Mount Carmel and the Harbour of Haifa
by

Louise Bosch

1921

Geyserville, California

All our friends know that my husband and I made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Our object was to visit a great spiritual teacher living there. Some of our friends thought that we had gone to Persia, however, this we did not; we visited an illustrious family of Persians living in Haifa, Syria, and who, banished and exiled from their native country, came to stay in Palestine.

We first cabled to that great teacher, asking permission to come to visit him. The reply came at the end of one week – a cable with the single word: “Permission.” We were delighted over this, and began immediately to make preparation for our departure. Within a short time we were on the Atlantic, sailing for France. Arrived in France, we first went to Paris to visit some friends there. From Paris we went to Switzerland, which is our native country. It would form a separate chapter to relate of this return to our native land, of the coming back to the scenes of one’s childhood and early youth, of the seeing again of the “old folks at home”, suffice it to say that it was like dreams fulfilled and prayers answered. From Switzerland we went to Germany, to visit there some friends of that Great Teacher. We were, delighted with them. We experienced for the first time the greatness of such a world-union and world-brotherhood, as taught by this Great Teacher. At last we came to Venice, Italy, where we embarked for Alexandria, Egypt, a three days’ trip on the Adriatic Sea, From Alexandria, we came by train to Cairo. There again we met the friends of that Great Teacher. We knew we would met these friends in Cairo, that they belonged o another race, had another color and spoke another language, but what of the language of love which is the load-stone of hearts, and the color of brotherhood which is the same in every land? We remained with those friends until an inner voice told us that it was time to hasten to our final point of destination. It was a warm November day when we left these friends for Haifa, Palestine. We came by train to Haifa, which is a port city with a beautiful harbour. More and more ships from all parts of the world come to this port now since the war and since England has the government of Palestine, or at least of a great part of it.

The harbour of Haifa is not developed yet, but will be. People who come by steamer to .Haifa are always enchanted by the harbour which presents the most beautiful panorama in the world.

Mount Carmel, the most mentioned of all the biblical Mountains, rises – out of the Mediterranean at Haifa. Mount Carmel means “vineyard of the Lord.” It is the holy mountain of the Holy Land. To see its beautiful situation, to see it in its emerald greenness, and to not think of the psalmist’s words would be impossible. The psalmist, speaking of Mount Carmel, says: “Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth.” The Orient and the Occident have never in the past had much relation with each other. Through history we can ascertain the cause. There was a time when the Orient possessed all the culture and civilization and all the wealth and splendor of the world and the Occident was in darkness and comparative poverty. But then came a time when all this was reversed. From that time to this the Orient has lived on the remnant of its former splendor and greatness. Now a new and great change has come into the world, a new spiritual light is shining, and under its rays the east and the west – the Orient and the Occident – will rise together to a higher state of civilization than either one has ever had.

Through this light our eyes are opened to things we never saw before. One of the things is the realization of the marvellous possibilities of the harbour of Haifa – and of the near-by biblical plain of Esdraelon. Through that plain the shortest Way to the Far East can easily be effected. This is of great importance to the world. And it would not be so great an undertaking as has been the Panama or the Suez Canal.

It is then through the Holy Land – the heart of the world - that the Orient and the Occident will finally be united. The outer relation which already exists between those countries will be followed by an inner relation between them and all strangeness and foreignness will disappear.

But to come back: We had reached Haifa and were met by new oriental friends who spoke our language well, and who made us very happy by their cordial welcome. They took charge of our baggage and drove us in a Ford to the Pilgrim House. There we found several other American pilgrims whom we did not know, but who welcomed us as old friends. There are two Pilgrim Houses on the slope of Mount Carmel: one was built by an oriental friend to accommodate the pilgrims from the oriental world, and another by an American friend to accommodate the pilgrims from the western world. Many people from different countries came steadily to visit “The Master at Haifa.”

The midday meal was waiting to be served on our arrival at the Pilgrim House. Our revered Host was not present, nor any member of His family. We were told that we would meet Him in the afternoon. We awaited His coming eagerly but knew that His work in the .world was the very hardest that it is possible for any man to have.

