Continuing on our journey through the old city of Jerusalem, we begin the Via Dolorosa. The Via Dolorosa is the path that Jesus would have taken, forced by the Roman soldiers, on the way to his crucifixion. There are 14 stations of the cross, 10 inside the walls of the city and 4 outside the walls where Jesus was ultimately crucified.

The first station is where Jesus was condemned to death. Each subsequent station represents a specific event that took place as Jesus was led to his place of crucifixion. For instance, station 3 is where he falls for the first time, station 8 is where The women of Jerusalem weep over Jesus, and station 14 is where he is placed in the sepulchre. How accurate the path or the stations are is open for debate since the city had been destroyed twice since the time of Jesus, but devoted followers are adamant as to the accuracy. Far be it for me to question validity or accuracy. I’m humbled just to be able to experience this.

Along the path we come to the prison that was used to hold Jesus as he was being tried. As you can see, his legs were placed in holes in the stone bench and then shackled. You can sense the despair in the air inside the enclosure.

We continue through to the Ethiopian church which is attached to the area where Jesus was crucified. The stone that is encased in glass is said to be where his cross stood. As we make our way past the crucifixion site we come to the slab of rose stone where the body of Jesus was washed and anointed. We had an opportunity to actually touch the stone. It is very fragrant from all the oils.

Part 3 to follow shortly

Ciao for now