E-Newsletter

Prayer is a foundation of many households in our country and around the world.

I respect people of all faiths and religious practices and recognize they have their own holidays.

This year, Passover is April 12 to April 20.

Ramadan began on February 28 and ended on March 29.

Others have different faith traditions and holidays.

But for me and my family, this time of year we celebrate Easter.

In 2024, I celebrated Easter in a special way. I had the privilege of visiting the Holy Land with the United States Israel Education Association.

The delegation consisted of Texas Congressman Randy Weber, New York Congressman Brandon Williams, former Tennessee Congressman Phil Roe and Oklahoma Senator James Lankford.

Others also went, including my son, Davis. 

We first arrived in Israel on Good Friday. 

The day consisted of going to the House of Caiaphas. Caiaphas was the high priest who presided over the Sanhedrin trial of Jesus before Jesus’ crucifixion.

Located just outside the old city of Jerusalem on the eastern slope of Mount Zion, this place is believed to be where Jesus was put on trial the Friday before Easter.

We also visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, something I really wanted my son to see. 

While archaeologists are unsure, many believe that within the massive complex, are both the sites of crucifixion and the tomb where Jesus was laid.

There, we got to kneel down, pray and touch a stone slab on which was placed the body of Jesus. 

The following day, on Holy Saturday, we went to a part of Israel next to Gaza known as the Gaza envelope.

At the time of our visit, Israel was more than five months removed from the October 7 terrorist attacks launched by Hamas.

Through the assault, Hamas murdered innocent civilians, men, women, children and even infants. They killed more than 1,200 people and took hundreds hostage (some of whom remain in Hamas’ control to this day). 

October 7 was the bloodiest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust. During the Holocaust, roughly 6 million Jews were slaughtered and many more were tortured and abused.

One of the sites subject to the October 7 attacks was the Nova music festival.

That Saturday, we visited with a survivor from the music festival. As the attacks unfolded, she hid in a bomb shelter. But Hamas militants got to the shelter and opened fire on everybody inside.

She was shielded from gunfire by the bodies of the dead on top of her. She told us she could hear Hamas soldiers laughing as they fired into the shelter.

The gruesome stories did not end there.

We also visited the Nir-Oz Kibbutz, a community that was ambushed by Hamas on October 7. We saw the carnage of the brutal attacks, including where houses were bombed and burned.

I met with a former resident of Nir-Oz who explained the events his community witnessed. His son was one of many taken hostage by Hamas during the attack. 

At the time of our meeting, five months after the attack, his son was still hostage. Recently, as part of a hostage deal, his son was returned home alive.

Others await their fate.

Hamas still holds innocent civilians hostage, while others have died in their custody. 

Listening to the horrors of October 7 on that Holy Saturday before Easter was not easy for us. 

This unfathomable day of heartbreak that I saw in Israel coincided with the biblical day marked by Jesus’ descent into Hell.

Come Sunday morning, we went to the Garden of the Tomb for an Easter sunrise service. 

Many believe this is where Mary Magdalene went to go see where Jesus’ body lay, only to discover his body missing from the tomb.

What happened to Jesus’ body? 

The tomb was empty. 

After his crucifixion, Jesus was resurrected and his disciples witnessed his return. 

As a result, one will often hear the phrase over Easter: “He has risen!” 

And the response: “He has Risen indeed.”

No matter your faith, I hope that you have a happy and peaceful Easter season.

This Easter season, my family will reflect and pray on the emotional stories and the biblical versus that shaped the powerfully spiritual trip to the Holy Land that Davis and I experienced last year.

If you have questions, concerns, or comments, feel free to contact my office.  You can call my Abingdon office at 276-525-1405 or my Christiansburg office at 540-381-5671. To reach my office via email, please visit my website at morgangriffith.house.gov. Also on my website is the latest material from my office, including information on votes recently taken on the floor of the House of Representatives.

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