<i>(Sergio) 2,000 years ago,
Jesus of Nazareth was captured</i> <i>and taken from the Garden of Gethsemane</i> <i>to be judged and crucified.</i> <i>The route that Jesus took
to His crucifixion</i> <i>is known as the Via Dolorosa,</i> <i>Latin for "way of suffering."</i> ♪ (music) ♪ <i>So, what was the actual route
that Jesus took?</i> <i>Today, the Old City of Jerusalem</i> <i>has a designated street
called Via Dolorosa,</i> <i>which, according to tradition,</i> <i>is the same route
that Jesus would have taken</i> <i>while carrying the cross
onto His crucifixion.</i> <i>But, here is the problem.</i> <i>After the first century,</i> <i>Jerusalem had been destroyed
and rebuilt many times,</i> <i>and what that caused
is the level of the streets to go up.</i> The rubble and the ruins
would stay on the bottom and a new street
would be built on top of that, and then again destroyed,
then again on top and on top. <i>So, the stones of the Via Dolorosa,</i> <i>of the modern street we have today,</i> <i>that millions of pilgrims
walk on every year,</i> <i>actually dates back to the Middle Ages</i> and not the time of Jesus. So, where is the original street
that Jesus would have walked on? Where are the stones
that would have witnessed the most famous and significant event
in human history? <i>In this video, we descend underground</i> <i>and explore the excavated ruins</i> <i>beneath the street of Via Dolorosa.</i> (Daryl) It's amazing here
because we're seeing something that not everybody has seen. <i>You know, I've watched
just about everything</i> <i>that there is to watch about Jerusalem.</i> I don't know what else
I could watch or read about this city, and I've never heard about this place. <i>(Sergio) Could this
be the original pavement</i> <i>that Jesus had walked on?</i> <i>Join us today as we embark
on a very unique adventure.</i> So, there are two acceptable theories about the route
that Jesus would have taken before crucifixion. <i>The first theory is the traditional route</i> <i>through the Lions' Gate
and goes along the Via Dolorosa street.</i> <i>Its origins date back
to the Byzantine pilgrims</i> <i>that chose this route
over a thousand years ago</i> <i>as the official processional route.</i> <i>The second theory is based
on recent archaeological findings</i> <i>that suggest Jesus would have walked
on the other side of the city</i> <i>at the Jaffa Gate.</i> This is a very intriguing theory and requires more in-depth research. We're gonna pin it down
and get back to it in another episode. For now, we're gonna focus
on the traditional route for two main reasons. <i>Number one, the Byzantine
pilgrims who lived here</i> <i>much closer to the time
the events took place</i> <i>wrote about this being
the route that Jesus took.</i> <i>And, up until the 13th century,</i> <i>they wrote that they could
still see the original places</i> <i>which were preserved
in a much better shape</i> <i>than they are today.</i> <i>Number two, we found out
that in the 1930s,</i> <i>a French archaeologist,
Louis-Hugues Vincent,</i> <i>excavated what he believed to be
a portion of the Antonia Fortress</i> <i>and, possibly, even the pavement
where Jesus was judged by Pilate</i> <i>before His crucifixion.</i> <i>We actually found out
that this excavation site</i> is accessible for visitors, but it can be tricky to find it. We've heard that
there is a door but no signs. You have to go through
a convent deep underground. So, we're excited to go to Jerusalem and see if we can find this place. <i>Joining us on this adventure</i> <i>is a pastor, a songwriter,</i> <i>and a friend, Daryl Petree.</i> - Welcome to Jerusalem.
- Thank you very much. It's beautiful here. <i>(Sergio) When we are in Jerusalem,</i> <i>we cannot pass the opportunity</i> <i>to taste the Jerusalem cakes with hyssop.</i> (non-English conversation) These are Jerusalem cakes,
even though it's bread, but they are called cakes. And then you've got hyssop,
the biblical hyssop. - So this is hyssop?
- Yeah. - I've never seen it.
