The Sacred awakening Pilgrimage
Not just where Jesus walked—but how he lived.
A contemplative pilgrimage exploring the Beatitudes as a living path of compassion, humility, and spiritual awakening.
October 10 - 21, 2026
the journey: FROM FEAR TO LOVE
The world is burning and we can no longer choose silence.
Violence, fear, and domination shape our systems and they also live quietly within us. For thousands of years, humanity has tried to heal this brokenness through power, treaties, laws, control, even religious and spiritual escapism.
None of it has worked.
Sacred Awakening names what is deeper: the need for inner and collective transformation.
This pilgrimage is an invitation to walk the inner journey Jesus walked—not as religion or belief, but as a lived human path. A path that confronts fear, loosens inherited identities, dismantles domination from within, and opens the possibility of embodying Christ’s sacred consciousness in real life. While the teachings of Jesus provide the framework for the journey, this pilgrimage is open to people of all faith traditions—or no faith background at all.
This is not a retreat. It is a pilgrimage. If you feel the pull, you already know why.
YOUR GUIDEs & SPIRITUAL COMPANIONS
SAMI AWAD
Sami Awad’s journey is profoundly connected to the region he calls home. His work does not emerge from distant theory, but from a lifetime lived within the tensions of occupation, faith, identity, and resistance.
Sami has spent decades engaging both the outer and inner dimensions of conflict. His work weaves nonviolent resistance, trauma resilience, consciousness work, and leadership development into lived practice. He has not simply studied domination and fear; he has faced them and worked to transform them in himself and in the community.
One thing is for sure; Sami is not a motivational speaker offering inspiration from a stage. He is not a spiritual influencer selling certainty, quick healing, or personal branding. He does not ask participants to adopt a belief system or admire a path. He invites them into honest work — work that demands courage, responsibility, and the willingness to be changed.
Rawan Roshni
Rawan Roshni is a Palestinian, Global Citizen, Arab Woman, based in Jordan — waging love across the world.
For over a decade, she has used her voice as an Artivist — through singing, songwriting, and facilitating brave spaces across the SWANA region. Her work has moved through the reclamation of indigenous knowledge, conflict transformation, collective liberation, decolonization, conscious relating, consent work, and women's work.
She does not work only with the mind. She works with the whole human being — fusing Sound, Movement, and Intuitive Ritual through group singing, vocalization, whirling dance, and intentional nature-based practices. Her one-on-one program, Voice Liberation, carries the same spirit — accompanying each person into what was always already there, waiting to be freed.
Rawan has been listening to the lands and is showing up for the reclamation and revival of the ancient sacred feminine frequency, singing her bones back to life.
walking the Beatitudes as a process
These ten days follow the inner path Jesus lived and invited others into. Not as ideals to achieve, but as movements that undo us.
The pilgrimage begins with welcome, orientation, and grounding, then moves into a rhythm of silence, fasting (by invitation), and personal reflection. Participants are invited to step into silence and allow fears, attachments, and inner “temptations” to surface—echoing the preparatory journey that preceded Jesus’ public ministry.
From there, the Beatitudes unfold as a living process:
- Poverty of spirit and mourning invite honesty, grief, and the release of old identities
- Meekness, righteousness, and mercy move the work outward into relationship and repair
- Purity of heart calls participants to notice how they see, judge, and encounter others
- Peacemaking invites engagement with power, domination, fear, and responsibility—particularly as we enter Jerusalem
- The journey culminates in the call to become salt and light: discerning how each person is invited to live this work in their own community
This is not about following a teacher or adopting a belief system. It is about becoming—participating in a way of being human rooted in love, presence, and shared dignity.
PRACTICAL DETAILS
Price: $2,460
AT A GLANCE
What's Included
- All necessary ground transportation during the pilgrimage.
- Carefully selected accommodations that support rest and reflection.
- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily (except lunch on arrival and departure days).
- Service charges, portage, and accommodation taxes.
- Entrance fees where required for the journey.
- Facilitation throughout the pilgrimage and honorarium fees for guest contributors
Not Included
- International airfare
- Airport or border crossing pickup (available upon request at additional cost)
- Travel or health insurance
- Personal expenses, laundry, phone use, and items not listed above
- Gratuities for local support staff
If you wish to financially support a traveler on their journey, please inform us and we can organize your support and donation.
WHAT TO EXPECT
This pilgrimage is designed for inner depth, not distance.
You will arrive carrying your life, your roles, your convictions, your fears, your ways of protecting what feels safe. Nothing is left at the door. Our days create space for what is usually avoided.
Silence and Solitude
- Spacious time for listening, journaling, and inner integration — often in nature or sacred landscapes, where Jesus and his disciples may have done the same.
- When everything slows down, what begins to surface?
What are you afraid to lose? - What heals and what emerges in silence?
- What are the temptations in my life, the attachments, the addictions, the subtle distractions that keep me from becoming who I truly am?
Embodied Dialogue and Forum
- Guided group processes that invite honest sharing without fixing, performing, or bypassing.
- What happens when you invite vulnerability and truth?
- What is the way we live and express sacred love?
