Hello! My brother sent me some pictures about their visit to Cana and Nazareth. This is a Church in Cana, built where Jesus turned the water into wine. I don’t know if it’s His first miracle, but it’s the first one talked about in the Bible, so it must be important!
Jesus and His Mother and Disciples were invited to a wedding there and the wedding party ran out of wine. I know my brother ran out of brisket at a party once, but I think this would have been even more embarrassing! His Mother Mary was the first to notice, and she told the waiters, to do whatever Jesus tells them to do. Always good advice! Jesus told them to fill up six big jars with water and they turned into the best tasting wine the wine steward had ever had. What a nice wedding present!
The group then visited Nazareth Village. It looks like Nazareth in Jesus’ time. Here’s a donkey in front of an olive tree. I’d like to meet him!
Speaking of wine, this is their guide, Joseph, telling them about a wine press. The people would step on grapes where he is standing and then the juice would drain into the big hole. I’m beginning to see why the people appreciated Jesus’ wine so much!
The people of Nazareth didn’t use their feet to make olive oil. Even though the stone is really heavy, my brother said that it is counterweighted so that it seems fairly light. If I ever get to go to Nazareth, I’ll volunteer to hook my harness up to it and give it a whirl – at least until I get dizzy!
The group had lunch after they went to the Village. Most of their lunches have been a choice of chicken Shawarma and Falafel sandwiches. It think those must be like our hamburgers and pulled pork sandwiches in terms of popularity.
Did you know that there’s a difference between enunciation and annunciation? Sometimes my brother doesn’t enunciate so well and I get the two confused. This is the Church of the Annunciation. I thought it was where Jesus became such a good public speaker, but it’s even more important than that: it’s where his Mother Mary agreed to take on the biggest honor and responsibility of being His Mother!
These are the entry doors, and they tell the whole story of Jesus’ life in pictures.
When you enter inside, it already looks like a big space, but keep the balcony in the top of the picture in your mind: we’re going to learn more about it in a minute. The place where you see the people is Mary’s room when she was a girl.
Here’s a picture of Mary’s room. I think they may have moved some of the furniture around since then. This is where she said “Yes!’ to God. One thing I’ve already learned is that if God asks you to do something, it’s always best to agree, even if it seems like it will be hard. He will help you and it’s always a great joy!
Do you remember when I mentioned the balcony? Well, now my brother and the group are up on that level. Wow, I had no idea that so much was built over Mary’s room! It looks like it goes all the way up to Heaven! It kind of looks like a megaphone to me, which I guess is good if God wants to annunciate some really good news!
My brother and the group then went up to the Mount of Transfiguration. This is where Jesus took three of his closest friends – Peter, James, and John. First, His clothes became brighter than white. Then, Moses and Elijah came down and talked to him. You remember them, don’t you? Moses was given the law of the Ten Commandments and Elijah was a prophet. Then, a big cloud covered the mountain and the voice of God told them He was well pleased with His Son. I might have barked, but the Disciples hid their faces until Jesus told them to get up, and it was once again a sunny day – maybe like this one in the picture.
They’ve built a big church on the Mountain to remember the event. My brother said there were people there from all over the world.
Here’s a nice view from the top. Very pretty!
Well, I’ll tell you more about their trip as soon as my brother sends more pictures!
Love, Winston