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Most houses are not remembered for their ‘rooftops.’ There is an exception to that in the port city of Jaffa - the rooftop of one, Simon the Tanner. It was made famous by a vision that St. Peter had, which we read about in Acts 10:9-47.
The traditional site for this event is a house located above the ancient port in the heart of Old Jaffa. There is another site of Roman Catholic tradition, that locates the house at St. Peter’s Church.
TRADITIONAL - When I host tours to the Holy Land, I try to make the distinction between HISTORICAL and TRADITIONAL sites. When a location is historical, there will be archaeological/empirical evidence (based on science). When a site is traditional, it is rooted in a thread of fact to justify its claim.
So let’s see this site in a traditional sense. It meets the qualifications of being in Jaffa (ancient Joppa), it is on the seashore, and it has a flat rooftop. All of these are facts in the Acts account.
Is it the house of Simon? Most likely not, especially since the architecture is clearly of newer design. Is it close in proximity to the original house? There is no way of knowing that. However, visiting this location, even if it is not the exact house, reminds us of God’s gracious plan in bringing Gentiles into faith in Christ.
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