Ritual and Reflection
- Practices that allow grief, release, and renewal to emerge organically — held with care and grounded presence.
- What are the temptations in my life — the attachments, the addictions, the subtle distractions — that keep me from becoming who I truly am?
- What truth have I been avoiding that might set me free?
- What must I be willing to lose in order to truly find my life?
Being Sent Into the World
- Time spent meeting local communities, not to help or save, but to notice what arises in you through real encounters. Judgment. Guilt. Compassion. Fear. Humility. Clarity.
- How to see with new eyes and hear with new ears? If what you are searching for is already within you, what would it mean to live from it?
- What would it mean for you to be a peacemaker — here, now, in your actual life?
- As we begin breaking down the inner structures of fear and violence, what are the outter ones we are called to also breakdown?
Daily Integration
- Evening reflections and shared debriefs so experience is not rushed past, but carried consciously.
- This is a journey into self-discovery — and from there, into self-liberation.
- As the days unfold, we explore the movement from fear toward love. From inherited paradigms toward a new vision. From unconscious reaction toward conscious responsibility.
Ten days will not complete the lifetime work. But they may clarify the consciousness you are invited to carry — and the kind of peacemaker you are willing to become in a world that is burning.
Expect challenge. Expect tenderness. Expect to leave with questions you can no longer ignore.
is this Retreat for you?
This pilgrimage is for those who sense that the old ways—personal and collective—are no longer sufficient, and who do not want false solutions. It is for seekers drawn to the intersection of contemplation and action, mysticism and justice, inner healing and outer responsibility.
this pilgrimage is for you if
- You feel real change requires more than critique or spiritual comfort
- You are willing to look honestly at fear, ego, identity, belief, and power as they live in you
- You feel drawn to walk the path of Jesus as a lived human journey, not a religion
- You are ready to be changed, not reassured
THIS PILGRIMAGE IS NOT FOR YOU IF
- You are seeking a spiritual high, quick healing, or a curated “experience”
- You want confirmation that you are already awake, right, or morally superior
- You believe peace can come without inner disruption and outer engagement
- You are coming to the Holy Land to fix anything but yourself
This pilgrimage does not promise comfort. It offers something rarer: honesty, depth, and the possibility of real change.
Open to people of all faith traditions—or no faith background at all.
FREQUENCY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ)
When and where is the initial meeting point on October 10th?
We will be meeting at the Ben Gurion International Airport no later than 2 p.m. on Oct 10, 2026. Please confirm your flights arrive prior to this time so you can be ready for pickup by our shuttle service. If your flight is delayed or if you come earlier, please let us know as soon as possible, and we will make pickup arrangements accordingly. To those who are not needing airport or border transportation, we will send you the location in Bethlehem.
What are the best ways to get to Bethlehem when travelling from abroad?
Fly into Ben Gurion International Airport no later than 2 p.m. on October 10, 2026. To reach Ben Gurion Airport, we recommend flying into Athens, Greece, and then taking a regional airline to Ben Gurion Airport. Reputable airlines include: ELAL, Israir, Arkia, Bluebird and Aegean. From there, we will provide shuttles for transportation to Bethlehem. To those who chose not to, arriving in Jordan then taking land transportation to Palestine will be the other option. Please do note, the bridge crossings close at night so this might mean coming a day earlier to Amman
Do you arrange flights or Visa services?
We don’t arrange flights or visa services, but we can direct you to preferred travel agents who can assist you if you request it.
What happens if I am not allowed in at the border?
Hopefully, it will not be an issue, but if it does, we will contact you and your embassy to see what we can do to help you get through.
What do I need to enter Israel?
To enter Israel from a visa-exempt country (US, UK, Canada, or EU nation) you must have a valid passport with an expiration date more than 6 months, and an approved Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA-IL). If you are coming from other nations, a standard visitor visa is required. For more information go here.
Is there an age limit (lower/higher) to joining the pilgrimage?
The minimum age of 18 is what we recommend unless accompanied by or receiving parental consent. Beyond that, there is no age limit to attend the Sacred Awakening Pilgrimage.
How fit do I have to be to join?
Attendees should be able to walk and stand for normal periods of time (e.g., 30 minuties at a time). They should be able to navigate walkways and terrain that at times, can be uneven or angled. You will not be asked to put more energy than you are able to in anything we do. Assistance will be available for those who request it, and every accommodation will be made for those who need a bit more time as we move from place to place.
Should I do anything specific to prepare for this pilgrimage?
It is recomened to read Sami Awads book The Sacred Awakening. but it is not a must. What we strongly recommend is to prepare yourself mentally and emotionally for the pilgrimage by cultivating intention and purpose, and by journaling on questions such as: What are the things I am attached to out of fear in my life? Who have I labeled as an enemy in my life, or they labelled me as such? What expectations have I put on others recently, and even on myself?
What does each day of the pilgrimage look like?
Where will we be staying during the pilgrimage? Can you tell me about overnight accommodations; Bathroom/shower facilities, and single or shared accommodations?
We are purposefully choosing simple yet comfortable spaces for our accommodations, such as guesthouses, monasteries, and retreat spaces, where all necessary accommodations and services will be provided. Example guest houses include Dar Siti Aziza in Bethlehem or Michelle House in Nazareth. For the one night in the desert, there will be toilet and shower facilities as well.
