Archaeologists have stated that a biblical city of Bethsaida has been discovered in El-Araj, Israel, indicated by the found house of Saint Peter and a lost church where Jesus performed miracles, reports the British newspaper Daily Star.
Experts believe that a site known in Israel as El-Araj is the legendary city of Bethsaida, where Jesus performed several of his most incredible miracles. According to archaeologists, their discovery is likely to shed light on where the apostle Peter actually lived.
On the shores of the lake, scientists found a massive Byzantine-era basilica, presumably the church of the apostles. They also uncovered weights used by local fishermen during the Roman period and an inscription in which Saint Peter is referred to as "the head of the apostles and the keeper of the keys to heaven." The most astonishing find, the archaeologists stated, was a first-century structure hidden directly beneath the apse of the church, the domed part where the altar used to be. The scientists' findings are corroborated by notes from the 8th-century bishop Willibald, who claimed that the church was built right on the site of the house of Peter and Andrew's brothers.
"This discovery is the most compelling evidence that Peter was closely associated with the basilica and that it was likely dedicated to him," said excavation leader Stephen Notley.
He noted that since, in the Byzantine Christian tradition, Peter's house was located in Bethsaida and not in Capernaum as is often believed today, it is quite possible that the basilica was erected in memory of his home.
It is noted that according to the New Testament, in Bethsaida, Jesus restored sight to a blind man by leading him out of the village, fed 5,000 people (who lived nearby) with five loaves and two fish, and gathered around him his closest circle, which included Philip, Andrew, and Peter.
