People of the Passion

Pilgrimage in the Footsteps of Jesus is the second title in the Threshold Bible Study program developed by the editor of God's Word Today. It takes readers to 30 sites from the life of Jesus. Black and white photos and maps of the region are included. Each session is divided into six, 3-page lessons consisting of a passage from scripture, history of the site, reflection questions, and a prayer. For example, Session 3 covers the Jordan River, Cana, Capernaum (the synagogue and Peter's house), the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes, and the Mount of Beatitudes. The lesson on Peter's house in Capernaum begins with readings from Mark (1:29-34, in which Peter's mother-in-law is cured of a fever and 2:1-12 in which the paralyzed man is lowered through the roof). We are introduced to the site as it is today: "A short distance from the synagogue are the remains of Peter's house... it had one large room, measuring about 20 feet by 20 feet, and several smaller rooms" with walls of black basalt stones and a roof of clay and straw. In the next paragraph we "see" Jesus in this place he called home, and are given more scripture references to fill out the picture. Next we learn that Peter's house was a gathering place for early Christians and, in the second half of the first century, the walls and ceilings of the large room were plastered to create a church. The author briefly describes further changes to the building in the fifth century and closes by describing the scene today, in which a modern church is built on pillars over the ruins. In the center of the church, a glass floor allows visitors to look into the excavations below and stand directly above the place Jesus called home. The reflection/discussion questions deal with what is sacred about the place we call home and ways in which we can bring others to Jesus as townspeople brought the paralyzed man to Jesus at Peter's house.