It may be
the weekend, but our rabbis and guide historian kept us on the move both
days. The only adjustment today was the loss
of our lead rabbi and one of our members for the day with the same illness. Lyn and our guide served us well as co-rabbis
throughout Saturday, while the members of our pilgrimage intensified their
support to each other, increasing the community that had already begun.
Korazin…better known as the Preacher’s
city. Ironic that we lost our preacher
for this site. In the synagogue our
rabbis co-led us through exploring Scripture, followed by dialogue about past
and present family structure, and the contrasting political implications for
Jews and Palestinians. Viewing the Mikveh gave us an opportunity to envision
the right of purification. Like many
cities we visit, Korazin was destroyed by the massive earthquake in 749 AD.
The temple at Korazin
Dan…the northernmost city of the twelve
tribes. The tribe of Dan was assigned
land in the plain next to the Philistines, but appears to have rejected this, preferring
the beauty and safety of the city on the hill. Clear rushing springs make this area a beautiful oasis even today. This city served as the capital for the ten
tribes. Their king built a temple
replica to keep the Israelites from going to the temple in Jerusalem. The tribe’s political alliances opened the
door for establishing extensive idol worship which accelerated the people
abandoning their God. It was a challenge
standing by the temple’s remains and looking across the plain knowing that in a
short distance we would be at the border of Lebanon.
The rushing springs of Dan
One of the gates to the city
Members guarding Pan's gates
Caesarea Philippi…located at the foot
of Mt. Hermon with its springs providing one of the tributaries that form the
Jordan River. This site was more a
shrine than a city. Herod Phillip set up
this shrine to encourage everyone to worship the gods in nature, especially Pan
(heard of ‘panic’ and ‘pandemonium’?). The entrance of the cave was seen as leading to the gates of hell. Jesus stood in front of this cave, then pronounced
to His disciples that He represented the power that the gates of hell could not
prevail against. Seeing the cave added a
lot more understanding to the power of Jesus’ message.
Mensa Christi…a Catholic church located on the shore of the Sea of Galilee where it is believed that Jesus restored Peter after he denied Jesus three times prior to the crucifixion. Just prior to this event, Jesus had told the disciples to put their nets down on the other side of the boat, leading to a miraculous large catch. We learned why it was mentioned that they caught 153 fish without the net breaking – the number of known countries at that time. Again Jesus uses symbolism to tell the Jews that He is a God for all nations.
Mensa Christi…a Catholic church located on the shore of the Sea of Galilee where it is believed that Jesus restored Peter after he denied Jesus three times prior to the crucifixion. Just prior to this event, Jesus had told the disciples to put their nets down on the other side of the boat, leading to a miraculous large catch. We learned why it was mentioned that they caught 153 fish without the net breaking – the number of known countries at that time. Again Jesus uses symbolism to tell the Jews that He is a God for all nations.
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