the Sea of Galillee

We made our exit from Petra, and traveled north along the Jordanian side of the Jordan River, crossing over at the Hussein bridge, and arrived at the town of Tiberias 2 nights ago.  The sea of Gallilee is the site of so many episodes in the Gospels that it is hard to narrow down our visits.  We began with a renewal of our baptismal vows at the Yardenit baptismal site on the Jordan river.   The site itself is now run by a kibbutz and has installed several 'secure' pilgrimage spots.  This was the result of seeing overly enthusiastic pilgrims getting swept away by the currents in years past.

After Yardenit, we went for a cruise on the sea with a local boat, whose skipper showed us some of the techniques and equipment used in the time of Jesus and the disciples.  In the afternoon we went to the mount of the beatitudes, the "church of Peter's Primacy" on the shore of the sea, and then to the ruins of the ancient town of Capherneum.  Just south of the ruins is an ancient house believed to be the house of Peter, where the healing of his mother in law took place.

The shift from Egypt and Jordan to Israel is remarkable in many ways.  The first thing people notice is the immense security structure upon arrival:  customs and border crossings are extremely well controlled.  Another major shift is that Israel is very much a first world country, for the first time in two weeks I told people that they can drink the tap water without fear of "Pharoah's revenge".

This morning we are taking everyone up to the top of Mount Tabor - the mount of transfiguration - and then if all goes according to plan, we will take them to Armegedon before heading in to stay with the Sisters of Nazareth for the night.  The Sisters have had a long presence in Nazareth, and are know for their work among disabled children.  After spending tonight in Nazareth, we will have a leisurely time at Caeserea Maritima.  Caeserea is the site of the only known inscription mentioning Pilate, and besides, it has a great beach, which will be much appreciated after the desert and inland heat.

Comments

[michelle mark]

Thanks so much Joseph for keeping us up-to-date! I always look forward to your entries. Hello to Allan and Vernice, and the rest of the pilgrims, I continue to be so excited for you all. What a fantastic experience.

Blessings

Michelle

[Megan Just-Mancini]

This message is for Evelyn Just and it is extremely important that she recieves this message and respondes as soon as possible.

Mom,
Today I got into the car to drive to work and all these signs started flashing. I looked it up in the handbook and they mean that there is either some sort of power steering failure and/or there is and electrical failure within the car. Unfortunately, Mayfield Toyota will not come to toe the car free of charge because the milage is over. Awesome. Don't worry, I parked the car and took a cab.

My question is, do you want me to get them to come get the car and look at what's wrong? Dad is willing to pay for whatever the internal issue is until you get home? Or do you just want me to leave it sitting outside?

Do we have AMA? If so, where can I get the info for it?

Sorry to bug you on your vacation.. I know the whole "car issue" was your worst nightmare, but because it was an electical problem there was nothing that could have been done to prevent it.

I hope your trip is going well and it sure would be nice to hear back from you ASAP. I really need to know what to do. (EMAIL ME)

Love you
Megxoxxoox

[Megan Just-Mancini]

Hello

This message is for Evelyn. Because you didn't responde, I took the car into the dealership and paid for a diagnostic as to what was going on. All they will tell me is we need new tires and if that doesn't work then we'll have to pay for something else. I hope the people at Mayfield aren't as rude to you as they were to me.

At any rate, I'm leaving the car in the basement and you can deal with the complications when you get home. David will be picking you up from the airport.

I hope your trip is going well. I would be really nice to hear from you.

Megan

[Megan Just-Mancini]

Hello

This message is for Evelyn. Because you didn't responde, I took the car into the dealership and paid for a diagnostic as to what was going on. All they will tell me is we need new tires and if that doesn't work then we'll have to pay for something else. I hope the people at Mayfield aren't as rude to you as they were to me.

At any rate, I'm leaving the car in the basement and you can deal with the complications when you get home. David will be picking you up from the airport.

I hope your trip is going well. I would be really nice to hear from you.

Megan