw the border of Israel & Lebanon, Israel & Syria, Israel & Jordan. We had a relaxing boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.

My brain began to blur all the places and their stories, so I bought informative illustrated booklets about many of the places. I took lots of photos but it will be a challenge to match the photo to the location.

Our tour guide, Ghada, was terrific. She lives in Haifa, is passionate about archeology, knows lots of church history and theology, and is a trained singer. She sang for us in some of the small churches we visited and it was very special. She also had a great sense of humor.

That's all for now. Two weeks from now I'll be on my way home. Until now it has felt like I have lots of time to see things ... now it feels like time is short.

Bethlehem & more

2007-06-10T12:56:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we went into Bethlehem. We visited the Shepherds Fields, where the angels announced the birth of Jesus and the Church of the Nativity, where tradition says Jesus was born. The sites were interesting, but Bethlehem itself was more interesting.

As you may know, Bethlehem is part of the West Bank, the territory Israel has occupied since 1967. We met with a staff person from the Lutheran church international center and she talked about life under occupation. Some Palestinians are granted permits to leave the West Bank, but only for particular reasons and particular places and particular times. For example, she has a permit to go to Jerusalem because her organization's main office is there. But she can only be in Jerusalem until 7pm or she can be thrown into jail. She cannot go other places she might want to, such as the beach or another town outside of the West Bank. It is difficult to get a permit and even more difficult to find work. A huge percentage of folks in Bethlehem are young, unemployed, with no hope of finding work (meaningful or otherwise). The Lutheran church sponsors a university, a health/wellness clinic, a trade school, drama, music, art, etc. I bought some gifts from their shop, knowing that the $ will benefit people who have no other options for a livelihood. I also did some shopping at the Bethlehem Peace Center, which has a cooperative for women from the region to sell olives, soap, handicrafts, etc.

As we approached Manger Square, we saw numerous police officers - from the Palestinian Authority. Apparently, two families with long-time feuds had threatened to meet and beat up each other. The police had gathered to forestall any violence. After some time, there was no trouble and the police dispersed. A few hours later and several blocks away, wandering on my own, I heard shouting. Lots of young men started running toward the noise. I walked the other direction. I heard a few shots fired but there was no wailing or sirens. Two of our group saw the event and told me later it looked like some guys happily beating on each other. The police fired the shots in the air to break up the fight. It may have been the families from earlier in the day. Since it happened at a busy intersection, it could have been someone upset because someone else cut them off in traffic. Who knows? In such a volatile atmosphere, though, any hint of violence is unnerving.

I wandered Bethlehem alone most of the afternoon. There were times I wasn't sure where I was, but I was sure I was one of the few "outsiders" on the block. Not knowing the language or the cultural rules made me a little nervous, but everything was fine. I had to go through the checkpoint to return to Tantur, my first experience with a checkpoint without the comfort of the group and tour leader. It's awful. The pedestrian checkpoint is an incredible maze - through revolving doors and gates and in and out of buildings. The guards are behind bullet-proof glass and communicate through loudspeakers. Palestinians have their fingerprints on their ID cards and must put their hand on a screen each time they enter or exit the West Bank. The screen compares their actual fingerprints against their ID card. The guard examines their travel permit and their ID card and their fingerprints and determines whether or not they can pass. As someone who obviously is not from here, I was in a privileged person and was allowed to pass without hassle - which is an uncomfortable position. The entire process is lengthy and humiliating.

At the same time, I understand the Israeli desire for security and hence the wall. Almost every cafe or restaurant or coffee shop I've seen in Jerusalem has a guard at the door, checking bags and packages for weapons, because they have been the targets of bombings. Every school group that goes on an outing must have an armed guard accompanying them because some years ago a school group was assaulted and killed. I can't imagine what it's like to grow up with the constant presence of armed violence.

An peacenik group rented part of the Tantur grounds for a peace & justice festival on Friday and Saturday. I had to pass through additional security just to get to our building and my room. I didn't visit the various booths or join the dancing, but I could hear the music - which ranged from traditional to hip hop.

This morning I worshipped with the English language congregation of Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in the Old City. It's generally a small group - maybe 2 dozen folks - but visitors and a tour group from the US filled the chapel today. It was the pastor's final Sunday before retirement in the US so there were farewells and tears. After that service, I went to the German language service in the main sanctuary. There were 3-4 dozen folks, and I even knew a few of the hymns well enough to sing along "auf Deutsch." Sounds kind of like a church geek, eh?

