We stopped at another Catholic owned spot on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. A huge, beautiful chapel faced the calm, serene lake. The sun was shining warm and bright now that the rain was gone, although some clouds stayed.
We all sat beneath some trees beside the chapel facing the Sea, and Ron was given Roman's microphone as well as Susan's so that he could speak to both groups with ease. He asked us to turn to John 21, where Jesus appears to His disciples for the third time since his resurrection:
"The whole chapter of John 21 happens right here on the shores of Galilee, maybe not in this exact spot, but it gives you a good mental picture." Ron explained, then he read: "'After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?”They answered Him, “No.”
And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.
Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea. But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish. Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.” Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken. Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast.” Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?”—knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish. This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead.'
Imagine what it must have been like," Ron continued, "To be the disciples, sitting here on the shore with Jesus, eating fresh fish, and by the way, we're about to go eat at a really amazing restaurant that's on the shore near here. They get fresh Tilapia right from the Sea of Galilee."
My stomach was already imagining it before my mind started weaving the picture. Ron had one more part of the passage to cover:
"'So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?”
He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
He said to him, “Feed My lambs.”He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?”
He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?”
And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep."'
You might be wondering, why is Jesus asking Peter if he loves him so many times, why not just once? It's because Peter still needs some healing in his life. He still feels the guilt of denying Jesus in His darkest hour. Peter had told Jesus at the Last Supper that he would never abandon Him, but several hours later, he's swearing up and down that he doesn't know the guy; and at his third denial, he starts cussing and insisting that he never even met Jesus. And right there, that's when the rooster crows."
I can only imagine the pain that Peter felt, I still wonder how he was able to bring himself to face Jesus again. It definitely wasn't easy, but what Ron said next blew my mind:
"Jesus asks Peter this question three times. In a way, He's restoring Peter to Him."
Ron went on, discussing the context of the love Jesus mentions to Peter. You see, in Greek, there are four different words for Love: Eros, romantic love. Storge, affection, like the love of parents for children and vice versa. Philia, brotherly love, or friendship. And finally Agape, the highest form of Love, the unconditional way God loves man and the way man loves God. In that particular passage in John 21, Jesus firstly and secondly asks Peter if he loves Him Philia (like a brother or family). When Peter answers yes twice, Jesus asks a third time, meaning Agape, the highest Love there is. Peter, finally ready, insists yes, he does, and through this, Peter's faith and standing with God is restored.
After rinsing the dirt of my feet, then putting my flip flops back on, I turned to see Elana Cantor walking my way. I've failed to mention this before, but she and Ron had gone to Nepal earlier this year, a trip that my mom had also gone on. She'd told me about getting to know Elana and spending time with her. Elana had expressed her wish that my mom should come to Israel, but because she wasn't able to go this year, my mom had told her about my going. Elana was excited to meet me, and I her, but I hadn't gotten the chance to introduce myself, until now.
"Are you Amy's daughter?" She asked, her heavy accent containing a mix of Moroccan and Jewish (fun fact, I learned her mother is from Morocco).
"Yes, I'm Tirzah," I said.
"It's so good to meet you! I love your mom, she was telling me about you!" She pulled me into a tight embrace, the kind that stops you from breathing, but is nice anyway.
"She told me about you too!" I said when we pulled apart. She asked how I liked Israel (she would often refer to it as her country) so far. I said I loved it and was enjoying it.
We didn't talk long however, before I heard Roman's voice via my Whisperer calling everyone back to the bus. Elana and I said goodbye, then she and another lady in my group left for a restroom break, while I headed back to the bus.
We stopped at ST. Peter's Restaurant a few miles away. They had a simple menu, you could get Tilapia two ways: cooked whole, the way Jesus and His disciples would have had it, or filleted. They also offered meat kebabs and a salad bar, from which I got a LOT of hummus and pita bread!
The place was PACKED! So when we finally got a few tables for our group, we all placed our order at once before using the bathroom or visiting the salad bar. And though I got my order in (I got the fillet, there was no way I wanted my lunch staring at me the whole time!), I was at the salad bar when the waiter brought several plates of the fillets to our table and I wasn't there to claim mine. Needless to say, we fixed the mistake.
(Whole cooked Tilapia. Thanks person I sat next to who let me snap this picture!)
(Filleted Tilapia, mine. And. it. Was. The. BEST. FISH. I. EVER. HAD. IN. MY. LIFE!!!!!)
(A lamb kebab on the left, that someone passed around for all of us to try. It came to rest with me the remaindered of lunch; hands down best experience I've had with lamb so far. Also, on the right, some pita bread and hummus!)
Finished, full, and ready for a nap, we got back on our respective buses, and headed for the second to last site of the day.
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