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 Kursi  34 pictures
 2 minutes HQ video Kursi is located east of the Sea of Galilee, seven kilometers north of Ein Gev, at the junction road leading to the Golan Heights via Giv'at Yoav. The Site  According to Christian tradition, Kursi is the site of the "Miracle of the Swine" mentioned in the New Testament (Luke 8:26-39; Matthew 8:23-34). It is identified with Gergessa of Gerasa, "which is the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee". Here, the New Testament relates, after Jesus had exorcised some devils from the body of a man, they possessed a herd of swine grazing nearby. The swine then raced into the Sea of Galilee and were drowned. Archaeological investigators identify the site as ancient Kurshi, mentioned in the Talmud as a center of idol worship. Other finds included columns, a damaged inscription, and a stone bench for viewing the Sea of Galilee. The excavators assume that the Miracle of the Swine occurred near the rock. The monastery and church were probably built in the fifth century A.D. The church was built in the basilica form with two rows of columns which divide it into a nave and two side aisles. Near the apse (a semi-circular niche that protrudes from the building) is the baptistery, built at the end of the sixth century. Streets, fortifications and a variety of buildings were constructed around the monastery in order to serve the numerous pilgrims who frequented the area. In 614, during the Persian invasion of the Holy Land, the church was damaged, many of the other buildings were destroyed, and the area of settlement was substantially reduced. The church was later reconstructed, but at the beginning of the eighth century it was razed by fire. Ninth-century Arab settlers in the area used the remains of the church as homes and storage rooms. It is probably they who were responsible for the destruction of the figures in the mosaic floors. From the ninth century until the recent reconstructions, Kursi ceased to serve as a place of Christian pilgrimage. Kursi was opened to the public in September 1982, and has aroused a great deal of interest among Christian pilgrims to Israel.   Ancient mosaic floor 
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