In New Testament study with “Come, Follow Me” the week of Feb. 6, Latter-day Saints read about the miracle at the marriage in Cana — where the Savior changed water into wine.
As the first miracle Jesus performed publicly, it was an event the Apostle John called the “beginning of miracles” (John 2:11).
This event is one of many that can be found on the Church’s new augmented reality (AR) map of the Holy Land that brings to life key events from the Savior’s life and ministry.
While exploring the miracle in Cana and other events, users will find links to scriptures, videos, articles and/or images to enhance their study. The tool is available at virtualtours.ChurchofJesusChrist.org/lifeofchristmap in 24 languages through the end of the year.
“As we study the Savior’s journey through mortality, we will discover principles of truth in His words and miracles, which provide strength and personal direction for our lives,” said Elder Randall K. Bennett, General Authority Seventy, in an article about the new tool on ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
“Not only can we learn of Christ, but we can better learn how to ‘follow his steps’ (1 Peter 2:21) and ‘walk, even as he walked’ (1 John 2:6).”
How to use the tool
The augmented reality tool is best experienced on an iOS or Android mobile phone or tablet. To use the tool, simply hold the phone or tablet over a flat surface and a three-dimensional map of the Holy Land will appear.
The map displays locations of 91 events and teachings recorded in the four Gospels, such as the baptism of Jesus and the Sermon on the Mount. These events are organized into eight stages of the Savior’s earthly ministry, like His North Galilean Ministry or the week before His Resurrection.
Learn about an event by selecting a number on the map or using the side gallery to scroll through the 91 events from the Savior’s life in order.
Once an event is selected, up to four icons appear at the bottom of the screen with related content:
- Scripture icon: links to the passage of verses in the King James Version of the Bible.
- Play button icon: shows a related video from the Church’s Bible Videos series, when available.
- Article icon: gives a related general conference talk or article from the Church magazines.
- Camera icon: shows related paintings or photos and gives a corresponding account from New Testament Stories for children, when available.
The tool can be a helpful resource for enhancing personal and family study of the New Testament and class study for seminary teachers and students. And because the tool doesn’t require being logged in to the Church’s website, members can share it with friends who may be interested.
A link to the map will be included in Gospel Library for corresponding “Come, Follow Me” lessons.
Print version of the map
The map is also featured in the February 2023 Liahona magazine. The print version contains an index of the 91 key events and eight periods of the Savior’s life, and the back cover of the magazine folds out to a map of the Holy Land and Jerusalem. Scanning the QR code links directly to the augmented reality tool.
Each event is numbered and corresponding numbers are found on the maps. While each of the Gospels depicts the order and location of some events differently, the order and locations presented in the print version of the map and the augmented reality tool follow the Harmony of the Gospels and Bible Maps study aids published by the Church.
View or download the multipage PDF here.
More resources for studying the New Testament
The map is one of many resources the Church has for studying the New Testament this year. Other resources include:
- Children’s Bible Videos (features children telling Bible stories in their own words)
- New Testament teaching videos
- New Testament Stories (for children)
- New Testament resources from the Friend
- Scripture Stories Coloring Book — New Testament (for children)
- New Testament images
