Mount of Olives

Dominus Flevit - Teardrops from Heaven

Jesus had come over the Mount of Olives from Bethphage and Bethany surrounded by a group of his boisterous followers. He was riding a donkey and they were running and shouting beside him. Although a couple of his disciples had put a few of their own items of clothing on the colt to cushion Jesus' ride it was still quite uncomfortable. He stopped to work out a more comfortable position. He looked up and what did he see?

The stones that Jesus saw. The huge carved stones helped create Herod's Temple Mount. The al-Aqsa mosque on the Temple Mount dates from the eleventh century CE.

The sun is shining brightly on this clear, spring morning, sparkling off  the  dew on the olive leaves. Below the blue dome of the sky lies his destination,  Jerusalem. Shining golden  in the centre is the holy temple, God's earthly home. The gold is glittering, the pure, white marble shimmering. This surely is one of the wonders of his world. Surrounding the temple are the porticoes, lines of marble columns capped with white limestone. The massive basilica forms a boundary to the south. What a sight. Oh, what joy to worship the Lord in the beauty of this temple!

But Jesus' eyes must move on, for there is so much to see in the great city. They shift from the temple mount to the City of David with its crowded buildings teeming with life.  Then further to the upper city with its huge, rich mansions. Completing the circle his eyes come back to the massive rocks supporting the temple mount. Even from this distance their size is evident. And so neatly carved. So beautifully crafted. Built for a God.

Jesus sat and thought, he looked again and saw more. He saw that his words concerning the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven had fallen on deaf ears. He saw what the prophet  Amos of years past had seen. Then his mind returned to the present and he saw the sky darken and the sparkle die. He saw death and destruction, masses running, mothers pleading, children screaming, soldiers dying, blood flowing in the gutters. He saw buildings crumbling and fire bringing all to ash.

His head bowed into his hands and he wept at what he saw. He wept why this should be.

The Dominus Flevit Chapel on the Mount of Olives remembering a sad, frustrating time in the life of Jesus.

Luke19:41-44 reads as follows - "As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said,' if you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace - but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognise the time of God's coming to you' ."

And Luke 13:34 - "O, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing."

Future generations of believers determined that this moment of frustration and sadness in Jesus' life should have a specific location for pilgrims wanting to retrace Jesus' footsteps. The chapel of Dominus Flevit is the latest to be built in this vicinity to remember Jesus' disappointment. This location certainly fits the biblical statements that he came down the Mount of Olives, approached Jerusalem and saw the city.

This small chapel, constructed in the shape of a teardrop was built in 1953/54 for the Catholic Franciscan Custody of the Holy Lands. It follows the simple, but imaginative plans of Italian architect, Antonio Barluzzi (remember that name?) who was responsible for a number of chapels throughout the land.

Dominus Flevit was the first scheduled stop on our walk down Palm Sunday Path; the first of a long list of churches dedicated to the recorded movements of Jesus during his ministry. Yes, I was excited, looking forward with keen anticipation.

I had read up briefly on this church (it's always good knowing what one can expect), its architect and other examples of his work. The exterior lived up to expectations. It needed little imagination to see its resemblance to a large teardrop. The tower finials certainly could be seen as teardrops from heaven.

Architect Antonio Barluzzi's teardrop from heaven.

I went  around the corner to be met with disappointment. A church service was being held in the church and we were not able to go inside. Alas, my view of the holy mount through the iron window design was frustrated. How was the hen and her chicks depicted? And the mosaic from earlier churches?

I could have cried!

But, I consoled myself. Whereas this was the beginning of Jesus' final week, it was the beginning of our time with him in his earthly home.

And I am sure this has not been our first disappointment with a church. I mean visiting a church as a tourist or pilgrim and not as a congregation member of St.  So-and-so.   But I digress.

Just a few years ago I was excited about seeing up close a very magnificent facade of a church in the hill-top village of Orvieto in Italy. I had seen many fine photographs of the church and was determined to take one just as good. But alas! when we turned the corner to view the Cathedral I was sorely disappointed. The whole facade was undergoing renovations and completely covered with hessian. Not even a small glimpse of the mosaics on the portals, or a peep at the bronze Evangelists on the piers of the facade or a sneaked view of the bas-reliefs on the piers.

What the heck! My "Complete Guide to the City of Orvieto" probably contains better images than I would capture. However, that's not the point, is it? ...... But I digress even further.

Back to Jerusalem and Dominus Flevit. Just to add insult to injury (so to speak) the main picture on my Immanuel Tours Pilgrimage Certificate Nr 101853, is taken from inside the chapel overlooking modern Jerusalem - the one I wanted to see in reality and photograph for myself. Oh, how cruel.