In advance of the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Israel in May, the Ministry of Tourism is placing signage along the picturesque, 65 kilometer Jesus Trail, which winds its way from Nazareth through Sepphoris, Cana, the Arbel Cliffs, Tabgha, Capernaum and the Mount of Beatitudes, Tiberias and the Jordan River.
The Jesus Trail offers Christian tourists and pilgrims the opportunity to walk the very land where Jesus and his disciples walked, to understand how the land reflects the New Testament and to connect spiritually to the natural beauty and serenity of the Galilee.
Designed to be walked over three or four days, the Jesus Trail can be enjoyed in smaller segments, according to one's personal fitness and time restraints. Overnight options extend from hotels, bed-and-breakfasts to overnight camping, and there are many places to buy water and food along the way. Public buses are available at most starting and end-points.
Among many highlights along the trail (according to the season), one can see fields of bright red anemones or yellow daisies––Jesus’ “lilies of the field” (Luke 12:27); wild oats and thistles and a beautifully cultivated field - Jesus’ famed Parable of the Sower (Matt. 13:3-9) and, climbing to Sepphoris, near Nazareth, the city Jesus might have known as a boy, the image of the “city on a hill” (Matt. 5:14).
Free walks, guided by volunteers, leave Monday-Saturday at 08:00 from the Church of the Annunciation, where tradition says God told Mary she would give birth to a son. The full day, 18 km hike includes a visit to Sepphoris (Zippori National Park), with its Roman ruins, Crusader fortress and Byzantine mosaics, and Cana, the traditional site of Jesus's first miracle of turning water into wine.
Other highlights further along the route include the fourth century Arbel Synagogue, overlooking the Sea of Galilee, the Arbel Cliffs, Tabgha, the traditional site of the miracle of the loaves and fishes, the Mount of Beatitudes, the traditional site of the Sermon on the Mount and Capernaum, the former fishing village that was once the center of Jesus' life and ministry.
The itinerary of the Papal visit to the Holy Land includes Nazareth, where the Pope will hold Holy Mass at the Mount of Precipice and visit the Church of the Annunciation. The Pope will also hold Mass at the Kidron Valley in Jerusalem and the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.