There was much that was comforting about the English Lutheran service. I'm familiar with the hymns and the liturgy, the folks looked like me and sounded like me, the culture was one I know. I totally understand why my immigrant ancestors worshipped together for so many years. It's hard to be in a land where the language, customs, personal space, and references are all foreign. I'm sure this is why current immigrants to the US tend to cluster together.

I've had a crash course in local cultural traditions. For example: it's ok to cross our legs but the soles of our shoes have to face down - it's an insult if they're "in someone's face." Except, in some Christian churches, it's forbidden to cross our legs in any manner. Women don't look men directly in the face so I've been practicing what novels about oldtime convents called "custody of the eyes." When we get on a bus, it's ok for a couple to sit together, but not ok for a woman alone to sit next to a man alone (and vice versa) unless there are no other seats. When pursued by a shopkeeper, there's no obligation to buy - even if they've spent lots of time with us and given us tea - unless we've set a price that they meet for the item. Then, we must buy it. I had just figured out crossing streets and "prego" and "grazia" and a few other words in Italy. Now I'm learning another whole way of being in public.

Tomorrow (Monday morning) our group leaves for 5 days in the Galilee region. We'll stay in a hotel in Tiberias and visit Mt Carmel, Megiddo, Nazareth, Cana, Capernaum, Mt of Beatitudes, Mt Hermon, Caesarea Philippi, Jordan River, Mt Tabor, Jericho, etc. We even get a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.

Overall, we've had fabulous weather - mostly in the upper 70's and low 80's with a few days a little above 90. I have learned that it NEVER rains in Jerusalem in June so there was no need to pack an umbrella. Ah well, live and learn.

I've spent more time in worship these past 10 days than in the past several months combined. We have evening prayer just before dinner each night, plus worship on Sunday mornings. I was not looking forward to this part of the program, but it's been wonderful. Maybe it's the time and the length (1/2 hour at 5:30pm) that makes it more enticing. Maybe it's that colleagues in our group each take a turn leading worship and I want to support them. When I was in seminary, they offered a full worship service each weekday morning. I made it a few times a month, but certainly not regularly. So I'm being stretched spiritually as well as intellectually and personally.

Well, I'm off to pack a few things for the Galilee trip ... no more postings until our return.

BBC & Israel - part two

2007-06-06T13:38:00.000-04:00

I (and several others in our group) just finished participating in a recording by the BBC. Because this week is the 40th anniversary of the June 1967 War that changed the boundaries of Israel, there are a number of specials being done about the current situation. The BBC has a weekly Sunday morning radio broadcast that features worship from different places. On Sunday, June 10, it will be from Tantur!

The Christian congregation in the neighboring town of Beit Safafa, a Christian young people's choir from Jerusalem, and Christians from the neighboring Palestinian town of Bethlehem were the primary worship participants. Father Michael and Sister Bridget, who oversee Tantur, also had major roles in the worship service. It was very interesting watching the BBC in action, and lovely to listen to the choir.

You can possibly hear it live on your local BBC radio station (it will air at 10:10am here, which means 2:10am Central Daylight Time). You can also hear it via internet, June 10 through June 17: www.bbc.co.uk/religion, then click on RADIO at the top, then click on RADIO 4 on the left, then click on LISTEN AGAIN on the left, then go to SUNDAY WORSHIP: WEBSITE, then go to SUNDAY WORSHIP FROM JERUSALEM.
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Yesterday (Tuesday, June 5) morning was a tour through the Jewish quarter of the Old City and some archeological sites. We saw part of the great temple which Herod built, and walked on steps where all Jewish pilgrims of Jesus' time would have walked when they went to Jerusalem. We walked on the nearby streets that were the actual streets of that time. It's probably the closest I can get to 'walking where Jesus walked' as the Christian holy sites were all developed after 313. The stones were mammoth and incredibly finely cut. (One of our group joked that if Jesus had been a stonemason instead of a carpenter he would never have left the trade to become an itinerant rabbi - there's stone everywhere here but not much wood.) Most of this area has been excavated only in the past 40 years, and some within only the past 10 years.

