Sea of Galilee/Capernaum

Fishing Boat at Tiberius

Sea of Galilee

We went on a cruise on the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum, where we had lunch at a Kibbutz. Enjoyed the tasty fish, "Peter's fish," from the Sea of Galilee. It was easy to visualize Jesus walking around the waters edge teaching and healing. Here is where Simon, Andrew, James and John received their calling. The very center of Christ's Ministry ( Matt. 4: 18-25).

It was at Capernaum that Jesus healed the servant of the Centurion (Luke 7:2-10). We saw the ruins of St. Peter's house and the Mount of the Beatitudes in the distance.

Go back to October 6th for start of the Israel series.

Nazareth

Waterway

St, Joseph's Church

Nestling in a circle of cypress-studded hills, Nazareth was Jesus' home throughout his youth. It was there that he lived, with Mary and Joseph, until he began his ministry. We visited the traditional sites of Joseph's workshop in the Church of St. Joseph; Mary's well, whence she drew water and the Basilica of the Annunciation where the Angel Gabriel is said to have pronounced the wondrous words: " And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus" (Luke 1:31).

Go back to October 6th when the series on Israel started.

Mount Tabor

From early Christian times, Mount Tabor has been deemed the site of the Transfiguration. On this Mount, disciples were allowed to see their master in His Splendor (Matthew 17: 1-3)

This is a series on Israel - to view the start go back to Oct. 6th

Garden Tomb

Near the Damascus Gate of the walled Old City is the Garden Tomb, which some say is the site of Golgotha. Also is a picture of the tract where the stone was rolled away.

This series of the 'Holy Land' started with Israel on October 6th.

Bethlehem

Brick Walk

Bethlehem (House of Bread) in Hebrew and (House of Meat) in Arabic lies five miles south of Jerusalem on a hill about 2600 feet above sea level. A market town of the tribe of Judah, home of Boaz and Ruth, birthplace of King David and Jesus. There are a number of old houses built over caves in the limestone. These caves are old and similar to the cave of the Nativity. Probably Jesus was born in one of these old caves rather than a stable of western tradition. Over the traditional grotto of Jesus' birth stands the Church of the Nativity. It is here that the Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve assumes unique significance for all Christians. Outside the hilllside town is the Shepherds' Field (Luke 2:8-12).

Grotto of the Lord's Prayer

The Church of the Pater Noster is built on the traditional site where Jesus taught his disciples the Lord's Prayer. Constantine built a church to commemorate the words of Jesus concerning the destruction of Jerusalem and His last coming. Constantine's church was destroyed in 614 by the Persians and rebuilt in the 12th century by the Crusaders. After the defeat of the Crusaders, the church was destroyed and the site was occupied by Muslims. In 1868, Princess Arelia de Bossi de la Tour d' Auvergne bought the site and donated it to France. I 1875 she built a convent for the order of Carmelite Nuns. Inside the church and on the walls of the cloister, the Lord's Prayer is written in 62 languages.

See the first of the Israel series starting with Oct. 6,2009

Mt. of Olives - Garden of Gethsemane

Olive Leaf

The Mount of Olives offers the best view of the city. It is closely connected with the last years of Jesus' life. On the slope of the mountain is the Garden of Gethsemane. It appears today as it did centuries ago. It was a spot favored by Jesus (Luke 22:39).

This is the garden where Jesus on His last night underwent the most sorrowful hour of His passion, taking upon Himself the sins of all mankind. It was here that Jesus prayed those heart rending words: "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." (Matt. 28:39)

Sixteen nations contributed to the construction of the "Church of all Nations," built on this site. Part of the traditional rock of agony lies in front of the main altar. You are encouraged to knell, touch the rock and say a prayer. It was here where I knelt and felt His presence and His agony over my sins and your sins and I knew for certain that He truly lives and bears our burdens, and I wept and that night I wrote this poem.

In the Garden

Come kneel in the garden,

Where Jesus knelt to pray,

"Our Father, Not my will, but Thine,"

Yet He knew the price to be paid.

Come kneel in the Garden,

Where Jesus wept for you and for me,

How deeply our Lord suffered,

And still the cross at Calvary.

Come kneel in the garden,

Jesus still hears and cares,

Where you can leave your worries,

Our Lord our burdens bears.

See October 6th forthe start of this series on the Holy Land.