- It's ground, dried and ground. So, what you do, you take a piece off,
as big as you want it. You dip in there or you can make
an incision in it and dip it in there, and then you eat it,
and that's it. It smells good. <i>- (Daryl) It's so good.
- (Rhoda) A huge piece.</i> <i>(Daryl) It tastes like bread,
amazing bread, with hyssop.</i> (laughter) <i>- (Rhoda) You got that.
- (Daryl) I've never had hyssop before.</i> <i>This is awesome.</i> <i>(Sergio) And since
we are here in the fall,</i> <i>it also happens to be the season</i> <i>for fresh, raw almonds,</i> <i>which you can buy at the Lions' Gate</i> <i>before entering the Via Dolorosa street.</i> (speaking Arabic) Thank you very much. OK, so this is an almond. - I've never seen an almond in its coat.
- It's velvety on the outside. So, we actually eat both parts. We crack it open,
and this is the almond... <i>- before it's roasted,
- (Daryl) Wow.</i> so you eat that. <i>And then you eat that,</i> <i>or you could just eat it like that.</i> <i>- What do you think?</i>
- I love it. It tastes very different. I love the flavor. - There's nothing like it.<i>
- (Rhoda) Yeah.</i> I'm 48 years old. I've never eaten an almond in its skin. (laughter) (Rhoda) That's awesome. ♪ (music) ♪ It's coming up.
It's just a few feet away. I've waited all of my life
to see the Via Dolorosa. <i>(Sergio) We have actually
been here before,</i> <i>in the Via Dolorosa street, a year ago,</i> <i>and we filmed an episode about it.</i> <i>At that time,</i> <i>even though we were not walking
on the exact same stones</i> <i>that Jesus would have walked on,</i> <i>we knew that we were close.</i> <i>But this time, we heard about a place</i> <i>where you can go underground,</i> <i>beneath the street of Via Dolorosa,</i> <i>and see the original pavement.</i> <i>To enter this place,</i> <i>one must go through
the Convent of the Sisters of Zion,</i> <i>which is located about 1,000 feet
from the Lions' Gate.</i> <i>And, even though the door
does not have any signs,</i> <i>we found out that the best way
to identify its entrance</i> <i>is to look for the famous arch,</i> <i>which, at first, was believed
to be the very arch</i> <i>under which Jesus stood
when He was sentenced by Pilate.</i> <i>And, right under the arch
there will be a door</i> <i>that takes you underground
beneath the street of Via Dolorosa.</i> (Rhoda) Wow! <i>- (Sergio) Is this it?
- (Rhoda) This is it, yeah.</i> <i>It has to be.</i> <i>Look how much lower.</i> <i>- No way!
- (Sergio) Yes. Look, ancient...</i> Look at these.
These are ancient walls. <i>(Rhoda) Oh my goodness.</i> It does have mold on it. <i>(Sergio) Look how much deeper they go.
Do you see where this city ended?</i> <i>- This is the city wall.
- (Rhoda) That's the street.</i> It is... breathtaking. I can't believe we get to see
the original walls of the city and the street. <i>So, this place
was excavated in the 1930s</i> by a very credible French archaeologist,
Louis-Hugues Vincent. And he is someone who has done a lot of groundbreaking
archaeological work in Jerusalem. <i>Above us is the New Jerusalem
where we just walked.</i> This is the medieval-time Jerusalem, and below us is the Jesus-time Jerusalem, the original streets of Via Dolorosa. <i>Vincent identified this site
to be part of the Antonia Fortress.</i> <i>But, more significantly,</i> <i>he identified one section of it
to be the Gabbatha...</i> <i>the pavement where Jesus
was judged by Pilate.</i> <i>We're looking here.</i> This is directly under
the modern Via Dolorosa street. The modern Via Dolorosa street
is above us. However, in the 1960s, a French Catholic priest, Pierre Benoit, <i>became involved
in excavations in Jerusalem</i> <i>implying that Vincent was wrong.</i> <i>He proposed that this site</i> <i>is not the pavement
where Jesus was judged,</i> <i>but it is a Hadrian forum
from the 2nd century.</i> This is a very good example of how the same site
with the same artifacts can be interpreted in very different ways. Look over here. <i>(Rhoda) Where?</i> <i>The inscription?</i> <i>(Sergio) Look at the inscription.
