Pastor Chris Oyakhilome of the Christ Embassy Church in Nigeria has concluded his tour of the Holy Land in Israel and Jordan, joined by hundreds of his followers whom Pastor Chris personally invited to attend. Every day of the tour would see Pastor Chris and his brethren visit holy landmarks of the Christian and Jewish faiths and specifically followed in the footsteps of Jesus’ journey through the lands.
Pastor Chris hoped to follow the historical journey of Jesus Christ from his foretold birth in Bethlehem to his promised ascension on the Mount of Olives. The pastor arrived and was welcomed by the Jews and Christians of the regions. Their mutual love and warmth came as a mark of community between the Evangelicals of the world and their brothers and sisters living in the Holy Land.
Pastor Chris was able to visit many of the great landmarks where Jesus Christ did the miraculous and trans-formative. One such place was the ancient town of Caesarea, the place where Pontius Pilate held his seat of government over Israel and where he presided over Jesus’s persecution. Pastor Chris was also able to see the Sea of Galilee where much of Jesus’s ministry was conducted such as where he found many of his apostles and conducted the Sermon on the Mount. Many of Jesus’s miracles were also performed either near or on the Sea of Galilee such as the calming of the storm, walking on water, the miracle of the fish after his resurrection and his feeding of the five thousand following the Sermon on the Mount. Pastor Chris also visited the tomb of Lazarus where Jesus performed one of his greatest miracles when he rose his friend from the dead.
Stops on the eight day visit also included Mount Herzl, named after Theodore Herzl who founded the modern version of Zionism and is known as the spiritual father of the modern Jewish state. Mount Herzl holds the country’s national cemetery where Israel’s fallen soldiers alongside many prominent Israeli leaders and figures are buried. Among the honored fallen on Mount Herzl includes five Israeli Prime Ministers along with several Israeli presidents. Chris Oyakhilome and his group also stopped by the town of Abu Gosh, an epicenter for Hebrew culture and cuisine, considered the best place in the world for hummus. Abu Gosh also holds historical value as potentially the site for the ancient city of Kiriath Jearim where the Ark of the Covenant was brought to after its rescue from the Philistines.
The tour through the Holy Land was marked by two notable events in the history of the rebuilt Israel. The year is the 70th anniversary of the independence of the Israeli nation following its curation in the wake of World War II. The other noted event is the announcement of the American Embassy in Israel being moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem which has been seen by many as the fulfillment of the United States’ acknowledgement of the legitimacy of Israel’s claim of the Holy City as its capital.
Since Israel’s inception, debates and conflicts have raged over whether Israel’s right to claim Jerusalem as its own. The show of solidarity by the United States for Israel was celebrated at an event hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for which Pastor Chris Oyakhilome was personally invited and attended. At this event, Pastor Chris was able to converse and celebrate with many officials within the Israeli government.
