Day 4: Sepphoris, Nazareth, Mt. Arbel, Magdala

Another beautiful day of blue skies, gentle breezes, and 70 degrees. Absolutely perfect, especially for those of us who have been enduring a brutally cold winter.

We started the day in Sepphoris. As we sat in the theater, we learned that the word we always translate as carpenter can also be translated stone mason, which makes a lot of sense when we see how few trees there are and how many stones! So Bill conjectured that Jesus and his father, "carpenters" both, might have worked on this theater since Nazareth is only four miles away. Bill also quoted some lines from one of Euripedes' plays, when Helen of Troy says almost the same words that Jesus uses: "How often have I longed to gather you ... as chicks under my wings, but you would not." Strange coincidence?

Nazareth gave us a broad view of the Jezreel Valley with its rich and fertile lands. We remembered and could "see" the many Old Testament stories that took place here--Abraham and Lot (giving Lot first choice of the land), the great battle of Barak and Deborah vs troops Sisera commanded, Gideon and his 300 men, Saul dying at Mt. Gilboa, Elijah and Elisha's ministry to Israel, the birthplace of Jonah. At each place, Bill has some of us read Bible passages that give us new insight into the words we so often take for granted, tying Jesus' ministry and God's promises to what we are seeing and how we should be living today. For those of us who hoped to see Jesus in new and more personal ways, these days have been richly fulfilling.

First view of the Sea of Galilee

Nearby, Mt. Arbel gave us a perfect outlook for the Sea of Galilee and the towns of Capernaum, Bethsaida, Magdala, and Tiberias.  Sixty percent of Jesus' ministry took place here.  In beautiful sunshine, we took 20 minutes or so to read Mark 1-9 and realized again how many sick were healed in these towns and how many miracles Jesus did here during the first part of his ministry.  The people eagerly sought him out and the crowds followed him everywhere. Still, as in Cana, how often Jesus told them not to tell about him because it was not his time yet, even though all these miracles and parables pointed to his work on our behalf and God's great love for us his people.

Our last stop of the day was Magdala, the home town of Mary Magdalene, the first person at the tomb on Easter morning. Two or three years ago, the Catholic Church planned to build an ecumenical Christian center there, but when they started digging the foundations, they found the site and ancient ruins of Magdela. As our guide said, "We came here to open our arms wide to Christians everywhere, but God showed us he had bigger plans and, through this discovery, to open our arms even wider to serve anyone who wishes to come." Before we left we gathered in the new ministry center and again sang "Praise God from whom all blessings flow." Beautiful harmony. The priest acted surprised when we asked permission, but came over to thank us as we left. The center, its mosaics, its view of the Sea of Galilee is meant to invite all who come to go deep into the water, trusting Christ to hold us secure.

We end each day asking "Where did we see Jesus today?" and "What did we hear him say?" It's beautiful to hear what has been especially meaningful to each of us as we grow closer to each other as we also grow closer to God.

~Lois