Sabbatical Journal 8: Simon the Tanner's House, Joppa - July 14

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Hello friends, I have been quiet for a bit because since arriving in the Holy Land we have been quite active! I will begin with the ancient city of Joppa (now a part of Tel Aviv-Yafo) where we stayed when we began our time in Israel.
We walked from our Airbnb to the old Port of Joppa where many believe Jonah went to get on the boat to escape God and his call to go to Ninevah. There is a whale statue near Joppa Port in Jonah's honor. But another meaningful site for Christians in this four thousand year old town is Simon the Tanner's House, pictured here.
It is in Old Jaffa, right next to the ocean facing the port. An Armenian family has owned it for generations and runs the lighthouse that is on top of the house and is still operational today. This is the place where Peter would have come up to the roof (Acts 9-10). Now in the Middle East sometimes a roof can be more exposed, but here right next to the ocean with the breeze it would have been a pleasant place to wait for the meal that was being prepared for him.
And it was here that he received the vision of the animals that he had previously thought to be unclean on the sheet. And here that God told him "do not call unclean what I have called clean." Peter understood that he was meant to welcome into the fold those whom he previously would have seen as unclean. Here in this port city the gospel was thus  opened up for more believers.
We have seen first hand just how entrenched these beliefs are here in Jerusalem. In Joppa we experienced openness to outsiders and even good humor. But here in Jerusalem we have seen how people are mis-treated or barely tolerated if they are not dressed in what is seen to be an appropriate manner or otherwise seem to flout religious tradition. While respecting other's religious beliefs is always important, I remain especially grateful for Simon the Tanner's hospitality and for Peter's vision, which led to the inclusion we still see in the church today (on its better days), and in other religious groups on their better days also.

Hola amigos, he estado un poco quieto porque desde que llegamos a Tierra Santa hemos estado bastante activas. Comenzaré con la antigua ciudad de Jope (ahora parte de Tel Aviv-Yafo) donde nos quedamos cuando comenzamos nuestra estadía en Israel.

Caminamos desde nuestro Airbnb hasta el antiguo Puerto de Jope, donde muchos creen que Jonás fue a subir al bote para escapar de Dios y su llamado a ir a Ninevah. Hay una estatua de ballena cerca del puerto de Jope en honor de Jonás. Pero otro sitio significativo para los cristianos en esta ciudad de cuatro mil años de antigüedad es la casa de Simón el curtidor, que se muestra aquí. Está en Jaffa Antiguo, justo al lado del océano frente al puerto. Una familia armenia lo ha poseído por generaciones y dirige el faro que está en la parte superior de la casa y todavía está en funcionamiento hoy en día. Este es el lugar donde Pedro habría subido al techo (Hechos 9-10). Ahora en el Medio Oriente a veces un techo puede estar más expuesto, pero aquí, justo al lado del océano con la brisa, habría sido un lugar agradable para esperar la comida que se estaba preparando para él. Y fue aquí donde recibió la visión de los animales que previamente había pensado que eran impuros en la sábana. Y aquí, que Dios le dijo "no llames impuro a lo que yo llamo limpio". Peter comprendió que estaba destinado a dar la bienvenida en el redil a aquellos a los que antes habría visto impuros. Aquí, en esta ciudad portuaria, el evangelio se abrió así a más creyentes. Hemos visto de primera mano cuán arraigadas están estas creencias aquí en Jerusalén. En Joppa experimentamos apertura a los forasteros e incluso al buen humor. Pero aquí en Jerusalén hemos visto cómo las personas son maltratadas o apenas toleradas, no están vestidas con lo que se considera una manera apropiada o que parecen no seguir la tradición religiosa. Aunque respetar las creencias religiosas de los demás siempre es importante, sigo especialmente agradecido por la hospitalidad de Simon y por la visión de Peter, lo que llevó a la inclusión que aún vemos en la iglesia hoy (en sus mejores días) y en otros grupos religiosos en sus días mejores también. amigos, he estado un poco quieta tranquilo

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