Monday morning Brother Brown took us out to the Old City to visit the Custodia Terrae Sactae Church, which is a Franciscan monastery.
This monastary is a peaceful oasis in the city, has some gorgeous architecture, and a beautiful chapel.
Streets of the Old City outside Tarrae Sanctum
entrance to the monastery
inside the chapel
This monastery also has something specifically significant to the LDS Church, which is quite a rarity in Jerusalem.
The apostle Orson Hyde stayed here for a time while serving his mission in Israel and actually carved his last name into one of the doors-pretty cool huh?
Brother Brown told us that a number of years ago he was in Jerusalem with Elder Holland and President Faust-ya he is that legit- he brought them to the Hyde door when they bet him he could not show them a church site something they had not seen before.
Brother Brown won.
After seeing the door, our guide Father Angelo-who was the funniest man ever- told us his personal story and how he decided to give up everything and become a monk to dedicate his life to God. In the picture below he was telling us about how the ropes he wears remind him of the vows he has made of celibacy, obedience, and giving away all his possessions. In his words, "He has no money, he has no wife, and there is nothing he can do about it!". Haha I am pretty sure he is the most hilarious monk in existence. Before coming to Jerusalem, I had always imagined all monks as super sober and melancholy, but I was definitely wrong. Just another one of the many amazing things I have learned since being here!
Lauren Craig, Thank you so much for this blog. I was watching a documentary about an archeology site in Jerusalem. I remembered my seminary teacher from over a decade ago telling us about the mission of Orson Hyde. My teacher talked how Elder Hyde went to Europe and published pamphlets in German and his dedication of Israel. He also talked about a place where Orson Hyde carved his name and how it was still there today. I wondered if I would ever see it. I searched the internet for Orson Hyde. Hoping to find more on his trip to the Holy Land I found your blog. For over a decade I wondered about this place. Thank you for showing it to me.
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