Galilee- Capernaum

"They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach." (Mark 1:21) (Mat 4:13 WEB) Leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, (Mat 8:5 WEB) When he came into Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking him, (Mat 11:23 WEB) You, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, you will go down to Hades. For if the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in you, it would have remained until this day. (Mat 17:24 WEB) When they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the didrachma coins came to Peter, and said, "Doesn't your teacher pay the didrachma?" (Mar 1:21 WEB) They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue and taught. (Mar 2:1 WEB) When he entered again into Capernaum after some days, it was heard that he was in the house. (Mar 9:33 WEB) He came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house he asked them, "What were you arguing among yourselves on the way?" (Luk 4:23 WEB) He said to them, "Doubtless you will tell me this parable, 'Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done at Capernaum, do also here in your hometown.' " (Luk 4:31 WEB) He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. He was teaching them on the Sabbath day, (Luk 7:1 WEB) After he had finished speaking in the hearing of the people, he entered into Capernaum. (Luk 10:15 WEB) You, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades. (Joh 2:12 WEB) After this, he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, his brothers, and his disciples; and they stayed there a few days. (Joh 4:46 WEB) Jesus came therefore again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water into wine. There was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. (Joh 6:17 WEB) and they entered into the boat, and were going over the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them. (Joh 6:24 WEB) When the multitude therefore saw that Jesus wasn't there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats, and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. (Joh 6:59 WEB) He said these things in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum. The ruins of a great synagogue were first identified in 1866 during a survey by the British cartographer Captain Charles W. Wilson. Partially reconstructed in 1926, the dating of the Capernaum synagogue continues to be a matter of debate. What is certain is that the imposing ruin is not the synagogue referred to in the Gospel of Mark, though it seems to have been built on the site of an earlier 1st-century building. Built of imported white limestone on basalt stone foundations, the floor plan is similar to the 4th-century synagogue at Chorazim (Korazim, 4 km to the north), and the 3rd-century synagogue at Bar’am (in the northern Galilee), but the architectural ornamentation of the Capernaum building is far more elaborate, with Corinthian capitals and intricately carved stonework reliefs (vine and fig leaves, geometric designs, eagles, etc.). One relief carving of a cart may depict a portable Ark of the Covenant. Visitors are sometimes disconcerted by the fact that the architectural decoration also includes swastikas; but this was a common geometrical design of the period. A 4th-century Aramaic inscription on one of the broken columns records the name of the donor, "Halfu, son of Zebida". These names in the Greek form (Alphaeus and Zebedee) are mentioned in the New Testament. The synagogue as it appeared in 381 was described by the Spanish pilgrim, the Lady Egeria, who reported that the way into the structure was up many steps, and that the building was made of dressed stone. The very grandeur of the Capernaum synagogue has contributed to the controversy concerning the actual dating of the building. Various theories have been proposed. Evidence for a 4th-century date is based in part on coins and pottery found beneath the floor. Proponents of an earlier 2nd-century date say these may have been left during later repairs and reconstruction, possibly following the earthquake of 363. Another possibility is that the synagogue was built during the short reign (361-363) of the Emperor Julian "the Apostate", which would also correspond with the date of the earthquake. The synagogue and the church at Capernaum were both destroyed in the early 7th century (sometime before the Arab conquest in 636). In light of the continuing tensions between the Christian and Jewish communities, it has been suggested that the church may have been destroyed during the Persian invasion of 614, and that the synagogue was destroyed 15 years later as an act of retaliation during the brief re-establishment of Byzantine rule. If so, it is appropriate that one of the first instances of modern "inter-faith dialogue" between Christians and Jews took place in nearby Tiberias in 1942, in a series of discussions between the Rev. George L. B. Sloan, a minister of the Church of Scotland in Tiberias, and the Jewish writer and lecturer Dr. Shalom Ben-Chorin.