Excursion number 24

Journey to Galilee: Mount Tabor - place of the Transfiguration of the Lord, monasteries on the top of the mountain, Cana of Galilee, Nazareth - place of the Annunciation

Galilee (Hebrew. הַגָּלִיל, Ha-Galil, "region, district, terrain"; Arabic. Al-Jalil) - the name of the geographical and historical region in the north of the State of Israel. The territory of Galilee is bounded in the west by the Mediterranean Sea, in the south by the Jezreel Valley and in the east by the Jordan Valley. Repeatedly mentioned in the Bible and includes many holy sites, as well as archaeological parks and cultural attractions. King Solomon gave the cities of Galilee to Tyr (Lebanese) Prince Hiram (1 Kings 9:11).

The pagan Galilee (lat. Galileae gentium; Greek Γαλιλαία τῶν ἐθνῶν) is mentioned by the prophet Isaiah (Is. 9: 2).

By the time of Jesus Christ, the Galileans had a special dialect of the inhabitants of Judea (Mark 14:70). Most of the apostles were Galileans (Acts 1:11). The main cities of Galilee were Bethsaida (the birthplace of the Apostle Andrew, Peter and Philip - John 1:44), Cana of Galilee (the birthplace of Nathaniel - John 21: 2), and Nazareth (the birthplace of Jesus Christ - Matt. 2:23; Matt. 21 :eleven). The Jews of Jesus Christ revered as a Galilean (Matthew 26:69; John 7:41). According to Matthew after the resurrection, both the angel and Jesus sent the apostles to Galilee (Matthew 28: 7-16). In the era of the Apostle Paul, churches existed in Galilee (Acts 9:31).

Holy Mount Tabor is the place of the glorious Transfiguration of the Savior. Holy Mount Tabor was of the deepest significance in Biblical history. In the days of the Old Testament, it served as the boundary between the plots of the Israeli tribes of Zebulun in the west, Issachar in the southeast, and Naphtali in the north. The majestic 588 meters high, lonely mountain in the middle of the Izdrelonsky valley, located at the crossroads of trade routes and occupying an important strategic place has always attracted the attention of the inhabitants of the Holy Land and the various conquerors coming here. The Holy Mount Tabor entered the New Testament history as the place of the Transfiguration of the Lord, although in the Gospel there is no mention of the Savior’s stay with his disciples on Mount Tabor. There is a mention in the Gospel of Matthew and Mark about the "high mountain".

     “After the lapse of six days, Jesus took Peter, James, and John, his brother, and brought them up on a high mountain alone, and was transfigured before them: and His face shone like the sun, but His clothes became white, like the light. And so, Moses Elijah appeared to them, talking with him. Peter therefore said to Jesus: Lord! It is good for us to be here; if you want to make three bows here: You are one, and Moses is one, and one is Elijah. ” (Matt. 17, 1-5). At the top of Mount Tabor are the Orthodox and Catholic monasteries. During our trip we will visit both monasteries. Read more about this place in my article "Holy Mount Tabor - the place of the glorious Transfiguration of the Lord." http://jerusalem-ippo.org/sv_z/vestnik/7-8/iii/5/

Kana of Galilee is a Bible-known settlement in Galilee, where there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee and where Jesus performed his first miracle: turning water into wine. Cana of Galilee is mentioned several times in the Gospel of John. It is best known as the place where the marriage took place in Cana of Galilee and where Jesus performed his first miracle: turning water into wine (John 2: 1).

Later, Jesus once again stayed at Cana of Galilee and during his stay there he performed a miracle of healing with a word. A certain nobleman from Capernaum came to him, whose son was seriously ill. The following states:

"The nobleman said to him: Lord, come before my son dies. Jesus says to him: go, your son is well. He believed the word Jesus told him and went. On the way, his servants met him and said: your son is well. He asked them: at what time did it feel easier for him? They said to him: yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him. From this, the father found out that it was the hour at which Jesus told him: your son is healthy, and he and the whole house believed him". - (John 4:46)

It is also stated that the disciple of Christ Nathanael was from Cana of Galilee (John 21: 2). Nathanael is identified by most Biblical scholars with Apostle Bartholomew. The local lore location of Cana is located on the site of the famous Arab village of Kafr Kana, in the eastern vicinity of Nazareth. There is a Greek Orthodox monastery with a church of St.. incl. St. George and the Franciscan Catholic monastery.

Nazareth (Hebrew. נָצְרַת, Nazrat; Arabic; an-Nazyr; ancient Greek Ναζαρὲθ; lat. Nazareth) - a city in northern Israel in the Galilee, with a population of 73 thousand people, among whom 30% are Christians . In the Christian tradition the city is the third after Jerusalem and Bethlehem in importance. According to the gospel text, here passed the maidens and youth of Jesus Christ. The city of Nazareth is also associated with the event of the Annunciation. In the modern city is the largest in the Middle East, the Catholic Church of the Annunciation, built in 1969 about the project of the Italian architerator Giovanni Muzio on the site of a church that dates back to the IV century. Also in the city there is the Church of the Annunciation above the source of the Most Holy Theotokos in Nazareth, also known as the Greek Orthodox Church of the Archangel Gabriel above the Source of the Most Holy Theotokos.

The tradition based on the canonical Gospel of the Annunciation by the Archangel Gabriel to the Most Holy Theotokos is described in the New Testament by the only evangelist Apostle Luke. This place is associated with the Catholic Basilica of the Annunciation.

“When the angel came to her, he said: Hail, Gracious! The Lord is with you; blessed art thou between wives. She, seeing him, was embarrassed by his words and thought about what kind of greeting it would be. And the angel said to her: Do not fear, Mary, for you have found favor with God; and behold, you shall conceive in the womb, and bear a Son, and shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of David his Father; and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end. (Luke 1: 28-33).

The canonical gospel of Luke does not report the Annunciation at the well. However, in place of the Orthodox church of the Archangel Gabriel, a tradition arose over the source of the Virgin Mary, based on the apocryphal proto-gospel of James, which reads:

“Taking a jug, went to fetch water; and heard: Rejoice, gracious! The Lord is with you; blessed are you between wives. And she began to look around to find out where that voice came from. Frightened, I returned home, set the jug, and, taking the purple, began to spin it.

It is on this basis that the revered image of “The Annunciation at the Fount of the Well (Well)” is formed in the Orthodox tradition, as well as a temple appeared on this site.

Thus, in Nazareth, starting from the first centuries of Christianity, two stable traditions of honoring the place of the Annunciation have developed:

First Annunciation to the Virgin Mary by the Archangel at the Well (Apocryphal Proto-Gospel of Jacob) - Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation at the Spring of the Most Holy Theotokos

the second Annunciation of the Archangel Gabriel (the canonical gospel of Luke) and the Incarnation, after the Mother of God returned to the house of Joseph, where she heard from the Archangel Gabriel: Basilica of the Annunciation.

 

The tour is accompanied by Tour guide Paul
 
(License of a certified guide in English from the Ministry of Tourism of the State of Israel No. 10103)
 
You can order the tour by e-mail paulguideisrael@gmail.com
 
And also by calling: + 972-545-336-297 (Wats up / Viber), (in Israel: 054-5336-297)
 
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