Which meals will be provided during the pilgrimage?
We will start with dinner on the first night and end with breakfast on the last day. All other meals will be provided except for those who choose to fast (breakfast and lunch) on the desert days. Water and simple snacks will also be provided throughout the pilgrimage.
I understand that fasting is one of the practices during the pilgrimage. Is this compulsory or can I opt of fasting? How long is the fast?
Nothing is compulsory; everything we do is an invitation. There will be two days of fasting from food and liquids from sunrise to sunset, and that is also an invitation if you choose to participate. In such spaces, we will provide basic food items, simple, not big meals, to those who are not able to fast.
Is this pilgrimage only for Christians?
While the pilgrimage draws inspiration from the teachings and journey of Jesus, it is not limited to any one faith tradition. People from diverse spiritual backgrounds are welcome. The focus is on awakening, transformation, compassion, nonviolence, and the universal human journey toward greater consciousness and wholeness.
What should I pack? What do I need to make sure I have?
In addition to your passport and travel documents, we recommend the following packing list:
- Casual, relaxed clothing (trousers/pants, jeans, shorts, T-shirts, collared shirts or blouses); you won’t need any formal attire.
- Light sweater or jacket
- Comfortable walking shoes or sandals with rubber soles
- Hat, sunglasses and sunscreen
- Toiletries
- Minor first-aid items, like bandages or pain relief medications
- Prescription medications (always bring all medications in their original containers)
- Small bag or backpack (large enough for a small book, pen, camera and other personal items)
How many pilgrims will be on this journey?
10 - 25
What is your refund policy?
In the event of cancellation of travel services due to any reason, Holy Land 360 must be notified in writing. Cancellation refunds are determined based on the date of notification in writing. Refunds/Credits are as follows:
- Up to 70 days prior to the trip (Aug 1): 100% REFUND
- 69 - 46 days prior to trip (Aug 2 -25): 85% REFUND
- 45 - 21 days prior to trip (Aug 26-Sep 19): 60% *CREDIT
- 20 days or less: 0% *CREDIT
*All CREDITS to be used within one year
Should I be worried about personal safety and security? How will you ensure that pilgrim’s safety and security is ensured in light of the current realities in Palestine?
Your safety, security, health, and well-being will be our top priority. As we have done in the past when the situation is tenser than usual, we will only move in spaces that are guaranteed to be safe (which might mean we make changes in the program), and if the rare need arises for out-of-country evacuations, we will take care of all the logistical needs to make it happen. As Palestinians living in the land, you will be part of our family and the same concerns we have for them, we will have for you.
What happens if the minimum of 10 pilgrims is not met?
This will likely result in postponing the pilgrimage to Spring time.
What is the cut off date for confirming that the pilgrimage will go ahead? When should I book my flights?
The deadline to secure your place on the pilgrimage is August 1st. We advise waiting to book your flights until after this date, once the pilgrimage is officially confirmed to proceed.
Pilgrimage Itinerary
Itinerary is tentitive and subject to change as needed.
OUR GROUND PARTNER
The MEJDI team’s deep roots in social change work is where their mission comes from. MEJDI was founded by two peacebuilding practitioners, Aziz Abu Sarah and Scott Cooper. After leading social change programs all over the world, Aziz and Scott discovered that travel was one of the most powerful tools for creating a better planet. Holy Land 360 is proud to be partnering with Mejdi Tours!
The Current War, Conditions on the Ground & Your Safety
As we all have seen in the news, the war in Iran has created fear and uncertainty around the world. It has also disrupted global economies, shifted air travel routes, and led to changing travel conditions across the region—all of which can directly affect international travel, including this pilgrimage. We recognize this and are closely monitoring the situation with trusted partners on the ground.
Participant safety is our top priority. The itinerary is designed to be flexible and responsive, and we will make adjustments as needed—including postponing the trip if conditions require it.
We are committed to keeping all participants informed every step of the way. If you have questions or concerns, we welcome the conversation.
Cancelation Policy
In the event of cancellation of travel services due to any reason, Holy Land 360 must be notified in writing. Cancellation refunds are determined based on the date of notification in writing. Refunds/Credits are as follows:
- Up to 70 days prior to the trip (Aug 1): 100% REFUND
- 69 - 46 days prior to trip (Aug 2 -25): 85% REFUND
- 45 - 21 days prior to trip (Aug 26-Sep 19): 60% *CREDIT
- 20 days or less: 0% *CREDIT
*All CREDITS to be used within one year
Are YOU Looking for Something?
All our trips provide spiritual direction explicitly customized for your life experience and faith. Our guides challenge you with open-ended questions and transformational exploration into the sacred and profound. They will not tell you what to think or feel but encourage you how to think... how to feel, to be sensitive to your inner voice, our universal conscience... the voice of God. Are you looking for a deeper understanding of scripture or your relationship to the divine? Our guides will help open up these potentially unexplored areas of the heart. Our tours invite you to slow down, open your heart to the "second gaze," and expand your capacity to see all things and places as sacred.