Mount of Olives - The Peripatetic Grandma

The Mount of Olives is a mountain ridge about a half mile east of Jerusalem. From the top looking west, one sees views of the Holy City, while facing eastward one sees miles of the Judean Desert leading to the Dead Sea. Several holy sites are located on and around the Mount.

At-Tur is the highest point of the Mount of Olives at 2,684 ft. This is believed to be the site of Bethphage marked by the Catholic Chapel of the Ascension and the Church of the Pater Noster.

The chapel of the Ascension sits on the most likely spot of Jesus’ ascension because it is on the highest place of the Mount of Olives. Constantine’s mother Helena built a chapel here in the 4^th century CE. It was rebuilt in the 7^th century and again around 1100 A.D. In 1198 Saladin destroyed the chapel, and a mosque was built on the site. Today both Christians and Muslims visit the site.

The church of the Pater Noster sits just below the Chapel of the Ascension and is built over a cave where Jesus is said to have taught his disciples the “Lord’s Prayer.” The tiles on the wall feature the prayer in more than 50 languages. It was built by Constantine at a site chosen by his mother, Helena, in the early 4^th century. In 618 it was destroyed by the Persians. It is part of a Carmelite monetary. See photo below.

On the western slope you will find an historic Jewish cemetery, the Tomb of the Prophets, Dominus Flevit which marks the site where Jesus cried over Jerusalem, and the Russian Orthodox Church of Mary Magdalene.

Dominus Flevit Church is not just the site where Jesus wept over Jerusalem, but it also contains tombs from the Second Temple and Byzantine eras and houses many artifacts dating back to the Canaanite period. These were found during the construction of the Sanctuary.

The church was constructed between 1953-55 on the site of a Byzantine Church from the 5th Century. It lies half-way down the Mount of Olives and was styled in the shape of a teardrop to symbolize Christ’s tears. The floor has a Byzantine Mosaic from the earlier church.

Pictures from Dominus Flevit.

A short distance away is the Russian Orthodox Church of Mary Magdalene. It was built in 1888 by Tsar Alexander III to honor his mother Empress Maria Alexandrovna. It has seven gilded onion domes. At the site is the Convent of St Mary Magdalene. The interior is filled with icons and the relics of two martyred saints as well as tombs.

At the foot of the Mount of Olives is the Garden of Gethsemane and the Church of All Nations. The Church of All Nations is built over the rock on which Jesus is believed to have prayed in agony the night he was arrested.

The site was originally a garden where Jerusalem farmers would bring their harvested olives to be pressed into oil. “Gethsemane” means “oil press” in Hebrew. The name Gethsemane is significant because it underscores the essence of Jesus’ suffering at the time of his arrest, as his earthly life was being pressed from him..

The first church built on the site was a Byzantine Church about 350 CE, but it was destroyed in and earthquake in 746. In the 12th century, a Crusader chapel was built over the Byzantine church and later abandoned in 1345 CE when the Muslims took over the Holy Land from the Crusaders.

The current church, the Church of All Nations, also known as the Basilica of the Agony, was consecrated in 1924. It is a Catholic Franciscan church and was built using donations from 12 nations. Therefore, it is called the Church of All Nations. Emblems of the contributing nations including the USA can be found in the ceiling.

The Garden of Gethsemane was a quiet, peaceful place, where I sat and reflected on Jesus’ life and sacrifice. I could have spend the whole day there. The olive trees brought shade on a hot day. The paths made it easy to stroll among them. The portion of the Rock of Agony outside made that sacrifice all that more real.

The Church of All Nations sat adjacent to the Garden of Gethsemane.