Praying the Angelus where it all began

Nazareth, Israel - If there was a sort of unexpected event that Mrs. Marilou Ordoñez didn't tell me about our pilgrimage, it was that the couples with us in this tour group were going to have a renewal of their marriage vows in the village called Cana. Yes, any Catholic knows that our Lord Jesus Christ together with his mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, went from Nazareth to Cana to attend a wedding, which is mentioned in the Holy Bible as the first time that our Lord Jesus Christ performed a miracle by turning water into wine.

While the Bible doesn't give any names on who got married, there is no doubt that the bride or the bridegroom must have been close to the family of our Lord Jesus Christ. So why am I making this conclusion? As what we learned on this tour, Nazareth is perched high on a mountainside and Cana is located still very much below it…around four to five kilometers away on a winding road. For sure, during the days of our Lord, there were no paved roads between Cana and Nazareth so it was a difficult and arduous trek.

Hence if they were not close to the wedding couple, it would have been a long walk or a Burro ride to go to Cana. Secondly, that the Blessed Mother was concerned that the wedding feast ran out of wine. Why did she take that responsibility only proves that the wedding couple was close to their family.

While in Cana, ten couples renewed their marriage vows with Fr. Gerry Martiano assisted by Fr. Dante Barcelona officiating the Holy Mass. The area apparently is a Franciscan Catholic Church and has many rooms where married couples renew their marriage vows. Come to think of it…if any of our readers are preparing for their 25th or 50th wedding anniversary, instead of having a big bash or party, taking a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and getting their renewal of their marriage vows in Cana would be an unforgettable experience.

From Cana, we rode up to the mountain (which is almost similar to going up to Baguio City) to Nazareth to visit the home of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which today is now the Church of the Annunciation. Until you come and visit this place, just reading the Bible won't give you any idea that Nazareth is really perched on a mountainside. From where the tour bus dropped us, it was still a hefty walk around 500 yards up the hillside.

Inside the Church of the Annunciation, you will immediately notice that the words spoken by the Angel Gabriel to the Blessed Virgin Mary is written in almost all the languages of the world, including Tagalog. Nope, I didn't get to see any Cebuano written about the Angelus. Inside the church is a huge hole in the middle of the main altar, underneath which is the stone structure, used to be the house of the Blessed Virgin Mary, where the Angel Gabriel appeared before her to announce the coming of the Messiah.

As my readers know…I'm a person that rarely believes in coincidences. We got down of the tour bus around 11:20 AM and started walking up the slope towards the church, which is a 10-minute walk. Arriving in front of the church, we found out that it was filled up with tourists who were ahead of us. So we had to wait for at least 30 minutes before we could go in, because people had to get out before you could come inside.

As we entered the magnificent church, it was 10 minutes before 12 noon. We were all taking pictures when the huge bell rang and it would seem that all the churches in Nazareth were also banging their church bells… announcing to all and sundry that it was "Angelus time" and everyone prayed the Angelus aloud inside the Church of the Annunciation.

I tell you, it was truly a very emotional and highly spiritual experience praying the Angelus right in front of the very house where the Angel Gabriel made that announcement to the Blessed Virgin Mary on the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. As it was lunchtime already, we had a very Israeli lunch, Shwarma and Falafel. Since we even have Shwarma in Cebu, I decided in having Falafel for lunch. It was delicious.

Then after lunch, we motored towards Yardenit, supposedly the Baptismal site on the Jordan River. Which was more than an hour's drive from the mountain down to the Sea of Galilee, which is 200 meters below sea level. This place is where the Sea of Galilee connects to the Jordan River, which ends up to the Dead Sea.

With so many tour buses arriving at the parking area, it was going to be a hectic afternoon. But at least Exie our tour guide explained to us that this was not really the site where St. John the Baptist baptized our Lord Jesus Christ in the Jordan River. The reason was quite understandable. Our tour guide told us that the area where St. John the Baptist baptized our Lord was closer to the King Hussein/Allenby Bridge, where we passed from Jordan to Israel and the area is a high security risk as it is really at the border between Jordan and Israel…and therefore considered a no-man's land. But tourists go and get their baptism renewed in the waters of the Jordan River.

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