The Holy Land is one of my favorite subjects to talk about and study.
Many people ask, Why the Holy Land? How did you get started traveling to the Holy Land?
I grew up with the souvenirs my grandparents brought back from their pilgrimage in 1970.
But I never thought it would be something I would ever experience in person so I was happy with the olive wood Bible covers and camels along with the pictures of the Holy sites.
Virtual travel is one of my interests as I can travel far and wide on a limited budget. I found the book “Walking The Bible” by Bruce Fieler. This may have been the turning point to set me on the path to pilgrimage. Fieler’s book is his journey to find the actual sacred places from the first 5 books of the Bible. It was fascinating to read how he found guides and walked in the places noted in the Bible.
The next step was to “see” this book. The documentary was created to share the visual pilgrimage from this book and I was overjoyed to see the journey on my small TV screen!
Years later I was invited to join a pilgrimage to The Holy Land, almost 40 years to the day since my grandparents took their pilgrimage.
Now I have led pilgrimages for 10 years. It has been a joy to blend the souvenirs and pictures from Grandparents pilgrimage with my pilgrimages. I found that I bought some of the same souvenirs and took the same pictures without realizing what I had done until I returned home the first time.
However, as much joy, awe, and wonder that I feel each time I travel, the best part of every pilgrimage is to see our group relate to their faith and the land. It is a blessing to see the seeds of faith planted, watered, grow, and bloom within each group.
That is why I continue to return to the Holy Land.
