Israeli Adventure: Part 3.1

Saturday, January 7, 2012 - Walking in the Footsteps of Jesus

After a semi-restful night during which jet lag did steal a couple hours of sleep away from me, we rose on Saturday morning to the most gorgeous day. After admiring the view of the Sea of Galilee from Oz's front porch, we breakfasted on borekas - a flaky phyllo dough pastry filled with soft cheese, topped with sesame seeds, and baked - and were on the road again!

We drove on the most beautiful seaside highway and could not stop ooh-ing and ahhh-ing. The 65-degree weather, blue skies, sun shining down on the shimmering water, rolling green hills and farmlands all around... Absolutely stunning!

 
We drove through the beach town of Tiberias before reaching our destination, Capernaum, at the northwestern point of the Sea of Galilee. Capernaum was once a bustling fishing village, and if you're familiar with the New Testament, you've likely heard the name in reference to Jesus's travels and ministry.

Capernaum was home to the disciples Peter, Andrew, James and John, and was where Jesus established his base for three years and performed many miracles. The ancient city was abandoned sometime over 1,000 years ago and was uncovered by archaeologists in the 1800s. 

The ruins in Capernaum are pretty impressive. We first viewed the White Synagogue. This huge synagogue can be traced back to the 4th century, and it is built atop the remains of an even more ancient temple known as the "Jesus Synagogue" - as it is the location where Jesus frequently taught. 

 

Outside the synagogue walls were ruins of the village of Capernaum, outlines of buildings and pathways evident. The sprawling ruins prove what a bustling city Capernaum once was, and I thought it so strange that the village just ceased to exist and has been uninhabited for 1,000+ years. It's such a gorgeous setting - right on the lake, with fertile green ground all around. I would live there!

Just beyond the synagogue and town ruins sits one of the most interesting churches I have ever been in. The appropriately named Church of the House of St. Peter is built atop the ruins of the disciple Peter's house, where it is believed Jesus lived while staying Capernaum. Following Jesus' death and resurrection, the house also served as a church. As Jesus said, "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my church."

As I said, the church is literally built over the ruins, and a glass floor in front of the altar looks down at the ruins below.

Side view of the Church of the House of St. Peter, built up over the ruins of the disciple Peter's home

Glass floor in front of the altar, looking down into the ruins of Peter's house

Beautiful mosaic on the altar, olive wood carving over the nativity scene, and huge windows looking out of the Sea of Galilee - absolutely gorgeous!

After admiring the church, we climbed down some rocks to the shore of the Sea of Galilee, where I just sat in awe... reflected... prayed...

Sitting on the rocks, gazing out over the Sea of Galilee

One of my favorite pictures from the trip..

Once we were finally able to tear ourselves away from the seaside, we climbed back up the rocks and headed to our next stop - Tabgha. Although this name wasn't familiar to me, the event that took place here was. Tabgha is home to the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes. And if you still don't know what happened in Tabgha, you weren't paying attention in Sunday School.

Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes

This church - like most churches in Israel - is built on the site of an important biblical event, and on top of the ruins of a former church (or churches) that were torn down by different anti-Christian invaders throughout history.  The current church is built on the remains of a church from the 5th century, the mosaic floors of which remain largely intact to this day. 

Underneath the altar sits a rock, which has been historically recognized as the spot where Jesus laid the loaves and fishes while blessing them, just before feeding the 5,000. This rock served as the altar in the original church and remains in the heart of the church today. 

The rock where Jesus blessed the loaves and fishes before feeding the 5,000 - and in front of it, a mosaic of bread and fish from the 5th century church.

We left Tabgha and drove up a winding road to the Mount of Beatitudes, the site where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount.  Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven!

Unfortunately, the church is closed from 11:45 - 2 each day, and as luck would have it, we arrived just minutes after they had locked the gates. That didn't stop us from the sneaking around the grounds to snap a few pictures though!

Church atop the Mount of Beatitudes

Esther and I on the Mount of Beatitudes, with an orchard of banana palm trees growing in the background

By then it was lunchtime. Since we were right on the sea, I wanted fresh fish; however, with it being Saturday (Sabbath), all the restaurants listed in our guidebooks were closed. For once, the gods smiled upon us, and Esther spotted a sign pointing to a beach and a restaurant. And after driving down a semi-sketch dirt road to the beach, we stumbled upon the best restaurant ever.

Since it was such a gorgeous day out, we requested a seat in the sunshine, so the adorable waitstaff brought out a tablecloth (bed sheet?) and set us up at a picnic table. 

Esther & Joanne at our adorable picnic table with the amazing spread of salads.

The server talked us into ordering the fish business lunch, which included 9 salads to share, warm pita bread, fries, fresh-squeezed lemonade and fresh-from-the-sea St. Peter's Fish, a white fish native to the Sea of Galilee. 

It. Was. Amazing. And worth every shekel. 

It makes my tastebuds dance just to look at this picture!

 
And on that note, I think I'll head to bed, so visions of St. Peter's Fish, hummus and tabbouleh can dance in my head.

Up Next: A much more successful day in Nazareth. Haifa. Getting horribly lost - again... stupid Americans.