Celebrating Holy Communion
“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.” * A highlight from the trip to Israel that Al and I took in 2010 was the day our tour group visited the Garden Tomb. One of two possible sites of Jesus’ burial and resurrection, the Garden Tomb was a solemn, yet joyful, place to visit. The tour bus took us to a lush garden outside the ancient wall surrounding Jerusalem. It was a beautiful and tranquil setting, yet solemn with “Skull Hill” rising above it, so named because of indentations in the side of the hill that from a distance resembled the eyes and nose of a human skull. Looking at that hill as we walked down a pathway leading to a stone outcropping, I was vividly reminded of Jesus’ horrific death at Golgotha, “The Place of the Skull!” (Matthew 27: 33) and subsequent burial in a tomb cut out of the rock. Al and I stood quietly in a long line of people waiting to go inside the small tomb. Upon coming ou
