From Sweden to Israel, by foot
Six months ago, 39-year-old Jorgen Nilsson left his home
in Sweden and embarked on a 4,500-kilometer (2,800-mile) pilgrimage to
Jerusalem.
Jorgen, a knight in the Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus,
left the city of Lund on November 18 and was expected to arrive in the Israeli
capital just in time for the first International Jerusalem Symposium on Green
and Accessible Pilgrimage, which begins Sunday.
On his way to Jerusalem, Nilsson passed through Denmark,
Germany, France, Italy and Greece. Last weekend he arrived in the northern city
of Haifa, and moved on to Zichron Yaakov, Hadera, Netanya, Raanana, Tel Aviv,
Ramla, Ramat Raziel and Abu Gosh before heading to Jerusalem.
His journey comprised of a total of seven million steps.
Nilsson explained last week why he chose to walk to
Jerusalem: "First of all, the ancient and holy city was always a critical
point both for peace and for conflict. The city serves as a symbol for the
effort required to reach world peace.
"I am a member of the Order of St. Lazarus of
Jerusalem. Last year, the Order returned to Jerusalem after hundreds of years
of absence and exile in France. In light of that, as part of my desire to
perpetuate our return to the holy city, I decided to do this historical walk to
Jerusalem."
After a short rest from his long journey, Nilsson was
expected to receive the key to the city from Mayor Nir Barkat.
During his trip, Nilsson updated his blog and posted
pictures of the different landscapes he saw on his way on Facebook.
The Order of St. Lazarus, which invited Nilsson to
Israel, is known for its philanthropic activity for a green environment and is
cooperating with the Jerusalem Municipality in the International Jerusalem Symposium
on Green and Accessible Pilgrimage, which will be held this week as part of the
Earth Day events.
Meanwhile, Australian adventure runner Richard Bowles
launched the longest run ever along the Israel Trail last Wednesday, hoping to
complete the entire 1,009-kilometer (627-mile) path within just 12 days.
Bowles, an ultra-marathon runner, arrived in Israel under
the sponsorship of the Shoresh company to run on a track initiated by the
Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel, which only recently was
included on National Geographic magazine's Epic Trails list.
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