We then went to an archological dig that has uncovered some of the city (and possibly the palace) of King David, where people lived some 2700 years ago. One of our group helped with this dig about 15 years ago. She pointed out a stone toilet that had been connected to a long shaft; archeologists have analyzed the layers of waste and determined normal diet throughout the centuries. We walked through tunnels they used to go from within the city walls to outside the walls to draw water. It was an eerie experience to be hundreds of feet under the earth, going through tunnels that were created by hand almost 3000 years ago.

It was a hot day (near 90) though, and all the walking in the sun and all the historical information was a bit much. I took the rest of the afternoon to rest and read and reflect. Today was in the low 90's so I did not use free time to go into the city. I explored the Tantur library in the morning and read and rested in the afternoon. I know ... it sounds like I have nothing to rest from. But being with the group for hours each day zaps my energy, even though they're a lovely bunch. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, worship, lectures, and field trips all add up to a lot of 'people time.' Tomorrow is supposed to be much cooler (upper 70's) and I've had quite a nice introverted day today so I'll be venturing out tomorrow. Some in our group have used every moment of free time to explore museums and ancient sites in Jerusalem. They are far more energetic than I am!

Israel - part one

2007-06-04T13:03:00.000-04:00

It's Monday evening and these first few days in Israel have been incredibly full and rich. My flight from Rome to Tel Aviv was uneventful. As we flew in, my first impression was: this country is all brown and beige. The multi-story fountain in the center of the airport is one of the most beautiful I have seen - a wonderful reminder of the importance of water for life, especially in this dry land.

I shared a shuttle taxi to Jerusalem with an American from Harvard Medical School - traveling here for the third or fourth time. He kindly pointed out some of the sights along the way.

Tantur is all my friends and the literature promised - a place filled with a lovely ecumenical spirit and grace. My room looks out on a rose garden and trees. We're a small group - 21 of us in this 4-week program - but other groups are in and out of Tantur for their own experiences of peacemaking, study, worship, etc. Our group is primarily anglo, primarily age 50-70, and primarily clergy. About 1/2 the group are Roman Catholic. Eight of us are women; 7 of us are from the US. So far there are not any sharp divisions into smaller groups but there are some affinities and folks migrating toward each other for conversation beyond "who are you, where are you from" etc.

The days start early (for me) with breakfast at 7:30am. Friday was orientation in the morning and an overview of the Jerusalem area by bus in the afternoon and introductions in the evening. Talk about info overload! I don't remember everything we saw on Friday, but I know we will re-visit the sites throughout our stay and experience them in more depth. Saturday morning was a lecture on "The Meaning of Pilgrimage" by the person who used to oversee this program. By Saturday afternoon, I was happy to escape to e-mail and reading and solitude. Saturday evening was a lengthy and sometimes difficult discussion about Holy Communion in our various traditions and inter-communion and how we will handle communion within our group.

Sunday morning we worshipped as a group at Crusader Church of Abu Gosh, one of the four sites said to be the ancient village of Emmaus. It's a Roman Catholic church built upon ruins of a Roman garrison. The service was in French, and gregorian chant, and Latin. Very lovely and ancient. I wasn't able to enter into worship, though, for a number of reasons. Instead, I felt like an anthropologist or sociologist studying a people and a culture.

After worship, some of us were dropped off in Old City Jerusalem and wandered a bit. I was almost overwhelmed by the smells and sights of the shops and the aggressive shopkeepers. The Western Wall (Wailing Wall) was very special, as was the Temple Mount.

This morning, we had an overview tour of the Old City and went to Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre/Resurrection, and St Anne. Abu Gosh, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer and St Anne are modest-size churches with beautiful acoustics. Soft music carries and touches the soul and wafts upward. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher was an amazing experience. It's clearly an incredibly holy place for many pilgrims, but didn't affect me that way.

On Friday, our leader Michael asked us to reflect during our time here on the question: what do I consider a holy place? My first response to the question is the Taize chant: Ubi caritas et amor, deus ibi est/ Where there is caring and love, there is God. I know some would say, God is present wherever there is suffering. I think that's also true, but I don't think the presence of suffering necessarily makes for a holy place because I don't think suffering necessarily is redemptive. I do think love is inherently redemptive. Which means, I guess, that I think a holy place is a place that encourages us to become closer to the heart of God ... closer to the love that I believe sustains all that was and is and will be.

