Benedictine monastery in Abu Ghosh

Abu Ghosh monastery

The Benedictine monastery in Abu Ghosh, named St Mary of the Resurrection Abbey,[1] is a monastery run by the Olivetan Benedictine order. It is centered on the Church of the Resurrection, or Church of our Lord's Resurrection,[2] built by the Crusaders in the 12th century on top of Roman ruins in the center of the village of Abu Ghosh, Israel. The Crusaders assumed for a while that the village, which they called Fontenoid and the Arabs called until the 19th century Qaryet al-'Inab, was standing at the site of Emmaus from the Gospel of Luke.

History

Church of the Resurrection with Crusader-era frescoes

The late Romanesque/early Gothic-style church[3] was built by the Hospitallers in 1140.[4] It was acquired by the French government in 1899 and placed under guardianship of the French Benedictine Fathers. Edward Robinson (1838) described it as “obviously from the time of the crusades, and [...] more perfectly preserved than any other ancient church in Palestine.” Excavations carried out in 1944 confirm that the Crusaders identified the site as the biblical Emmaus. The church is built over an ancient spring.

From 1956, the monastery was run by the Lazarist Fathers.

Today a double monastery of nuns and priests worship in the church and offer hospitality, commemorating the Old Testament story of the couple on the Jerusalem–Emmaus road.[4]

References

  1. ↑ http://catholicchurch-holyland.com/?p=397
  2. ↑ Denys Pringle, The Churches of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem: A Corpus, p 7
  3. ↑ http://sightseeinginisrael.com/battle-for-road-to-jerusalem/
  4. 1 2 Women of Bible lands: a pilgrimage to compassion and wisdom By Martha Ann Kirk, page 143

External links

Coordinates: 31°48′26.74″N 35°6′26.59″E / 31.8074278°N 35.1073861°E / 31.8074278; 35.1073861

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