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‘There is no other place I wanted to be. If I didn’t come, I would have had a longing all my life.’
— MYRA MOSS
American traveler to Jerusalem
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MOSS, TOURING the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem’s Old City on Thursday, described her calling to the land of events central to the Christian religion — the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
“[The calling] gets stronger, stronger and stronger,” she said. “I’m a believer in Christ. I study the Bible actively. There is no other place I wanted to be. If I didn’t come, I would have had a longing all my life.”
On the eve of the millennium, thousands of Christian pilgrims and tourists are streaming into Jerusalem and other holy sites around Israel. The Israeli and Palestinian governments were still paving roads and fitting stone sidewalks just a day before celebrations will transform the streets of places like Jerusalem and Bethlehem into carnivals of faithful pilgrims. Since December, 3 million visitors are expected to make a special millennial trip to retrace Jesus’ footsteps over the next year. Pope John Paul II is also planning a visit.
Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent in the Palestinian territories on new hotels and car parks — and vendors in the winding alleyways of Jerusalem’s Old City have stocked up on Biblical trinkets made from materials both holy and unholy (olive wood and plastic) to cash in on a bumper tourist crop.
The governments have also spent millions on extra security for the celebrations, even though many Jewish and Muslim residents of Jerusalem will not take part. Israeli and Palestinian security forces, in cooperation with the FBI, have sought to keep doomsday Christian cults and terrorists from disrupting millennial events.
But Jerusalem’s high security alert didn’t deter American Moss, an independent television producer from Virginia, and her friend from a local church back home, Warren Almquist, from making the trip. They rented a room in a Palestinian-run hotel atop the Mount of Olives, which overlooks the Chapel of Ascension, where Christians believe Jesus will return in the next millennium.
The room offers a perfect view of the chapel below, but Almquist said he isn’t counting on seeing an apparition on Friday at night. “I don’t believe Christ will come back at a specific time or on a specific date. He’ll do it when he is ready.”
“But there is still no where else I’d rather be. This is the spiritual center of the universe,” Almquist said.
Moss also isn’t placing bets on Jesus’ return on overnight Friday, but came just the same. “I think he will come back in our lifetime, but I still couldn’t imagine anywhere else to be.”
But while there were plenty of tour groups plying the steep streets of Jerusalem on Thursday, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher was by no means full — an oddity at this time of any year. Most souvenir shops nearby were empty and café owners shot desperate looks at passersby.
“Come and have a drink. Business is bad,” one called out.
Even if terrorism threats keep pilgrims away, American Moss is looking forward to a profitable year. About the same time she felt her calling to come to Jerusalem, she started an online business, www.thejesusstore.com, which sells gold and silver crosses made in Jerusalem.
MSNBC’s Preston Mendenhall is on assignment in Israel.
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