It's Day 9 on February 11th. We continued on to Saint Peter's in Gallicantu (sounds a bit like Gally-cont-oo). Where is this? This is the home and palace of the man who was the high priest at the time Jesus would be sentenced to death, Caiaphas.
As we entered the grounds, we saw signs with roosters on them. It is the symbol of the site, since this is where Peter denied Jesus three times before the rooster would crow that morning, as predicted. Denying and Day 9 sounds a bit similar...I just noticed that. Earlier in the trip, we heard that roosters make the sound, "coo-kery-coo". Apparently, roosters don't speak English there.
It is very clear we are on the side of a hill as we walk down the driveway and see the city ahead. As we round the corner, we see the church we will visit down below us.
When we stand outside the church on a higher level than the ground level of the church, we are just outside the gift shop. It provides a nicer close-up view of the church. Notice in either the photos above or below, the rooster image mounted on top of the cross on the top of the dome.
We entered the lower church. Upon entering the main body of the church, we see the stone walls, plus the structures supporting the upper church.
There is a spot in the church where we were able to look down into a pit. This is a detail that many people don't hear about unless they visit the Holy Land. There are many very interesting details that aren't documented in the Bible that one can pick up on when you see the sites of each event.
In the lowest levels of the palace of Caiaphas, there was a pit. Since Jesus came to fulfill the scriptures and the Psalms look forward to Him, Psalm 88's reference to a pit seemed like it lacked something in the life of Jesus...until they found this pit. They had to keep Jesus confined for a while before they brought him to the Roman authorities. Engraved crosses were found in this area from early Christians. The sign was obviously added much later.
There were a few signs telling us about the underground caves and pit.
There was an informational sign posted to explain the layout of what we saw. Guards would look down into the pit from larger rectangular holes. There were holes spaced properly for shackles that could hold the wrists of a prisoner who would have to stand. Some of the early photos are of a cave a level above the official pit. The shackles are shown at this higher level. We had such a large group that we wouldn't all fit within the pit at the same time without people like me remaining on some stairs. So I didn't get the depth of the pit experience, despite reading that Psalm many times earlier in life.
At this level, we see the sign that was in the hole to the pit earlier. But that sign appears next to a hole that leads down to the pit.
I took photos quickly in the pit, which blurred everyone. This is the pit that very likely tortured Jesus. One also gets to look up the hole we've seen a few times before.
The pit has much more to it; more I could say. But now it's time to step outside. As we step outside, we see the Temple Mount (gold dome) on the left side of the view and the Mount of Olives on the right-most side of the photo. Where the city wall ends, we see a church we didn't visit that's on the Mount of Olives, just a little uphill from the Church of All Nations at Gethsemane. So Jesus would have been walked from there to here during the night.
The courtyard...
In the courtyard, this is where Peter sat near the charcoal fire. From this area, he could hear what was going on inside. And it was here that he denied Jesus three times. Later on, after Jesus returned, Jesus would restore Peter at a charcoal fire with three rounds of questions.
This site felt even more tied to the Bible when we heard a rooster crowing off in the distance. It was mid-afternoon on a cloudy day. It sounded like the rooster was at least half a mile away. It crowed four times that I heard, but someone else only heard three crowings. After that, it stopped, even as other groups came out. So this wasn't some gimmick of the site. As it was heard the first time, one would wonder if that was real. With the second time, one let the experience set in. Then, one might think about times one denied Jesus in some way or didn't express faith in Jesus as boldly when in public. How have we denied Jesus? ... Then the third crowing of the rooster.
Jesus ends up in a torturous pit that likely had a muddy floor that caused him to have to keep moving about, forced to stand with the shackles at his elevated wrists. This could go on for hours. And despite the torment, one who considered Jesus the Messiah would deny Him.
The group didn't go into the upper church, but a few of us wandered in with a priest. Mass was being said. I normally try not to take photos during Mass. I took the first of the photos below through the window in the door. But when we went inside, I thought I might as well finish taking enough photos to remember this spot. Since I would only be there a very brief time, and would mostly remember the rest, and I wasn't so sure I'd find many photos of this elsewhere, especially with others in the group not going in...I snapped a few photos very quickly, paused for prayer and reflection, and then left. As I like to point out, tourists are there to take in everything, and they might take lots of photos (which I did). But a pilgrimage brings something out of you, triggered by what you take in. So I tried not to just snap zillions of photos without some spiritual element.
Before leaving, I would go into the gift shop. Since it was a rainy day, stepping in allowed me to get out of the rain while seeing what souvenirs I might consider. There wasn't much that I didn't already see elsewhere. But I saw the rooster mugs. I didn't buy any.
But I couldn't help but remember my brother telling me about how some cultures don't worry about having a matched set of cups. This is not a custom of the Holy Land to the best of my knowledge, but rather a Far East custom. Each cup is unique. The host would serve you a beverage in a cup that they thought went well with the guest. So the guest would look at the cup and ponder the relevance and significance of the cup and how it reflects themself. It was SO tempting to buy one with that in mind. But then I wondered who I would ever serve it to. It's a sign of disloyalty. I considered just making it a gift for my brother and let him worry about it. But I left emptyhanded.
The time was nearing to leave the site, so I thought I would go looking for the bus. I saw where most busses were parked, and only saw the front of each bus. None of them looked right. So I ascended the uphill driveway to get out to the main road again. I took some of the outdoor shots seen at the start of this entry while I was up there. But I didn't see the bus. I headed back down. When I looked at the busses parked in the lot again, I suddenly recognize the one I needed. The tour company doesn't put their logo on the front or back, yet. It has been suggested because this was not the first time people couldn't spot the bus from the front or back. It's not that I saw the bus, recognized it the first time, and out of fear denied that I knew that bus...no...no...no, that's not it at all. (rooster crowing heard in the distance)
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| Church of Saint Peter in Gallicantu |
As we entered the grounds, we saw signs with roosters on them. It is the symbol of the site, since this is where Peter denied Jesus three times before the rooster would crow that morning, as predicted. Denying and Day 9 sounds a bit similar...I just noticed that. Earlier in the trip, we heard that roosters make the sound, "coo-kery-coo". Apparently, roosters don't speak English there.
