“To walk
where your Savior walked”

ISRAEL – (ANS)-
“He said to them, ‘Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so
that I may preach there also; for that is what I came for.’” Mark 1:38

With a heart full of emotion,
Valeries Ramirez, 24, looked out over the Sea of Galilee and the Genasseret
Valley on the path Jesus likely took from his hometown in Nazareth to meet the
residents living in the seaside villages along the Sea of Galilee.

“To walk where your Savior
walked – it’s a very beautiful experience and something that will change your
life,” Ramirez said about her visit along a portion of the Gospel Trail,
the newly completed 65-kilometer path inaugurated last week by Israel’s
Ministry of Tourism.

The Gospel Trail is part of the
Tourism Ministry’s effort to attract more Christians to Israel in general, but
more specifically to the Galilee, which does not attract the high number of
tourists that Jerusalem does, despite the fact that Jesus spent most of his
life in this region and walked the very countryside that Ramirez was walking.

Ramirez was visiting Israel as part
of a 70-person tour organized by Pastor Alberto Mottesi, a radio and TV personality
and Evangelical minister from Santa Ana, California, who led a group of 70
believers from Latin America and the United States on a 10 day journey to
Israel on what he estimates is his 15th visit to the Holy Land.

Mottesi’s radio program “Un Momento
Con Alberto Mottesi” (A Moment with Alberto Mottesi) is transmitted
approximately 2000 times daily throughout Latin America, USA, and Spain. His
new television program Café Libre can be seen on 5580 channels in 57 countries.

“The first time I came to
Israel I wanted to experience the Bible exactly as it is,” said Pastor
Mottesi.

And to do that one must feel the
land. Even Jesus and his disciples couldn’t rely on cars to take them around
the Galilee 2,000 years ago, which is why Mottesi felt it was important to
include the new Gospel Trail as part of his group’s itinerary.

“When we walk here, Israel
opens up in front of our eyes,” explained Mottesi.

The Gospel Trail provides an
unparalleled opportunity to replicate Jesus’ probable footsteps from Nazareth
to the villages in which he ministered along the Sea of Galilee.

The 65-kilometer trail begins at the
Mount of Precipice in Nazareth where, according to Luke 4:14-28, Jesus was
rejected by his townsmen who threatened to throw him over the mountainside. It
crosses part of the Galilean landscape providing views of many important holy
sites and places where Jesus performed miracles and taught. The trail dips into
part of the Jezreel Valley and continues along the Nazareth Range providing
views of Mount Tabor where Jesus was transfigured and the village of Cana where
he performed his first miracle, turning water into wine.

It passes nearby to the Horns of
Hattins, the site of the clash between the Crusader forces and the Muslim
armies under Saladin, and past the antiquities of Magdala to Tabgha, and below
the Mount of Beatitudes, eventually ending at Capernaum and the Sea of Galilee.

Those who prefer to add a bit more
adventure to their Gospel Trail experience can do so by taking on the trail by
bicycle or even horseback. Bikes can be rented in Nazareth and Tiberias.
Horseback riding can be arranged through Vered HaGalil, about 5 minutes from
the Mt. of Beatitudes. Gospel Trail maps can be viewed online and are available
through Ministry of Tourism offices.

Father Juan Solana, director of the
Legionaries of Christ, said the Gospel Trail is “a great initiative.”

“You can’t follow the footsteps
by car – only by walking or biking or horseback riding,” he explained.

The Gospel Trail will pass by Father
Solana’s new Magdala project, Notre Dame du Lac, which is under construction
just north of Ginnosar on the Sea of Galilee.

The Ministry of Tourism spent 3
million shekels ($750,000) upgrading the trail, much of which is also part of
Israel’s National Trail. Separate signs, rest areas and other enhancements were
added to the Gospel Trail in order to cater to the Christian tourists
anticipated to hike the trail.

The trail was planned more than 10
years ago but was shelved due to the second intifada. It was revived a couple
of years ago when, coincidentally, another hiking trail – the Jesus Trail -
created by two young entrepreneurs, began generating much buzz and interest in
the area. The Jesus Trail follows a similar route as the Gospel Trail and
serves the same function and market, though the Jesus Trail encourages a bit
more diversity and interaction with the local population as its path passes
through some outlying Arab villages in the Galilee and passes many more
churches.

The Ministry of Tourism route, which
was planned and completed with the help of KKL, Israel’s forestry organization,
focuses more on exploring the indigenous nature of the region and includes many
forests. Be forewarned though: The trail itself offers no infrastructure such
as bathrooms, hotels or restaurants so travelers must bring supplies with them
and carefully plan their journeys themselves or hire a specialist to coordinate
the logistics of the trek.

While no one really knows the exact
paths Jesus took, according to Yisca Harani, a Christianity expert, consultant
to the Ministry of Tourism and instructor at the Avshalom Institute, it is
quite likely that he traveled on or near either of these paths.

Jesus spent most of his life and
performed many of his miracles in this very region yet the Galilee attracts far
fewer tourists than Jerusalem. Although if it was up to Pastor Mottesi, all
Christian tourists would some spend time in the Galilee.

“People must come here to walk
the same trail Jesus (walked),” he explained. “That’s all I have to
say to convince them (to come to Israel).”

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading …

About Elisa Moed

Elisa Moed is the Founder and CEO of www.Travelujah.com,
the largest Christian social network focused on the Holy Land travel.
People can learn, plan and share their travel experiences on Travelujah.Elisa Moed is also a special contributor from Israel for the Assist News Service – www.assistnews.net

• Mail

|

• Web

|

• More Posts (9)