Our fourth day in Israel was spent touring along the western side of the Sea of Galilee, and it was a beautiful area. As we kicked off our morning with a little boat ride, I got all teary eyed thinking about Jesus' ministry in this region when He began to call the disciples to Him.
Next we visited the ancient Galilee boat housed in a small museum at a local kibbutz near where it was discovered. The remains of the so-called "Jesus Boat" were found in 1986 during a severe drought. Fishing boats like this are mentioned more than 50 times in the Gospel accounts of Jesus' ministry in Galilee, but there is no evidence to link this particular boat to Jesus or His disciples. However, radiocarbon dating has established that this boat was used between 120 BC to 40 AD. So Jesus or His disciples COULD have used this boat since it's from the same era. If you'd like to read about Jesus' activity in this area, take at a look at the following scriptures: Matthew 13:1-9, Mark 4:35-41,Luke 5:1-11.
We enjoyed lunch at a lovely local restaurant where we got to see some pomegranate trees up close.
Our next site was Tabgha and its two churches. Our path leading up to it was lined with date palms loaded with fruit.
This site is best known for Jesus' miraculous feeding of thousands when He multiplied five loaves and two fishes (Matt 14:13-21, Mark 6:30-44, Luke 9:10-17, John 6:1-14). It is also remembered for Jesus' third appearance to His disciples after the resurrection, when He tested and commissioned the apostle Peter as leader of His church (John 21:1-19).
It was a picturesque and serene location. I can just imagine Jesus speaking from a boat in one of the little bays around Tabgha, so close to nearby Capernaum, crowds sitting around the shore eager to hear His teachings. And where He performed miraculous cures of the sick and lame. The more modern church in the pictures above with the beautifully carved doors stands atop the site of a 4th century church. The rock in the front of the altar is celebrated as the place where Jesus placed the loaves and fishes when He blessed them. The church with the black basalt exterior is where Jesus is believed to have made His third appearance to His disciples after the resurrection. Wow.
We loaded onto the bus and hit our next stop at nearby Capernaum.
Once again, the views were outstanding of the Sea of Galilee.
The hometown of Jesus per the New Testament (Matt 4:12-17), the site is now administered by the Franciscans. Jesus called His first disciples here, local fisherman Peter, Andrew, James and John. Jesus worshiped and taught in the synagogues, though not in the remains of the synagogue below that we toured since it's believed to be from the 4th-5th century AD. However, archaeologists discovered that this synagogue was built atop the remains of an earlier one in which Jesus probably did teach.
The modern church in the picture below is perched atop basalt ruins of a village from the time of Jesus. It hovers over an excavation site that's believed to be the site of Peter's house where Jesus would have lodged.
Our final stops for the day were at the base of the Mount of Beatitudes and Mount Bental on the Golan Heights. With the sun setting around 4 pm in Israel, we enjoyed golden hour light on the sanctuary.
Our views from atop Mt Bental were pretty cool, as in a good 20 degrees lower than along the Sea of Galilee.
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