Birth Place of Christ
According to tradition, Mary gave birth to Jesus at the place of where the star is located

On the floor.  The tradition that the birth was in a cave is one of the oldest Christian

traditions.  Justin Martyr mentions it in the mid-2nd century, as does the Protoevangelium

of James  (also 2nd c.).  Origen, a priest,  notes that the cave of Jesus' birth was pointed

out in his day and no doubt this was the same place where the Byzantine church was erected.

Church of the Nativity
The entrance to the famous church in Bethlehem is remarkably unimpressive. The large

courtyard is perfect for priests, pilgrims or tourists, but most noticeable are the vendors. 

Palestinian police now patrol the area.  Buses no longer are allowed to enter the square,

but instead are directed to a large parking structure. This building is the oldest standing

church in the Holy Land.  Originally built by Constantine's mother in the 4th century, Emperor Justinian rebuilt the current structure in the 530s.  It was apparently spared destruction from the Persians in 614 A.D. because the invaders saw the depictions of the Magi on the walls.  Local Muslim-Christian friendship is believed to be why the church was not destroyed during al-Hakim's rule in 1009

 Ancient Mosaics in the Church of the Nativity
Underneath the present floor are beautiful mosaics of the earlier church.  The church built at the direction of Constantine's mother was octagonal in shape, typical of Byzantine memorial churches.  Before the Roman empire converted to Christianity, the area was a sacred grove of Thammuz.

Church of Saint Ann
This Crusader church is preserved because it became an Islamic school after the Crusades. It has some of the best acoustics in the Holy Land, so many groups like to sing here. The crypt below the church is a grotto where local tradition says the Blessed Virgin was born. The New Testament mentions nothing of Her birth, but the story is told in a second century Jewish-Christian book known as Proto-Evangelion or First or First Gospel of St. James: The birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary is not recorded in the New Testament, but the Proto-Evangelion of James tells the story of her parents' childlessness in old age and the birth of Mary to St. Ann and St. Joachim. St. Ann lamented her childlessness in Proto-Evangelion 3:2ff.

Pool of Bethesda
Outside the Church of St. Ann are the excavations of the Pool of Bethesda. At the east end are the ruins of the Byzantine church and the structure in the center of the pool is a Crusader church. Various pagan shrines can be found among the ruins. At the west end of the pool is a stone wall still partially covered with plaster. This is probably the eight century wall of the Upper Pool mentioned in Isaiah 7:3.

From Galilee Jesus Christ again went up to Jerusalem fover.

Moving Water Healing Pool of Mercy
Not far from the Temple, by the sheep gate through which they drove the sheep for sacrifices, there was a pool with five porticoes or galleries. This pool with the galleries was called Bethesda, which means house of mercy. In the galleries beside the pool, lay many sick, blind, lame and withered. They were all waiting for the moving of the water, for an angel of the Lord went down at a certain season into the pool and stirred the water. Whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was healed of whatever disease he had.

Jesus Christ visited this house of mercy. There, He saw a man who had an infirmity thirty-eight years. Jesus Christ said to him, "Do you want to be healed?"

The sick man answered, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred; and while I am going, another steps down before me."

Jesus Christ said to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk."

The Mount of Olives  - Jebel Ez-Zeitun, Jebel et-Tur, "Mount of the Summit")

is a mountain ridge to the east of Jerusalem. It is named from the olive trees with which its sides are clothed. At the foot of the mountain is the Gardens of Gethsemane where Jesus stayed in Jerusalem, according to tradition. The Mount of Olives is the site of many important Biblical events.
In the Book of Zechariah the Mount of Olives is identified as the place from which God will begin to redeem the dead at the end of days. For this reason, Jews have always sought to be buried on the mountain, and from Biblical times to the present day the mountain has been used as a cemetery for the Jews of Jerusalem. There are an estimated 150,000 graves on the Mount, including those of many famous figures. Just a few of these include the tomb of Zechariah (who prophesied there), Yad Avshalom, and a host of great rabbis from the 15th to the 20th centuries including Abraham Isaac Kook, the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel.
 

 Night time at the Temple Mount.

The Temple Mount - Known as Al-Haram al-Qudsi al-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary) to Arabs and Muslims, or as Har ha-Bayit (the Temple Mount) to Jews and some Christians. It is a religious site in the Old City of Jerusalem.

