An early morning stop here at the village of Nein.
(Arabic) - which means "pleasant place, or charming."
In English Bibles it is Nain or Naim.
It is an Arab village that was destroyed
in the 1948 Arab- Israeli war.
It is located almost nine miles south of Nazareth.
Jesus would have been able to see Nazareth
from the ridge entering Nein.
Not a heavily populated place.
A simple cross road marks the entrance to the village.
Can well imagine here the story of Jesus
entering and seeing the funeral procession.
Luke tells the story of Jesus in Capernaum
and healing the centurion's servant.
The day after, in Luke 7:11-17,
he is entering the city of Nain,
with many of his disciples and a large crowd.
As he nears the gate, a dead man is being carried out.
He is the only son of a widow.
A large crowd was with her also.
Jesus had compassion on her,
touched the open coffin, and spoke to the man.
The dead man sat up and began to speak.
The amazed crowd began to Glorify God.
The story about Jesus went throughout
all of Judea and all the surrounding area.
Today in this Arab village, these are some of the typical
large generational houses that
dot the Israeli countryside.
They often house one generation per floor in a family.
Eusebius (c. 263-339) and Jerome (c. 347-420)
as being situated near Endor.
The Crusaders recognized this site
and built a church there
to commemorate the site of the miracle,
a church rebuilt by the Franciscans.
Nothing remains of the the church
except for some very recently
found foundation pieces.
Nothing has really been excavated here yet.
More complicated now in an Arab village.
A small village, but a memorable image.
Jesus still interrupts the funeral processions
of His followers, bringing NEW LIFE news.
Death has lost its sting because of the love of a Father,
who sent His Son, who died for me, and rose again.
That promise is my very own-
Jesus has destroyed the power of death.
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