they show you are common knowledge in the district, even among those who do not share our faith. They admit...that the Jesus whom Christians adore was born in this cave” (Contra Celsum 51). The biblical roots of Bethlehem go back to the time of the Patriarchs, indicated by Rachel’s Tomb on the outskirts of the town. In the nearby Shepherds’ Fields (at Beit Sahour), the angel proclaimed to the shepherds the birth of Jesus (Luke. 2:8-20) in the manger in Bethlehem (Luke 2:4-7). The Basilica of the Nativity, virtually unchanged since the fourth century, stands over the birth grotto. This year, a fragment of wood believed to have formed part of Jesus’ manger has been returned to Bethlehem after more than 1,400 years in Europe. The wooden relic, believed to have been part of the manger where Jesus was born, was sent by St. Sophronius, the patriarch of Jerusalem, to Pope Theodore I in the 640s, around the time of the Muslim conquest of the Holy Land. Pope Francis ordered the return of the thumb-sized relic from Rome’s Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore as a gift. It was briefly put on display in Jerusalem before continuing its journey to Bethlehem to coincide with the start of Christmas celebrations there. The relic, encased in an ornate stand, was welcomed to Bethlehem by a procession of marching bands and taken to the Church of St Catherine, next to the Church of the Nativity where tradition says Jesus was born. Jerusalem-Bethlehem Border Crossing For tourists visiting Israel, crossing into Bethlehem from Jerusalem (and back) is usually not a difficult matter, especially since the terminal between the two cities has been upgraded by establishing special lanes for tourists moving between them. The Israel Ministry of Tourism has also been promoting cooperation with
private Israeli and Palestinian partners to develop the crossing points, and a Ministry of Tourism representative is always present or on call at the border crossing to deal with any unanticipated hitches. The New Testament city of Jericho was built by Herod the Great about two miles south of the ancient city of Jericho - reputedly the oldest in the world - and it was there in Jesus’ day that the Jewish pilgrims from Galilee and Transjordan stopped on their way to Jerusalem. There too, Zacchaeus climbed a sycamore tree to get a better view of Jesus. Just outside of Jericho, the Greek Orthodox Monastery of Temptation, on the Mount of Temptation, stands on the site where Satan offered Jesus the kingdom of the world (Matthew 4, 1-4). Inside the monastery, high up on a barren 1333-meter-high desert hill, visitors may access the cave where Jesus is believed to have stayed during His 40-day stay in the wilderness, fasting after His baptism. The monastery can be reached by foot - for the hardy - or by cable car.
Aside from Bethlehem, Beit Sahour and Jericho, other sites in the P.A. are of potential interest to Christian pilgrims, and the P.A.’s Ministry of Tourism & Antiquities has worked to identify and develop a number of them. These include Jacob’s Well in Nablus, on the grounds of a Greek Orthodox monastery, where Jesus is said to have asked a Samaritan woman to draw water for Him from a well, the Byzantine church at Burquin (near Jenin), built to mark the spot where Jesus cured the 10 lepers, the Byzantine church ruins in El Bireh, where Joseph and Mary stopped to rest on their way to Jerusalem, and Sebastia, where Salome is said to have performed her dance of the seven veils, receiving John the Baptist’s head in return (a site of particular interest to Provoslav pilgrims, because of the St. John’s Russian Orthodox convent situated there). Your Private incoming office in Israel
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Obrat Tours ltd is an inbound office that can manage all your very special request Tel: 03-7297330 | Email: reservation@obratours.co.il | www.obratours.co.il
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