Via Dolorosa

The Via Dolorosa (Way of Sorrows) is considered by Christians to be the holiest road in the world, for along its uneven path Jesus was led from the place of His condemnation to that of His crucifixion and death.

"So they took Jesus, and He went out, bearing His own cross." (John 19:17)

The Via Dolosora is the traditional pathway Jesus followed, carrying the cross, from Pontius

Pilat's judgment hall where He was condemned to death, to Calvary where He was crucified.

The fourteen stations are related in the Gospel and five are in tradition. The first two are located in the streets and the last five are located within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

1. Jesus is condemned to death.

2. Jesus received the cross

3 Jesus falls under the cross for the first time.

4. Jesus meets His mother Mary.

5. The cross is taken over by Simon of Cyrene.

6. Veronica wipes the sweat from Jesus' face.

7. Jesus falls for the second time.

8. Jesus consoles the women of Jerusale

9. Jesus falls for the third time.

10. Jesus is stripped of His garments.

11. Jesus is nailed to the cross.

12. Jesus dies on the cross.

13. Jesus' body is taken off the cross.

14. Jesus' body is laid into the Sepulchre.

Walls of the Old City

Home inside city wall.

The Golden Gate

It has been several years since I was in Israel and there has been a lot of fighting between the Jews and the Palestinians, I've not sure the following is still true. But when I was there, the walls were very impressive, 2 1/2 miles in circumference and average 40 feet in height, with 34 towers and 8 gates.The New Gate, Damascus Gate and the Hero's Gate was in the northern wall; St Stephen's Gate and the Golden Gate (closed by the Turks in 1530) in the eastern wall; the Dung Gate and the Zion Gate in the southern wall and the Jaffa Gate in the western wall.

The site of the Damascus Gate is believed by many to be the place of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It was through the Golden Gate that Jesus entered the city after His triumphal journey from Bethany.

The Western Wall or Wailing Wall is the sole remnant of the outer court of the magnificent Second Temple built by Herod. It is the holiest Shrine of the Byzantine period, where they were allowed to come once a year on the anniversary of the destruction of the Temple so they could lament the dispersion of their people and weep over the ruins of the Temple. This is why this section of the wall became known as the Wailing Wall. After the Six-Day War, the Wailing Wall became a place of rejoicing as well as a place of worship, and the custom of praying at the wall continued for centuries.

When I was there, the guards were protecting the Wailing Wall and we were not allowed to go up to it, but we could watch the people saying their prayers and putting written prayers in the crevices of the wall.

JERUSALEM

Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and the capital of King David, the psalmist. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is the holiest sanctuary in Christendom, erected upon the traditional site of the Crucifixion, Buriel and Resurrection of Jesus. It cntains the last five Stations of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa, the way taken by Jesus from the place where he was condemned to Golgotha, Calvary.

Holy Land - Israel

Most everyone desires to go to the Holy Land sometime during their Christian Pilgrimage. I would like to share with you my visit to Israel, Jordan and Egypt.

Visiting Israel, retracing the footsteps of Jesus, is more then just a journey, it is a pilgrimage to the very source of faith. "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth..." Psalms 48:2

Wherever you set foot, you are stepping on ground with Biblical associations, on the side of some great event that helped to shape history - a land held sacred to Jew, Christian, and Muslim.

It is the land of the Patriarchs, buried in Hebron; of Moses, who on Mt. Sinai received the Ten Commandments - the basis of a universal moral code; of Elijah who confounded the idolators on Mt. Carmel, and of Isaiah and Jeremiah, and the other Prophets who spoke the word of God after him. It is the land of the Kings of Israel - David, who made Jerusalem his capital, Solomon his son, who built the first Temple there.

Itis the land of Jesus...Bethlehem, where he was born, Nazareth, Cana , Mount Tabor, the River Jordan, the Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, the Mount of the Beatitudes, and finally the culmination of it all, the core of the Holy Land - the eternal city of Jerusalem encompassing the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Garden Tomb, the Via Dolorosa, the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives and the room of the Last Supper on Mount Zion.

And on Mount Moriah, the Temple Mount, stand two of Islam's most holy shrines - the Dome of the Rock and the Mosque of El Aqsa...and Judaism's holiest shrine of all - the Western Wall, all that remains of the Temple.

And the Dead Sea Scrolls, a Hebrew manuscript record discovered after 2000 years in the caves of Qumeran.