Mount of Beatitudes

On the way from Tiberias to the Golan Heights, there is a point where it is very worthwhile to stop for a moment. Something in the landscape simply demands it. The Sea of Galilee reveals itself in all its glory – merging with the mountains on the horizon, lying in absolute silence between sky and fields, surrounded by manicured carpets of colorful flowers, soft brown earth and green shrubs carefully shaped. This is one of the most beautiful and peaceful viewpoints there is – it is no coincidence that the Church of the Beatitudes was built here, and it fits perfectly with the spirit of the place. The path from the parking lot toward the church passes between stone tablets with verses from the New Testament engraved on them – quotations from the Sermon on the Mount attributed to this place. The verses seem to ask to accompany the walkers with slow and quiet steps, to encourage thought and inner contemplation.

But these verses reminded me specifically of a very funny scene from the movie “Life of Brian” by Monty Python, when listeners to someone’s sermon whose name they didn’t quite catch, standing too far away and asking “What did he say? Blessed are the cheesemakers?”. The combination of the sanctity of the place with this British humor brought an uncontrollable smile, and added an unexpected layer to the experience.

The church itself is quiet, modest, round, open to the landscape. Not gilded and glittering from the outside but from within. It does not try to dominate the surroundings, but simply to integrate with them. And it succeeds. From every corner there – from the paths, from the trees, from the benches – you can look at the Sea of Galilee and breathe a little deeper. Perhaps it is because of the biblical story, perhaps because of the manicured vegetation, or perhaps simply because this is one of the places that seems to have been chosen with particular care.

The Mount of Beatitudes is not just a Christian site, not just a viewpoint, and not just a place with a beautiful view. It is a place that manages to combine spirituality with landscape, quiet with color, seriousness with a small smile that comes up without you planning it.