BETHLAHEM - Promised Land

Day 5 - 13 April 2011

TABA

From Cairo, Egypt we drove to TABA in Egypt, which is the border between Israel and Egypt. We had to leave the vehicle and had to walk about 500 mt to get to the customs and had to carry our own luggage as there were no other means of Transpoation. It took nearly couple of hours to get clearance from the customs and prearranged Tourist Bus was waiting for us on the other side of the customs. Taba is very beautiful city by the Red Sea where we could see Four countries Egypt, Israel and Jordan and Saudi Arabia from here.

TABA to JERUSALEM - Photos

CHURCH OF NATIVITY

Church of the Nativity is the oldest church in the Holy Land still in use, commemorating the birthplace of Jesus Christ. Since St. Helena is believed to have built the Church of the Nativity, there are others who believe that it was the Emperor Constantine who ordered the construction of monumental churches to honor the three principal events of Jesus' life. 



Exact location of Jesus Birth

The construction began in 326 AD, and with the aid of the locals' traditions who believed that the cave in which Jesus Christ (pbuh) was born was at the end of the village, the architects were able to construct the shape of the cave according to architectural and devotional requirements. The cave was encased by an octagonal structure forming the sanctuary of the basilica, which stretched away to the west in five aisles divided by four rows of monolithic columns.

The Church was rich with mosaics, frescoes, marbles, and a silver manger replacing the original clay manger.

Jesus was placed here after birth

The present Church was built during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor, Justinian. In 529, the Samaritans revolted, and the Church of the Nativity was badly damaged. The Patriarch of Jerusalem sent St. Sabas to Justinian for help, and the architect sent by the Emperor demolished the church and built the current one. New soil covered the mosaic floor built in 326, and a new pavement was laid at a higher level. When the Crusaders came in the 12th Century, they built a cloister and monastery around the north side of the Church.

The facade of the Church of the Nativity is encircled by the high walls of the three convents: the Franciscan on the northeast side, the Greek Orthodox and the Armenian Orthodox, on the southeast side. The facade had three doors, two of which are walled up. The present low entrance which leads into the narthex, was made at the beginning of the 16th century, in order to prevent the entrance of horses into the building. The narthex is divided into three compartments, and a single wooden door gives access to the interior.

The Manger is situated on the north side of the Grotto, and opposite the Manger, an Altar is dedicated to the Wise Men who came to Bethlehem from the East under the guidance of a star bearing gifts to Baby Jesus.

CHURCH OF NATIVITY - Photos 

KING SOLOMONS POOL:

Three pools surrounded by pine trees are located 5 kms (3.1 miles) south of Bethlehem on the road to Hebron and have been attributed to the prosperous period of King Solomon (950 BC) as mentioned in the Book of Ecclesiastics. "I made me great works; I built me houses, and planted vineyards; I made gardens and orchards, and set them with trees of all kinds; and I made me ponds of water to water therewith the wood of the young trees". 

King Solomon the wise, as mentioned in the Bible, constructed these pools for his wives, reportedly one thousand in number, so that they could bathe here.These pools were part of an ancient waterway supplying water to Jerusalem. They were repaired by Pontius Pilate. Herod the Great (30 BC) carried water by aqueduct from here to Heroduim and probably to Jerusalem.



King Solomon's Pool for his 1000 Wifes

PROPHETJONAS TOMB:

 Prophet Jona  GOD sent the prophet Jonah to preach to the people who lived in Nineveh in Assyria. They were enemies of the Israelites. Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh because he feared that if the Assyrians were converted, they might harm his people. Instead, he set out by boat for a far country. In this way he thought he could hide from God.     But God sent a violent storm upon the sea. "Throw me overboard," said Jonah to the sailors, "for I know that the storm has come because of me." So, praying to God for mercy, they threw Jonah into the sea. And the wind stopped, Then a great fish; sent by the Lord, swallowed Jonah. He was three days and three nights inside the fish. There Jonah prayed, "When any soul fainted, I remembered the Lord, Now I will offer my sacrifice. I will pay what I owe to the Lord.



Jona's Tomb

For God is my deliverer." At last, the fish threw Jonah out upon the shore. God again ordered Jonah to go to Nineveh. This time he obeyed. He went through the streets of the city, crying, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be destroyed." When the king and the people heard this, they were in great fear. The king ordered everyone in the city to do penance for his sins. Even the king did penance that God might forgive Nineveh. God saw that the people were sincere, and in His mercy He spared the city. 

  

Jonah feared that he might be looked upon as a false prophet. He built a hut outside the city and waited there to see what would happen. God caused an ivy to grow and shelter Jonah from the hot sun. For this Jonah was grateful. The next morning, God caused the ivy to wither. The sun beat down with such heat on Jonah that he cried, "It is better for me to die than to live." God then said to him, "You are sorry for the ivy, although you were not the one to make it grow. Shall I not, therefore, spare Nineveh, which has more than one hundred twenty thousand people?" 

Jonah, cast into the sea to save the sailors, was like Jesus Christ, who was sacrificed to redeem the world. Jonah was three days inside the fish; Christ was three days in the tomb. 

The story of Jonah shows God's interest; not only in Israel but in all mankind. It teaches that men must do penance for their sins. It also tells how God made use of His prophets, even when they did not want to carry out His messages.

PROPHET JONA'S TOMB - Photos 

SHEPHERED'S FIELD:

Approximately 2 km to the east of Bethlahem lies the village of Beit Sahour, where one of the most sacred places to Christians; the Shepherds' Field; is found, identified as the scene where the Angel of the Lord visited the shepherds and informed them of Jesus' birth "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And the Angel said to them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people" (Luke 2:8-10).

Exact location Angels appeared to Shephered

On the basis of archaeological evidence, it has been proved that the church dated to early Byzantine period, and that it is the earliest Christian structure build on this site.

Up to 1972, only the underground church was visible and in regular use, but almost none of the mosaics were visible. In that year the spiritual father of the Monastery of Saint Savva, Archimadrite Seraphim, had taken control of this holy shrine, in order to build a new full-size church above the basement church. Excavating the foundations for the new church, there were remains of three different churches of the 5th, 6th and 7th centuries found respectively. 

Now the holy site consists of five churches:

The Natural Cave Church which dates to the 2nd half of the 4th century

The Cave Church, dating to the 5th century

The Roof Chapel, which also dated to the 5th century

The Basilica, which dates to the 6th century

The Monastery Church, which dates to the 7th century

The nearby field of Ruth is traditionally associated with the events of the Old Testament (recounted in the Book of Ruth 1:16).

SHEPHERED'S FIELD - Photos 

TOMBS OF ABRAHAM, SARAH, ISSAC and REBECCA

TOMBS - Photos