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Thursday, April 3, 2008
Where was Jesus crucified, buried
and resurrected?
By Stan Wilson
Special to ASSIST News Service
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL (ANS) -- As
I write this on Easter Sunday afternoon, I thought that it would be appropriate
to conclude the series of stories about my tour of Israel with a visit to the
two places considered most likely to have been the place of crucifixion and
Christ's tomb and resurrection.
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Our first visit was to the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The ground on
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Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is a slab which is said to be where Christ's body was laid and wrapped for burial. Tourists are seen praying at the slab and kissing it. Also inside the church is a place identified as the place of the crucifixion as well as the remains of what may have been the tomb of Christ |
which the church stands is considered by most Christians as Golgotha where Jesus was
crucified. It also contains the remains of a tomb where Jesus may have been
buried. The church has been an important pilgrimage since the 4th century.
Today it is the headquarters of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem.
The early Christian community
of Jerusalem appears to have held liturgical celebrations at this location from
the time of the resurrection until the city was taken by the Romans in 66 AD.
Eusebius describes how the site
of the Holy Sepulchre, originally a site of
veneration for the Christian community in Jerusalem, had been covered with
earth, upon which a temple of Venus had been built in 135 AD.
Constantine had a church built
at the location in 326 AD beside the excavated hill of
the Crucifixion which was actually three connected churches built over the
three different holy sites; The Rock of Calvary, the remains of a cave
identified as the burial site of Jesus and the True Cross (said to have been the
actual cross upon which Christ was crucified.) In the course of the
excavations, Constantine's mother St. Helena is believed to have discovered the
True Cross near the tomb. She actually discovered three - those of the two
thieves and that of Christ. To discern the one belonging to Christ, a sick man
was brought to touch to each one, and he was miraculous healed by one of them.
This is a relatively early legend, but one that Eusebius, the historian and
contemporary of Constantine, did not know.
The church was damaged by fire
in 614. The early Muslim rulers protected the Christian sites, but the doors
and roof were burnt during a riot in 966. However, in 1009, the church was
completely destroyed. The church's foundations were hacked down to bedrock. The
north and south walls of the cut-rock tomb were likely protected by rubble from
further damage.
In 1027 an agreement was
reached whereby the new Caliph allowed the Emperor to
finance the rebuilding and redecoration of the Church.
Control of Jerusalem, and
thereby the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, continued
to change hands several times until the arrival of the Crusaders in 1099. The
three primary custodians of the church, first appointed when Crusaders held
Jerusalem, are the Greek Orthodox, the Armenian Apostolic and Roman Catholic
churches.
In 1959 did the three major communities (Latins, Greeks, Armenians) agree on a
major renovation plan. The guiding principle was that only elements incapable
of fulfilling their structural function would be replaced. Local masons were
trained to trim stone in the style of the 11th century for the rotunda, and in
the 12th-century style for the church.
The church's chaotic history is
evident in what visitors see today. Byzantine, medieval, Crusader, and modern
elements mix in an odd mish-mash of styles, and each governing Christian
community has decorated its shrines in its own distinctive way. In many ways,
the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is not what one
would imagine for the holiest site in all Christendom, and it can easily
disappoint. But at the same time, its noble history and immense religious
importance is such that a visit can also be very meaningful.
In the nineteenth century a
number of scholars disputed the identification of the Church with the actual
site of Jesus's crucifixion and burial on the basis that the Church was inside
the city walls, while early accounts described these events as outside the
walls. On the morning after his arrival in Jerusalem, General Gordon selected a
rock-cut tomb in a cultivated area outside the walls as a more likely site for
the burial of Jesus. This site is usually referred to as the Garden Tomb to
distinguish it from the Holy Sepulchre, and it is
still a popular pilgrimage site for those (usually Protestants) who doubt the
authenticity of the Anastasis and/or do not have permission to hold services in
the Church itself.
However, it has since been
determined that the site of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
was indeed outside the city walls at the time of the crucifixion. The Jerusalem
city walls were expanded by Herod Agrippa in 41-44, and only then enclosed the
site of the Holy Sepulchre.
The Garden Tomb itself was
discovered in 1867, and was soon identified as the burial place of Jesus,
mainly because of its location in the area that had been identified as Calvary.
The Anglican Church committed
itself to the site as the place of Jesus' burial and "Gordon's Tomb"
became the "Garden Tomb." The Church has since withdrawn its formal
support, but the Garden Tomb continues to be identified by popular Protestant
piety.
It is easy to see why the
Garden Tomb is a popular site for Protestant piety - it is clearly located outside
the walls, it is next to a place that looks like a skull, it conforms to what
one imagines when reading the Gospel accounts, and it is far easier to pray and
contemplate here than in the crowded Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
However, scholars are generally
agreed that the Garden Tomb is not the actual site of Jesus' burial. One
problem with the Garden Tomb is that, based on its configuration, it dates from
the late Old Testament era (9th-7th century BC). Thus
it was not a new tomb at the time of the crucifixion.
In addition, the burial benches
were cut down in the Byzantine period (4th-6th century AD) to create rock
sarcophagi, radically disfiguring the tomb. This clearly indicates that early
Christians did not believe this was the burial place of Christ. The wardens of
the property (the UK-based Garden Tomb Association) stress that it is the
resurrection of Jesus, not the issue of finding the exact spot of his burial,
that is important. Regardless of its authenticity, the Garden Tomb is a fine
place for contemplating the death burial of Christ and certainly more readily
identifiable with the Gospel accounts than the dark and urban scene of the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
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The Garden Tomb is one of two places identified as possible/probable sites of Christ's crucifixion and burial. The area in front of the tomb has been identified as a grape orchard; possibly from the time of Christ. It is presently landscaped and offers a wonderful opportunity to sit, reflect and pray |
Nearby the Garden Tomb is
"Gordon's Calvary," the shape of a skull, at least large eye sockets,
can be discerned in the cliffside. This rocky escarpment was used as a rock
quarry, perhaps during the time of Herod Agrippa I (37-44 AD).
The garden tomb itself is
located about 100 yards west of the "skull." The tomb is marked by
multilingual signs and a wooden door bearing the English words, "He is not
here - for he is risen."
The door and windows in the
tomb facade probably date from Byzantine or Crusader times. The deep channel
along the ground, sometimes identified as the groove for the rolling stone used
to seal the tomb, is of unknown date and purpose.
Inside the tomb there are two
chambers side by side. From the vestibule, one turns right to enter the burial
chamber. This configuration is typical of 9th-7th century (Iron Age) tombs in
the area. Tombs from the time of Jesus have the burial chamber behind the
vestibule in a straight line, and each body bench (arcosolium)
set within an arch. In the Garden Tomb, the body benches simply extend from the
wall. Inside the tomb is an Anchorite cross which was carved and then painted.
You can plainly see the symbols of Alpha and Omega under the bar of the cross
on the left and right sides, respectively.
Then, exactly where was Christ
crucified, buried and arose? Perhaps it is fitting to our faith that we do not
have an "exact and identifiable" location. I don't think it matters.
After-all, Christianity is based on "faith."
I hope that the stories of my
tour have helped the Bible come more alive for you. I will never be the same
and I will never read the Bible the same. Almost every time I open it, I point
and remember, "I was there."
For further information about
Israel and tour information., I suggest that you visit www.goisrael.com This is the official
website of the Israel Ministry of Tourism. They offer several "virtual
tours" online and you can get complete information and find links to help
you make your plans. You can actually spend days just navigating the website in
preparation for your "trip of a lifetime."
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Stan
Wilson is a lifetime journalist after graduating from college in 1970 with |
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