“Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves.  Then he gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people.  He also divided the two fish among them all.  They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish.  The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand.”  (Mark 6:41–44)

Arsonists torched the Church of the Multiplication in Tabgha, which commemorates the miracle of the loaves and fishes in which Yeshua (Jesus) fed a multitude of 5,000.

The perpetrators scrawled their message in Hebrew on one of the walls of the Galilee church, reading: “The false gods will be eliminated,” which is a quote from the Aleinu prayer that closes the morning, afternoon and evening prayer services.

At the time of the attack there were 12 volunteers sleeping in the church dormitory.  Two people, a 19-year-old tourist and a 79-year-old church volunteer, suffered from slight smoke inhalation.

The fire, which severely damaged the building, including the roof, reception area, storeroom, and nuns’ office, broke out in the early morning hours on Thursday. Firefighters from nearby Tiberias fought the flames for three hours.

This mosaic symbolizing the multiplication of the loaves and fishes is found in the Church of the Multiplication in Tabgha.

Tabgha, which is on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee, is the traditional site of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes.

The fire was stopped short of the prayer room, but hundreds of books were burned, and the gift shop was seriously damaged by a thick layer of soot.

“This is an extremely grave event,” said Tiberias police commander Supt. Ran Levy.  “We’re gathering findings to locate the suspects.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he considered it “an attack on all of us” and ordered the head of the internal security agency the Shin Bet, Yoram Cohen, to carry out an accelerated investigation of the event.

“Freedom of worship in Israel is one of the foundation stones of our values and is protected by law.  We will exercise the full weight of the law with those responsible for this criminal act.  Hate and intolerance have no place in our society,” he said.

The church is run by the Catholic Benedictine Order and is a favorite tourist site best known for its 5th century mosaics, one of which depicts two fish surrounding a basket of loaves.

In recent years, right-wing Jewish extremists have been carrying out various acts of vandalism against both Christian and Arab property under the slogan of “price tag” attacks inferring the cost of government cooperation with such groups or in retribution of similar Palestinian attacks.

Nuns pray in the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes in Tabgha.

Speaking on Army radio following this latest attack, Captain (res.) Shadi Halul, who heads the Christian IDF Officers Forum, said that the attackers are mistaken if they think it will benefit their cause.

“If in this case Jewish zealots are fingered, then, first of all, they clearly don’t represent all the Jews.  They’re criminals who should be in prison and not walking around freely,” said Halul.  (Times of Israel)

Sixteen ultra-Orthodox youth were brought in for questioning during the day of the attack but released due to lack of evidence.

The attack has received universal condemnation in Israeli society.

Israeli Minister of Public Security, Strategic Affairs and Information, Gilad Erdan

“The torching of the church is a cowardly and despicable act which contradicts Israel’s basic values,” the Minister of Public Security, Strategic Affairs and Information, Gilad Erdan said.

“Whoever lights fire to a church is not only an idiot who lacks respect for religion — he is also a terrorist who is severely damaging the State of Israel,” said former foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman.  “Law enforcement authorities should act with abundant severity toward whoever is found guilty.”

Chief Rabbi David Lau also condemned the arsonists stating, “The actions taken this morning, apparently by ignorant and violent cowards, are completely at odds with the values of Judaism and humanity.”  (Israel Today)

Although most agree that if Jewish zealots are found to be the culprits they are not representative of all Jews, some have suggested that the attack may have been carried out by Muslim extremists with the intent of placing the blame on Jewish sources.

It is thought that damage to the church might run in the millions of dollars.