SHS: Matthew 24-25; Mark 12-13: Luke 21

Matthew 25:

32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

 White sheep and black goats in the Judean Wilderness, 1982

Matthew 25:

35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

While not mentioned specifically in these verses, I feel that  helping and visiting orphans certainly fits within the spirit of this admonition from Jesus.



 In 1982 we BYU Jerusalem Study Abroad students would visit this orphanage in Bethlehem every week. We would play with the cute children for a few hours. A favorite activity of mine was asking in Arabic the name of each child (shu ismak). Then I would try to write their name in Arabic. They would laugh when I would misspell a world or use one Arabic K, H or S instead of the other K, H or S. I also appreciated them teaching of of the names of colors in Arabic.

During our family's year in Jerusalem we had the wonderful opportunity on Christmas Eve of visiting a children's home for orphans and for children whose families were unable or unwanting to care for them. Members from the Jerusalem Branch brought clothes, gifts and games to play. We also brought smiles and loving arms. We wished we had been permitted to visit more often (as it was I had to fudge on BYU Jerusalem Center regulations to make this one visit).

 

Luke 21:
25 ¶ And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;

This verse has taken on increasing interest in the past few years as a result of my  tsunami research and my increasing awareness of how distressing and destructive roaring tsunami waves can be.



Sign in Pelabuhan Ratu Indonesia on the south coast of Java warning residents that if there is an earthquake they need to run to a higher place.

South coast of Java near Pangandaran. The nearby Java Trench makes this area very vulnerable to tsunamis which can arrive on shore within 20 minutes of a earthquake in the trench.

This area of Java was struck by an earthquake and tsunami in 2006. In this small village where 47 people died from the tsunami they have erected a memorial topped by a fishing boat torn asunder by the waves.

For more about my tsunami research and training see these and other posts from the Summer of 2016 and 2017:

https://beitemmett.blogspot.com/2016/07/pelabuhan-ratu.html

https://beitemmett.blogspot.com/2016/07/pangandaran_29.html

https://beitemmett.blogspot.com/2017/07/tsunami-lombok.html


Matthew 24:
3 ¶ And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

 Views of the Mount of Olives.

The traditional site of the Olivet Discourse is a the Pater Noster Church. The lower steeple on the upper right.

Mount of Olives to the east (right) of the city of Jerusalem.

Gethsemane (center surrounding the church with arches) sits at the foot of of the Mount of Olives.

North end of the Mount of Olives as it merges into Mount Scopus

 Mount of Olives rising from the Kidron Valley.

View from the Mount of Olives--near Gethsemane

For more images and text about the Olivet Discourse please see the last half of this blog post:

http://beitemmett.blogspot.com/2013/03/holy-weektuesday.html