Monday, March 24, 2008

Good Friday

On the first day of the Purim Triduum, after megillah reading and a siyyum, we went to the Old City to watch the Good Friday procession. Christian pilgrims from all over the world walk the Via Dolorosa, following the Stations of the Cross.

(Actually, this was just the Catholics and the Protestants. Orthodox Christians (which include a number of the Christian groups with a significant presence in Jerusalem, including the Greek, Armenian, and Russian churches) observe Good Friday and Easter next month, at the end of Pesach. Jews and Christians intend to observe Pesach/Easter at the first full moon after the vernal equinox / chodesh ha-aviv. Catholics and Protestants have fixed their calendrical errors; Jews and Orthodox Christians haven't. Really it should be Pesach right now, but I can't complain. I couldn't have asked for better Purim weather.)

People were wearing all sorts of dress, not only the expected priest and nun uniforms, but clothing that looked like military uniforms and scout uniforms.

These pictures and videos are of a group identified as being from St. George's Cathedral, an Anglican cathedral in East Jerusalem. Apparently there used to be a lot of British missionaries in what was then Palestine (during the mandate period and earlier), and as a result, here is a congregation of Palestinians singing what sound just like Protestant hymns, in Arabic.











1 comment:

  1. He who has not heard blake's Jerusalem in Arabic has not heard protestant hymnary in his life.
    (Also, check out the syriac version of O come all ye faithful, where "Christ our lord" is "מלכא משיחא")

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