This is a game inscription.</i> <i>A game that the Roman
soldiers used to play.</i> <i>So, where do we go from here?</i> <i>Frankly, it is not so easy.</i> <i>It seems that even the scholars
are divided on this matter.</i> <i>Some institutions,
like the Oxford University,</i> <i>have accepted Pierre's theory
that this is not from the time of Jesus</i> <i>but from the 2nd century.</i> <i>While others,
like Zondervan Bible Dictionary,</i> <i>still accept the original
findings as legitimate,</i> <i>making this site to be
the best candidate for the Gabbatha...</i> <i>the pavement where Jesus was judged.</i> So, this would be from Mark 15:16-20. It says: "Then the soldiers
led Him-- Jesus-- away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together
the whole garrison. And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head,
and began to salute Him, 'Hail, King of the Jews!' Then they struck Him
on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee,
they worshipped Him. And when they had mocked Him,
they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him." ♪ (Daryl Petree,
"Let His Love Come Rushing In") ♪ ♪ <i>Sometimes we hurt</i> ♪ ♪ <i>And sometimes we cry</i> ♪ <i>(Sergio) In the end, we know
that the true location of these events</i> took place here in Jerusalem. It could be in this site
or on the other side of the city. ♪ With our kind word that's fitly spoken ♪ <i>(Daryl) A lot of people don't realize</i> the significance of the Lord's ministry. You know, they get this idea
that He was very unpopular. Mm. Nobody cared when He walked through these streets. ♪ <i>Jesus knows you</i> ♪ ♪ <i>How he loves you</i> ♪ <i>(Sergio) And as intriguing as it can be
to find the exact location...</i> not knowing it does not
take away from the fact that these events really happened. He is real. He really walked down the Via Dolorosa
and shed His blood on that street. He really died on the Cross of Calvary. He really rose again
in power and great glory, and He is really coming back again, and He loves us. ♪ <i>Someone's looking</i> ♪ <i>Everybody has faith.</i> <i>There's over 4,000 religions in the world.</i> You can follow after religious teachings. You can become a religious person
and be reformed. But, you know, it's... you've just turned over a new leaf. <i>You might be a better person,
or you might make better decisions.</i> <i>You might have deeper resolves
to do good things.</i> <i>That's reformation.</i> What Jesus does,
what the blood of Jesus does is literally transforms an individual. <i>- (Sergio) A new creation.
- (Daryl) A brand new creation.</i> <i>And that's the power of the blood
of the Lord Jesus Christ,</i> the power of the blood
that was shed on the streets of the Via Dolorosa. ♪ <i>Right where you fall</i> ♪ ♪ <i>On His name call</i> ♪ ♪ <i>Let His love come</i> ♪ ♪ <i>Rushing in</i> ♪ <i>And this is why</i> we have to share the gospel
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And this is why it's so important
for people to hear the gospel. Because... salvation helps an individual properly place their faith. Faith is sort of like a fuse. - I don't know if that makes any sense.
- Yeah. Faith is sort of like a fuse. When you put the right fuse
in the right place... Pow! You have light. Electricity. If you put your faith in Muhammad, all you have is religion. Put your faith in Buddha, all you have is religion. Put your faith in Jesus: Pow! You become light of the world.
You do. ♪ <i>Oh let His love come</i> ♪ ♪ <i>Rushing in</i> ♪ Hi, everyone. Thank you so much
for watching this video. And we also want to thank Daryl Petree for letting us use his original songs. ♪ <i>I'd like to tell the whole world
about Jesus</i> ♪ <i>(Sergio) If you want to hear
the full version of it,</i> check out his YouTube channel linked
in the description of this video below. <i>You'll find there a lot
of his other original music</i> <i>and also the full version
of this song with its lyrics.</i> And, until next time,
may God bless you. ♪ <i>Pulled out His mercy</i> ♪ ♪ <i>And saved by His grace</i> ♪
