ABSTRACT
This chapter examines and represents the pilgrimage experience in reference to the existing tension between the two forces of fear and belief. Returning to the imaginary continuum of fear and religiosity (or the "Sword and Bible"), Catholic pilgrims were affected by security considerations in the timing of their visit more than their Protestant brethren. More than 80 percent of the Catholics and the Protestants prepared for the trip by reading the Bible, meetings, lectures on the Holy Land and other educational modes which had a religious emphasis. The majority had an image which naturally was based on the Bible, documentary films and videos and pictures and those images, were, to a large extent, in sharp contradiction to the reality of Israel – the Holy Land. The sacred landscape of the Holy Land evolved during the last 2000 years. The chapter presents a qualitative portrait of travelers and visitors to the Holy Land in the years 2000-2003.
