Galilee

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

It was cool and breezy when we left our hotel this morning.  Our first stop was supposed to be a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, but the waves were too strong to go out safely, so our trip had to be postponed.  We hoped we could go later, but it was still uncertain.  We drove by the lake (Sea of Galilee) and saw big waves crashing against the shore.  We were reminded of the times Jesus calmed the sea.  The winds were blowing from the east which we were told causes uncertain weather.

So instead our first stop was at a museum with a boat that dates back to the time of Christ.  There was a short movie explaining how the boat was found during a drought year back in the 1980s when the water level was very low.  Some men were going for a swim when they discovered the boat.  They had to be extremely careful in removing the boat from the water and eventually covered it in spray foam in order to keep it from completely disintegrating.  It took over 10 years of restoration before it could be displayed.  It was fascinating to think how old this boat was and who could have possibly traveled in this boat.

1st Century Boat from the Sea of Galilee

We then drove a short distance to the Mt. of Beatitudes.  Even though the area around the Sea of Galilee has many hills, they think this is the right place because of the excellent acoustics in this particular location (as tested in the 1920s).  I read Matthew Chapter 5 to our group.  It was a very cool and special experience to read the words of the Savior right where he had given them.  It was especially interesting to read vs. 10:  "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."  I was there with a group of people from nearly every Christian denomination:  Presbyterian, Baptist, Serbian Orthodox, Catholics, Mormons, Evangelicals, Assembly of God, etc, plus our Jewish guide.   I thought about how all these groups at one time or another had been persecuted.  And right then, as I looked out over them, I felt only unity.  Even though our beliefs varied, we were all there with a desire in our hearts to know our Savior better.  To learn of Him and love Him more.  As I stood there and looked around, I realized that we can all do better at loving each other more fully, more like the Savior would want us to.


We visited this beautiful church and the gardens all around. 

Church at the Mt. of Beatitudes

This nun came out and told all the people in the courtyard to remember that this was a reverent place.  I thought she was so cute.

The gardens were beautiful, even in December. 

Mt. of Beatitudes and Sea of Galilee

Kate in the Gardens at the Mt. of Beatitudes

This is what I imagined it might have looked like at the time of Jesus.

After we left the Mount of Beatitudes, we drove north for about an hour up into the Golan Heights region.  The landscape became more forested and our guide told us about how this area used to be part of Jordan.  The Jordanians would look down on the Israelis from the tops of the mountains and the people in the valleys were in constant danger.  Eventually Israel took over this land in 1967 during the 6 day war.

We visited a place called Herman Stream, which is also the nature preserve, Banias, and one of Israel's national parks.  This spring, known as Dan, is the main spring headwater of the Jordan river.  It is called "Dan" after the tribe of Dan that settled in this land.  I learned that the name "Jordan" means: Jor - "to descend down" from "Dan" or the springs of Dan.

It was very beautiful here.  The weather was pleasant and the skies were blue.  It  has been very dry lately so the water level was quite low.  Usually these pools flow over the walls into one another.

Springs of Dan

The water is very clear and is drinkable.  We filled a water bottle full of water and brought it home--real water from the source of the Jordan river.

They think this cave is where the springs used to originate. 

Cave at Caesarea Philipi

This area is also what used to be known as Caesarea Philipi.  Here Peter and Christ had the exchange found in Matthew 16: 13-19.

Jesus asked Peter, But whom say ye that I am?  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God.  

And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou Simon Bar-jona; for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in Heaven.

And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

This really happened here.  Isn't that so cool!?!



There are also old Greek ruins to the God of Pan.

And lots of Roman ruins.

We left Hermon Stream and drove back about an hour to the Sea of Galilee.  We learned that the Israelis had planted eucalyptus trees on these roads to protect the cars and school buses from the sight of the enemies up on top of the Golan Heights.

The Golan Heights

Our next stop was lunch in the town of Magdal (as in Mary Magdalene) on the banks of the Sea of Galilee.  We went to a restaurant where they served St. Peter's fish (tilapia) and some of the fish had a coin in it's mouth.  We read the story of Jesus paying his taxes from a coin found in a fish's mouth.


After lunch we drove a short distance to Tagtha, where there was the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes.  Rachel read that story to us.

Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes

Inside the church is a very famous and old mosaic of the loaves and fishes.  The rock under the alter is supposedly the very rock on which Jesus sat when he performed the miracle.  Hmmm.... I'm not so sure about that, but seeing the beautiful old mosaics was pretty cool. 

Next we drove to Capernaum. 

Peter's home in Capernaum

These ruins are under a church and are supposedly of Peter's home.  We know Jesus came here and healed Peter's mother-in-law, and He also may have stayed here during his Galilean ministry.

There were lots of other ruins.  We learned how most people lived in caves and talked about the parable of the lost coin and how really it would have been so dark inside these homes that they would have had to sweep them out to find something that was lost. 

Ruins at Capernaum

Synagogue at Capernaum

This picture shows the layers inside the synagogue.  They think the older layers are actually from the time of Christ. 

An old olive press

Statue of Peter at Capernaum

By late afternoon the winds had calmed and we were able to take our boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.  It was a lovely evening and actually turned out much better than if we had gone in the morning.  It was a wonderful experience!

The boat we took on the Sea of Galilee

Our family on the Sea of Galilee

The inside of the boat

Beautiful Galilee

The cliffs where the devils cast into the swine would have run into the sea

Mom and I on this amazing trip together!

The kids got to help lower a net out into the water to try to catch some fish.  No luck this time.

This is one of my all time favorite pictures of the trip.  I thought it was cute how Kate had her arm around William.  She had him close and was whispering in his ear, so I took a few pictures.  It wasn't until a little later that she told me she was telling William the stories of Jesus calming the waves and walking on the water.  Without any prompting from us.  It made my heart melt.  I felt grateful for all the months we spent reading the bible with the kids in preparation for this trip.  We were prepared for the experiences we were having. 

And the experience on this boat ride was one of the most special.  It was so easy for me to imagine Jesus being in this place.  How he calmed the storm.  How he fished with his disciples.  How he taught the people.  How he walked on the water and invited Peter to do the same.  I felt the spirit strongly there.  They played music over the loud speaker on the boat.  My favorite was, "How Great Thou Art." 

We watched the sun sink in the sky and had time to ponder and relax.  It was wonderful!