Merry Christmas From Rion and Anissa
Rion Morgenstern
that this email finds you well and that you are able to take some time
out to enjoy time with family and friends. Rion and I are really
missing those opportunities this year, and have discussed often, as of
late, how much we miss having our friends and family near to us. At
the same time, though, this Christmas is very special because we have
the opportunity to celebrate in the Holy Land, where it all began!
This truly is a magical place with so much amazing history. We have
been here in Israel for just over a week now, and we were lucky to
have Rion's father come and join us here for a few days before
Christmas. We got to go see their cousin, who is 85 and has lived
here in Israel for many, many years, and we actually ran into another
cousin from California who was here on holiday, and we just happened
to be in the same city on the same day! It's truly amazing how small
the world really is.
There is peace (even if it is uneasy) between Israel and the
Palestinian West Bank at the moment, so we will be making the
pilgrimage to Bethlehem tonight at midnight to celebrate Christmas
Mass at the Church of the Nativity, which is built over the cave that
tradition holds is the spot where Jesus was born (contrary to popular
belief, the stables here are caves, not wooden structures. Bethlehem
is in the middle of the desert and hence, there are no trees). No
matter what your personal beliefs, sometime around 2000 years ago, in
this little town a child was born who changed the world. The simplest
message was started that day: Let there be peace on earth and goodwill
towards all.
As you celebrate this year please join us in taking a moment to
reflect on the many things you are thankful for in this last year. We
have had such a wonderful year and our travels have taken us many
places, but our hearts remain with you, our friends, our family…
Merry Christmas
Love, Rion and Anissa
P.S. The "Sea of Galilee" is a freshwater lake!
