Church of the Holy Sepulchre 

 

Introduction

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Welcome to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Sepulchre means tomb. It is the final destination of the Via Dolorosa path, and the last five stations are situated there.​

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1. The amount of evidence supporting this place as Golgotha, the place Jesus was crucified, buried, and rose from the dead, is overwhelming. We could share it for hours.

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• There are 2,000 years of archaeological evidence, including a temple, churches, buildings, and coins, that support it.​​​

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• Four ancient historians claim that this site became a holy shrine venerating Jesus after He rose from the dead, up to 135 AD, one of whom is the famous Jewish historian Josephus.

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• There are six eyewitness historians from 160 to 450 AD, who place Gologtha under or in the vicinity of Hadrian’s Temple to Venus. Among these are Origen of Alexandria, Jerome, and Eusebius, highly reliable sources.

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• All archaeologists support this site as the location of Golgotha.

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2. It was located outside the city walls of Jerusalem when Jesus was crucified.

 

3. Because of its 2,000-year history, it's hard to picture how it was in its natural state. We will provide images to help you understand how it would have been.

 

​4. The place of crucifixion and the tomb of Jesus are not far apart in the church. This is biblical: John 19:41 42: Now in the place where he was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid.

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5. There are over 35 significant places to see inside this church. They all testify to the events of Jesus and what happened here. 

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6. Some people have a problem with the atmosphere of the church. However, what would we expect from a place that has been venerated for around 2,000 years by different cultures and time periods?

 

7. We are fully convinced this is the place.

 

8. Another site known as the Garden Tomb was proposed as an alternative site in 1850 AD.

• God bless the Garden Tomb, but it lacks historical support.

• Additionally, the tomb there is an Old Testament tomb dating to around 700 BC.

• No archaeologists support it as Golgotha. 

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10. Let's explore and experience this site, realizing it is the very place where Jesus was crucified, buried, and rose from the dead.

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Brief History

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• There was a road that passed by a stone quarry, serving as a route for travelers entering and leaving Jerusalem. Because the quarry had fallen out of use many years before Christ, it gradually developed into a garden, with a nearby cistern and pool of water. Some of the rock was left, and the Romans crucified people upon it. This rock can be seen in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre today.

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• 33-135 AD: It was venerated in its natural state.

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• 135 AD: Roman Emperor Hadrian erected a statue of the Roman god Jupiter (Zeus) over the tomb of Jesus, and a statue of Venus (Aphrodite) over the site of His crucifixion. 

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• 326 AD: Roman Emperor Constantine destroyed the temple that Hadrian had built and erected the Church of the Holy Sepulchre over the site of Golgotha.

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• 614 AD: Persians severely damaged Constantine's church.

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• 1009 AD: Muslims from Egypt destroyed the church.

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• 1112 AD: Crusaders rebuilt the church. ​What we see today of the church primarily dates back to the Crusader period.

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• 1808 AD: Church renovated.

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• All this history can still be seen in the church today.

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Today, we refer to this church as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The word Sepulchre means tomb, and a tomb is where you put someone who has died. But when Constantine built the first church here, Christians didn’t focus on the death of Jesus. They focused on His resurrection, so during the Byzantine era, this entire room was called the Church of the Anastasis, not the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In other words, it wasn’t the church of the tomb. It was the church of the resurrection.

 

In-depth Tour of the Church

 

1. Window Ladder

• The so-called "Immovable Ladder" under the window of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, made of Lebanese cedar wood, was in place by 1728 and has remained there ever since the 1757 status quo was established, aside from being temporarily moved twice.

• There are about thirty chapels inside this church, and because there are six denominations who control them, there had to be some rules established that define who gets to do what inside. 

• When the Status Quo went into effect it meant that whoever controlled certain rooms inside the church, would remain the custodian of that room from that point forward.

• The six churches that oversee the church are:

  • Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, and Roman Catholic churches are the primary overseers.

  • The Coptic Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox, and Syrian Orthodox churches have less oversight.

 

2. Chapels next to the plaza area.

• Front left (closest to the church) ~ Chapel of the Forty Martyrs.

• Middle left ~ Chapel of St. John

• Closest left ~ Chapel of St. James the Less

• Front right (closest to the church) ~ Access leading up to the Ethiopian Chapels and the roof of the church.

• Middle right ~ Chapel of St. James

• Closest right ~ Orthodox Monastery

 

3. The Chapel of the Franks ~ Via Dolorosa Station 10

• The Franks were a collection of European tribes that became the dominant political power in Western Europe. They all converted to Catholicism, and it was the Franks who built this chapel. 

• According to Christian tradition, it's where Jesus was stripped of his clothes before crucifixion. This would make sense as the Romans usually crucified people naked.

• It is located to the right of the church entrance. It can be seen behind glass panels by going up the stairs. 

• In approximately 1125 AD, this doorway was installed to benefit both nighttime visitors and the poor, who could not afford the entrance fee that the Muslim landlords were charging for worship in the church.

• This place was formerly accessed from inside the church. Today, this door is closed, and the Chapel of the Franks can only be accessed from the courtyard of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

 

4. The Blocked Door

• Looking at the church, one can see that the right door is blocked off. That happened in 1187 AD, shortly after the church was built. The Muslims, who were the custodians of the church at that time, tried to control who was entering to charge an admission fee. They couldn’t do this very well when there were two doors, so they limited the entrance to only one door – the door that went past the money table as people entered the church.​​

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5. Entrance Door to the Church

• Immediately after the Islamic takeover in 637 AD, the Muslim Caliph Omar appointed the Muslim Nusseibeh family to open and close the church doors every day. After the Crusades, in around 1200 AD, the Islamic ruler, Saladin, retained the Nusseibeh family to open and close the doors. He also appointed the Muslim Joudeh family to keep the key to the church in their home.

