Jesus' Other Home Town

On Saturday, Evertt and I got up early to visit the excavation at Sephoris (Zippori), a ancient city less than five miles from Nazareth that was a community in which Joseph may have done carpentry-work and which Jesus probably would have visited in his younger days. It boasted an impressive reservoir aqueduct and some of the best mosaics in Israel (including one they call the "Mona Lisa of Zippori" which is composed of 1.5 million tiny stones in 23 colors -- a picture will not do it justice!).

One of the main roads in town is pictured below -- it was called the Decumanus. It is very possible that Jesus would have walked on this very road during his lifetime.

W.W.J.D? Where Would Jesus Walk?






















We also paid a visit to an archaeological site called Yoda Fat (no Dwayne H., I'm not kidding!). It was a small town in the hills of Galilee that the Romans besieged during the Jewish rebellion in AD 66 and following. The famous Jewish historian Josephus was a general there and once the Romans broke through and killed the people of this city, he surrendered to Vespatian (who soon became emperor of Rome) and went on to write an important history of the Jewish people.

A herd of goats atop Yoda Fat


















Saturday afternoon, Evertt and I went and visited a few families from the church in Nazareth. We saw Maurice and Inam Jadon (the local preacher) and his son and daughter-in-law Awney and Sahar. Maurice shared about some of the hardships he has faced as an Arab Christian in Israel. We also visited with Suhiel and Mayada Shlayan, and their sons Wassim and Basil. We were received with incredible Arabic hospitality at both venues (can you say food!) and I truly enjoyed getting to know these brothers and sisters in Christ. This is an experience that no tour group could ever have provided.

The Shlayan Family of Nazareth