At last we saw Him coming down the road and suddenly we found ourselves in the room with Him. One must know that to meet with that great One was a matter quite different from meeting anyone else, kings and princes• included. It is almost impossible to describe just what one experienced in being with Him. It is certain that the soul was stirred to its very depth. In His presence the soul realized that it stood in the presence of its real master. His personality was a mirror of holiness and sanctity. His life had been perfect in all respects. In the pure mirror of His self one could see one’s own self. And what one saw was not what one thought one was, but what one really was. As thus we stood in His holy presence we felt aware of our un-worthiness; we became conscious of our faults and shortcomings; we saw ourselves in our imperfections. We could only take refuge in the ocean of His understanding and in the sea of His love - Which seemed to us vaster than the expanse of the universe! He greeted-us, taking our hands in His and speaking welcoming words in Persian, and bade us be seated. We felt overwhelmed and barely could find words to answer Him. Our beings were thrown into commotion by meeting Him. We felt as though we, were in the presence of a king before whom all things Are revealed and disclosed he spoke to each one in the room and after a short visit rose to leave, saying that He would come again, to be with us at the evening meal.

At about eight o’clock He returned. He bade us be seated at the table, assigning us seats beside Him. We ate Persian food, It was delicious. It seemed to taste better than food of other countries.

There were about twelve people at the table, of different nationalities and tongues, and two others waited upon us. As I mentioned before, our Host’s nationality and language were Persian, so He spoke to us through an interpreter – one of His grandsons.

Our Host spoke blessed ___ He said the soul needed food as well as the body. Even as the body would die if the material food were not forth coming, so would the soul die if the spiritual food would not reach it. If a person would not become spiritually nourished he could not be called Pa living soul.” That the food of the soul consisted in turning to God, in seeking to attain the realities of life and acquiring divine perfection, in man’s good actions and deeds, that only such a soul was living, and that all others were dead. He explained the words of Christ “Let the dead bury the dead,” Saying by this was meant that those are dead who are bereft of spiritual attributes, those who do not partake of spiritual food, that those are dead, although in body are living.

At the close of the meal He rose, and all of us did the same. He bade us goodnight and to rest well, and then went away, accompanied by His grandson. On the next day we had the happiness of seeing Him again at table with us. Again He spoke heavenly divine words to us. He spoke of Christ. He said that by “Christ” was meant the “Spirit of God”, that by “Christ” was meant the teachings – Christ’s teachings. He said that only such as carry out the teachings of Christ were Christians, and that all others were not, and that only such as live the life that Christ taught, know Christ, and that all other do not know Him. He spoke of the tribulations and ordeals, the difficulties, and hardships of the life of Christ on earth, and of all that He suffered for our sake, that we might attain to enlightenment, and our ignorance be changed into knowledge, and our faults into virtues. He spoke of the hardships and trials of the disciples and of their endurance and fortitude in the path of God and of the fruit that their troubles bore. He enjoined us to be like those disciples – to do the work they did – to live the life they lived, and to endure the hardships they endured – to do all these things for the sake of God.

He spoke of the reality of Christ until we began to grasp it as never before, until it seemed as though Christ Himself was in the room with us, in our midst, seated at the table, speaking to us, teaching us..... On the next day we were taken in a carriage to the summit of Mount Carmel. It was a large carriage with three bench-seats in it and canvas-sides that could be rolled up. It had heavy wheels and was drawn by two strong horses. It is a stony road that leads to the top of Mount Carmel. We stopped on the way to look at the Cave of Elijah. We spoke of the biblical story, of the 400 prophets of Baal and of Elijah’s conquest and further up we had a view of the river Kishon.