It is very clear we are on the side of a hill as we walk down the driveway and see the city ahead. As we round the corner, we see the church we will visit down below us.
When we stand outside the church on a higher level than the ground level of the church, we are just outside the gift shop. It provides a nicer close-up view of the church. Notice in either the photos above or below, the rooster image mounted on top of the cross on the top of the dome.
We entered the lower church. Upon entering the main body of the church, we see the stone walls, plus the structures supporting the upper church.
There is a spot in the church where we were able to look down into a pit. This is a detail that many people don't hear about unless they visit the Holy Land. There are many very interesting details that aren't documented in the Bible that one can pick up on when you see the sites of each event.
In the lowest levels of the palace of Caiaphas, there was a pit. Since Jesus came to fulfill the scriptures and the Psalms look forward to Him, Psalm 88's reference to a pit seemed like it lacked something in the life of Jesus...until they found this pit. They had to keep Jesus confined for a while before they brought him to the Roman authorities. Engraved crosses were found in this area from early Christians. The sign was obviously added much later.
 |
| Looking Down to the Pit |
There were a few signs telling us about the underground caves and pit.
There was an informational sign posted to explain the layout of what we saw. Guards would look down into the pit from larger rectangular holes. There were holes spaced properly for shackles that could hold the wrists of a prisoner who would have to stand. Some of the early photos are of a cave a level above the official pit. The shackles are shown at this higher level. We had such a large group that we wouldn't all fit within the pit at the same time without people like me remaining on some stairs. So I didn't get the depth of the pit experience, despite reading that Psalm many times earlier in life.
At this level, we see the sign that was in the hole to the pit earlier. But that sign appears next to a hole that leads down to the pit.
I took photos quickly in the pit, which blurred everyone. This is the pit that very likely tortured Jesus. One also gets to look up the hole we've seen a few times before.
The pit has much more to it; more I could say. But now it's time to step outside. As we step outside, we see the Temple Mount (gold dome) on the left side of the view and the Mount of Olives on the right-most side of the photo. Where the city wall ends, we see a church we didn't visit that's on the Mount of Olives, just a little uphill from the Church of All Nations at Gethsemane. So Jesus would have been walked from there to here during the night.
 |
| View of the City from Caiaphas's Palace |
The courtyard...
In the courtyard, this is where Peter sat near the charcoal fire. From this area, he could hear what was going on inside. And it was here that he denied Jesus three times. Later on, after Jesus returned, Jesus would restore Peter at a charcoal fire with three rounds of questions.
This site felt even more tied to the Bible when we heard a rooster crowing off in the distance. It was mid-afternoon on a cloudy day. It sounded like the rooster was at least half a mile away. It crowed four times that I heard, but someone else only heard three crowings. After that, it stopped, even as other groups came out. So this wasn't some gimmick of the site. As it was heard the first time, one would wonder if that was real. With the second time, one let the experience set in. Then, one might think about times one denied Jesus in some way or didn't express faith in Jesus as boldly when in public. How have we denied Jesus? ... Then the third crowing of the rooster.
Jesus ends up in a torturous pit that likely had a muddy floor that caused him to have to keep moving about, forced to stand with the shackles at his elevated wrists. This could go on for hours. And despite the torment, one who considered Jesus the Messiah would deny Him.
The group didn't go into the upper church, but a few of us wandered in with a priest. Mass was being said. I normally try not to take photos during Mass. I took the first of the photos below through the window in the door. But when we went inside, I thought I might as well finish taking enough photos to remember this spot. Since I would only be there a very brief time, and would mostly remember the rest, and I wasn't so sure I'd find many photos of this elsewhere, especially with others in the group not going in...I snapped a few photos very quickly, paused for prayer and reflection, and then left. As I like to point out, tourists are there to take in everything, and they might take lots of photos (which I did). But a pilgrimage brings something out of you, triggered by what you take in. So I tried not to just snap zillions of photos without some spiritual element.
Before leaving, I would go into the gift shop. Since it was a rainy day, stepping in allowed me to get out of the rain while seeing what souvenirs I might consider. There wasn't much that I didn't already see elsewhere. But I saw the rooster mugs. I didn't buy any.
But I couldn't help but remember my brother telling me about how some cultures don't worry about having a matched set of cups. This is not a custom of the Holy Land to the best of my knowledge, but rather a Far East custom. Each cup is unique. The host would serve you a beverage in a cup that they thought went well with the guest. So the guest would look at the cup and ponder the relevance and significance of the cup and how it reflects themself. It was SO tempting to buy one with that in mind. But then I wondered who I would ever serve it to. It's a sign of disloyalty. I considered just making it a gift for my brother and let him worry about it. But I left emptyhanded.
The time was nearing to leave the site, so I thought I would go looking for the bus. I saw where most busses were parked, and only saw the front of each bus. None of them looked right. So I ascended the uphill driveway to get out to the main road again. I took some of the outdoor shots seen at the start of this entry while I was up there. But I didn't see the bus. I headed back down. When I looked at the busses parked in the lot again, I suddenly recognize the one I needed. The tour company doesn't put their logo on the front or back, yet. It has been suggested because this was not the first time people couldn't spot the bus from the front or back. It's not that I saw the bus, recognized it the first time, and out of fear denied that I knew that bus...no...no...no, that's not it at all. (rooster crowing heard in the distance)
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