COME AND SEE!-A Pilgrimage Following in the Footsteps of Jesus

FLIGHT INFORMATION & ITINERARY

SCHEDULED FLIGHTS ECONOMY CLASS from class from Dallas to Tel Aviv on Turkish Airlines:
DEPARTURE:
March 4-TK192-Dallas / Istanbul- 8.10 pm/4.55 pm (Mar 5)
March 5 -TK864-Instabu l/ Tel Aviv- 7.25 pm/8.35 pm

RETURN:
March 14 -TK793-Tel Aviv/ Istanbul-7.20 am/10.45 am
-TK191-Istanbul / Dallas -2.30 pm /7.40 pm

Turkish Airlines is a mileage partner with United Airlines. If you wish to put a UA flier number into your booking you will receive credit for these flights.

(The flights shown above are offered as part of a group ticket, and you should not expect to have the same degree of control over choice of seat, etc, as would be the case on an individually purchased air ticket. Any seating requests advised to Lightline on the booking form/webpage will be transmitted to the airline, but there is no guarantee that the airline will accommodate them. This is beyond Lightline’s control, and we cannot accept any responsibility for decisions made by the airline. All flights and times are subject to change, sometimes at short notice.)

PILGRIMAGE INCLUSIVE TOUR COST - $5795 (SINGLE ROOM SUPPLEMENT $995)
+ All airport departure & passenger taxes (US & Israel)

+ En Suite accommodation at Christian pilgrim hotels & guest houses
Galilee - Pilgerhaus (Benedictine guest house by the Sea of Galilee)
Bethlehem - Sunrise (A recently opened hotel a short walk from Manger Square)
Jerusalem - Gloria Hotel (Situated within the Old City, by Jaffa Gate)

+ Full board throughout (breakfast, lunch & dinner daily).

+ State licensed English speaking guides throughout the tour.

ABSOLUTELY NO HIDDEN COSTS. (The only items NOT included in the tour price are:)
+ Single Room supplement $995

+ A travel/trip insurance policy is required for participation in this pilgrimage. This must cover you for cancelation before departure, and for medical and emergency transportation requirements while on the pilgrimage. Lightline is an agent for Allianz Global Assistance and we will give you a quotation for a policy when you book for the pilgrimage.

+ Any items of a personal nature.

Day 1: mONDAY, MARCH 4

We meet at DFW in the early evening for our flight to Istanbul. Dinner will be served soon after take off, and we hope to be able to sleep as we cross the Atlantic.

Day 2: TUESDAY, MARCH 5

Landing in Istanbul in the afternoon, we change planes for the short flight onwards to Tel Aviv, landing in the evening. After clearing formalities, we will be met by our guide and driver and driven north to our hotel by the Sea of Galilee which will be our home for three nights.

Day 3: WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6

Our pilgrimage begins in Nazareth, where the Good News was first proclaimed by angel Gabriel to Mary. We will celebrate a Eucharist in the local Episcopal church as well as visiting the Basilica of the Annunciation and the Synagogue Church before breaking for lunch. In the afternoon we will visit Mount Tabor, believed to be the site of the Transfiguration, which boasts breathtaking views across the region.

Day 4: THURSDAY, MARCH 7

Today we will devote ourselves to the events of Jesus’ ministry of healing and teaching around the home he chose in Capernaum, on the Sea of Galilee. We will visit Capernaum itself, as well as sites associated with the Beatitudes, the commissioning of Peter, and the feeding of the Five Thousand. We will go out in a boat on the lake, and we will visit the First Century synagogue in Magdala, the home town of ‘the apostle to the apostles’, Mary Magdalene.

Day 5: FRIDAY, MARCH 8

Leaving the beauty and tranquility of the Galilee, we will journey south down the Jordan Valley to Jericho, where we break for lunch. From here we visit the River Jordan to renew our Baptismal Covenant, before carrying on to the ‘little town’ of Bethlehem, situated behind the 27 foot high Separation Wall, where we will sleep for the next two nights.

Day 6: sATURDAY, MARCH 9

Today we can reflect on Jesus’ promise of abundant life as we explore Bethlehem. In the course of the day we will visit both the Shepherds’ Fields and the Church of the Nativity, and we will also visit is the St. Vincent Orphanage/ Creche, which is the only Christian orphanage in the West Bank, and which provides love and support for around fifty abandoned children.

Day 7: sUNDAY, MARCH 10

We leave Bethlehem in the morning and make our way to St. George’s Episcopal Cathedral, the mother church of the Diocese of Jerusalem, where we will worship with our sister and brother Christians from the local community. After the service we hope to have the opportunity for a brief conversation with the Archbishop or other cathedral clergy. On leaving the cathedral we will visit the Western Wall, the holiest site on earth for Jews, before breaking for lunch. In the afternoon we will visit the Hadassah Hospital to see the windows of its synagogue, designed by Marc Chagall, and representing the twelve sons of Jacob, before finishing our day at the beautiful village of Ein Karem, believed to be the home of the parents of John the Baptist. Here we can sing Magnificat in the place where Mary gave voice to this hymn. From here we head to our hotel in the heart of the Christian Quarter of the Old City, which will be our home for the rest of our pilgrimage.

Day 8: Monday, MARCH 11

This morning we will visit the Princess Basma Center, a remarkable institution run by the Episcopal Diocese, located on the summit of the Mount of Olives. From here we descend the Mount, visiting the churches which celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry on Palm Sunday, the giving of the Lord’s Prayer and Jesus weeping over Jerusalem. Finally we come to the Garden of Gethsemane and the Church of the Agony, where we recall Jesus’ betrayal and arrest. After lunch we ascend to Mount Zion, to visit and pray in the Abbey of the Dormition, the room associated with the Last Supper and the Day of Pentecost. Our afternoon closes at the church of St. Peter in Gallicantu, built on what is believed to be the High Priest’s palace, in which Jesus was imprisoned on the last night of his life.

Day 9: TUESDAY, MARCH 12

Our day begins with an early morning visit to the Temple Mount, where we can see (but not enter) the iconic Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. From here we make our way to St. Anne’s church and the pools of Bethesda, after which we make our way to the Ecce Homo Convent, and after celebrating the Eucharist, we will walk prayerfully along the Via Dolorosa, until we come to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and remember Christ’s death and burial. After lunch there will be an optional excursion to Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, followed by an opportunity to bathe in the unique, mineral-laden waters of the Dead Sea.

Day 10: WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13

This morning we will journey seven miles out of Jerusalem, retracing the possible steps of two disciples who wearily walked to the village of Emmaus while in conversation with someone they did not recognize at first. At the village of Abu Ghosh we will have a chance to celebrate the Resurrection and recall Luke’s wonderful story. From here we drive to the coast to visit the ruins of the once great city of Caesarea Maritima. After a lunch by the shore of the Mediterranean, we will explore this site, and remember the inspiring stories from Acts of when Peter visits Cornelius and of Paul speaking to the Governor Festus before being sent to Rome. We return to Jerusalem for a final dinner and an early night before our journey home.

Day 11: Thursday, MARCH 14

We leave very early in the morning for our flight to Istanbul, connecting onwards to DFW, where we land in the evening, ready to go onwards and share with our family and friends all we have seen and learned in the Land of the Holy One.