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The Church of the Holy Sepulture in Jerusalem also called as Church
of the Resurrection by Eastern Christians, is a Christian church now within
the walled Old city of Jerusalem. The church is one of the most famous
and popular place of Sight seeing in Jerusalem. Originally built by the
mother of Emperor Constantine in 330 A.D., the Church of the Holy Sepulcher
in Jerusalem immortalizes the hill of crucifixion and the tomb of Christ's burial.
Church of the Holy Sepulture in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Persians
in 614 A.D. Though the church was rebuilt shortly thereafter, the Egyptian caliph
al-Hakim destroyed the church in 1009 and had the tomb hacked down to pieces.
The reformers rebuilt the church and much of what we see today is from that
time period. From the Jerusalem travel guide you’ll come to know that the ladder
in the upper right window has been there since at least 1860, a testimony to
rivalries between the church's sects.
Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulture in Jerusalem is a rocky out
crop which is the traditional place where the cross was placed. Archaeological
excavations have showed that this site was outside the city but close to one
of its gates and thus would have been a good location for a crucifixion. Today
this church in Jerusalem is controlled by the Greek Orthodox Church.
Al-Hakim's efforts to destroy the tomb in 1009 were not the first attack that
this church had to bear. Earlier the Roman emperor Hadrian had erected a large
platform of earth over the whole area for building of a temple to Venus. The
best piece of evidence that the tomb of Jesus was in this area is the fact that
other first-century tombs are still preserved inside the church. Known as the
"Tomb of Joseph of Arimathea," these burial shafts are evidently from the time
of Christ's death and thus supports our belief that that there is some kind
of burial ground in the area.
From the evidence found in history and tradition, Church of the Holy Sepulture
in Jerusalem is most likely the true location of the Christ's death and burial
and this is what makes this place one of the holiest place on earth.
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