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Israel Reflections - #5, Galilee Other Spots

Last time I shared just one segment of our time in Galilee and that was the marvelous ruins of Capernaum.  I want to share a bit more of our time in Galilee and the other spots we made it to.

We traveled from where we were staying in Bethlehem north to Galilee - a trip about 100 miles - but it took us three hours before we arrived at our initial destination, a Kibbutz.

If you're not familiar with a Kibbutz, it literally mean "Communal settlement".  Israel has a large number of Kibbutzim.  Many are agriculture, but they are not all dedicated to agriculture.   There is a really good introduction to the average Kibbutz at the web site:

 https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Society_&_Culture/kibbutz.html

We were very near Mount Tabor, which is the traditional spot of the Mount of Transfiguration, when Jesus took three of his disciples,
Peter, James, John to the top of the mountain.  All the Synoptic gospels record it.  Matthew 17:1-8 records it like this.
1  And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
2  And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.
3  And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.
4  And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
5  He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”
6  When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified.
7  But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.”
8  And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

Near here was another mountain top - a place where Jesus is reputed to have taught the people in the Sermon on the Mount.

It's a beautiful place that overlooks the Sea of Galilee and the grounds have been turned into a sacred worship place by the Catholic church.

The areas near here were where Jesus did extensive ministry that included healings, teaching, and even feeding thousands.  Although there are sites given over to those events, it's clear that they could have been done from other places too; but at least we know they were done in this area of Galilee.

One of the joys of the trip up here was discovering a Cherkessian Folk restaurant near the Kibbutz.  The Cherkessians are an Ethnic group, largely culturally Muslim, who come from the Southern Soviet states in the Caspian areas.  We usually hear only of the bigger areas that have some terrorism connected to them like Chechnya.
Falafel

This restaurant was rich in the cuisine of the area...good food.  We met the Son who was running the restaurant and he went into the back and brought his father out from the kitchen to meet us.


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