Via Dolorosa

The events of Christ's last trip into Jerusalem are commemorated by the Via Dolorosa. 14 "Stations of the Cross" identified through New Testament and traditional sources are marked throughout the city. Since around 1350 Christian pilgrims have come to Jerusalem to walk this path through the city. There is a lot of debate as to the authenticity of the route and even some of the events identified (only eight of the stations are events suggested in the gospels), but I found it to be an interesting trip through the city thinking about what Christ went through during this final mortal day.

The route takes you from the courts of Pontius Pilot where Christ was condemned to the place of his crucifixion, burial, and resurrection - all within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

These Roman flagstones are one of the indications that this may have been the place where Pilot held court. This etching in the stone shows a game board typical of the times for Roman troops to cast lots to take turns torturing prisoners.

Station #13: The Stone of Anointing.
This is the traditional site where Christ's body was taken from the cross and prepared for burial by Joseph of Arimathea. I heard from one of the guides there say that touching items to the stone turns it into a religious relic.

It's hard to know while you're there what is thought to be authentic. If you do a little research on this stone you'll find that this type of marble is not ingenious to Israel and began being imported here in the 4th century. Also, this particular stone wasn't here until reconstruction after a fire in the early 19th century.

Many people come to Jerusalem to pray at what may have been the site of Jesus' crucifixion. Here you can kneel and reach your hand down and touch what may have been one of the stones of Golgotha.

This is the outside of the church that surrounds what may have been the tomb of Christ. There are different opinions as to if this was the place of crucifixion and burial of Christ, but this site has been revered since the 4th century when Constantine ordered its construction. This place is hard for me to reconcile. There is a chance that some very important events happened here, but it's a bit of a bizarre setting for someone who didn't grow up around ornate Church alters. It is dark with incense burners hanging everywhere and hard to imagine the ancient landscape that may have been here during the meridian of times. One of the most powerful sights for both Marta and me is a small marker on the floor that identifies the place where Mary and Mary stood as Christ hung on the cross. While to me it's not really realistic to think that this is the actual spot where these women stood, it was powerful to imagine the pain these women felt as their son and dear friend suffered.