On the top of Mount Carmel is a monastery inhabited by Carmelite Monks. These monks have awaited the coming of the Lord on Mount Carmel for many years. They think that the Lord will descend on Mount Carmel from heaven. They have taken this passage of scripture literally, as so many do. It says that the Lord is to come and live there, on Mount Carmel, where He shall invite the nations, where men shall come from the east and from the west and from the north and the south, and shall sit down in His kingdom, where He shall teach them of His ways. Besides these Carmelite monks there is also an interesting colony of settlers in the town of Haifa, at the foot of Mount Carmel, who came there nearly fifty years ago for the sole purpose of seeing the Lord’s coming on Mount Carmel. They are called the “Templars,” a sect which originated in Germany. It is true that the time for the fulfilment of biblical prophecies is at hand, and that these are the days for man’s apprehension of the promised final Messiah upon earth.

My husband and I went to see some of these German people in the colony. Over the doors of some of their houses we read, hewn in stone, biblical verses relating to the coming of the Lord. “The Lord is nigh”; over another: “Watch and pray, for ye know not what hour the Son of Man cometh”; and over another: “When the Son of Man cometh, will He find faith on earth?” They are good, kind. • folks, these settlers, engaged in commerce and trade, but not yet sufficiently spiritually awake to their present surroundings. They are still looking for the coming of the Lord. It is the same with these Carmelite monks....

Our beloved Host had often. spent days at a time on Mount Carmel; not at the very top, but some distance up where He had a tent; and, when there, the people would go up to see Him. Isaiah says: “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of Him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace, The view from Mount Carmel is superb and might remind one of many more prophecies of the psalmist and the prophets. In the distance one sees the Lebanon Mountains. Isaiah says: “And the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it.” By this Isaiah meant that the famed beauty of the Lebanons would in no wise rival the beauty of Carmel. At our feet we saw the Mediterranean and the beautiful harbour of Haifa and the nine-mile long beach of Haifa to the ancient city of Acca, walled and fortressed, where our divine Host was so.. long a prisoner with His Father. The nine-mile long beach is beautiful and remarkable in its form of a half-circle, and like an embracing arm, ready to receive the world.

While looking at the superb panorama, we were told of a prophecy uttered by our Great Teacher, regarding Mount Carmel quote it here:

“In the future the distance between Haifa and Acca will be built up and the two cities will join and clasp hands, becoming the two terminal sections of one mighty Metropolis. As I look now over this • scene I see so clearly that it will become one of the first emporiums of the World: this great semi-circular bay will be transformed into the finest harbour wherein ships from all nations will seek shelter and refuge; the great vessels of all people will come to this port, bringing on their decks thousands and thousands of men and women from every part of the globe; the mountains and the plains will be dotted with the most modern buildings and palaces; industries will be established and various institutions of a philanthropic nature will be founded; the flowers of civilization and culture from all nations will be brought here to blend their fragrances together and blaze the.... way for the brotherhood of man; wonderful gardens, orchards, groves and parks will be laid out on all sides; at night the great city will be lighted by electricity; the entire harbour from Acca to Haifa will be one path of illumination; powerful search – lights will be placed on both sides of Mount Carmel to guide the steamers, and Mount Carmel itself from top to bottom will be submerged into a sea of lights. A person standing on the summit of Mount Carmel and passengers of the steamers coming to it will look upon the most sublime spectacle of the whole world.”

These are wonderful words which the future undoubtedly will see, fulfilled.

Suddenly all of our ideas and plans became changed – our beloved Host departed this life. He did not suffer any previous illness. He worked hard to the last day of His life. He had reached His 77th year.

His passing was a momentous happening and a great event. The news of it was telegraphed all over the earth and appeared in all the newspapers of the world. With it were brought reviews of His great life, and exposits of the principles of His Teachings.

Thousands walked in His funeral procession, my husband and myself among them. He was buried on Mount Carmel.

After the great experience Of His death and burial, when we thought we would soon have to leave, we were allowed, to stay 7 weeks, more in the Pilgrim House near the bereft and mourning members of His household, all holy people, every one of them severed from the things of this world, living a life of utmost service and devotion to mankind in the path of God. One day I found myself writing in my diary: “These are the real resurrected disciples of Christ.” Often at early dawn we would arise to ascend Mount Carmel to His shrine, and, there fill our hearts with hopes of performing such service and deeds as we witnessed coming from them.

