| Mount Precipice | |
|---|---|
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 395 m (1,296 ft) |
| Coordinates | 32°40′58″N35°17′55″E / 32.68278°N 35.29861°E /32.68278; 35.29861 |
| Geography | |
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| Location | Nazareth |
Mount Precipice (Hebrew:הר הקפיצה, "Har HaKfitsa";Arabic:جبل القفزة, "Jebel al-Qafzeh", "Mount of the Leap"), also known asMount of Precipitation,Mount of the Leap of the Lord andMount Kedumim is located just outside the southern edge ofNazareth, 2.0 km southwest of the modern city center.
It is believed by some to be the site of theRejection of Jesus described in theGospel of Luke (Luke 4:29–30). According to the story, the people of Nazareth, not accepting Jesus as Messiah tried to push him from the mountain, but "he passed through the midst of them and went away."[1][better source needed]
Archaeological excavations in theQafzeh Cave in the mountainfound human remains, whose estimated age is 100,000 years old. The human skeletons were associated with red ochre which was found only alongside the bones, suggesting that the burials were symbolic in nature. Previous to this discovery, scientists believed that human symbolic reasoning evolved much later, about 50,000 years ago.[2]
During the 20th century the mountain was used as a quarry, now abandoned.Highway 60 goes through a tunnel dug in the mountain in the site of the old quarry, connectingAfula andJezreel Valley (Arabic - Marj Ibn Amer) directly to Nazareth.[3]
On 14 May 2009,Pope Benedict XVI celebrated aMass on this mountain, during hisvisit to the Holy Land. 40,000 people participated.[4]
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