Service at the Holy Sepulchre

I forgot to mention this; how crazy is that! I went to an Italian (I think) service there, and it was ok. Needless to say, I and my two other friends stuck out like sore thumbs, but it was a good experience. We also walked around a bit and of course saw the traditional burying place of Jesus. Now for those who don't know, there's a whole lot of tradition around that spot, but it's still questionable - considering it was marked about 300 years after Jesus' death. It is, however, a very likely spot.

I'll tell you what I know (don't worry, since my knowledge is limited, it will be short) about what's up with different sites around Israel concerning Jesus. Constantine of course made Christianity a legal religion in the Roman Empire with the Edict of Milan in 313 AD. There's little evidence to support him ever becoming a Christian as far as I know, and later he sent his mother away (Helena) to the Promised Land while he murdered a son and a wife. Helena knew about this, so she was looking (possibly) for any pagan site she could smash down and raise a church building. The oldest and probably most accurate tradition is at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. A church was meeting in the cave for several hundred years (perhaps as recently as 20-30 years after Jesus' death!), and they held that to be the spot of Jesus' birth. No one knows for sure, but then again, I don't think it matters. The fact that these places have been marked for hundreds of years and held as the places of different stages in Jesus' life makes me appreciate the history behind them.

How's that for a short history lesson:-) Have a great weekend, and I'm going to buy some food!

Shalom,

Geoff