The Church of the Tomb of Mary, located on the slope of the Kidron Valley in Jerusalem, was built on the site of the empty tomb that was taken up to heaven by angels 3 days after the death of Mary, according to Christian belief.
The church dates back to the fifth century AD, and was demolished and rebuilt more than once. It is associated with the “Feast of the Assumption” celebrations in mid-August of each year, and this anniversary is considered an official holiday in a number of countries, including France, Italy, Lebanon, and Syria.
the site
The Church of the Tomb of Mary is located on the slope of the Kidron Valley, below the western slope of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. The building was originally a natural cave that was expanded and restored. Its premises include original rocks and a modern building.
Visitors descend several steps to a square courtyard opposite the church entrance, which leads to a cellar leading to a rock mass (the location of the grave) dug into the floor and located in the middle of the eastern section of the cave, about 12 metres below the entrance level.
On either side of the tomb are two altars, one for the Armenian community and the other for the Orthodox community, in addition to a niche indicating the direction of Mecca, the Muslims’ Qiblah.
Inside the church there is also the tomb of the Crusader Queen Melisende, and shrines dedicated to Mary’s parents, Joachim and Hannah, and Joseph the Carpenter, whose burial places are unknown.
the date
Christian tradition considers the Church of the Tomb of Mary as the site of her burial, but it is empty of the body and is only a shrine of honor. According to Christian belief, the angels lifted Mary’s body from her tomb to heaven 3 days after her death.
Although the four Gospels do not mention Mary’s death or her burial place, Juvenal, Bishop of Jerusalem (lived between 380 and 458 AD) during the fifth century AD identified the location of the tomb at the foot of the Mount of Olives, where burial caves had been carved into the rock since the first century AD.
The history of building the church on the grave dates back to the fifth century AD, when the cave carved into the rock was expanded into a church in the shape of a cross, with the grave in the middle surrounded by a large vault, which is all that remains of the first building.
The church underwent several restoration works after being completely and partially demolished. In the sixth century, it was rebuilt in the shape of an octagon, then destroyed in the Roman-Persian wars in 614 AD.
It was rebuilt in 1130 AD during the reign of the Frankish King of Jerusalem, Baldwin II, but parts of it were demolished during the Crusades. Then the Franciscan Fathers (Guardians of the Holy Land) built the church in its current form in the 14th century and it remained under their care for 3 centuries.
Starting in 1757 AD, the church became in the hands of the Greek Orthodox community with the help of the Ottoman Turks, and then it became shared with the Armenian Orthodox, and according to an agreement between them (the status quo agreement), both the Coptic Orthodox Church and the Syriac Church had the rights to pray in it during fixed times.
Assumption Day celebrations
The Church of the Tomb of Mary is one of the most important Christian holy sites in Palestine, and is associated with the “Feast of the Assumption” celebrations in mid-August of each year, as it is the anniversary of the bodily ascension of the Virgin Mary, peace be upon her, to heaven according to Christian traditions.
The celebrations include the Second Vespers in the church, the reading of passages from the Gospels, and the carrying of the statue of Mary in a solemn procession surrounded by torches and accompanied by the melodies of Marian hymns.
Similar to the celebrations held at the Church of the Tomb of Mary, celebrations are held in many churches around the world to commemorate the Feast of the Assumption in mid-August every year.
This day is also an official holiday in a number of countries around the world, including France, Italy, Lebanon and Syria.
Islamic narratives and monuments
It is narrated in the books of the virtues of Jerusalem that when the Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, was taken on the Night Journey to Jerusalem, he saw two bright lights to the right and left of Al-Aqsa Mosque. He asked Gabriel: What are these two lights? He answered him: “As for the one to your right, it is the prayer niche of your brother David, and as for the one to your left, it is over the grave of your sister Mary.”
It is narrated that Caliph Omar bin Al-Khattab prayed two rak’ahs in the Church of Mary when he visited Jerusalem after its conquest in 638 AD, which made the people of Jerusalem and visitors to Al-Aqsa Mosque keen to imitate him.
The presence of a mihrab facing the Kaaba inside the church makes it one of the religious sites shared by Muslims and Christians.
In the Islamic religion, the Lady Mary, peace be upon her, has a special status. The Holy Qur’an narrated her story in a special Surah that bears her name, and in other places made her a symbol of purity and selection, as God Almighty says in verse 42 of Surah Al Imran: (And when the angels said, “O Mary, indeed God has chosen you and purified you and chosen you above the women of the worlds.”)
Settler attacks
On March 19, 2023, two Israeli settlers stormed the Church of Gethsemane, adjacent to the Church of the Tomb of Mary, and attempted to vandalize its contents, but a young Palestinian man named Hamza Ajaj was able to confront them, so one of them was arrested and the other fled, amid international condemnation of the incident.
This attempted attack was just one episode in a series of attacks on churches, places of worship, and Christian clergy in Jerusalem, which included breaking crosses, vandalizing contents, writing racist phrases on walls, and attempts to set fire to buildings, in addition to spitting on clergy and calling them obscene names.
