Flourishing Life

I woke up at 6:00 a.m. and finalized packing. Breakfast was ready at 7:00 a.m. so I enjoyed a nice Arab breakfast of eggs with various spices and veggies added, cereal, cheese, and a pizza-like pastry. At 8:05 we were out the door and heading up the 400 or so steps leading to the top of Nazareth, then back down the other side outside of Nazareth through some low farmland, which turned out to be the nicest part of the hike today. It was pleasant walking through the farms and trees. Up until Sepphoris we were accompanied by a German couple and two guides from Fauzi Asar. Our German friends didn’t want to go into Sepphoris so they continued with the guides toward Cana.

Me in Sepphoris

At Sepphoris (Zippori in Hebrew), Bob and I walked into the National Park and viewed the amazing ruins of a large city that existed here during the days of Jesus. Some scholars have speculated that because of the very small size of the village of Nazareth in Jesus’ day, there would not have been enough work for a builder to make a living. The Greek word we translate “carpenter” is actually the word “builder,” one who primarily worked with stone building houses and other structures. However, walking at a pretty good clip it took over two hours to arrive at the gate of the park. I’m wondering if someone would commute that long in order to work. Perhaps they would go to Sepphoris and stay there a few days. I think I will look that up. It certainly makes sense that in such a small town, growing a business would prove difficult. The proximity of a thriving city just being rebuilt after it had been destroyed by the Romans because of a tax revolt, would be attractive to Joseph. Jews living in Sepphoris, however, were not as orthodox or conservative as other Jews in the Galilee region, which possibly would be a barrier to overcome, as well as the distance.

The Mona Lisa of the Galilee

The mosaic floors in the houses are magnificent in Sepphoris. This makes the ruins here an attraction to tourists. We spent about two hours here, including eating lunch and walking in and out of the park.

We headed toward the village of Mash’had, a mostly Muslim town near Cana. This small town is associated with the biblical city of Gath Hepher, the birthplace of Jonah. We walked right by the mosque built at the traditional site of his grave, but quite frankly, we had forgotten it’s significance and simply walked right by on our, at that time, downhill trek.

From Mash’had to Cana was a strange walk. First, it was difficult to tell where to go because of a lack of trail blazes. Also, where the trail leaves the street at the edge of town is a construction site, and the beginning of the dirt/rock (heavy on the rock) road has been covered by a bulldozer. Thankfully I brought a pair of binoculars and was able to locate the next blaze down the dirt road which passed through some olive trees. This olive tree grove sounds nice, but unfortunately, the path is trash-strewn. Bob noted that they may lack a strong theology of a good creation. Perhaps, but it seems that in much of the developing (or non-developing world) sanitary trash disposal along with sewage disposal is a luxury they cannot yet afford.

View from Marwa’s

Coming into Cana was interesting. We walked near the Cana Wedding Church and left the Jesus Trail to try and locate Marwa’s Inn. We followed white signs with orange writing, however, there weren’t many signs. Twice I had to use the binoculars. We wandered around for about thirty minutes chasing the wrong trail markers. Eventually, we made it and the guest house is one floor of an apartment building overlooking a school, with nice views of Cana and Mash’had.

Overall, today, the trail was mostly in towns and along paved roads. The trail guidebook says from here it gets better, along with trail reviews I’ve read online. I certainly hope so. Total time actually walking the trail today was 4.5 hours. We walked about 8.3 miles and my feet are angry with me.

Tonight for supper, Marwa, the owner of the inn, will be taking us, along with our German fellow-pilgrims, to eat at an Arab home. That will be a nice change of pace to which I am looking forward.