Israel and You Spaces and Places in Israel
Cana of the Galilee
The Arab village of Kafr Cana in the Lower Galilee has been identified in Christian tradition as Cana of the Galilee. Here, according to tradition, Jesus performed two miracles:
- The miracle of the wine, Jesus’ first miracle, when he went to a wedding of a poor couple and turned water into wine. (John Chapter 2,: 1-11)
- Cana is also the place of the remote healing of an official’s son 32 km away in Capernaum. (John 4:46-49)
Cana’s actual location is uncertain, with at least three possible candidates. Another possible site for Cana, preferred by many modern scholars, is the ruined village of Khirbet Kana (Khirbet Qana), 12km northwest of Nazareth. recent excavations on a hill just north of Nazareth have uncovered ruins of a Jewish village from the 1st century AD. The excavators think the biblical Cana could be there instead of at this site 1 km to the east.
All of the churches in Cana are conveniently placed along one just off the main road to Nazareth on a quiet pedestrian street that just happens to be called Church Street. Of course you can purchase original Cana wine here.
Greek Orthodox St. George Church
Most websites begin the tour of Cana at the Catholic Church, but my tour begins as I was guided by a Christian Arab friend who is a resident of Cana. The Greek Orthodox church of St. George (Greek Orthodox Church of the Marriage Feast), built in 1886, houses two stone jars that Greek Orthodox followers believe are the jars in which Jesus performed the miracle of the wine. This church built in 1886, in close proximity to the Catholic church and only seven years after the Franciscan Wedding Church was built. So you see the Christian development of Cana occurred at the same time as the First Aliyah of Zionist immigrants to the Holy Land.
Catholic Church of Cana – The Church of the Wedding
The most important site in the village is the Catholic Church stands on the “traditional” site of the miracle of the wine, at least according to Franciscan tradition. The Franciscans established themselves here in 1641 and began building the present church over an older church in 1879. It was consecrated in 1883. Beneath the sacristy of the present Franciscan church were found remains of dwellings dating back to the 1st century and an ancient basilica with three apses in cross-like form. In a crypt a small stone cistern was found fitted into a flagstone floor.
Address:Latin Church Cana P.O.B. 1580 16930 Kafr Kanna ISRAEL
Tel: 972. 4 651.70.11
+972. 4 641.80.39
Fax: +972. 4 651.97.06
Sanctuary Visiting Hours
- Summer: 8:00am to 12:00pm; 2:00pm to 6:00pm
- Winter: 8:00am to 12:00pm; 2:00pm to 5:00pm
- Closed on Sundays
Church of St. Bartholomew
In 1885, a chapel in honor of Saint Bartholomew (Nathanael of Cana), one of the twelve apostles and a native of Cana, was built about 100 meters from the church on the site of his home.
