God's Covenant

While at the Sea of Galilee, Fr Damian took the picture above, which seems to fit in nicely with today's first reading:

 God said to Noah and to his sons with him:
“See, I am now establishing my covenant with you
and your descendants after you
and with every living creature that was with you:
all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals
that were with you and came out of the ark.
I will establish my covenant with you,
that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed
by the waters of a flood;
there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth.”
God added:
“This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come,
of the covenant between me and you
and every living creature with you:
I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign
of the covenant between me and the earth.
When I bring clouds over the earth,
and the bow appears in the clouds,
I will recall the covenant I have made
between me and you and all living beings,
so that the waters shall never again become a flood
to destroy all mortal beings.”

Fr Damian seems to be enjoying himself by the sea!

Fr Damian and his Cohorts

Fr. Damian is in Israel exploring and studying at the Tantur Institute For Ecumenical Studies. He seems to be enjoying his sabbatical.

Here he is with his classmates: ten priests, two nuns and three from other Christian churches. Study well!

Winter in Jerusalem

Poor Fr Damian missed the snow here on Monday and today (although his flight was delayed two hours getting out of Omaha Sunday due to a frozen plane.)  It is also winter in Jerusalem although the olive trees are blooming.

The picture above and the four below are from his class today. He and his fellow students at the Tantur Institute For Ecumenical Studies spent the day studying Jerusalem's history from outside the city - the photos show the city from the west, north and south.

Unfortunately, with no snow they can't go sledding.