The Saturday morning lecture helped me understand a little bit the place of pilgrimage sites and artifacts. I tend to live very much in my head so I'm bewildered by people kissing the Bible or the cross or touching "the stone at the foot of the cross where Jesus died" or clinging to a wall where something happened thousands of years ago. Tom talked of this as incarnational - making concrete the stories of our tradition - and connective. By visiting the place where lore says an important event took place, we re-member/become part of a living faith. All of our senses are incorporated as we touch the past, and are strengthened for the present and the future.

The immediacy of this connection for some pilgrims was very apparent at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre/Resurrection. Pilgrims wept on the stone where tradition says Jesus was laid as his body was prepared for burial. My first thought was, "Why do you look for the living among the dead?" for it seemed to be an overemphasis on only one part of the Jesus birth/life & teachings/suffering/death/resurrection story. Yet I think for those pilgrims, they were experience holy time - by touching that stone they were transported to the foot of the cross and felt Christ's suffering then and now. And when I looked up at the dome above, the cross indeed cast a shadow on the glass ... we are living in the shadow of the cross. The question for me is still much more "where is Jesus now" than "where was Jesus then" but I'm beginning to understand the importance of these ancient sites.

Tantur itself is on the border of Jerusalem and Bethlehem - which means on the border of Jerusalem and the West Bank. The Wall and a checkpoint are at the bottom of the Tantur hill and we need to finish dinner in time for the Palestinians to get home through the checkpoint before 7pm. It's impossible to be a-political here. To breathe is to be political. The names we give things have political significance. This week, Israel celebrates the 40th anniversary of the 6-day war in 1967. The Palestinians grieve the start of the occupation. The same event with many different perspectives.

As far as safety ... my medical student friend reminded me that I'm far more at risk of injury from a car crash than from bombs, gunfire, etc. We have been advised that the buses generally are safe to ride, and the Arab buses are safer than the Israeli buses for there's not yet been a bombing of an Arab bus.

We have a lovely view from atop the Tantur hill - Bethlehem to one side, Jerusalem to another and on clear nights, we can see the hills of Moab and the lights of Amman, Jordan. It has been cooler than normal during the day, but will warm up this week close to 90. The nights are comfortably cool and quiet.

I did not feel an instant kinship with this land, but it is growing on me.

Italy

2007-06-02T06:54:00.000-04:00

Omigosh! So much has happened since my last posting ...

The evening and day in Siena were lovely, but enough. Too much stone and dark medieval streets for me.

Assisi was beautiful. As we approached on the train, we could see it in on the hillside, with trees softening the stone. The evening was almost magical - hushed and setting sun and a refuge from hustle and bustle. The next day, though, was not quite as magical. A huge church built to honor one person - well, actually, two churches: an upper church and a lower church - and that person supposedly dedicated to poverty and simplicity. I understand grand buildings dedicated to the worship of God. I don't understand grand buildings that are theoretically dedicated to God but seem to worship a person. We saw the church for St Francis and the church for St Clare and the church where they were both baptized and the church where Francis' family lived and the Roman temple to Minerva which is now a church. By early afternoon, we had seen enough of Assisi and its Francis-centric aura.

On Saturday afternoon, we took the train to Rome, accidentally getting on the fast expensive train with our not-quite-as-fast and not-quite-as-expensive tickets. Of course, just before we got to Rome, a conductor checked out tickets - the first time they had been checked since our Monday travel. We were scolded mildly, but not put off the train or asked to pay the difference. I guess we looked sufficiently harmless and naive.

Rome was something. I don't quite get the charm it has for many people. The taxi ride from the train station to our B&B, the noise, the incredible number of ornate churches ... it was all a bit much. We were so thankful that our B&B overlooked a large beautiful green park. The quiet and the trees and the horizon were wonderful breaks after hours tramping through noisy stone streets with stone buildings. I hadn't realized just how important trees and green space are to my psyche until this trip. Wisconsin looks even more beautiful from this perspective.

