Two other interns, one of the intern's mothers, and I met up in Tel Aviv around 7 this morning to begin the long drive up to Nazareth. Right from the beginning, we could tell that this was going to be a rather "tourist-y" tour. Our guide spouted off some basic facts about Israel and Judaism, and I was like,
"Yeah yeah yeah. I know all of this already."
And that's when I realized that I am not really a tourist anymore. Israel has become my home--how lucky am I? So many people are lucky to have a single home, one place they feel loved and comfortable and joyful. I now have three-- home home (Anaheim), school home (Boston), and my spiritual, immersive home away from home Israel.
Anyways, after a little catnap and a whole cup of coffee, we arrived in Nazareth, the city in which Jesus grew up. We first visited the Church of Annunciation.
That's me!
I adored this church. First of all, quite a bit of Latin was engraved on the walls of the church, so I had the amazing opportunity to actually utilize this past year of learning a dead language. I felt pretty itchicated (translated to educated, if you're not privy to my family's pronunciation).
Anyways!
Broad view of the top floor to the left and bottom floor to the right
This church is built on Mother Mary's home, which was actually a cave and the site of the Angel Gabriel's appearance.
Mary's home!
The second floor of the church holds a chapel. My absolute favorite part of this church was the contribution by almost every country in the world that holds Christian congregations. Each country was asked to donate its own interpretation of the Madonna and Child. You might be able to see some of the stunning mosaics on the left wall; some countries even sent in statues and paintings. I loved how the different cultures of each country shined through each piece of artwork.
The chapel
The top of the church was a lighthouse, due to the beautiful verse in the Bible about Jesus being the light of the world. Makes me want to put a lighthouse on top of my mansion. That will be filled with 35 dogs. But I digress.
The Church of Annunciation
We made the quick walk to the Church of St. Joseph (more Latin, more vindicated Aubs). This church held Joseph, Mary, and Jesus' home that he grew up in.
The home!
"And here," another sign would carry on about five minutes down the path, "is the exact spot where he took a sip of water."
Those are the agreed-upon sites. Then, there are points of contention, especially between the Catholic and Orthodox churches. Where exactly was Christ held before his execution, and where exactly was this or that miracle performed?
And now I realize--it doesn't matter in the slightest. The historian in me shrieks, shudders, and cowers from this spiritual conclusion; part of me needs to know the exact second, position, and tone in which every action took place. But now I realize, that when it comes to matters of religion and spirituality and the heart, perception is just as, if not more, important than reality. Is this the exact village in which Jesus lived?
Maybe. Maybe not. But does it evoke feelings of gratitude and wonder and adoration for the man that died for the sins of humanity? Absolutely. And I truly believe that is what matters. It is not whether or not I am truly walking in the footsteps of Christ. It is more that being near the spot and watching other faithful believers fall on their knees in praise and knowing that God is happy I'm at least trying to see where He lived and learned and grew up is more than enough.
But, like, it'd still be nice to know...From a historical perspective, of course.
Onto the Church of Multiplication!
Me!
This was where Jesus performed the miracle of multiplying the bread and fish to feed the multitudes. Supah cool!
Burned.
Only a month ago, some extremists attempted to burn down this church and graffiti the walls. Luckily, they were able to stop the fire! But the damage still shows.
The exact site!
This was a very humble but beautiful church. It sat right on the banks of the Sea of Galilee. We then drove on to Capernaum, the city in which Jesus performed his ministry.
St. Peter's House
This was St. Peter's House, where Jesus lived for the last years of His life.
The ruins
You can honestly still tell that it was a stunning city in its day.
yooo.
The beautiful, partially-restored synagogue sits in the middle of the the city. I had to teach all these tourists about Judaism. Ugh, clueless Gentiles. Geez.
Columnssss
I got to sit on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus walked on water (one of my favorite biblical stories, by the way).
Artsy
The Sea of Galilee is filled with black volcanic rock and ash. It was such warm water. I wanted to soak in it literally forever!
The tour moved on to its last stop: the Jordan River.
So clean and clear!
This is where Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist. One of my friends got baptised in the water, and a few people tried to convince me to join. I don't know--this experience has definitely deepened my faith, but not in the most traditional way. I didn't feel comfortable consenting to a baptism when I still don't quite know where I stand on religion or what my spirituality really is. So I watched the touching ceremony take place.
Also, how hilarious is this picture?
Smartest kitty in the land
I got home a few hours later and sat down for dinner with the fam. We had an impromptu Hebrew lesson, and I realized I basically know the entire alphabet. Wahoo! I tried to spell a few words, and my attempts spurred some chuckles and compliments of how "cute" my spellings were. I tried hehe.
Anyways, wonderful day. Learned so much and loved my experiences.
Walking in the (possibly metaphorical, possibly physical) footsteps of Jesus,
Aubs-a-lot
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