Cyprus Finest (issue 2, Spring 2018) #8 Cyprus Finest (issue 2, Spring 2018) | Page 29

GUIDE TO THE HOLY LAND
Every Orthodox Christian should visit the Holy Land, bow to its shrines, and spend at least a
few days praying. This is the land chosen by God, the place of the Lord Jesus Christ and where he lived
his earthly life, the Mother of God, Mary, holy prophets, apostles and martyrs of the faith. The shrines of
this land are countless and keep growing each year with new discoveries, each of them holding a piece
of great holy history. We will try to tell you about the most significant places worth visiting.
TOP BEST DESTINATION
For your next vacation
Despite numerous raids, the Church of the Nativity
of Christ was not destroyed and it is considered one
of the most well-preserved temples in Palestine.
BETHLEHEM
The Church of the Nativity of Christ in Bethlehem is one
of the two greatest Christian world shrines. It is built on the
very place, where the Saviour of the World was born. The
construction of the Church over the Grotto of Nativity was
commissioned by St. Queen Helen in 330, and the building
was completed by the Emperor Justinian in the 6th century.
The Holy nativity scene of the Nativity is the underground
basilica, which is 12 metres long and 4 metres wide. There
is a Star beneath an altar, along the circle in which it is
written:” Here Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary”.
JERUSALEM
With no doubts, the heart of the Holy Land lies in
Jerusalem. It is the very place, where the main shrines
of the Christian world stand. Here, the redemption was
accomplished by Christ the Saviour. Lots of prophecies
and promises from the Old and New Testaments are
associated with this city.
The first thing, which every pilgrim always wants to
do when coming to the Holy Land, is to bow to the main
shrine of the Christian world — ​the Holy Sepulchre.
There are some functioning monasteries in the Church
of the Holy Sepulchre territory. The Church is divided
between six confessions of the Christian church, each of
which has its own chapels and hours for prayers. In the
time of Christ, this place was out of the city and after the
destruction of Jerusalem, pagan temples were built here
by the Romans.
The Church of the
Holy Sepulchre is
a huge architectural
complex, which consists
of Golgotha which is the
site of the Crucifixion,
the Saviour’s tomb, the
Cathedral of the Saviour,
the underground Chapel
of the Invention of the
Life-giving Cross, the
Chapel of St. Helena and
some other chapels.
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