Free Republic

For over 30 years, the Peniel Learning Center (PLC) in Tiberias has served children from the local Messianic community, providing a full elementary school curriculum (grades 1 through 6) in an atmosphere that honors the Word of God. As the first and only Hebrew-speaking Messianic elementary school in northern Israel, the Learning Center has always maintained good relations and cooperated with government agencies and the local public schools. The school has an excellent reputation for producing graduates that have gone on to achieve academic success in middle school, high school and beyond – giving testimony to their faith. A local...

Archeologists have uncovered part of an 1,800-year-old Roman road in northern Israel, built in the time of emperor Hadrian, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced.In a statement, the IAA said the road section, measuring some 8 meters (26 feet) wide and 25 meters (82 feet) long, was found near the village of Rumat al-Heib, some 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of the city of Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee. It was discovered during development work on a walking trail.The IAA branded the road as “the Highway 6 of the ancient world,” referencing Israel’s major north-to-south highway.It said the road, which...

As the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah comes to a close, the discovery of an ancient tomb door with a stunning menorah carving is providing a fascinating glimpse into Israel’s rich history. The basalt tomb door, which is undergoing preservation work, was recently put on display by the Institute of Archaeology at Hebrew University, in Jerusalem. The door was discovered in Tiberias in Israel’s Galilee region in 2010 by archaeologists from the University, but was only revealed to the public a few weeks ago, said Dr. Katia Cytryn-Silverman, senior lecturer at Hebrew University’s Institute of Archaeology and Department of Islamic and...

An ancient Tiberias synagogue was extensively vandalized overnight Tuesday, causing irreversible damage and potentially necessitating millions of dollars in rehabilitation costs. Police opened an investigation, and officials said they suspected ultra-Orthodox Jewish extremists who oppose archaeological excavations of ancient tombs were to blame. "The damage is widespread… Some of the damage is irreversible," said Shaul Goldstein, executive director of the Nature and Parks Authority. The Hammat Tiberias site, which also serves as an archaeological park, boasts 1,600-year-old mosaics. The site's two synagogues date from 286 and 337 CE, when Tiberias was the seat of the Sanhedrin rabbinical court. Among the...

From the time of Alexander the Great in the fourth century B.C.E., Jews lived in a world in which Greek culture carried a certain prestige and offered a route to political influence, first within the Hellenistic kingdoms that succeeded Alexander in the third to first centuries B.C.E., and thereafter within the Roman Empire in the eastern Mediterranean and the Near East. During this period -- when Alexander's empire was divided between the Seleucids and the Ptolemies, and later when the Romans dominated both the eastern Mediterranean and the Near East -- Greek was the language of government and administration. Native...

Dear FReepers, I returned last night from my visit to Israel. It was fantastic! We spent most of the time with my daughter and her family, who live in the North of Israel. My grandson turned 3 years old, which is celebrated by an "upsherenish" ceremony in which his hair was cut for the first time. We observed this festive ritual in Meron, at the tomb of Rabbi Simeon Bar Yochai, the author of the Zohar, the mystical work of Kabbalah. The reason for this custom, a child is compared to the fruit of a tree, which may not be...

Jul. 15, 2006 15:19 | Updated Jul. 15, 2006 15:43 Five Katyusha rockets strike Tiberias By JPOST STAFF AND AP For the first time since the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the city of Tiberias, located some 35 kilometers south of the Lebanese border on the western bank of the Sea of Galilee, came under a rocket attack on Saturday. Tiberias is located outside the area that the IDF predicted would be hit by Katyushas. For Home Front Command safety information click here. Three of the six Katyusha rockets fired at the city by Hizbullah landed in residential areas, with one...

Rocket barrage hits Tiberias (VIDEO) City hit for first time by Hizbullah rockets from Lebanon; eight people reportedly hurt in attack. 'We never thought Hizbullah would strike here,' resident says. Beaches cleared, residents ordered into secure rooms Sharon Roffe-Ofir VIDEO - A barrage of rockets fell on Tiberias, located some 35 kilometers (about 22 miles) from the Israel-Lebanon border, for the first time Saturday afternoon. Rockets landed in a number of sites in the city; one Katyusha struck a house, and eight people were lightly injured - two of them from shrapnel. Another rocket landed in an open field near...

An Antiques Authority worker climbing out of one of the recently discovered prison cells in Tiberias. (Yaron Kaminsky) Last update - 02:16 28/11/2005 Ancient prison cells unearthed in Tiberias dig By Eli Ashkenazi A bit of what prisoners suffered in ancient times can be seen as of yesterday at the archaeological dig in the old city of Tiberias. Excavations of the basilica compound in the eastern part of the old city recently unearthed two small chambers believed to have served as holding cells for prisoners awaiting trial. If today's custody conditions at police stations elicit complaints from detainees and defense...

Last update - 08:55 18/11/2005 Rare seal bearing Jesus image found in Tiberias By Eli Ashkenazi, Haaretz Correspondent A rare seal bearing a picture of Jesus on one side was discovered at an archeological dig in the old city of Tiberias on Thursday. The other side of the seal, which dates from the sixth century, depicts a cross and bears the inscription "Christos." The seal was discovered by two volunteers, employees of the American and British embassies. Prof. Yizhar Hirschfeld of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, who is directing the dig, said the seal apparently belonged to a high-ranking church...

Historical TiberiasExcavations conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) have been taking place in Tiberias at three different locations on the Sea of Galilee. Archaeologists discovered a Roman stadium dating back to the first century, which is also mentioned in the writings of Flavius Josephus. Inhabitants of this ancient town used the stadium for various events such as chariot racing and a gathering place for special occasions. In 67 AD, the Romans captured thousands of Jews and assembled them in the stadium. After a bloody battle between the Romans and Jews near Migdal, a town on the Sea of Galilee...

Tiberias dig unearths very rare marble floor By Eli Ashkenazi A marble floor dating from the first century CE was unearthed during this season's excavations of ancient Tiberias. According to archaeologist Professor Yizhar Hirschfeld, director of the three-week dig that ended yesterday, the floor is apparently a remnant of a pavement in the palace of Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, who ruled the Galilee from 4 BCE to 38 CE.

A unique ceremony - probably only the second of its kind in the past 1,600 years - is taking place in Tiberias today: The launching of a Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish-legal tribunal in the Land of Israel. The Sanhedrin, a religious assembly that convened in one of the Holy Temple chambers in Jerusalem, comprised 71 sages and existed during the Tannaitic period, from several decades before the Common Era until roughly 425 C.E. Details of today's ceremony are still sketchy, but the organizers' announced their intention to convene 71 rabbis who have received special rabbinic ordination as specified by Maimonides....

Jun. 16, 2002Roman stadium found in Tiberias By THE JERUSALEM POST STAFF The remains of a monumental public building archeologists think may be a stadium from the first century CE have been found during a dig on the grounds of the Galei Kinneret Hotel in Tiberias. The form of the building, its hewn stone construction, and round southern end date it from the Roman period, when it served an important public function. Moshe Hartal, an archeologist with the Antiquities Authority, said it is possible the building is the stadium mentioned in the writings of Josephus Flavius. "The stadium was used...