While excavating a church in Israel that was once located in the ancient city of Bethsaida, archaeologists have discovered a mosaic with an inscription dedicated to the Apostle Peter. According to scientists, the mosaic in honor of the apostle indicates that the church was built on the site of a house in which Peter and his brother Andrew, called in the New Testament the first disciples of Jesus, could live. It is reported by the Times of Israel.

The inscription on the mosaic begins with the words of the person who donated it: "Konstantinos, Servant of the Messiah", and then uses the Byzantine phrase "Head and Leader of the Heavenly Heralds", which refers to Peter.

Researchers at the Kinneret Institute of Galilee Archeology at Kinneret College and Nyack College, led by Prof. Mordechai Aviam and Prof. Stephen Notley note that the mosaic floor inscriptions use a generic term for Petra. In their opinion, this indicates that they correctly identified the location of the church of the apostles, which is spoken of in the New Testament.

“Byzantine Christian tradition usually identified the house of Peter and Andrew with Bethsaida. It is likely that the basilica commemorates their home. This discovery also confirms its identification with the church described by Willibald, the 8th-century bishop of Eichstadt, who reported that it was built over the house of Peter and Andrew,” said Professor Notley.

Willibald in 724 made a pilgrimage to the holy places along the northern shore of the Sea of ​​Galilee. He wrote: “And from there they went to Bethsaida, the residence of Peter and Andrew, where there is now a church in the place of their house. They stayed there that night, and in the morning they went to Chorazin, where our Lord healed the possessed, and sent the devil to a herd of pigs.

Archaeologists announced the discovery of the alleged church building back in 2019 and have been working on the site ever since. Excavations at this site will continue until October, scientists hope to unearth the entire building of the church and find other tablets.