Cana (Israel), Sep 3 (DC): In a revelation of Biblical proportions, academics claim to have solved the millennia-old mystery, bolstering the case for the New Testament’s historical accuracy.
According to a news published in Daily Star, the Gospel of John, Jesus Christ had turned water into wine during the Wedding at Cana.
The account goes that Jesus, his mother Mary and his disciples were invited to a wedding, and when the wine ran out, Jesus delivered a sign of his glory by turning water into wine.
While pilgrims have, for hundreds of years, believed the miracle site to be Kafr Kanna, a town in northern Israel near the Sea of Galilee, archaeologists now believe the Cana of biblical times to actually be a dusty hillside five miles further north.
According to academics, a number of compelling clues suggest the site is actually Khirbet Qana, a Jewish village which existed between the years of 323 BC and AD 324.
Excavations have revealed a network of tunnels used for Christian worship, marked with crosses and references to Kyrie Iesou, a Greek phrase meaning Lord Jesus.
There was also an altar and a shelf with the remains of a stone vessel, plus room for five more.
Six stone jars like this held the wine in the biblical account of the miracle.
According to Dr Tom McCollough, who is directing excavations at the site, there were three other sites with a credible claim to being the Cana of scripture.
“But none has the ensemble of evidence that makes such a persuasive case for Khirbet Qana,” he said according to Daily Star.
He went on to add, “We have uncovered a large Christian veneration cave complex that was used by Christian pilgrims who came to venerate the water-to-wine miracle.”
Dr McCollough went on to add that the complex was used at the beginning of the late fifth or early 6th Century and continued to be used by pilgrims into the 12th Century Crusader period.
“The pilgrim texts we have from this period that describe what pilgrims did and saw when they came to Cana of Galilee match very closely what we have exposed as the veneration complex,” he said.
As part of his evidence, Dr McCollough points to the work of first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus.
He said that Josphus’ references to Cana align geographically with the location of Khirbet Qana and align logically with his movements.
As for the better-known site at Kafr Kanna, Dr McCollough is sceptical.