HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE
NorthPark Presbyterian Church and Christ Community Church
January 2 – 13, 2024
The Ministry Collaborative exists to help pastors and their congregations grow spiritually, engage more deeply with their communities, and discern how to live and lead faithfully in the world today. Working with diverse cohorts across the country, The Ministry Collaborative provides opportunities for training, support, and travel with the goal of transforming how communities read Scripture, approach leadership, and understand their own sense of vocation.
Designing and leading TMC's Holy Land Pilgrimages is Dr. Ryan Bonfiglio, Assistant Professor in the Practice of Old Testament at Emory’s Candler School of Theology. With extensive experience teaching and ministering at the intersection between the church and the academy, Dr. Bonfiglio brings to TMC pilgrimages expertise on archaeology, biblical theology, and the social and historical contexts of ancient Israel and the early church.
January 2 - 13, 2024
Galilee / Jerusalem / Bethlehem
This 11-day, 10-night trip to the Holy Land offers individuals a powerful opportunity to walk where Jesus walked and to explore the historical, geographical, and biblical roots of their faith. Rather than being a religious sightseeing trip, this immersion experience approaches pilgrimage as a spiritual practice. Through in-depth teaching, daily group reflections, and opportunities for communal worship, participants will have the chance to reconnect with God, deepen relationships, and explore what it means to encounter the holy in the midst of everyday life.
The trip begins with a one-night stay near Caesarea Maritima, where individuals will explore connections between their experience of pilgrimage and their calling as apostles.
From there, four days are spent in the Galilee where individuals will experience the home-base of Jesus’ ministry. Highlights include a boat trip on the Sea of Galilee, walking on the Mount of Beatitudes, and exploring sites at Capernaum, Tabgha, and Nazareth.
From the Galilee, the trip heads south through the West Bank for a two-day stop in Bethlehem. This portion of the trip includes opportunities to engage with Palestinian Christians and other faith leaders who are laboring for peace in the midst of conflict and divided communities. The trip concludes with a three-day stay within the walls of Old Jerusalem where participants will walk the Via Dolorosa, descend the Mount of Olives, explore the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial, and wade in the mineral-rich waters of the Dead Sea.
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The trip will bring together members of two diverse congregations in north Dallas – Christ Community Church and NorthPark Presbyterian Church. Working together through a series of pre- and post- trip conversations, participants will explore how the experience of pilgrimage can transform their faith, deepen bonds of fellowship, and inspire meaningful connections across difference.
Immersion
Experience
Core Values
Spiritual Rejuvenation. Fostering opportunities for participants to rest, receive care, and reconnect with God through generous accommodations, thoughtful programming, and an itinerary with ample free time.
Integrated Learning. Combining in-depth engagement of the Bible, theology, and Christian traditions with authentic worship, devotion, and spiritual formation.
Intentional Community. Cultivating deep, mutual bonds of friendship in the context of intentionally diverse communities and through dialogue, fellowship, and travel.
Contextual Awareness. Equipping participants to reflect on the ways in which context, whether ancient or modern, matters for how they interpret Scripture, approach ministry, understand themselves, and relate to others.
Shifting Ministry Paradigms. Inspiring creative, out-of-the-box thinking through exposure to innovative ministry models, new perspectives on leadership, and fresh approaches to problem solving and social change.
Additional Details
Trip Total:
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$5,200 (Includes coach airfare, double occupancy lodging, all meals, activities, and in-country travel.)
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**$6,200 for single occupancy rooms
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Registration by April 1, 2023; with $400 non- refundable deposit
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Full payment due December 1, 2023
For more information or to register interest in the trip, contact:
Dr. Terrence Autry at tautry@ccrichardson.org
Rev. Nicole Bates at nbates@northparkpres.org