 Day time at the Temple Mount
It was the site of the first (c.10th Century BCE, destroyed c. 587 BCE) and second (c.515 BCE, destroyed in 70 CE) Jewish Temple in Jerusalem and according to Judaism is to be the site of the third and final Temple to be rebuilt with the coming of the Messiah. It is also the site of two major Muslim religious shrines, the Dome of the Rock (c. 690) and Al-Aqsa Mosque (c. 710). It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest site in Islam. It is thus one of the most contested religious sites in the world. Under Jordanian rule of Eastern Jerusalem between 1948 and 1967, Israelis were forbidden from entering the Old City. Currently, as territory of Israel, the government of Israel has granted a Muslim Council full administration of the site. Jews and Christians are barred from conducting services there.

 Jerusalem Old City Wailing Wall
(the men's side [L], women [R])
Pilgrims can enter the Old City through a gate on the eastern wall, which is known as St. Stephen's Gate by Christians, the Lion's Gate by Jews and the Gate of the Lady Mary by Moslems. A short distance to the right is the property of the White Fathers.

Inside View of the Old City
Inside their gate is a garden, the Church of St. Ann and the excavations of the Pool of Bethesda. A number of events from the New Testament and a Christian apocryphal book called Proto-Gospel of St. James, are located here.

Chapel of the Flagellation
After leaving St. Ann's and Bethesda, continue walking West (turn right) up to the property of the Franciscans, a couple of blocks on the right side of the street. This property contains a school, a museum,. and two chapels, one on either side of the courtyard.

 Inside Dedication to Jeses' Scourging
Inside the church is dedicated to Jesus' scourging and crowning with thorns. The windows depicting Christ's scourging and crowning are made of alabaster, not glass. This a a good place to consider Our Lord's suffering.

Pilate then had Jesus scourged. The soldiers wove a crown of thorns and placed it on his head and they clothed Him

Late Evening View of Church and Monastery
Little remains of the Byzantine sanctuary which once commemorated the birth of John the Baptist. However, unlike other houses of worship constructed over holy sites in Jerusalem, it was not destroyed by seventh-century Persian or Moslem invaders. Instead, this church was apparently ravaged 200 years earlier, during an uprising of Israel's Samaritans. Persecuted by the Byzantines, the Samaritans rebelled on several occasions by massacring Christians at prayer and devastating their chapels.
The Church of St. John the Baptist was rebuilt by the Crusaders, but after they left the Holy Land the sanctuary was either destroyed or fell into complete disrepair. A few centuries later, the Franciscan Order purchased the site and work began on its reconstruction. Most of the church was restored in 1674 with the aid of the Spanish royal family (their coat-of-arms is located above the entrance inside the sanctuary). Many of the paintings are originals, drawn by Spanish artists and donated by Spanish kings. Diverse blue-and-white tiles considered to be Spanish in style line the enormous square pillars and cover parts of the walls. Further work on the church was carried out in the nineteenth century, again with Spanish assistance. This included a new marble altar for the grotto, donated by Queen Isabella II of Spain.
 

Shepherd's Chapel
Approximately 2 km to the east of Bethlehem 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 (pbuh);
"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. The Roman Catholics and the Greek Orthodox each have their own Shepherds' Field. The Roman Catholic site features a Franciscan Chapel designed to resemble the shepherds' tent while the Greek Orthodox site features a 5th century church built over a cave.

Shepherds Flock
The area to the east of the city is traditionally believed to be the area of the fields of the shepherds "keeping watch o'er their flocks by night."  Several churches have been built to commemorate this event.   Even today local shepherds can be seen tending their flocks in this same area (even on Christmas eve!)

 Entrance to King David's Well
The niche at the entrance to King David's tomb where the 200 year old charity box was affixed. For thousands of years people have come to pray at the tomb of Kind David.  This well, used by millions of people who made pilgrimages to his tomb became a symbol of hope that all prayers offered at the tomb would be answered. 

King David's Well
Wayfarers and Pilgrims would stop and drink, and legend tells of the tears of supplication which fell into the deep well, mingling with the cool waters that they would drink.  Somehow, the waters of the well seemed to do more than simply refresh and quench thirst.  People noticed that their prayers always seemed to be answered.  It became known that the well itself contained a blessing.  Anyone coming to pray at the tomb of David knew that their prayers would be answered if they first made a blessing and then drink from the well.

Aerial View of Jerusalem from the North
This aerial photograph shows the main road to Bethlehem from the north (Jerusalem).  The modern city stretches out from the historic center in all directions.  Today Bethlehem is controlled by the Palestinian Authority and has a population of about 22,000 not including the suburbs of Beit Jala and Beit Sahour.

