Monday, June 27, 2011

"You my boy! I really get love an aloha fo you"

Included in our Nazareth and Galilee tour was a trip to the Jordan River.  It was not the exact baptism spot, which is located in Jordan itself, but no one really seemed to mind. They still flocked to the entrance in droves. 

The wall leading up to the entrance/gift shop was lined with plaques of the scripture, Mark 1:9-11, in various different languages - which continued past the entrance along the inner wall as well.  In my rough estimate, there were around a hundred plaques in total.  But only one truly stood out.  No language touched me more than the Hawaiian Pidgin's scriptural rendition of Christ's baptism.

But those plaques weren't the real site to see.  And quite honestly, neither was the river and its beautiful surroundings.  Looking past it all, most of our time was spent watching people emulate Christ and baptize themselves in the waters of the river Jordan.  Two types of baptismal robes were rented out: the cheaper plastic variety, which we discovered is see-through when wet, or the more expensive cloth variety.  Sadly, most people went the more economical route.

Donned in their garb, people chose one of three spots along the bank of the river to enter the water.  Each spot had three rows of bars equidistant apart in a semi-circle shape, which created a rainbow effect, of sorts.

Now... I could continue painting a picture with words, but sometimes (in cases such as these) videos speak more than words ever could.

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