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Footsteps that Echo Forever: My Holy Land Pilgrimage

← All Books by Dave Armstrong / Bible Reference Works

Dave Armstrong

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ABOUT THIS BOOK

Dave Armstrong’s day-by-day journal of his October 2014 pilgrimage to the Holy Land — Caesarea Philippi, the Sea of Galilee, the River Jordan, Bethlehem, the Holy Sepulchre, the Temple Mount — interleaved with five Archaeological Interludes on the current state of the evidence for biblical sites.

More from Dave about this book

The front cover photograph was taken by Margie Prox Sindelar on 23 October 2014 at Caesarea Philippi: the stunning location where Jesus designated St. Peter as the “rock” upon which He would build His Church, and gave Him the “keys of the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 16:13-19).

I’ve written 47 books so far, and this one is my honest-to-God favorite. It’s special and unique, due to the subject matter, and because it was the result of a dream trip of a lifetime.

Secondly, I like it because it’s thoroughly soaked in the Bible, and that is my specialty as an apologist. This is a book for Bible lovers: a feast!

Thirdly, I am thrilled to be able to present some sections of my wife Judy (a very spiritual and “deep” person) explaining her intensely spiritual experiences at holy sites in Israel, as well similar expressions from Margie Prox Sindelar. These I consider (far and away) the best portions of the book, because they are extraordinarily descriptive: akin to the great Catholic mystics (whose works I recently compiled into a quotes book).

This was a central goal for me in this volume: to convey to readers exactly what it felt like at these holy places. The ladies did a far better job at that than I did, which is fine: as long as the goal is met (I love working with a “team”)! You can read examples of that in the online content for “Day Three,” but their reports / comments for Day Eight and Nine in Bethlehem and Jerusalem are (trust me) astonishing beyond words. They send a chill up and down my spine every time I read them.

This is also the book above all my other ones, where I really want to reach and touch readers’ hearts and souls.

Introductory Facebook post about the pilgrimage and my conception of this book. [8-11-14]

Highly related paper: My Wedding Ring: Third-Class Relic [4 November 2014] [lists the 100 holy places I touched with my ring]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Dedication (p. 3)

Continue reading (28 more)

Introduction: Anticipating and Reflecting Upon the Pilgrimage Three Months Ahead of Time (p. 7) [read online]

Day One: 18 October 2014 [The “lay of the land”] (p. 15)

Day Two: 19 October [Mt. Carmel (Elijah) / Caesarea] (p. 21)

Day Three: 20 October [Transfiguration / Cana / Nazareth] (p. 23)

[featuring Judy and Margie’s profound spiritual experiences at Mt. Tabor and in Nazareth (read online) ]

Day Four: 21 October [Sermon on the Mount / Feeding of the 5,000 / Capernaum] (p. 33)

[Sermon on the Mount: Striking Topographical Facts: book excerpt]

Archaeological Interlude No. 1: Has St. Peter’s House in Capernaum Been Discovered? (p. 37) [read online]

Day Five: 22 October [River Jordan / Mount of Temptation / Ancient Road from Jericho to Jerusalem] (p. 43)

Archaeological Interlude No. 2: “Bethany Beyond the Jordan”: History, Archaeology, and the Location of Jesus’ Baptism on the East Side of the Jordan (p. 45) [read online]

Day Six: 23 October [Caesarea Philippi and the Primacy of Peter] (p. 69)

Archaeological Interlude No. 3: Sodom and Gomorrah: the Current Archaeological Trend of a Location North of the Dead Sea (p. 71) [read online]

Day Seven: 24 October [Feeding of the 4,000 / Miracle of the Demoniac and the Swine] (p. 85)

Archaeological Interlude No. 4: Has Joshua’s Altar on Mt. Ebal Been Discovered and Verified by Archaeology? (p. 87) [read online]

Day Eight: 25 October [Bethlehem and the First Christmas] (p. 101)

[read my article, The Spiritual Joy of Visiting Bethlehem (The Michigan Catholic, 26 Dec. 2014) ]

[see also a video of the actual manger, which is currently located in Rome]

Day Nine: 26 October [Church of the Holy Sepulchre] (p. 107)

[read my article, What It Feels Like to Visit Golgotha]

Archaeological Interlude No. 5: The Locations of Jesus’ Crucifixion, His Tomb, and the Route of the Via Dolorosa (p. 115) [read online]

Day Ten: 27 October [Ascension / Gethsemane / Mary’s Tomb / St. Stephen / City of David / Melchizedek / Hezekiah’s Tunnel / Pool of Siloam / Rachel’s Tomb / Mary’s Resting Place] (p. 133)

[see the video of the sunburst and remarkably flowing water at the Pool of Siloam; also a photograph of the sunburst below; also my article about our visit there, in Seton Magazine, 17 Dec. 2014]

Archaeological Interlude No. 6: City of David and Related Finds: The Exciting Cutting-Edge of Biblical and Jerusalem Archaeology (p. 141) [read the introductory portion and related comments, on Facebook]

Day Eleven: 28 October [Khirbet Qeiyafa / David and Goliath / Gamaliel and Paul] (p. 155)

Day Twelve: 29 October [Temple Mount / Pool of Bethesda / Birthplace of Mary / Fortress Antonia / St. Helena’s Church / Wailing Wall / Temple Archaeology] (p. 157)

[“Why I Walked on the Steps That Jesus Walked On (Holy Places, Relics, and the Sacramental Principle)”: (read online) ]

[see a video of our guide Meir More talking at the first-century steps leading to the temple, that Jesus would have walked]

Day Thirteen: 30 October [Dormition Abbey / David’s Tomb / Upper Room / Caiaphas and Peter’s Denials / Prison (Jesus and Peter) / Western Wall Tunnels] (p. 163)

Sunburst at the Pool of Siloam: 27 October 2014 (photograph by Margie Prox Sindelar), just as our guide read the passage of Jesus healing the blind man at this spot, and saying He was the “light of the world.” We have the whole thing on video as well: see above, under “Day Ten.”

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