Thirty-one of the thirty-three
Chilean miners who were rescued from a collapsed mine last year are in
the Holy Land for an eight-day pilgrimage.
The miners were invited to the region by the Israeli government after
their unlikely escape from the mine where they had spent 69 days.
They arrived on Wednesday with their wives and partners and spent
Thursday touring the Old City of Jerusalem.
Their visit will take in
other tour holy sites, including King David’s Tomb and Nazareth.
The Israeli Tourism Ministry is hoping the pilgrimage will boost
tourism to the Holy Land, which has been steadily picking up after the
bleak years of the intifada.
“The pilgrimage of the Chilean miners to the Holy Land will expose
Christians and others around the world – not just Spanish-speakers – to
Israel’s unique religious, historical and cultural sites,” Pini Shani,
director of the overseas department at the Tourism Ministry was quoted
as saying by the Jerusalem Post.
Jimmy Sánchez, the youngest of the miners, was quoted by the New York
Times as saying of his visit: “I am happy. I never imagined that I
would get to the Holy Land.”
Faith played a huge part in the experience of the miners while they
were trapped 800 metres below the earth.
Bibles and rosaries were sent
down a capsule to the men and prayer meetings were held twice a day.
When they were finally freed, they emerged from the depths wearing
T-shirts that said ‘Thank you God’.
On a recent tour of England, Jose Henriquez, the “pastor” of the
group, told of miners coming to faith in Jesus after their tangible
experience of God, whom they named “34th man” in the mine.