In my last post, I mentioned a small inlet of water in the Sea of Galilee, commonly called the Cove of the Sower. Just north of this location, and just uphill, is a Roman Catholic Franciscan chapel which was built in 1938. This chapel sits on the traditional location where Jesus taught the people in what we commonly call "The Sermon on the Mount".
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you." - Matthew 5:1-12
While the actual site of the Sermon on the Mount is unknown, this site has been commemorated since the 5th Century. Whether or not it is the actual location is something that will never be known, but given the context of the Scriptures and knowledge of the geographical area, one can easily conclude that it is in the general area. In fact, if you read the beginning of Matthew 8, you will see that after completing the sermon, Jesus came down from the mountain and entered Capernaum (Matthew 8:1, 5). From the chapel, you can look down the hill and see the remains of Capernaum.
The Sea of Galilee is a beautiful place. We will look at a few more locations around the lake in future posts.