This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/29/jerusalem-good-friday-rented-crosses
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Jerusalem's long Good Friday: tears, prayers and rented crosses | Jerusalem's long Good Friday: tears, prayers and rented crosses |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| The hushed prayers of Christian pilgrims at dusk are swiftly drowned out by the muezzin's call from nearby mosques, but nothing can disturb the piety of the small group on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the heart of Jerusalem's Old City. | The hushed prayers of Christian pilgrims at dusk are swiftly drowned out by the muezzin's call from nearby mosques, but nothing can disturb the piety of the small group on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the heart of Jerusalem's Old City. |
| In the fading light, they gather around a large wooden cross they have carried along the Via Dolorosa, retracing the steps taken by Jesus nearly 2,000 years ago from the point of his condemnation to the site of his crucifixion. Along the way, they stop at the Stations of the Cross for prayer and recitation of the liturgy. | |
| It is a path followed by thousands of Christian pilgrims to the Holy City every Easter. For Maria Immaculada, among a group of 25 Spanish devotees, it is the pinnacle of her 48 years. "It is very emotional. I have been waiting for this my whole life," she says. "Carrying the cross was very special. It made me want to cry." | It is a path followed by thousands of Christian pilgrims to the Holy City every Easter. For Maria Immaculada, among a group of 25 Spanish devotees, it is the pinnacle of her 48 years. "It is very emotional. I have been waiting for this my whole life," she says. "Carrying the cross was very special. It made me want to cry." |
| For Yosef Kanan, a 25-year-old Palestinian Muslim, it is simply another day for his three-generation family business renting plain wooden crosses to pilgrim groups. On Good Friday, the peak of his year, Kanan greets the first devotees at dawn and will only lock away his 30-plus crosses in a small store off the Via Dolorosa around sunset. "There will be a sea of people," he predicts. | For Yosef Kanan, a 25-year-old Palestinian Muslim, it is simply another day for his three-generation family business renting plain wooden crosses to pilgrim groups. On Good Friday, the peak of his year, Kanan greets the first devotees at dawn and will only lock away his 30-plus crosses in a small store off the Via Dolorosa around sunset. "There will be a sea of people," he predicts. |
| But this year he has seen fewer pilgrim groups in the Old City. "There are not so many from Europe, because of the economic crisis. They don't have the money. And people see what's happening in Syria on the television, and they think the whole region has trouble." | But this year he has seen fewer pilgrim groups in the Old City. "There are not so many from Europe, because of the economic crisis. They don't have the money. And people see what's happening in Syria on the television, and they think the whole region has trouble." |
| Kanan's oldest cross, made more than 50 years ago, two metres high and worn to a rich dark brown, is brought out of the store only on Good Friday, to be carried by an elderly priest who makes the journey from Portugal to the Holy Land every Easter. | Kanan's oldest cross, made more than 50 years ago, two metres high and worn to a rich dark brown, is brought out of the store only on Good Friday, to be carried by an elderly priest who makes the journey from Portugal to the Holy Land every Easter. |
| The olive wood crosses are made by craftsmen in the Palestinian Christian town of Beit Jala, now cut off from Jerusalem by Israel's separation barrier. Kanan's family pays around $220 (£145) for each cross, recouped by charging $20 a hire. | The olive wood crosses are made by craftsmen in the Palestinian Christian town of Beit Jala, now cut off from Jerusalem by Israel's separation barrier. Kanan's family pays around $220 (£145) for each cross, recouped by charging $20 a hire. |
| But the business's main income comes from the sale of photographs taken by Kanan and his uncle to pilgrims after their journey across the Old City. "Even though everyone has their iPhones, they still want my pictures because they are very beautiful," he says. | But the business's main income comes from the sale of photographs taken by Kanan and his uncle to pilgrims after their journey across the Old City. "Even though everyone has their iPhones, they still want my pictures because they are very beautiful," he says. |
| His grandfather started the business "in Jordanian times" – before East Jerusalem was occupied by Israel in 1967 and later annexed – taking black and white photographs, hand-developing them in a darkroom in the Old City and delivering them to clients the same evening. "Today, no one has time, everything is done on a computer, everything comes out chik-chak," laments Kanan, using Hebrew slang for "quick" or "on the double". | His grandfather started the business "in Jordanian times" – before East Jerusalem was occupied by Israel in 1967 and later annexed – taking black and white photographs, hand-developing them in a darkroom in the Old City and delivering them to clients the same evening. "Today, no one has time, everything is done on a computer, everything comes out chik-chak," laments Kanan, using Hebrew slang for "quick" or "on the double". |
| After 10 years in the business, Kanan knows every inch of the Via Dolorosa – the Way of Grief – and almost every word of the liturgy in several languages. "Sometimes the priest forgets something," he says, "and I can remind him." Along the route, he gently ushers pilgrims to the next station and suggests when it is time for someone else to take a turn at carrying the cross. | After 10 years in the business, Kanan knows every inch of the Via Dolorosa – the Way of Grief – and almost every word of the liturgy in several languages. "Sometimes the priest forgets something," he says, "and I can remind him." Along the route, he gently ushers pilgrims to the next station and suggests when it is time for someone else to take a turn at carrying the cross. |
| The ancient rose-coloured stones and smooth cobbles of the route can be treacherous for elderly or cross-burdened pilgrims. The narrow artery is lined with shops selling a typical Old City mix of spices, sweets, underwear, Chinese-made incense, pottery, jewellery, saucepans and religious memorabilia. T-shirts bearing the insignia of the Israel defence forces are displayed next to those calling for a "Free Palestine". The pilgrim groups jostle with tourists, residents, armed Israeli border police, priests, nuns, ultra-Orthodox Jews and devout Muslims. | The ancient rose-coloured stones and smooth cobbles of the route can be treacherous for elderly or cross-burdened pilgrims. The narrow artery is lined with shops selling a typical Old City mix of spices, sweets, underwear, Chinese-made incense, pottery, jewellery, saucepans and religious memorabilia. T-shirts bearing the insignia of the Israel defence forces are displayed next to those calling for a "Free Palestine". The pilgrim groups jostle with tourists, residents, armed Israeli border police, priests, nuns, ultra-Orthodox Jews and devout Muslims. |
| The pilgrims come from all over the world. "The Indonesians are the biggest spenders," says Kanan. "The Koreans are the craziest – very emotional, crying, kissing stones and the ground – but they don't give money." | The pilgrims come from all over the world. "The Indonesians are the biggest spenders," says Kanan. "The Koreans are the craziest – very emotional, crying, kissing stones and the ground – but they don't give money." |
| He has no qualms, as a Muslim, servicing a Christian festival. "Just like we do Hajj in Mecca," he says, "the Christians come here. It's the same thing. Everything comes from God." | He has no qualms, as a Muslim, servicing a Christian festival. "Just like we do Hajj in Mecca," he says, "the Christians come here. It's the same thing. Everything comes from God." |
| • This article was amended on 29 March 2013. The original referred to pilgrims "retracing the steps taken by Jesus more than 2,000 years ago". |