The Basilica of the Nativity
The present Basilica of the Nativity was built by the Emperor Justinian (527-565) on the site of the earlier (4th century) Constantinian basilica, which had been badly damaged in the Samaritan revolt of 529. The Basilica is dedicated to the Holy Mother of God (Theotokos). The traditional site of the Nativity is enshrined in the grotto beneath the choir.  Bethlehem was first settled by the Canaanite tribes, naming the city Beit Lahama. They built a temple to the God Lahama on the present mount of the Nativity. Around 1200 BCE, the Philistines had a garrison stationed in Bethlehem because of its strategic location.

David brings the Arc of the Covenant to Jerusalem
David’s decision to build and House for God (This picture was taken as we appproached the Temple where Jesus was preaching when his mother came back looking for him at age 13.).

How David chose the place to build the Temple

Solomon builds and dedicates the Temple

The destruction of the Temple

New Testament Texts about the Temple

The Purification of the Blessed Mary and the Presentation of Jesus

Finding the Child Jesus in the Temple

Jesus Cleanses the Temple of the Moneychangers

 The Ascension Chapel
The original building was surrounded by a double portico forming a circle. Destroyed by the Persians in the 614, it was rebuilt by the Crusaders in the form of a small, octagonal temple (twelfth century). Having come under the control of Muslims, to whom it has belonged since the thirteenth century, the building was converted into a mosque and completely transformed by walling in the arches and roofing over the octagon with a little dome of evident Islamic character.

Inside/Outside View of the Dominus Flevit Church
The Tomb of Virgin Mary lies at the bottom of the Mount of Olives at the right of the path. This is considered to be the site where the Virgin Mary was supposedly entombed. The church known also as the Church of the Assumption is supposed to have originated in the Byzantine period (fifth century), and the Crypt cut into the live rock, the most important part from tourist and religious point of view, is supposed to date from that time.

Bethphage Palm Sunday (Matthew 21:1-11)
The small Franciscan church was rebuilt in 1883 over the ruins of a Crusader Church. In 1876, a rock was found by accident, which earlier pilgrims had identified as the meeting place of Jesus Christ and Mary. The Crusader paintings on the sides of this rock show an ass and her foal, a castle and some men; a group of people carrying palms; the raising of Lazarus; and a Latin inscription reading, "Bethphage." These were restored in 1950 by C. Vagarini, who later painted the frescoes on the chapel walls in 1955. Behind the church are some Jewish Christians tombs with rolling stones of the type that would have been used in Christ's tomb.

Church of All Nations where many countries donated mosaics in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary located on the Mount of Olives. Bethphage is the home of many places of worship and of particular interest is the more recent

Also the Home of the:

Palm Sunday Procession

Jesus Curses a Fig Tree

The name "Bethpage" mans the "house of unripe figs." This is a place to remember an event that took place following Palm Sunday nearby in Mark 11:12-14. Recall that is was here that Jesus said: "Therefore I say to you, whatever you ask for, having prayed, believe that you have received it and it will be yours. Whenever you stand praying, forgive if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven may forgive you of your trespasses. For if you don not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your trespasses."

Bethany Lazarus' Tomb Street
The village of Ananiah of the tribe of Benjamin (Nehemiah 11:32) became Beth Ananiah or Bethany in the New Testament period. Today the village is named Al Azariah after its most famous citizen, Lazarus. Lazarus' tomb was know in the early 4th century and Byzantine churches were built later in the 4th and, after an earthquake around 518. Queen Melisande bought the village and built a Benedictine convent for her sister, Abess Jovita in 1143.

Elijah's Hill

Byzantine tradition connected Elijah’s ascension into heaven (in a whirlwind, at the appearance of a chariot of fire) with the same area as John’s baptisms. Scripture only says that Elijah was taken to heaven on the other side of the Jordan. The 6th-century pilgrim Theodosius refers to this hill, called at the time “Hermon.”  A number of Christian buildings were erected at Elijah’s hill, including the Rhotorios Monastery, the Cave Chapel, and the “Arch Church.”

 Northern View of Jericho
Notice the abundance of lush vegetation here. The area you see is irrigated by  the Jordan River and the water that flows down from the mountains in the background. Jericho is the oldest city in the world.

We read about Jericho the first time in Joshua 2, when Joshua the son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim on the east side of the Jordan River and said: "Go, see the land and Jericho." They went to the house of a prostitute, whose name was Rahab, and they slept there. After Rahab was ordered by the King of Jericho to turn over the two men she hid them in the flax on her roof. The men promised her: "May our souls instead of yours belong to death! If you do not reveal our business, then when the Lord gives us the land, we will do covenant love and truth with you."

