on a boat very much resembling those in use in Jesus’ time. According to accounts in the New Testament, it was at Capernaum that Jesus selected His first disciples. One of the more interesting parts of the site is an edifice known as Peter’s House, dedicated in ancient times as a Church shrine, with early Roman graffiti still visible on the walls. The building is run by the Franciscans, who have constructed a second layer ceiling/floor partition there and have dedicated the upper level as a chapel, with a multi-hued altar and a part of the floor constructed of glass, to afford a view of Peter’s House on the floor below. Adjacent to Peter’s house stand the remains of a late fourth-century synagogue, constructed on the ruins of a synagogue from a much earlier period. It has been suggested by more than one scholar that it was here that Jesus prayed when He lived in Capernaum. Also at Capernaum is one of the loveliest of Sea of Galilee churches, which belongs to the Greek Orthodox Church. In almost any panoramic view of the western side of the Sea of Galilee, this charming building sticks out with its impressive crosses and red cupolas. Just south of Capernaum lies Tabgha, a corruption of the Greek word Heptagon, or “seven springs.” Two churches stand there. The first, under Benedictine control, marks the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. The original church on the site was constructed in the middle of the fourth century AD, with its altar situated on the spot where the loaves and fishes would have been placed. The mosaics on view there, scenes rich in waterfowl, water plants,
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