Welcome to Nazareth - the start of our walk! This picturesque city on the spurs of the mountains of Galilee, is the largest Arab city in Israel. To welcome you, here is Revd Nael Abu Rahmoun from Christ Church.

Watch Revd Nael’s full message here.

Distance covered: 0 miles
Elevation: 320-488m
Population: 77,000
Christian population: 23,000

Principal churches

• Basilica of the Anunciation (Roman Catholic)
• Church of Saint Gabriel (Greek Orthodox)
• Synagogue-Church (on the site where Jesus preached; Greek Catholic)
• Church of St Joseph (on the site of Joseph’s carpentry shop; Roman Catholic)
• Christ Church (Anglican)

Economy

Nazareth is a key pilgrimage site, and its economy is built around the hundreds of people who visit each year. Many of the hotels, restaurants and tourist shops are run by members of the Christian community.

Christian heritage

You’ll be familiar with Nazareth as the hometown of Mary and Joseph, and the place where Jesus spent his formative years. Churches in Nazareth mark the traditional locations of Mary’s home, where the angel Gabriel spoke to her; Joseph’s carpentry shop; and the site where Jesus preached before being thrown out of the synagogue.

Friends of the Holy Land in Nazareth

• During the pandemic, we supplied laptops to schoolchildren to enable them to keep learning from home. You can hear more about this project here.
• With unemployment at 40% during the pandemic, we helped many families to pay tuition fees to keep their children in Christian schools
• We helped Christ School in Nazareth with new equipment to launch a media and communication program for their students. See more on that here.

Ready to begin? Let's head to Jenin, the first stop on your journey!