 Western View of Jericho
The western view  shows the excavation site that revealed materials dated as old as 2, 800 years.Tell es-Sultan is the site of ancient Jericho, a Neolithic settlement from the eighth millennium BC. Joshua Captures Jericho  After the people of Israel crossed the Jordan River, Joshua circumcised all the men who had been born during the desert wandering, and celebrated their first Passover in the Promised Land, then the time came to conquer the city of Jericho as related in Joshua 6.     

 The South View of Jericho As You Enter
This view of Jericho shows the flat terrain as you enter from the south of the city. The scripture of Joshua 2 continues:  "I know that the Lord has given you the land and that fear of you has fallen upon us and that all the inhabitants of the land melt before you. For we have heard that the Lord dried up the waters of the Sea of Reeds before you when you left Egypt. We heard what you did to the two kings of the Amorites on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and to Og, when you put them under the ban. We have heard and our hearts melt and no longer does the spirit of any man stand before you, because the Lord your God, the God in the heavens above and on the earth below." Rehab was true to her promise to the men and our Lord.

Mount Zion
Few structures combine the ancient with the new as successfully as the dazzling Church of St. Peter on the eastern slopes of Mount Zion. Erected in 1931 to commemorate Peter's triple rejection of Jesus and his subsequent remorse, the church is an amazing blend of contemporary lines, primitive art, and antiquity. All have been brilliantly fused together to create a superbly designed masterpiece which make it far more than an ordinary house of worship.
Beneath the church are a series of carved-out chambers from the Second Temple period. Since Catholic tradition positions the palace of Caiaphas on this very site, it logically follows that Jesus may have been imprisoned in one of these very same underground crypts.
A Byzantine shrine dedicated to Peter's repentance was erected on this spot in the middle of the fifth century and was later destroyed by Moslem invaders. The chapel was rebuilt by the Crusaders and given a new name: St. Peter's in Gallicantu. Galli-cantu means cock-crow in Latin and today a golden rooster protrudes prominently from the sanctuary roof.
At least one tour guide believes that the grotto in which Jesus was held is missing a pillar. It is to this column that Jesus was tied, he reports, and notes that when the Crusaders rebuilt the Byzantine shrine they removed the sacred pillar.
Pilgrims to the church will notice that much of the writing is in French. St. Peter's belongs to the Assumptionist Fathers, which is a French order established in 1887 and named for Mary's Assumption to heaven. The Order has its headquarters in Jerusalem's monumental Notre Dame de France complex, built in 1889.
On your way into the Church of St. Peter, look for a strange mosaic "window" which lets in no light: it is located on an outside wall as you approach the entrance to the upper sanctuary. Walk through wrought iron doors covered with bas reliefs which have a biblical motif. The display on your right includes two Byzantine-era mosaics found during excavations, probably part of the floor in the fifth-century Byzantine shrine.

The extraordinary church interior is a giant, multi-colored mosaic portraying New Testament figures. Most of the colors are joyous and lively; they also fade into one another and offer subtle gradients of each shade. Perhaps the most striking feature of this unusual church is the ceiling. It is dominated by a huge cross-shaped window designed in a radiant variety of colors.
In other Jerusalem sanctuaries I have seen the Via Dolorosa depicted by either bas reliefs, small sculptures, or paintings. Here the 14 Stations are marked only with a simple cross. The mosaic illustrations, too, are less sophisticated than those in many other churches. Set within the ultra modern lines of the chapel, they look intriguingly ancient.
Three nearly life-size mosaic pictures cover the back and two side walls of the church. Facing the entrance is an illustration of a bound Jesus being questioned at Caiaphas' palace; on the right Jesus and the disciples are shown dining at the Last Supper. In the  mosaic Peter, considered the first Pope, is pictured in ancient papal dress.
Although in the beginning Peter sometimes argued with Jesus, after the Crucifixion he became the foremost apostle and greatest miracle worker of the Christian Church. One of the venues in which he preached was Rome. In the year 64, homicidal Emperor Nero played his fiddle while the city of Rome burned to a crisp before his very eyes. At the time there was talk that the mad emperor had started the fire and, perhaps to divert suspicion from himself, Nero blamed the Christians. Peter was martyred during the persecutions that followed. According to tradition, Peter asked to be crucified upside down so that he would not die in the same manner as Jesus.
Beneath the upper church is an unusually light and airy glass-enclosed chapel which incorporates stone from ancient grottos inside its walls. Visitors can look down a hole in the center of the sanctuary to see caves that may have been part of the Byzantine shrine. Their walls are engraved with crosses left there by fifth-century Christians.
On an even lower level there is easy access to a succession of caves from the Second Temple period. And finally, you exit into an excavated yard which includes a stone trail probably dating back to that same era. Many Christians believe that Jesus followed this path down to Gethsemane on Holy Thursday night.