HOLY SITES BY THE SEA OF GALILEE

Church of the Multiplication of Loaves

We were blessed today to celebrate Sunday Mass at the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves near the Sea of Galilee. As its name suggests, this church is at the site where Jesus fed the five thousand. Benedictine monks from Germany administer the church and they celebrated the Mass in German and English. In addition to our group, there were pilgrims from Austria and a group of Filipino soldiers serving on a peace-keeping mission with the UN. 

Church of the Primacy of Peter

Just a few hundred feet down the road on the shore of the lake is the Church of the Primacy of Peter, also known as Mensa Christi (Table of Christ). The dominant feature of this church is a large rock in front of the altar that extends outside the walls of the church towards the shore. Tradition holds that this is where Jesus appeared to some of his apostles after his resurrection, where he had them lower their nets into the lake, pulling up so many fish that their nets nearly broke. This is also where Jesus established Peter's primacy over the other apostles: Jesus asked Peter three times, "Do you love me?" and then said, "Feed my sheep." At this site, we ran into pilgrims from India and Poland. 

Church of the Primacy of Peter

These holy sites by the Sea of Galilee are very tranquil and beautiful. Knowing that Jesus stood in these very places and conducted most of his ministry around here, I am left searching for words that could convey the experience of being here. It is from here that Jesus first preached the Gospel, and from here that the good news of our salvation began to spread throughout the world. And now people who have received this message are returning to the place where it began, in order to grow closer to Christ.