We saw the Roman Fora, Colosseum, Constantine's Arch, Palatine, Pantheon, Nuova Plaza, and Trevi Fountain the first day. Lots of walking on a bright sunny day. By the end, our legs were stiff and our feet were hot and dirty. Monday was a less intense day - meandering through the shops near the Spanish steps. It rained mid-day and of course, my umbrella was back at the B&B. We both bought inexpensive umbrellas from a street merchant. I think he had been selling sunglasses the minute before it rained but adjusted to the shoppers' needs instantly.

Tuesday was Vatican day. It was cold and rainy and we were very glad for the sweaters we had packed "just in case." The line for the Vatican museums was incredibly daunting, so we got suckered into buying into a guided tour. We thought it would reduce our wait and help us understand what we were seeing. What a waste of money! The tour group had to wait in line along with everyone else - the only difference was our guide knew to get in line after 12:30pm. The radio system was static-y, the guide had very little of use to say, and the whole focus was going directly to the Sistine Chapel at the far end of the museums. Valerie and I wanted to see the museums themselves, so we ditched the tour as soon as we were inside. Those few of us who struggled our way off of the main path had the other parts of the museum to ourselves. We saw Etruscan artifacts and paintings by Van Gogh, Dali, Gaughin. We saw Roman copies of Greek statues that reminded me that Roman culture was more about engineering and governance than art or literature. The museums didn't seem to have an organizing theme beyond: we have these items because we could take them and put them here. It felt like a hodgepodge of loot.

Finally we got to the Sistine Chapel. I was underwhelmed. Maybe I had expected too much. Maybe I was adversely affected by the incredible mass of people in that relatively small room. Maybe it was the guards shouting "silence" and "no pictures." In any case, it was far from a spiritual experience, and not even a very good art experience.

St Peter's Basilica was too much - too much space, too much pomp, too much emphasis on dead popes, too much self-importance. My puritan ancestors kept muttering in my ears and my soul kept asking, "where's the joy of resurrection." It all seemed very death-centric. I kept trying to find the wonder and awe and inspiration that many people sense, but it eluded me.

We had free tickets for the Pope's general audience on Wednesday morning, but both of us woke with headaches and stiff necks and general droopiness. Conversation with others staying at the B&B seemed more meaningful than rushing off to see the Pope. The afternoon included a visit to the utterly bizarre Capuchin Crypt, adorned with the bones of thousands of dead monks and the deserted church above the crypt. We then found our way to San Giovanni in Laterno - our favorite church in Rome. It was not very crowded, a group of Germans were singing, it wasn't hyper-decorated - overall, it just seemed to be more of a holy place than the other sites.

By the time we completed our stay in Rome, we were ready to leave it. I would enjoy visiting Florence again, but I don't feel the need to see any more of Rome. I think the next time I go to Italy I'll spend more time in museums or ordinary neighborhoods and less time seeing cathedrals and relics.

On to Israel.

Florence, Italy

2007-05-23T15:12:00.000-04:00

Valerie and I arrived in Florence on Monday evening. We're having a wonderful time - I'm even remembering to take pix occasionally. We have walked and walked and looked at beautiful art and admired sculpture and explored princely homes. Tomorrow (Thursday), we leave here in the late afternoon and take the train to Siena. All of a sudden we feel slightly panicked - oh no, only a few more hours and so much more to see. Maybe I'll rub the nose of the pig sculpture, thereby ensuring my return to Florence (at least, that's the lore).

Our B&B is in the heart of the historic district - right next to the Duomo (Cathedral) that is a major landmark. Even though we're in the heart of tourist sights our room is very quiet. We have a nice room with air conditioning (we needed it yesterday evening for a while) and television and a lovely bathroom. We watched a little Italian tv last night. We especially enjoyed the commercials and the show that makes fun of Japanese television. We didn't need to know Italian in order to appreciate them.

We've been doing fine with English ... most of the signage is in Italian and English and it seems all the workers know English. I have used my electronic translator for one meal and some museum signs. I could survive without it, but it's very handy. Also, my little bit of French is enough to enable me to make out some Italian. Once I get to Israel, though, I'll definitely need the translator because I have no Hebrew.

The weather is great - sunny and mid-80's. We're inside museums and in shadowed medieval streets most of the time, so I'm not getting burned up. The museums and streets are pleasantly full of people. I can't imagine what this place would be like during the main tourist season.

That's all for now. No great religious insights or profound thoughts - just enjoying being a tourist and experiencing a beautiful city.

