It’s our last day in Nazareth and many of us feel a bit sad to leave the friendly and welcoming atmosphere of the Fauzi Azar and the winding streets of Nazareth’s Old City. Friday was our last day at the village and most of the group worked on steps that had to be carved out of rock while others bottled annointing oil indoors. We finished the day at Nazareth Village with a debriefing complete with pastries and fruit and the fellowship of the village staff.  We talked about sharing in the way of life that Jesus would have lived and what a difference it makes to see this as a living reality and how this impacts our reading of the Bible. In the few days that we were at the village, the staff has taught us Arabic, invited us for cups of strong and spicy Arabic coffee as they teach us the daily tasks necessary to keep the village in working order. Experiences of culture at the village have given us a taste of the way that Jesus and his disciples would have socialized with the many people they encountered on their walks from village to village in the Galilee.

After the week at the village, many were feeling the effects of working days in the intense sun while wearing heavy 1st Century clothing and so welcomed a day at the beach in Haifa on Saturday. There is a stark contrast between Haifa’s modern look and majority Jewish population and the old City of Nazareth with it’s predominantly Arab culture. At the beach we had the chance to relax in the sun or the shade, swim in jellyfish infested waters (there weren’t that many but a couple of people got stung) and generally unwind from the previous week. This was followed by a wonderful barbecue of chicken spiced local style in Nazareth and hosted by Gabi, one of the staff members at the Fauzi Azar. I helped Dave and Gabi prepare food for grilling, taking the opportunity return the favour to our team for the many good meals they have taken turns preparing. I also got to go for a long walk/run along the beach at sunset and this was the perfect ending to a very good day. Leading this group has been a privilege and has been very life-giving and I am thankful for each and every personality that makes up our team that is quickly becoming a family.

As I write the church bells of Nazareth are ringing. The ones that I hear are most likely the bells of the Basilica of Annunciation built to commemorate Mary learning that she would be the mother of God’s Son.  It is amazing to think of the variety of religious thoughts and political positions that are crammed into even this smallish city of Nazareth and even more amazing to think that this is the place where God chose to become incarnate and walk among people through His Son – walking and talking with people no matter their background or political position. The complexity of this place reminds us too that being in ministry in the way of Christ is no easy task as we set aside our own agendas, prejudices, and fears and approach the people around us with love and an open heart. We need God’s wisdom to know how to do this to the best of our abilities and relying on that wisdom and not our own is a daily lesson here. Saying goodbye may not be easy but the fact that it is hard means that we have shared ourselves with the people we met while here in Nazareth and those new relationships are something we can celebrate.

-Hinke