At last we realized that the time had come when the portals of our visit to Haifa had to close. Our going opened the way for new pilgrims of which there are ever new ones.

Sadly we made our last visit to the shrine, and then took leave from our spiritual friends. We left them with the hope of returning to theta at another time. In body we left, but in spirit we stayed. The day before we left Haifa, we made a journey to Nazareth in the morning and returned to Haifa in the evening. From this it can be seen that Nazareth is not far from Haifa and Mount Carmel. In fact we heard that our departed Teacher had said that Jesus Christ had many, many times been upon Mount Carmel.

The first stoppong place on our homeward journey was Jerusalem. Jerusalem is the triune holy city of the world. It is the holy city of the Jews, the Christians, and the Mohammedans. To all these three Jerusalem is equally sacred. It is their holy city because it is the place where their particular holy shrines once stood or even now stand – such as the Mosque of Omar, which stands there now. Jerusalem is sacred to the Jews because of the promises given them in the Old Testament. To the Christian, Jerusalem is sacred because of the life and death of our Lord Jesus Christ there. To the Mohammedan Jerusalem is sacred because of the Mosque there, and because Mohammed prayed there, and the Mohammedans have been the possessors of Jerusalem for nearly thirteen hundred years. A Mohammedan will tell you that one prayer at Jerusalem is worth a thousand prayers elsewhere.

It always seemed that the Jews had a greater right to the Holy Land than all other people, because it was their erstwhile father-land, i. e., from the time of Abraham to the time of the passing of their kingdom. To this day and age the Jews are wailing at the Wailing Wall of Jerusalem, where they weep and pray for the restoration of the glory they once had. They wail the seventy-ninth psalm: “Oh God, the heathen have come unto thine inheritance.”‘

“The holy temple have they defiled, they have laid Jerusalem on heaps. We are become a reproach to our neighbors, a scorn and derision to them round about us... How long, Lord? Wilt Thou be angry forever? Shall Thy jealousy burn forever?...”

The Jews are right in their wailing. But they shall not wail forever. Daniel gives the prophecy. The time is at hand, but those wailing ones do not yet know it. In Revelations it says that their tears shall be wiped away.

Solomon built his glorious Temple upon the top of Mount Moriah at Jerusalem, which is one other of the, holy mountains of the Holy Land. Solomon built this temple in commemoration of the sacrifice. of Abraham, when Abraham was ready to offer his son, Isaac. In that story is contained the great symbol of the ages; it is the symbol of our willingness to sacrifice what is dearest for the sake of God, whenever this call should come. The Jews understood this symbol well. It is upon that holy mountain that Solomon built his temple three thousand years after Abraham. Abraham was upon that mountain four thousand years ago and it has since been the great altar of the world.

The Mohammedans built their Mosque upon that exact spot over a thousand years ago. They built it over the same place that held. Solomon’s Temple. And why?

First, we must know that the patriarch Abraham had tracted several marriages – incidentally three, two of which come into .relation here: One with Sarah, who bore Isaac from whom the Jews and Christians sprang, and one with Hagar, who bore Ishmael from whom the Mohammedans sprang.

Thus Abraham is the progenitor of the Mohammedans as well as of the Jews and Christians. Thus, Abraham is of the same importance to the Mohammedans as he is to the Jews and Christians; and the Mohammedans have the same love and reverence for Abraham as the Jews and Christians have. This is the reason why the Mohammedans built their Mosque around that same great altar of the world, and this is the reason that Jerusalem is the triune Holy City – sacred to the Jew, to the Christian, and to the Mohammedan.

But outside of these, God has other children. He has Hindoos, Buddhists, Fire Worshippers, Sun Worshippers, and others. They too will be regenerated and renewed in this great day of light and shall unite with others in the same worship of the One God... “Were shall the nations meet?” “Where is the worshipping place of the nations of the earth?” The psalmist replies: “Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth!”......

END