STANDING ON HOLY GROUND!

We were standing on holy ground! A group of your Lexington friends and neighbors arrived in Israel on March 1 for a spiritual pilgrimage. Even though this was my fifth trip to the Holy Land, the experience never grows old.

I remember a strange sensation I had on my first trip to Israel in 1996. We were 6,000 miles away from home in a strange Middle Eastern country, in the heart of the world's three major religions, with different languages and different customs; yet I kept having the feeling that I had been there before. Then it dawned on me. I was in the land of the Bible, and the Bible has been a major part of my life since I was a toddler. Of course, I had been there before — many times.

There have been many exciting discoveries in Israel since I made that first trip almost two decades ago. One of the latest is the excavation of ancient Magdala on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. The work is so recent that it is not even open to the public, but our savvy guide knew just what to do to get us in the middle of the ruins. We were soon standing by the foundation of an ancient synagogue, not realizing that we were standing on holy ground.

CNN and all the major news outlets reported Sept. 10, 2009, that a first century synagogue had been discovered quite by accident. Plans were being made for the construction of a hotel when a routine archeological test revealed that something old and very important was resting just beneath the surface. Since then archeologists are saying that this discovery is the greatest in decades, maybe the most significant discovery since the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Our guide, who is an expert in biblical history and a walking encyclopedia of archeological knowledge, shared with us that some scholars were questioning whether synagogues even developed before the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. This would negate all the stories in the gospels of Jesus preaching and teaching in the synagogues. And what about the Apostle Paul visiting all the synagogues on his missionary journeys? But then they started to build a hotel in Magdala and boom, a discovery that rocked the archeological world. A Roman coin dates the synagogue back to at least 29 AD, making it the oldest ever discovered.

Jesus was in nearby Capernaum when he announced that he must visit the nearby villages. Mark (1:39) reports that "he traveled all over Galilee, preaching in the synagogues. The closest synagogue to Capernaum was Magdala, and that's where we were three weeks ago, standing on holy ground. Jesus most certainly preached there and walked across the mosaic floor that we could reach out and touch.

In Magdala Jesus met one of his most faithful followers, a woman named Mary. Was she in the synagogue on that first Sabbath when Jesus came to town? The excavations at Magdala reveal a very wealthy city, and according to Luke 8:2-3, Mary was not only one of the women who followed Jesus, she also became a financial benefactor of his mission. Unfortunately, people have given Mary a bad name through the years, but that has not always been true. Some of the early Christian leaders called Mary of Magdala "an apostle to the apostles." Perhaps these new discoveries will once again cleanse Mary of the demons that have plagued her for centuries.

Mary followed Jesus and supported him, and she was faithful to the end. An eyewitness to the horrific crucifixion, Mary was blessed to be the first eyewitness to the resurrection. She also became the first evangelist; the first one to go and tell that "Jesus is alive!" And there we were, standing in her hometown beside the synagogue where Jesus preached the good news of the Kingdom of God. We were standing where Jesus stood. We were standing where Mary stood. We were standing on holy ground.

But more important than where we stand is where we follow. Will we follow Jesus and the example of Mary who proclaimed the good news of the risen Lord to disciples who did not want to listen, much less believe? Will we be faithful to be financial benefactors to his mission? Will we go and tell the glorious news of the resurrection? When we do we truly find ourselves on holy ground.