What to see in Old Jaffa. St. Peter's Church (Tel Aviv, Israel)
Walking through old Jaffa, you will notice an old church with a tall and slender bell tower. This is the Catholic Church of St. Peter, one of the oldest buildings in the ancient city. The church was built in 1654 in honor of the Apostle Peter on the site of a medieval fortress built by the Roman emperor Frederick I in the 12th century and rebuilt after the destruction by Louis IX in the 13th century. Unfortunately, turbulent and difficult times left their mark: the church was destroyed twice (at the end of the 18th century), twice restored, rebuilt, each time it changed its appearance, therefore the building that we now see in its current form belongs to the period of the end 19th century.
Nevertheless, the temple also includes some of the remains of the citadel of the era of Saint Louis (Louis IX), which have survived to this day, dating precisely to the 13th century. Inside of which there are 2 rounded rooms, preserved in their original appearance, they have rather low ceilings and embrasures. It is believed that it was there that Napoleon stayed in 1799 during his military campaign in Syria and Egypt.
St. Peter's Church is one of the most notable local historical buildings, as it was erected in the Baroque style and built of pink bricks, it is especially beautiful.
A fairly large number of significant and miraculous events that took place here are associated with the name of the Apostle Peter. Perhaps it is worth starting with how the apostle ended up here ...
Fate brought Peter to Jaffa because of the death of the righteous Tabitha. The Apostle heeded the requests of the followers of Christ, who were terribly upset by the death of a virtuous Christian woman, who during her life did a lot of good, gave a lot of alms. Peter sent everyone out of the house where the recently deceased woman was lying, prayed, and a miracle happened: Tabitha got up. It is this episode that is depicted on church stained-glass windows.
Another important episode associated with Peter's stay in Jaffa is shown in the altarpiece. When Peter was visiting the house of the tanner Simon, he received visions of non-kosher food, it was a revelation from above that there are no people who are clean or unclean. If the Lord has purified someone, then such a person cannot be considered unclean. There are no obstacles to the preaching of the Gospel among the Gentiles.
In addition, the church stained-glass windows made in the German city of Munich (artist - Franz Xaver Zettler) depict such important milestones in Peter's life as the miraculous catch of fish in the Sea of Galilee, Lake Kinneret (Luke 5: 1-11; John 21: 1- 8), presence at the Transfiguration of the Lord on Tabor (Matthew 17: 1–6, Mark 9: 1–8, Luke 9: 28–36), the Lord giving Peter the keys to Paradise (Matthew 16: 17-19), ablution feet during the Last Supper (John 13: 3-17).
Masses (prayer services) are held in Italian, English, Spanish, Polish and German. The service schedule can be found at the entrance. The church is open to the public every day.
How to get there
St. Peter's Church is located on the main square of old Jaffa - Kdumim Square, rises on a hill, the slopes of which descend to the Mediterranean Sea. This Catholic Church should be distinguished from the Orthodox Church of the Apostle Peter and the Righteous Tabitha, also located in Jaffa (Herzl Street).
Gordon municipal beach on the coast of the central area of Tel Aviv