After crossing the Jordan river into Israel, the atmosphere seemed to be a bit more relaxed. We were safe and it felt like home. It was indeed the land of milk and honey where all the available land was used in an efficient way to maximize the available land resources and keep Israel as a self-sufficient country. They can't count on any neighbors to any great extent so efficiency is at a premium. The roads along the Jordan were solid farming communities dedicated to every imaginable crop including bananas. Contrast this to the opposite side of the river in Jordan where half completed buildings and communities littered the valley.
I took a moment to peer over the edge and wondered if I had the courage or faith to do what Peter did and step out of the boat. My swimming skills are not that great, but had to be better than Peter's. In his day, swimming was almost non-existent and the most hazardous part of of a fisherman's work was drowning. Drowning was one of the worst forms of death - sinking to the bottom of the unknown sea. And yet Peter stepped out and walked on his own until he panicked. I always assumed the answer Jesus gave to him, "Ye of little faith" meant Peter's lack of faith in Jesus, but another interpretation could be that Jesus was encouraging Peter and expressed a bit of disappointment in Peter's lack of faith in himself. He had enough faith in Christ to step out, but lacked faith in himself to continue. Well, he still got further than I did. 
We boarded a bus and headed north to the Golan Heights to see the head waters of the Jordan River and get a glimpse of Mount Hermon. The debate continues on the site for the Transfiguration of Jesus. Some believe it happened on Mount Tabor near the southern Galilee while others claim Mount Hermon. After seeing Mount Tabor at 1900 feet in elevation and comparing it to the snow covered caps of Mount Hermon at over 7000 feet I am leaning toward Mt Hermon. From a distance it is a beautiful mountain and I could see why a couple of disciples wanted to build 3 shelters: one for Elijah, one for Moses and one for Jesus.
Close by, we took a short bus ride to a church located near a rock that Jesus used to lay out the 2 fish (along with the 5 loaves of bread) to feed 5000 people gathered at the time. (See Mark 6:30-44). Jesus could not send a group of people away hungry and performed one his many miracles. After all ate and were satisfied, the disciples were instructed to clean up the area and they gathered up 12 basketfuls of extra bread and some pieces of fish. No one left hungry.
Tiberias would be our hub for several days. The ancient city, named for the Roman emperor Tiberius, sits on the Western shore of the Sea of Galilee and our hotel had a magnificent view of the sea and Roman ruins everywhere.
We started with a boat ride to take us to the northern edge of the sea. While on the boat, we took the opportunity to read many of the scriptures related to Jesus teaching his disciples about being fishers of men and the story of Peter walking on the water.
I took a moment to peer over the edge and wondered if I had the courage or faith to do what Peter did and step out of the boat. My swimming skills are not that great, but had to be better than Peter's. In his day, swimming was almost non-existent and the most hazardous part of of a fisherman's work was drowning. Drowning was one of the worst forms of death - sinking to the bottom of the unknown sea. And yet Peter stepped out and walked on his own until he panicked. I always assumed the answer Jesus gave to him, "Ye of little faith" meant Peter's lack of faith in Jesus, but another interpretation could be that Jesus was encouraging Peter and expressed a bit of disappointment in Peter's lack of faith in himself. He had enough faith in Christ to step out, but lacked faith in himself to continue. Well, he still got further than I did. 
We boarded a bus and headed north to the Golan Heights to see the head waters of the Jordan River and get a glimpse of Mount Hermon. The debate continues on the site for the Transfiguration of Jesus. Some believe it happened on Mount Tabor near the southern Galilee while others claim Mount Hermon. After seeing Mount Tabor at 1900 feet in elevation and comparing it to the snow covered caps of Mount Hermon at over 7000 feet I am leaning toward Mt Hermon. From a distance it is a beautiful mountain and I could see why a couple of disciples wanted to build 3 shelters: one for Elijah, one for Moses and one for Jesus. Another reason is the significance that this is the headwaters for the River Jordan. The river starts as a wide stream and seems to come right out of the base of the hill and continues into the Sea of Galilee before exiting and continuing south to the Dead Sea. It seems surreal that the river starts a bit above sea level and by the time it hits the Sea of Galilee it is already 700 feet below sea level and ends 1400 feet below at the Dead Sea. But the river symbolizes life and what better way to connect the Transfiguration. Even the tree seen in the photo is growing right out of the hill following the start of the river Jordan. This photo is looking downstream standing at the base and just above where the river spills out of the rock. I'm not a scholar, but the dots seem to connect.
We made two other stops. One to the site of the Sermon on the Mount and the other to Capharnaum, the likely home of Peter, James, John and Andrew. Both are on the northern edge of the Sea of Galilee. It was hard to find a spot where the Sermon may have occurred, but a church is located at a beautiful setting above the lake and it was easy to envision Jesus talking to many people in this lovely setting.
Close by, we took a short bus ride to a church located near a rock that Jesus used to lay out the 2 fish (along with the 5 loaves of bread) to feed 5000 people gathered at the time. (See Mark 6:30-44). Jesus could not send a group of people away hungry and performed one his many miracles. After all ate and were satisfied, the disciples were instructed to clean up the area and they gathered up 12 basketfuls of extra bread and some pieces of fish. No one left hungry.
The church is called the Heptapegon which is the Greek word for "the place of seven springs." The number 7 pops up a bit in Christianity.
An altar was built over the rock and the church contained several beautiful works of stained glass art.
At the end of the day, we witnessed a beautiful sunset over the Sea of Galilee.
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