2024 Lagos State pilgrims to Jerusalem, Israel on Thursday spent the fourth day of their pilgrimage exercise visiting more historic sites in the holy land of Israel.
The pilgrims had used the third day, which was Christmas Day, to celebrate Christmas by visiting Allenby border which was the entrance into The Promised Land.
They also visited Mount Zion known as the Western Hill in the Bible times with a history of being the place where Jesus Christ performed great miracles, signs and wonders.
Mount Zion was also the location of the Upper Room, where Jesus and His Disciples had the Passover Dinner and where the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles as flames of fire on the Day of Pentecost.
On the same third day, Pilgrims were taken to the Western Wall of the Wailing Wall which is the only remains of the ruins of the biblical temple of God , completely destroyed by Romans in 70AD.
On the fourth day, more historic sites were visited including: Bethlehem, the Shepherd’s Field, Church of the Nativity, Mount of Olives, Old Jerusalem City, Chapel of the Ascension, Dominus Flevit, Garden of Gethsemane and The Church of St. Anna.
Others were The Way of the Cross, Church of the Holy Sepulchre housing Golgotha and the empty tomb where Jesus’ body was buried, and from where the Angel of God rolled away the stone upon His resurrection.
Pilgrims walked long distances, climbing up and down rough and steep terrains in order to fulfill this highly rewarding spiritual exercise. The elderly were advised to remain at specified locations to continue in prayers, in cases where they couldn’t continue the trekking. However, many of them braved the odds to complete the exercise.
The pilgrims commended the Lagos State Government and the Lagos State Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board, heaping special praise on the Executive Secretary of the Board, Mrs. Yetunde Gbafe, for her doggedness and pragmatic leadership.
Day Five of the exercise would see pilgrims head to Jericho and the Dead Sea region.