Chorazin

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Decor in the gable of the synagogue

Chorazin ( Hebrew כורזים Korazim ; today: Khirbet Karazeh) was a village in northern Galilee in Israel , where Jesus of Nazareth worked. It was three kilometers northwest of Capernaum on a hill on the shores of the Sea of ​​Galilee . In rabbinical texts it is listed as a medium-sized village with around 1000 inhabitants (tMak 3.8). The remains of a synagogue from the 3rd century were found. Chorazin is now an Israeli national park .

history

Oil mill and press for olive oil

The earliest settlement took place in the 1st or 2nd century on the northern slope. The archaeologists have not yet been able to find a settlement that could be dated to the early 1st century AD. In the 3rd and 4th centuries the city grew southwards. The main settlement of Chorazin and most of the settlement remains visible today date from these two centuries. They are made of black basalt , a local volcanic rock. The remains of the city are scattered over an area of ​​100,000 square meters that is divided into five separate quarters, with a synagogue in the middle. The large and impressive synagogue made of black basalt is decorated with Jewish motifs. A mikveh , a basin for ritual cleansing, was found north of the synagogue . There are public and residential buildings to the south, east and west of the synagogue. Several millstones for grinding the olives and pressing equipment for the olive oil suggest a connection with olive growing as an economic basis, as was the case for a number of other villages in ancient Galilee.

In the following centuries up to the 8th century, i.e. H. until the early Arab period, some buildings were renovated. After a gap of a few hundred years, there was a new settlement in the 13th century. Jewish fishermen lived in the village in the 16th century.

The synagogue

The ancient synagogue

The synagogue was built in the late 3rd century, destroyed in the 4th century (possibly by the earthquake in 363) and rebuilt in the 6th.

The two three-dimensional lion sculptures that represent a couple are unusual for an ancient synagogue. A similar pair of lions were found in the synagogue in the village of Bar'am . Other stone carvings, believed to have been originally colored, show images of wine press, animals, a Medusa , an armed soldier and an eagle. The technique clearly indicates a Hellenistic influence. A seat was also found, carved in basalt, which was reserved for dignitaries ( rabbis ). It is referred to in ancient sources as the "Seat of Moses" and contains an Aramaic inscription.

In 1926, the archaeologist J. Ory reported that a second synagogue had been found about 200 meters west of the first. He described them very carefully. However, such a building would first have to be found through excavations.

archeology

First excavations were carried out under the direction of Carl Watzinger and Heinrich Kohl in the early 1900s. In particular, they examined the synagogue. Excavations continued in the 1920s by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, along with British mandate authorities . Extensive excavations and a survey were carried out in the years 1962–1964. Further excavations were carried out in 1980–1987.

Archaeologists uncovered a 1500 year old wine press and a mosaic in Chorazin in 2019. The wine press is four meters long and four meters wide and dates from the 4th to 6th centuries AD.

Chorazin in the Bible and in the Talmud

The “Seat of Moses”, ancient Chorazin synagogue

Chorazin (Χοραζίν) together with Bethsaida and Capernaum in the New Testament , in the Gospels of Matthew Mt 11.20 to 24  LUTH and shorter some of Luke Lk 10.13 to 15  LUTH mentioned as "cities" (πόλεις) in which Jesus has accomplished great deeds, the population of which nevertheless did not repent (according to Matthew):

“ 20 Then Jesus began to reproach the cities where most of his deeds had taken place; for they had not repented: 21 Woe to you, Chorazin ! Woe to you, Betsaida! If such deeds had happened in Tire and Sidon, as they happened to you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I say to you, Tire and Sidon will be more tolerable on the day of judgment than you. "

Because of Jesus' condemnation, some early medieval authors believed the Antichrist would be born in Chorazin.

The Babylonian Talmud (Menahot, 85a) mentions that the city of Chorazin was known for its grain .

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Eckhard J. Schnabel : Original Christian Mission. TVG: Wuppertal / Giessen 2002, ISBN 3-417-29475-4 , p. 233.
  2. ^ Avraham Negev, Shimon Gibson: Archaeological encyclopedia of the Holy Land . Continuum International Publishing Group, 2005, ISBN 0-8264-8571-5 , pp. 118 .
  3. ^ Steven Fine: Art and Judaism in the Greco-Roman world: toward a new Jewish archeology . Cambridge University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-521-84491-6 , pp. 190 .
  4. ^ Steven Fine: Art and Judaism in the Greco-Roman world: toward a new Jewish archeology . Cambridge University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-521-84491-6 , pp. 92 .
  5. ^ Gideon Foerster: Synagogues at Masada and Herodium. In: Eretz Israel. 11, 1973, p. 26.
  6. ↑ Anders Runesson, Donald D. Binder, Birger Olsson: The Ancient Synagogue from its Origins to 200 CE . Brill, Leiden 2008, ISBN 978-90-04-16116-0 , p. 32.
  7. ↑ Wine press and mosaic discovered. In: Israelnetz .de. April 2, 2019, accessed April 12, 2019 .

  • Korazim

  • Korazim

Web links

Commons : Chorazin  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 32 ° 54 ′ 41 ″  N , 35 ° 33 ′ 50 ″  E