“Go and Tell the Others What You Have Seen”
- Notre Dame of Jerusalem
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
By Samantha Rivera
January 6th - Pontifical Institute Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center
I came to the Holy Land for the first time four years ago. Since then, God has given me the grace to walk its roads, to pray in its holy places, and to encounter this land again and again. Through these experiences, one truth has become deeply clear to me: the Holy Land is truly the Fifth Gospel.
Here, the Gospel is no longer only read or heard, it is touched, tasted, and lived. To walk the land Jesus chose in order to become man is an extraordinary gift. Stones, paths, hills, and cities speak. Scripture takes on weight, texture, and place. Faith becomes concrete.
Visiting the Holy Land transformed my relationship with God. It became deeper, more human, and more tangible. The distance between the words of the Gospel and daily life grows smaller. Jesus is no longer only someone we read about. He becomes someone we encounter where He walked, taught, suffered, died, and rose.
To stand in the holiest place on earth, before the empty tomb, is an experience that echoes in the heart forever: Non est hic - He is not here. He is risen. The empty tomb is the sign of a living God.
To those who have always carried the desire to come, I encourage you: ask God for the grace to stand where He stood. Bring that longing to prayer, and do what is in your hands to make it happen.
And to those who feel this journey is only a dream, something too far, too complicated, or even impossible, let me remind you: nothing is impossible for God. When we make space, when we organize ourselves with trust and intention, and above all when we sincerely ask God for the opportunity, He opens paths we could not have imagined.
By visiting the Holy Land, you not only receive the many graces God pours out on those who step onto this land, but you also support the Christian communities of the Holy Land and help sustain the living presence of Christians in the land of Jesus.
I invite you to pause for a moment. Think of your favorite passage from the Bible. Now imagine standing in the very place where those words were spoken, where that moment unfolded.
The Holy Land is not only a destination. It is an encounter.
And once you have seen it, you cannot help but go and tell the others what you have seen.
We hope to see you soon and be part of the Notre Dame Experience.
Stay updated!
Be the first to know when bookings open, and receive news about the Notre Dame Experience, events, and upcoming exhibitions.
