In 2020, I wrote about the incredible discovery at Magdala and how I wanted to go the next time I was in Israel. It has been a dream of mine for years! So when the semester ended last week, I headed out to the Galilee.
WOW.
It was Shabbat, an unusually warm January day, and because of covid-19, there still weren't any foreign tourists allowed in Israel. So there I was, pretty much alone, strolling through Mary Magdalene's former hometown, a fishing village.
There, you can see the old market, with the main street,
the residential area,
the port (the Sea of Galilee, which is only about 7 miles wide at its widest point and 17 miles long) shrinks every year, so the port is much higher than one might expect,
a beautiful chapel commemorating Jesus' ministry in the Galilee, and...
the synagogue, where, according to Matthew 4:23, Jesus spoke.
As I talked about here, this is one of those places where we can place Jesus not only in the town or walking the main street, but in an actual room. I about lost my mind.
After exploring this incredible place—you can still see pigmentation on the remains of columns and walls, and part of an old mosaic—I sat down and began to read from Matthew. There, on Shabbat, in front of the synagogue where Jesus spoke on a Shabbat millennia ago. It was incredible!
There are so many small treasures that have been found and are still being unearthed in Magdala, like brick ovens, mosaics in other places. It's all so interesting, but this was the crown jewel for me.
However, did you hear about this? Recently there's been another INCREDIBLE discovery in Magdala:
A SECOND SYNAGOGUE!!!!
This one is in a residential area, which I didn't see. I think it is still being uncovered. But, how incredible! The articles I read say that this sheds a lot of light on thought and culture in the first century. I hope to go back and explore it one day!
Also, here's one more photo as a bonus, as seen on the way to Madgala: Mount Hermon covered in snow!
