Capernaum - Base of Operations for Jesus

Ruins of Elaborate Synagogue in Capernaum

Capernaum, was the hometown of Peter, and Jesus made it His base of operations for much of His ministry.  The size of Capernaum, a small town on the Sea of Galilee, is rather shocking.  It was home to probably somewhere between 500 and 1000 people -and their houses were small, maybe 500 square feet!  So when you consider that Peter, James, John, Andrew and Matthew all left Capernaum to follow Jesus, that was quite a significant portion of the families that comprised this town - and what a sacrifice!

We were able to see the remains of a fourth century white limestone synagogue located in Capernaum. It was the most elaborate of the early Galilean synagogues, with its soaring columns, decorated ashlars and its inscribed pillars.

Underneath the "white limestone synagogue" are foundations in local black basalt stone, which excavators believe to belong to the "Synagogue of Jesus" - the synagogue that was in operation when Jesus taught there in the 1st century. (See Photo Below.)

Limestone Synagogue Constructed on 

Foundations of Earlier 1st Century Synagogue Made of Basalt

It was here in Capernaum that Jesus met his first disciples - Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Matthew - excepting Matthew, the tax collector, all were fishermen who worked on the Sea of Galilee!  Jesus spent a lot of time in Capernaum preaching and performing miracles.  He healed Peter's wife's mother of a fever, brought a child back to life, cured a leper, healed the centurion's servant, and "cast out the spirits with His Word and healed all those who were sick." Matthew 8:16

Closer to the shore than the synagogue, we observed Peter's house (footprint of Peter's house in photo below) in what would have been a poor area where the drystone basalt walls would have supported only a light roof (which coincides with the lowering of the paralytic in Mk 2:1-12) and could have no windows.

Ruins of Peter's Home

Not only did Jesus probably stay there with Peter and his family, but eventually it is believed that this home was the meeting place for the early church.  Later, walls were built and rooms extended to meet the needs of the growing congregation.  Notice the octagonal walls of the Capernaum church - a common architectural feature of the early churches.  The wall of Peter's home is incorporated into one of the walls of the church.

Ruins of Early Church Built onto Ruins of Peter's Home

The floors of these houses and courtyards were made of black basalt cobbles.  You can imagine how easy it would have been easy to lose a coin (Lk 15:8).

By the mid-1st century AD, there is evidence that one particular room in this complex was singled out for public use.  Pottery and lamps were found to replace utensils of normal family use, and there is ancient graffiti in the plastered walls, some of which mention Jesus as Lord and Christ.

This house was being used as a church by the time Egeria made her pilgrimage in 381 AD.  She said the church included the original walls: "In Capernaum the house of the prince of the apostles has been made into a church, with its original walls still standing.

Archaeological excavations indicate it was indeed around this time that the room was given a more solid roof, which required the addition of a central arch, and two rooms were added on the two sides. This was probably the work of Count Joseph of Tiberias, a converted Jew, who obtained authority from Emperor Constantine to erect churches in Capernaum and other towns of Galilee.

Michael enjoying the view of Peter's Home and Wondering.... Are They Sure?

Millstones

In Capernaum we saw beautiful millstones used for grinding grains and realized what a terrible punishment it would be to have that huge thing tied to your neck as you plunged to the bottom of the sea.  Remember when Jesus said that it would be better for a millstone to be hung around the head of a man than for him to cause a little one to sin?

Maybe he was thinking about these heavy millstones made from the basalt rock found in Capernaum. They are too heavy for a man to lift. The pointy part (seen in the picture below) was the bottom and a bowl shaped piece was inverted over it. The wheat was poured into the top and one or two women turned it to grind the wheat which would fall out the bottom.

"But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea." Matthew 18:6




Can you guess what the photo below is?     ---- Yes, an artsy photo by Evan.

  

This is actually a close-up of part of an olive press!  The hole contains the wooden pole the men use to rotate or roll the heavy stone around the press.

"In biblical times, green olives were harvested beginning in September and continued through November; also in November the fully mature black olives were picked. Farmers shook the olives from the trees by pulling on the branches or tapping them with a stick (the same method used today). More than half the pulp of an olive is oil; an olive tree can yield up to18 gallons of oil annually. To minimize bruising the fruit during transport and releasing the oil, olive presses — usually large stone basins — were kept near the orchards. Two or more pressings produced oil of differing quality.

Olives were poured into the stone basin, and the first pressing took place. With the type of press shown here (right), a man or donkey pushed a beam to rotate the millstone, which crushed the olives. Wedges and washers kept the stone from also crushing the pits, which could contaminate the oil with sediment. Workers then scooped the crushed olives into loosely woven baskets and allowed the oil to drain into vats. This first pressing produced the finest grade oil ("extra virgin" in modern terminology), used in lamps and cosmetics and for ritual anointing.

A second pressing produced a lower grade "beaten oil." The pulp-filled baskets were stacked and placed under a heavy stone weight or a beam anchored into a wall. A worker hung stone weights on the beam to flatten the baskets, forcing the last of the oil into a stone vat below. Heavier weights may have been added to produce an even lower quality oil.

There was no waste when processing olives; the oil residue was used to make soap, the crushed pits and hulls were used for animal food or dried to burn for heat.

Quality rotary mills were expensive; they were carved from the hard basalt stone found in the Capernaum area. Such olive presses have been found throughout Palestine indicating that Capernaum was a center for their manufacture."  -- Jesus' Life and Times - Capernaum


We learned that Gethsemane actually means "oil press" in Hebrew.  Isn't it interesting to note that while Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, He was being pressed out for us, in a sense, (remember Him sweating drops of blood?) realizing the cup of Judgement that awaited Him at the cross.  He lovingly took the bride price for us - "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21