It's been quite an emotional day today as we have come face to face with some of the difficulties facing the Christian community in the Holy Land.

Travelling to the heart of the West Bank, continuing to follow the footsteps of our father Abraham, though this time in reverse, we came to Nablus, ancient Shechem, where Abraham first built an altar, where Jacob built a well and where Jesus encountered the Samaritan woman (John 4). There is a beautiful modern Greek Orthodox church there which was built pretty much single handedly by the tiny priest, Father Augustine. He raised the money, supervised the work and painted the icons and murals himself. His predecessor was hacked to pieces by a Jewish extremist and he himself is constantly on his guard against being shot, bombed or poisoned by Jews and Muslims who would each like the site of Jacob's Well for themselves. The spirit of God burns strongly in Father Augustine and his courage and righteousness bears great witness to God.

Nablus itself is home to many refugees whose families have been in camps there since the 1948 war when their villages were destroyed. Many are extremists who will not support a two state solution but hold out for a return to pre 1948 days.

Nearby is Mount Gerizim, home to the Samaritan people. Theirs is essentially a form of Judaism who hold only to the first five books of the Old Testament, still sacrifice lambs at Passover and believe that the true temple was there rather than Jerusalem. In Jesus' day there was fierce hostility between Jews and Samaritans but now there are so few left that they are largely ignored by all. Only 350 remain on Mount Gerizim with a further 350 near Tel Aviv. We experienced yet more good hospitality there as we sat in their synagogue and listened to the assistant high priest talk about their faith but it must be very hard on them knowing that a form of faith and a way of life that has been celebrated in that one place for 3000 years is close to extinction.

Our final stop of the day was at St Andrews Anglican Church in Ramallah, the city where the Palestinian Authority is based, where we were welcomed by the parish priest,  Father Fadi. He spoke movingly of the historical significance of Ramallah, ancient Bethel, where Abraham stopped, built an altar and experienced God's promises again and also of the challenges the Christian community faces today there. The Christian presence across the Holy Land is dwindling fast as people emigrate to find a better life; daily life under occupation makes movement very difficult (3 weeks after moving from Jordan he is still waiting for a permit from the Israeli authorities to move his furniture, and he is unable to attend meetings in Jerusalem just a few miles away but the other side of the separation wall.); and they feel somewhat abandoned by the rest of the church. Despite this the Anglican Church in Ramallah continues to witness through its provision of education, it's care of orphans and it's health facilities. Father Fadi is a good man working in difficult circumstances. He and his congregation need our prayers.