Hospitality

2007-05-10T19:04:00.001-04:00

On Sunday morning, we worshipped at a UCC church in Oklahoma City. We were reminded how very hard it is for churches to do a good job of welcoming visitors. Kurt and I arrived in plenty of time for worship and found seats in the sanctuary. As people came in and sat around us, no one said hello. After the service, we went to the fellowship hall for coffee. We lingered and did our best to look friendly. No one came up to us. No one said hello.

I know that almost every church thinks of itself as friendly, and the folks at that church were very friendly with each other. Reaching out to visitors takes intentional friendliness because our natural inclination is to talk with friends.

I know the tape that plays in our heads: what if they're long-time members and they're insulted we treat them like newcomers? What if it's someone we met a few weeks ago and should remember? What if someone else has already talked with them? What if we look too eager, like we're desperate for new members? What if, what if, what if...

Somehow, we have to risk reaching out. We have to risk looking foolish, risk offending someone, risk awkward moments. We have to do what doesn't come naturally ... and talk with people we don't know.

I need to remember this, and practice it myself.

Home, Sweet Home

2007-05-10T18:18:00.000-04:00

It feels so good to be home! Kurt loves being on the road and wandering from town to town. I like it too - for a while, and then I'm ready to be home.

We're both a little low energy today and taking care of all those we've-been-gone-awhile tasks like unpacking and laundry and reading mail and paying bills and taking care of the yard. I'm looking forward to losing myself in a book tonight.

We didn't stay as long as we had anticipated in Austin, TX. I had big hopes for what it would be like, and found the reality didn't match my vision. A migraine wiped out one day, but we wandered downtown, explored a fabulous bookstore and enjoyed the Wildflower Center.

On the way home, we stopped in Oklahoma City - a place we usually just drive by. We found it a wonderful place to visit. We visited three museums - all very different and very interesting. We started at the Museum of Art with its amazing collection of Chihuly glass. (They also have a lovely cafe with delicious food.) We then walked to the National Memorial and Memorial Museum. Somehow, we expected only the grassy field with chairs and a few placards telling the story of the 1995 bombing. The field, reflecting pool and chairs are there ... along with so much more. What a powerful museum - and what a powerful tribute to the victims and survivors of that terrible day and to the people of Oklahoma City.

The next day, we visited the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. What fun! Although cattle, cowboys, and rodeos are not part of my family's heritage, I grew up with the tv shows and westerns of the 1960's and 70's. Roy Rogers, Bonanza, Wild Wild West, John Wayne, etc are part of my childhood memories. The museum includes those silver screen cowboys and so much more. Paintings, sculptures, rodeos, cattle drives, gear, the cavalry, western daily life, beautiful grounds - it's a huge facility that took most of the day to explore. Educational and enjoyable, with something for everyone - I highly recommend it.

A flat tire just outside of Wichita, a beautiful dinner in Des Moines, breakfast with a long-time friend and uneventful travel completed our journey. When we left on April 19, it was still winter-y here. Now it's full spring and beautiful.

It's good to be home.

Love My Library

2007-05-02T14:23:00.000-04:00

Once again, I'm at a public library - checking email and blogging. This is one of our favorite parts of traveling ... visiting libraries in the towns we visit.

I love public libraries. I love the sense of welcome. I love the access to newspapers and magazines and books and internet. I love the helpfulness of staff. I love the information and new worlds available to all people. I gladly pay taxes to support my local public library, for I consider it one of the most important elements of a community. When considering moving to a town, one of the things I evaluate is the existence and hours of the library.

As Kurt and I travel, we often run out of energy for wandering lovely little shops and local museums. On rainy/hot/cold/buggy/windy days, we have often sought refuge in a public library. From a tiny library of less than 1,000 square feet and only two chairs in a Canadian village to the downtown Dallas library, we have found a comfortable home.

I am grateful for those who first began open access libraries. I am grateful for supporters and users of public libraries. I am grateful for a society that values open access to information. I am grateful for those who work in libraries large and small, doing their part to serve the public. THANK YOU!

