In continuation of their visits to the Holy Sites in the Holy Land of Jordan and Israel, the Adamawa State Christian Pilgrims have arrived in Israel from Jordan and commenced visiting Holy Sites in Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
However, 23 of the pilgrims were denied visas to enter Israel.
In an interview with a reporter in Bethlehem, the Executive Secretary of the Adamawa State Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board, Mr Geoffrey Garba, confirmed that not all the pilgrims were granted visas to enter Israel.
"We arrived at Amman (Queen Alia) International Airport with 173 pilgrims on board. And we spent two days in Amman (Jordan)," Mr Geoffrey Garba said.
"We went to where John the Baptist was beheaded, from there we went to Mount Nebo where Moses ascended to see the Promised Land, but God did not allow him to go.
"The following day, we discovered that those without visas to Israel numbered 23. We left them in Jordan to continue visiting Holy Sites there (Jordan) with a guide at their hotel."
The Executive Secretary explained how one of the Adamawa Pilgrims was denied entry to Israel.
"A lady mistakenly boarded the bus. We found out that she did not have a visa. The Israeli authorities had to return her to Amman (Jordan)," Mr Garba revealed.
"This occurred due to the fact that they did not obtain visas. And it was from the Israeli Embassy in Nigeria."
He said that the pilgrims entered Israel healthy and have started visiting Holy Sites.
In Israel, the pilgrims visited the Old City of Jerusalem where they were taken to the Mount of Olives. The site is noteworthy for housing the Church of the Ascension, and the Garden of Gethsemane. It is where Jesus stood as he said his final prayer before his betrayal.
There also, the pilgrims visited the Church of the Pater Noster. This church was built over the caves where Jesus taught the Lord's Prayer to the disciples. The present church is now a Carmelite monastery. In the courtyard there are many plaques with the Lord's Prayer in many languages including Hausa and Igbo languages in Nigeria.
The Adamawa State pilgrims further visited the fourteen stations of the Via Dolorosa where they have seen: the station Jesus is condemned to death, the place Jesus received the Cross, where Jesus falls the first time, the station Jesus meets Mary his mother, the station Simon of Cyrene helped Jesus to carry the Cross, a station a woman wipes the face of Jesus, the station Jesus falls the second time, the station Jesus spoke to the Daughters of Jerusalem, and the station Jesus falls the third time.
Others are the station Jesus was stripped of his garments, the station Jesus was crucified, the station Jesus died on the Cross, the station the body of Jesus was taken down from the Cross, as well as the station the body of Jesus was placed in the tomb.
In Bethlehem, West Bank, Palestine, the Adamawa Pilgrims visited the Church of the Nativity. The grotto holds a prominent religious significance to Christians of various denominations as the birthplace of Jesus. There, the pilgrims were round the grotto and seen the birth station of Jesus and the manger among others.
The pilgrims are expected to visit the Wailing Wall, Jericho City and the Dead Sea on Wednesday.