The waters of the Sea of Galilee were so smooth this morning. We set out on an enlarged replica of a 1st century fishing boat and enjoyed a quiet, peaceful boat ride, stopping for a time of prayer and then some Jewish folk dancing. What a great way to start the day in the Galilee region.
Next was a stop at Capernaum, the town Jesus called home during his three-year ministry. Set on the northern shore of the Sea, ancient ruins speak volumes of the way of life 2000 years ago. And just as Jesus prophesied, the city was never rebuilt after it was destroyed in the third century. Bethsaida, just a few miles away, is a much more recent discovery and still in the beginning stages of excavation.
We visited a Catholic church built on the “traditional” site of the Sermon on the Mount. Yet many of us questioned why this particular hill was thought to be the location of this event and not any of the neighboring hills. The entire region is filled with rolling hills and the mere thought of the walking from village to village, from hill to valley, in those days is quite intriguing.
After lunch on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee in a large kibbutz, we took a drive up through the Golan Heights where we got a clear picture of the significance of that area politically. The Golan Heights tower to the east with a westerly view of the Galilee. Prior to 1967, the Jordanians sat up there firing on the Jewish communities below them at will for many years. Now the area is a beautiful landscape of flourishing farms and thriving towns under Israeli control.
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