Dallas & More

2007-05-01T14:09:00.000-04:00

Sunday, April 29: Today we're all recovering from a intestinal virus that hit Friday night. Valerie, Nicholas, Matthew, Joan and Kurt - all got sick. The bathrooms were all busy throughout the night. Saturday was a very very quiet day - lots of sleeping and sipping 7Up and more sleeping. We're pretty sure Martin brought the bug, since he was sick Wednesday night when he returned from a business trip. Valerie and Martin made it to church, but the rest of us used the morning for rest and recuperation. Wow - when there are several people sharing a small space, a bug sure can travel fast!

This means all of our ambitious plans for the weekend have been altered. Valerie and I are spending some time on-line looking for lodging while we're in Italy next month and everyone else is reading, watching tv/videos, lounging.

Tuesday, May 1: Happy May Day! I'm bummed we're not home for today - Kurt and I like to make little May Day baskets, like we did in grade school, and hang them on neighbors' doors. Ah well, next year.

We're in Fredericksburg, TX - a charming tourist town not far from Austin and San Antonio. Yesterday we left Dallas and started exploring some of the off-Interstate parts of Texas. Just before the boys left for school I realized I hadn't taken a snapshot of them. Trying to get that accomplished on a Monday morning seemed too challenging, so I chose to stay out of the way and count on memory instead of photo.

Kurt and I are still fairly low energy. The weather here is gray and cloudy, upper 70's, the air soft. It feels like gentle weather for a gentle-moving day. We're looking forward to exploring the quaint shops, historical village, etc. Settled by Germans in the 1800's, Fredericksburg is an interesting mix of German and Tex-Mex. It's very tourist-friendly, but I think fall/early winter must be the high season. One of the restaurants we tried to enter last night was closing an hour early. They said they'd had only 5 sales all day and couldn't afford to keep the staff around any longer at that rate.

We're in the Hill Country of Texas - supposed to be the prettiest part of the state. It's nice, and lovely compared to other areas we've seen, but most of Wisconsin is prettier without even trying. Funny how after only 17 years in Wisconsin, it feels more like home than anywhere else I've lived - including my hometown.

I have had several dreams about work. In most of them, I'm aware I'm on sabbatical, but have "just a few more things to do" at the church. One night I dreamed of preaching without being prepared - a dream I have fairly often.

I've had some time to read. I finally finished reading From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas Friedman. It's an old book, but still recommended for understanding Israel/Palestine. I've been reading it off and on for a couple of years. It was very interesting and very helpful. When I go to Israel in June I need to be careful about drawing quick conclusions about the situation there. I read somewhere something like: visit Israel for a few days and be overwhelmed by the complexity, visit Israel for a few weeks and see clearly how to solve the situation, visit Israel for a few months and be overwhelmed by the complexity. I'm trying to keep an open mind, although I'm aware of some pre-judgments. I probably have even more pre-judgments I'm unaware of.

I'm almost done reading In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez. It's a novel, based on actual events in the Dominican Republic in the 1950's, under the dictatorship of Gen. Trujillo. I generally enjoy reading novel-ized history rather than straight history. I like how imagination and literature give me insights into other worlds.

All for now - this computer at the public library has someone next in line.

The Second Week

2007-04-26T11:21:00.000-04:00

I'm in the midst of the "reconnecting with family" part of my sabbatical. Kurt and I spent the weekend in Horseshoe Bend, AR where my parents moved 16 years ago. It was a lively weekend in that town of 2,000 mostly retired folks. Dogwood Days were Saturday and Dad, as president of the Chamber of Commerce, was in charge. The woman who was supposed to run the kids' games had family medical problems, so Kurt and I were recruited to take over. We oversaw 1) toss a ring around the soda bottle, 2) toss a tennis ball through the holes on a board, 3) pick up a plastic duck floating in water, and 4) throw a dart and try to break a balloon. The dart throw was the biggest hit - nothing like handling sharp objects and popping balloons and making noise to attract kids of all ages. Everyone was a winner and we handed out dozens of prizes. We actually only had a few kids, but we still gave away lots of prizes - it was fun to be able to be generous.

Saturday evening was a concert in the local theatre. Community folks gathered to listen to about 90 minutes of bluegrass, country-western, and blues, performed live by other local folks. It was enjoyable - especially seeing folks of all ages performing music together.

