Christian pilgrims travel to Bethlehem, particularly at Christmas time to attend services in the Church of the Nativity. Some pilgrims kiss the star representing the birthplace of Christ to show their devotion.
Visiting Bethlehem enables Christians to share their faith with others from around the world. In , Crusaders captured Bethlehem and replaced the Greek Orthodox clergy.
The Latin clergy which replaced the Greek Orthodox were later removed after the city was taken by Saladin , the sultan of Egypt and Syria. With the rise of the Mamluks in , the city's walls were destroyed, and were then rebuilt during the Ottoman Empire rule.
From , Bethlehem has been governed by the Palestinian National Authority. The bones of St. The skulls of monks killed through the years are kept in a chapel in the monastery. Even today, women are not allowed inside the monastery. Two other monasteries are in the Bethlehem area. One is Mar Elias , which was built in the 6th century. According to legend, this is where Elias rested on his flight from the vengeance of Jezebel. The St. Theodosius Monastery was built in C. Christians believe the wise men rested here after God warned them in a dream they should not return to Herod.
Also south of Bethlehem, on the way to Hebron, are three giant cisterns known as Solomon's Pools. In truth, they are part of a water system built 2, years ago during Roman times and used to supply water to Herodian and Jerusalem. In , Shmuel Holtzman, a citrus grower, started a settlement he called Kfar Etzion. The Arabs destroyed the settlement and crops in and it was abandoned.
In , Jews returned to the area and again planted crops and introduced light industry. By , a group of Jewish settlements had been established that became collectively known as the Etzion Bloc.
During Israel's War of Independence , Arab invaders attacked and killed most of the residents. When one group of 14 Jews were surrounded by Arabs when they attempted to return to Kfar Etzion from Jerusalem, they blew themselves up. Another 35 were killed when they tried to lift the siege on the area.
The area, just north of Hebron , was part of Jordan from and used by the Jordanian army. Following the war , Jews many survivors from returned to resume farming in the area. Local kibbutzim and moshavim have produced turkeys, flowers and candles.
Kibbutz Kfar Etzion has a museum recounting the history of the Jews in the settlements. Download our mobile app for on-the-go access to the Jewish Virtual Library. View of Bethlehem. Jerusalem is an important place of pilgrimage for Christians, just as it is for Jews and Muslims. Christians believe that Jesus visited Jerusalem at Passover time and spent the week leading up to his death there.
Christian pilgrims visit Jerusalem, therefore, to remember key events in Jesus' final week, known as Holy Week. Places that Christian pilgrims might visit include:. The belief that Jesus died and was raised from the dead is a very important belief for Christians. Christians believe that this sacrifice enables all Christians to have a relationship with God. This belief is called the Atonement. Many Christians believe that undertaking a pilgrimage to Jerusalem can bring them closer to the experience of Jesus as he approached his death.
Christians believe that this will help them to develop spiritually and become closer to God. Bethlehem Bethlehem is situated approximately five and a half miles west of Jerusalem.
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