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The Ghanaian News January 2018
TRAVEL AND TOUR “THE NAZARETH, JESUS KNEW” By: Stephen A.Quaye, Toronto-Canada.
ago with arranged tomb ossuaries or bone boxes full of skeletal remains.
With the high expectation to explore all the places incidents took place and were recorded in the bible in Israel, the village Jesus knew, Nazareth, now a city, was one of my major targets to tour.
Right at the entrance of the tomb, Aaron again asked me,” how does it feel to visit the very place Jesus Christ spent his childhood days in the city of Nazareth?
My eyes kept darting around like that of an owl, to capture all the monasteries, caves, fortified walls, aqua ducts, underground tunnels, shafts, engravings and of course tombs. Wait a minute, “where does that narrow hole in that huge rock leads to” I asked Aaron my tour guide when the eyes of my still camera captured it as I took shots at the village. I looked straight at Aaron and waited for an answer. He quizzed, “Mr. Quaye, do you want to go inside and learn about how a tomb looks like? As said earlier my expectation was high so with an encouragement from Aaron I entered the tomb and learnt how the sages buried the dead thousands of years
Wow, this was Aaron’s question that I struggled to answer when I visited Nazareth, the very city Jesus Christ was brought from Bethlehem to be trained before descending to Galilee and onward to Jerusalem for his crucifixion and resurrection. “I have read the story many times in the bible, watch the documentary on Jesus life in the village many times but they have not sounded so real to me more than coming face to face with the real situations on the ground” was my comment and Aaron nodded couple of times to that comment. The city of Nazareth, where Jesus spent his childhood days is situated in the Galilee hills overlooking the Jezreel Valley in Israel. Nazareth’s winding, cobbled lanes, churches, convents and monasteries and all the pervading sense of history vividly conjure up the story of over 2,000 years ago when Joseph heeding the angel’s words, “took the young child Jesus Christ and his mother ….and came and dwell in the city called Nazareth in Israel”.
Shepherds are at the Nazareth City keeping their flock to give you an idea as well as those who keep the donkeys for pilgrims and tourists to learn how Jesus Christ of Nazareth rode a donkey to Jerusalem to be crucified. Standing close to a giant statue of a Roman soldier with all the heavy coat or metal garment on make it real to you how strong and powerful Roman soldiers were when they arrested Jesus, tortured him, caned him in public and crucified him. Hanged on a wall was this replica cross made of logs the Roman soldiers used in crucifying Jesus Christ of Nazareth as a second look made my stomach dropped at once. A nice looking tomb with a rolling stone hanging at the entrance of it attracts any pilgrim or tourist to go inside and have a feel of how it is and the process used in burying the dead over two thousand years ago to be precise in Jesus time. Nazareth the city Jesus knew truly presents Jesus childhood lifestyle to you so why don’t you join Ghana Methodist Church of Toronto as they plan to tour the holy land, Israel come September 2018. For more information please email: Very Reverend Joseph Owusu Atuahene at owusuatuahenej@gmail. com or call 647-713-2392.
Jesus Christ of Nazareth spent his childhood, though the gospel gives no description of these formative years. Nazareth is not mentioned in the Old Testament and only archaeological evidence points to a village inhabited during the first temple period. Its Jewish community was almost wiped out by the Romans during the Jewish revolt. Later, with the strengthening of the Roman Empire, the number of Christians grew. From the fourth century, churches were built on the sites which were connected with Jesus and the Virgin Mary. The replica cross of Jesus Christ
Today, the populations consist of Christians, represented by several denominations, Muslims and Jews. There are many churches, monasteries, convents, hostels and schools in Nazareth. The Nazareth Jesus knew Yes the feeling was great when I visited Nazareth the particular city where Jesus knew in his life over 2000 years ago on September 8, 2017. The exhibition of old carpentry tools father of Jesus Christ, Joseph used in drilling holes in wood, joining pieces of wood to carve chairs and tables, old type hack saw blade and how it was used to cut wood as according to the historians, Jesus Christ learnt his father’s craftsmanship.
The Carmel range or Mukhrata.
It was very interesting watching a Nazarene woman posing as Mary the mother of Jesus Christ preparing garment strings from hair of sheep to weave garments similar to what was used as attire over 2000 years ago. In fact it was more educating and informing as well as entertaining watching how life was lived during the days of Jesus Christ when he was a child at Nazareth city seeing how oil lamps were lighted to brighten up the environment the whole night.
Posing with a shepherd
How ceramic jars were used to fetch water, fire pots or earthenware kept burning with fire wood always ready for cooking. You love using olive oil for cooking and as anointing oil for your prayer exercises but you do not know how the oil is made? Nazareth is the right place for you to learn the whole process of extraction which is collecting of the fruits, crushing, pressing and extracting the oil done at Nazareth City. What about red wine? Whew, you have been drinking the stuff but do not also know how the finished product comes out. Do you want to know the process in brewing red wine used by the sages? Please visit Nazareth City that Jesus knew and you would be taught how it was done.
Tomb full of ossuaries of skeletons
Many people were taught in Sunday school about shepherds and the flock but do not really know how a true shepherd dresses to appear as one. Even some adults can’t describe how a true shepherd looks like.
A statue of Roman soldier