The wadi winds its deep and tortuous course for 35 kilometres between Jerusalem and Jericho — for most of the way providing a route for the Roman road on which Jesus set the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37).
Some also envisage it as the “valley of the shadow of death” in Psalm 23.
Wadi Qelt in Judaean Desert (Jerzy Strzelecki)
The monastery, founded in the 5th century, is about 9 kilometres from Jericho and about 20 kilometres from Jerusalem, and on a favourite trail for hikers.
It is well known for its hospitality and, unlike most Greek Orthodoxmonasteries, welcomes femalepilgrims and visitors — following a precedent set when a Byzantinenoblewoman claimed the Virgin Mary had directed her there for healing from an incurable illness.
They then went to Bethlehem where they visited a grotto that was most probably much like the place where Jesus was born (rather than a manger in a stable :) .
At most of the places where Jesus is thought to have been, there is a church structure to commemorate that event. The Church of the Nativity is such a place.
The Church of the Nativity, also Basilica of the Nativityis a basilica located in Bethlehem in the West Bank. The grotto it contains holds a prominent religious significance to Christians of various denominations as the birthplace of Jesus. The grotto is the oldest site continuously worshipped in Christianity, and the basilica is the oldest major church in the Holy Land.
The church was originally commissioned in 327 by Constantine the Great and his mother Helena on the site that was traditionally considered to be the birthplaceof Jesus. That original basilica was completed sometime between 333-339. It was destroyed by fire during the Samaritan revolts of the 6th century, and a new basilica was built in 565 by Byzantine Emperor Justinian, who restored the architectural tone of the original.
The Church of the Nativity, while remaining basically unchanged since the Justinian reconstruction, has seen numerous repairs and additions, especially from the Crusader period, such as two bell towers (now gone), wall mosaics and paintings (partially preserved). Over the centuries, the surrounding compound has been expanded, and today it covers approximately 12,000 square meters, comprising three different monasteries: one Greek Orthodox, one Armenian Apostolic, and one Roman Catholic, of which the first two contain bell-towers built during the modern era.
The silver star marking the spot where Christ was born was stolen in 1847. Some assert that this was a contributing factor in the Crimean War against the Russian Empire; Others assert that the war grew out of the wider european situation.
The Church of the Nativity is a World Heritage Site and was the first to be listed under Palestine by UNESCO. The site is also on UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger.
The status quo of Holy Land sites is a 250-year old understanding among religious communities that applies to the site.
~wikipedia
You'll notice the very small entrance door to the church. This was built so that people would not ride INTO THE CHURCH on horseback!
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