The current pandemic has just forced us all back into lockdown here in Jerusalem, right in time for the Jewish New Year, but we look forward to better times when we can welcome back visitors, students, and guests! Those who arrive are now welcomed with a prayer of blessing, right inside our entrance lobby.
The text chosen is the priestly blessing in Numbers 6:24-26 in Hebrew:
The Lord bless you and keep you;
Numbers 6:24-26 (translation: NRSV)
the Lord make his face to shine upon you,
and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
and give you peace.
The text of this blessing is very dear to both Jewish and Christian traditions, and is already attested archaeologically in the 6th century BC, on two silver amulets from a tomb at Ketef Hinnom, right by Saint Andrew’s Memorial Church in Jerusalem.
The prayer of blessing is surrounded by the seven fruits of the land — traditionally wheat, barley, grape, fig, pomegranates, olive, and dates (cf. Deuteronomy 8:8) — in a wonderful display of colour.
A further two plaques are in our dining room, with the text of Psalm 23, in Hebrew and Arabic. The texts are framed by a floreal decoration in various shades of blue typical of Armenian ceramic workmanship.
A Psalm of David.
Psalm 23 (translation NRSV)
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil; for you are with me;
your rod and your staff — they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long.
All three plaques are the work of Arman Darian, a specialist in Armenian Jerusalem ceramics, and were made possible thanks to a generous gift by the Tran family.
Jesuits in the Holy Land 
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