Peter lived in Capernaum. As did James, John, Andrew, and Matthew. I do not know where those four apostles lived, but I've seen the ruins of Peter's house and the large (sorry, I have to say it, ugly) octagonal church built over the ruins.
Obviously, I'm going to post pictures, so you'll see, too.
The octagonal church dates from the 5th century AD and was actually built over a smaller Byzantine church. All on top of what was Peter's house. This is an A site. I think. Certainly those guys who built the churches believed this was the place. You know. That's why they built the churches there.
Capernaum was a fishing town, right on the Sea of Galilee. These men were fishermen, remember. You can walk past Peter's house and reach the sea in less than one minute.
The synagogue is in direct line with Peter's house, with a row of houses between. Houses now in ruins, of course. This synagogue is not the original. It is the white synagogue, built on the foundation of the original synagogue, where Jesus taught. You can see the basalt stones that were the original foundation.
Well, you can't see them, but I did.
The plaque from my previous post tells that Capernaum is the city of Jesus. Most of his ministry was here, much of what we read of him in the New Testament occurred here. Yes, we know he went to Jerusalem every year for Passover, and to other places, but Capernaum was home.
Remember, he left Nazareth after the people there tried to throw him off a nearby cliff.
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| Peter's house |
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| The synagogue |
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| Peter's house from the synagogue. |
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| Obviously, I take pictures of water. This is, of course, the Sea of Galilee. |
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| Yep. The Sea of Galilee. |
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| The Sea of Galilee at Capernaum |
a) They must be, of necessity, brief. There is much more to say.
b) I'm not sure anyone's reading them.
But I want this record of my trip. So I'm writing. You know, I have traveled other places, but this trip seems actually to be the "Trip of a Lifetime."
2 comments:
1. I really like the new look of your blog. (Maybe it's been a round a while, but I read you on my blog reader, so I don't see the actual site that often.)
2. Yep. That is one ugly octagonal church. Really ugly. And unfortunate.
I read each and every one of them. And because I expect never to go there, I am drinking in each and every picture -- they are different from others I've seen, giving me an entirely different viewpoint. Thanks
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