Sunday morning was church - an opportunity to sit in a pew instead of up front. I was reminded how hard it can be to listen attentively to a sermon. This was a church that was on top of hospitality - I think we were greeted warmly by four different people before we even got to the sanctuary. Sunday brunch at a local restaurant, with church folks, my parents, my uncle Gene and his wife was a nice way to conclude the morning. It was refreshing to be able to walk out of the church building without worrying about the lights, locks, and other miscellaneous concerns that usually fill my head.

Sunday afternoon we went to a concert by the community chorus - The Blenders. It was good music, performed well.

We haven't been to Horseshoe Bend often, and mostly for family events. It was nice to get a sense of the community and meet some of Mom and Dad's friends.

We spent Monday evening exploring Hot Springs, AR - boyhood home of Bill Clinton, and famous long before that for its several naturally hot water springs. Tuesday, we arrived in Dallas. As always, life here is busy. We're staying with my sister Valerie, her husband Martin, and their sons Nicholas and Matthew. My other sister Susan lives about 30 minutes away. The boys - in second and seventh grade - are busy. We've been to a Cub Scout pack meeting where Matthew led a cheer. Last night, Kurt offered a refresher lesson to Nicholas and Matthew on how to start a fire without a match while I took care of Susan following outpatient surgery. This home is so different from ours - which doesn't even have furniture in the living room. All the guys in this house have lots of interests and lots of hobbies. Cats, hatching chicken eggs, bird, fish, geckos, guinea pig, legos, model planes, a cool train set, foosball table and more ... all make this an interesting place to visit. Tonight we'll watch Matthew play soccer, tomorrow night is Nicholas' school musical practice ... and I think we're building a tower on the backyard fort on Saturday.

I love dipping into life with kids - but it sure looks exhausting! It's so constant ... always thinking of nutritious meals and scheduling activities and overseeing homework and organizing carpools and wondering if you're being a good parent. Kurt and I missed out on all of that - I don't know how we would have handled it. Certainly, our lifestyle would be very different. I wouldn't be able to work 50-60 hours/week and Kurt wouldn't be able to be away for several weeks at a time like he currently is for his job.

It's time to plunge into the day. I don't know how "restful" this part of the sabbatical is ... but it certainly is a break from the normal routines of preparing worship, staffing committee meetings, etc.

Day One

2007-04-16T18:58:00.000-04:00

The first day of a 3-month sabbatical - what a gift! The gift of time is so incredibly precious. I know there are some people for whom time drags ... days seem too long and time is a curse rather than a blessing. For me, though, and for too many of the people I know, time is always in short supply.

I used to do fairly well at keeping some balance in my life - some time off and time for home projects and time for myself. Somehow, in this past year, I've lost all balance. I can't remember the last time I had an entire day off. Home maintenance has suffered - things are more cluttered and dusty than usual; the list of necessary small repairs keeps growing.

The sunshine and warmer weather are special blessings for today. I'm going to go for a nice long walk in the early evening. I actually have time to walk to do errands, instead of jumping in the car for the least little thing.

Today I used part of a gift certificate for a massage. My first massage ever! It was weird to just be there, without anything I needed to do. No reading, no to-do lists, no schedule. My brain just would not slow down. During the massage, I thought of my chiropractor friend Gayle's comments about the healing power of touch. I know touch is important, but I don't generally think of myself as a very tactile person. I tend to walk through stores with my arms crossed or my hands in my pockets; I don't use handrails; I avoid touching walls. As relaxing as the massage was, I started to feel a little overwhelmed after a while. Maybe a shorter massage next time ... or maybe I'll get used to it.

I have so many hopes for this sabbatical! I want to slow down, get the house in order, finish sewing projects, work in the yard, become physically fit, lose weight, read books of personal and professional interest, listen to people's heartsongs, participate in worship rather than lead it, develop a daily spiritual discipline, reconnect with family, reconnect with God, learn how to use Kurt's video camera, experience other cultures, figure out a way to meet people who aren't church members and who might become friends, bicycle and play. We'll see how I do.

My last sabbatical, I was so tired, I slept 12 hours/night most of the three months. I don't feel quite as wiped out this time. I'm aware, though, that many of my colleagues talk about beginning a sabbatical and then realizing how very tired they are. I've tried to take seriously the advice not to be too scheduled - so there's space for surprises, space for deep rest, space to just be, instead of always do-ing.