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There are three or four places which claim to be the ‘Cana’ of the New Testament. Cana, which lies 4 miles along the road from Nazareth to Tiberias, is the most favoured one. Cana is known throughout the entire Christian world, as it was the scene of Jesus’ first miracle when he changed water into wine. Two churches are built in Cana commemorating this first miracle.
Add comment October 22nd, 2006
To the Greek Orthodox Christian community this church celebrates the Annunciation. It’s a much smaller, much more modest affair than the grand Basilica, and while it may not be as immediately impressive it’s much older and has a lot more character. The marble crypt is built on the spring that serves Mary’s Well and inside it’s darkly lit with numerous icons and murals. There’s a nice service on a Sunday.
Add comment October 22nd, 2006
The thing about religion is that everyone has a different version. Some people believe that the Annunciation actually took place here, about 5 minutes walk from the Basilica site, at “Mary’s Well”. The spring under the well has served Nazareth for over 2000 years and the story goes that Mary was collecting water when she was visited by the Angel Gabriel. The spring is actually underneath the nearby Greek Orthodox Church of St Gabriel.
Add comment October 22nd, 2006
This huge building and dome dominates the skyline of Nazareth. It stands on the site where it is thought Mary’s home once stood and where Catholics believe she was visited by the Angel Gabriel and told she would bear the son of God. The actual building doesn’t stretch back quite as far - in fact it was only built in 1969! Considering its importance the site was quite slow to becoming a major pilgrimage site - the first shrine here was built over 400 years after Jesus’ birth. It’s the largest basilica in the whole of the Middle East, and built on two levels. The lower church was the home of Mary and contains the remains of numerous old Byzantine churches and a museum. The upper level is the modern local church and the vast interior is decorated with mosaics. The huge dome illuminates the church with natural light.
Add comment October 22nd, 2006
Nazareth of the Annunciation is the largest Arab city in Israel with a population of 60,000 - half Christians and half Moslems - living together in harmonious co-existence. It’s geographic location, with Cana of the Wedding Feast and Sapphires (Tzippori) just next door, make it a perfect base from which to tour the rest of the Galilee It offers a uniquely different experience to the visitor. Picturesque red roofs and white stone churches ramble haphazardly down the slopes of this ancient Galilee hillside, the summit of which overlooks the panorama of the entire Jezreel Valley.
Nazareth, being one of the most important Christian holy sites in the world, has always been a very special haven for Christians & pilgrims. The visitor finds an exciting Middle Eastern ambiance with exotic flavors and textures, imbued with the famed warm and friendly hospitality of the Arab population, yet retaining many spiritual oases of serenity and peace provided by the diverse Christian orders in their beautiful Churches and Monasteries.
Add comment October 22nd, 2006
Holyland Network?
A town in southern Galilee about 15 miles southwest of the Sea of Galilee (kineret) and twenty miles from the Mediterranean westward in the basin of the hills of the lower Galilee.
In Biblical time Nazareth was a small agricultural town settled by few dozen families. The town is not mentioned once in the Old Testament, an insignificant village, too small to be noted in the list of settlements of the tribe of Zebulon (Joshua 19:10-16). Nazareth is not included in the 45 cities of the Galilee that mentioned by Josephus the historian and its name is missing from the 63 towns of Galilee mentioned in the Talmud. It was not expected to have a prophet, a king, or priest to ever come out of Nazareth. This prompted the response of Nathaniel in John 1:46 “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Nazareth was isolated in ancient times because no trade routes ran through the city therefore had no economical value.
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Add comment September 6th, 2006