The BLOG: Holy sites of the Christian religion
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
George Santayana
As written in the Gospels, Jesus, accompanied by a large crowd, came to Jerusalem during the Passover festival. Met by a second, even larger crowd who welcomed Him enthusiastically—proclaiming Him the “Blessed King of Israel”—Jesus is said to have overturned the tables of the moneychangers operating before Herod's Temple, claiming that they had converted the Temple into a “den of robbers.” According to the synoptic gospels, Jesus celebrated the Passover meal with his disciples later that same week—the meal historically known as the Last Supper. Following the meal in which he prophesied the ensuing betrayal of one of his apostles, Jesus and his disciples retired to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. It was here that Jesus, betrayed by his apostle Judas Iscariot, was arrested by Roman soldiers by orders of the high priest, Caiaphas, in congruence with the Sanhedrin.
During the Sanhedrin Trial, Jesus was asked by the high priests if he was indeed the Son of God? Jesus humbly replied: “You say that I am.” Based on His response, the high priests condemned Jesus for blasphemy, and reported Him to the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate for “openly claiming” to be the King of the Jews. There, before Pilate's Palace, Jesus was asked if he were the King of the Jews? Once again, Jesus replied: “It is as you say.” The Gospels state that Pilate felt as though Jesus had not committed any crime against the Romans, and that he was willing, as was a custom at Passover for the Governor to free a prisoner, to grant Jesus his freedom. Pilate turned to the crowd before them, offering them the choice to free either Jesus or an insurrectionist named Barabbas. The crowd requested Barabbas be freed.
When Jesus died late that afternoon on the nearby hill of Golgotha (Calvary), a wealthy Judean named Joseph of Arimathea, a supposed member of the Sanhedrin, asked Pilate's permission to give Jesus of Nazareth a proper Christian burial. Pilate granted his request, and on the third day following Christ's Crucifixion and entombment, He was raised from the dead. On the evening after Christ's resurrection, as documented in the Acts of the Apostles, He is said to have ascended heaven, concealed by a cloud, promising His return to fulfill the remainder of the Messianic prophecy.
Today, the Holyland remains a place of deep spiritual importance and sanctity. It is a land of vast pilgrimage, an ancient land with a religious history unparalleled by any other land on the planet today. From Jaffa to Jerusalem, the humble pilgrim will find an abundance of sacred sites, important churches, and some of the oldest cities in the world. In the Old City of Jerusalem lies the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, an important pilgrimage site since the 4th century. Many Christians believe the Church rests above Golgotha (Hill of Calvary), the very site where Jesus was crucified and reportedly buried. Other important churches found in the Holyland are the Church of Beatitudes, the Basilica of the Annunciation, and the aforementioned Church of Nativity, which rests above the grotto where Jesus was born.
In keeping with the churches and towns of a place, the Holyland is home to the most important holy sites of the Christian religion, with many of them marking the locales of Jesus' most famous teachings. From the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus was arrested to the Stations of the Cross, the Sea of Galilee, Mt. Carmel, Via Dolorosa and the Room of the Last Supper, the sacred sites within the Holyland have served as places for Christians of all ages and levels of belief to rest in contemplative prayer.