Sunset on the Sea of Galilee an hour or so after we arrived on Monday night. It took our breath away and as I mentioned earlier, in contrast to the "otherness" of Jerusalem in sites, smells, and sounds; there was a familiarity and peacefulness being on the lake.
The great thing about being at Pilgerhaus was being able to sit and relax and contemplate. The world has changed a lot in the last 2000 years but lakes don't seem to change as quickly as cities do and it was pretty easy to imagine ourselves into the world of the Bible here.
So at the Church of the Primacy of St. Peter, located right on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, we celebrated Holy Eucharist. This is the place, purportedly, where the risen Christ joined his friends for fish breakfast. Chris preached and Marty was the Celebrant. It is a privilege to call them both my friends.
Everyone remembers how Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. He got a shot at redemption, however, according to John's Gospel when he was asked three times, "Peter do you love me." His feelings even got a little hurt when the risen Christ asked the third time, as you may recall. Nevertheless, love of God translates into love of neighbor as Jesus tells Peter to "prove his love" by feeding his sheep. I love this statue of Jesus commissioning Peter.
Lunch! "St. Peter's fish," on the Sea of Galilee. Chris wanted to take the chicken option but I shamed him into this: while chicken may be a more apt metaphor for the Christian Church too much of the time, you can't come to the Sea of Galilee and eat chicken. It was delicious, by the way, but a lot of work that makes lobster seem easy comparatively speaking.
After lunch we went out on a boat on the sea of Galilee
They cast their nets into the sea; as they have been doing for thousands of years. This guy didn't catch anything; we tried to get him to try to other side of the boat (certain he'd make a huge haul) but he didn't trust us.
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