Pilgrims turn to prayer, kinship during coronavirus scare

A group of Christian pilgrims from Alabama is turning to prayer and positive thinking as they cope with an open-ended coronavirus quarantine, confined to their West Bank hotel rooms while they wait for clearance to return to the United States.

Chris Bell, the lead pastor at the 3Circle Church in Fairhope, Ala., said his 13-member group arrived last week for what was supposed to be a dream-of-a-lifetime trip to the Holy Land.

But after two days of touring Jerusalem and Bethlehem, they were notified that they might have been exposed to the virus after a group of Greek tourists staying in the same hotel had tested positive.

They have been instructed by local authorities to remain in their hotel indefinitely.

We're really sad that things turned out the way they did, Bell said.

It's not a great situation, but we're trying to make the best of it.

He said the group is made up of church staff and spouses, and for almost everyone, it was their first time in the Holy Land.

He said this familiarity and shared faith, along with generosity from the hotel and the local community, has helped them get through the ordeal.

He said the group is confined to one floor of the hotel.

Each morning, he said people put on gloves and masks and meet in the hallway to pray together.

They also have reading materials and wi-fi, allowing them to read the news, stream movies and remain in contact with the outside world.

"We love each other. Most of us have our spouses with us as well.So all of that human interaction, even though it's through gloves, masks and at a distance really helps us get through every day," he said.

Bell said the hotel staff has treated his group with great hospitality, disinfecting rooms and delivering food in plastic bags.

He said the local community has sent shipments of everything, from shawarma to bread and chips, and from Popeye's Chicken to medications.

His group also remains in contact with Palestinian and Israeli authorities, as well as US consular officials at the American Embassy in Jerusalem.

The group has been tested for the virus and is waiting for the results, he said.

In the meantime, no one is showing any symptoms of sickness.

He said everyone remains hopeful that they will soon be allowed to leave and return home.

We are people of faith. And we do not believe this is an accident, Bell said.

We know that our God knows exactly where we are. And he has a plan for this and that he is going to sustain us, and he's going to be faithful to us.

And we just want to represent him well while we're walking through us."
So we're not just praying for ourselves. We're praying for the hurting people of this area because we love them."