 

6. Columns to the Left of the Door

• Since around 850 AD, the Greeks have celebrated a ritual called Holy Fire inside the church at noon on each Saturday before Easter. This is where the Orthodox priest enters the Holy Tomb, emerges with all his candles lit, and the fire he is holding is transferred from one person to the next. 

• According to a Greek tradition, in the year 1579 AD, the Turkish soldiers in charge of the church did not allow any visitors to enter for the annual Holy Fire ritual. According to the legend, the Greek patriarch of Jerusalem, Sophronius IV, was standing outside in the courtyard praying. When the sky was dark, this stone column in the center split open (you can see the crack), and holy fire came out of this fissure. Sophronius then used this fire to light all of the candles in the courtyard. Seeing this miracle, the Turks then allowed all of the worshippers to enter the church, and the Holy Fire celebration has continued to be observed every year to this day.

 

7. Stairway Leading to Golgotha

• The place where Jesus was crucified was at the summit of a small hill. To ascend the hill of Golgotha today, you need to start at the entrance of the church, turn right, and climb up the 800-year-old stairs leading to Calvary (or Golgotha), the place where Jesus was crucified.

 

8. Chapel of the Nailing of the Cross ~ Via Dolorosa Station 11

• This is where Jesus was nailed to the cross.

• It features a 12th-century mosaic of Jesus being nailed to the cross. Here you see Jesus after having been nailed to the cross. Mary is wearing black, indicating that she is in mourning. It seems that the other two people in this mosaic are entirely symbolic. The person bowing before Jesus represents the bride of Christ, the Church, adorned in a pure white robe. The man with the nails is not a soldier because he is dressed in ordinary clothing. 

• The Abraham Mosaic depicts Abraham attempting to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. The sacrificial ram with its head caught in the thorns is related to the mosaic above the altar, where a crown of thorns surrounds the head of Jesus.

• Luke 23:33: When the soldiers came to the place called “The Skull,” they nailed Jesus to a cross. They also nailed the two criminals to crosses, one on each side of Jesus.

 

9. Rock of Calvary

• The rock of Calvary can be seen under a glass cover on either side of the main altar.

• Calvary is the Latin equivalent of the word Golgotha, which means “the place of the skull.”

 

10. Crucifixion Altar ~ Via Dolorosa Station 12

• This is where Christ was crucified.

• In  393 AD, Jerome, who lived in Bethlehem and translated the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts into Latin, stated that the cross stood not just near this hill, but literally “on the hill” where the altar of Calvary is now located. This confirms that the place now venerated as the location of the cross is authentic.

• A silver disk, with a central hole, lies underneath the altar, marking the place where the Cross stood.

• On each side of the altar is the bedrock from the original site of Golgotha.

• Beneath the altar is a hole that permits people to touch the rock of Golgotha.

• John 19:18-19: There they crucified Him, and with Him two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between. 19 Now Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written: “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

• Remarkably, the first words recorded from Jesus' mouth are "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34).

• The Apostle John was the only apostle present at the crucifixion of Jesus. The rest of them were in hiding, probably in the Upper Room. John and Jesus’ mother, Mary, were both close enough to the cross to hear Jesus tell John, “Behold your mother” (John 19:27), and to His mother, Jesus said, “Behold your son” (John 19:26). 

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11. Shrine of Mary ~ Via Dolorosa Station 13

• Between stations 11 and 12 of the Via Dolorosa is a shrine of Mary, the mother of Jesus, with a spear piercing her heart.

• This is also the believed place where the body of Jesus was taken down from the Cross. 

• Luke 2:34-35: And Simeon blessed them and said to His mother Mary, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and as a sign to be opposed— 35 and a sword will pierce your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

 

12. Chapel of Adam

• It was initially called "The Church of Golgotha" but was changed to the "Chapel of Adam," due to the belief that Adam was buried here.

• This chapel enshrines a cracked slab of rock behind glass, which is believed to have been caused by the earthquake after Christ died on the Cross.

• The front of this chapel features an apse, indicating that a church was once located here, commemorating Golgotha and the crucifixion.

• Just outside the chapel, part of the original rock of Golgotha can also be seen.

• Matthew 27:50-53: And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and gave up His spirit. 51 And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. 52 Also, the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53 and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection, they entered the holy city and appeared to many.

 

13. Greek Orthodox Treasury

It is located next to the Chapel of Adam on the ground floor of the Church, near the base of Calvary (Golgotha). It is typically closed to the public. It contains:

• A small piece of wood is believed to be from the True Cross of Jesus Christ. 

• Skullcap of John the Baptist 

• Right hand of Mary Magdalene

• Finger of the Apostle Andrew

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14. The Stone of Unction

• Located just after entering the church, it commemorates the preparation of Jesus' body for burial.

• The original Church of the Holy Sepulcher didn’t have a Stone of Unction. In fact, we don’t even know where Jesus’ body was anointed. Approximately 2000 years ago, Jesus was probably anointed on bare rock or topsoil, as this location was a garden at the time. The Crusaders were the first to place a marble slab here around 1125 AD, but it was destroyed in the 1808 fire. The slab that you see here is its replacement. It is almost exactly the same distance from the altar of Calvary as it is from the Tomb of Jesus, which is probably why the Crusaders put it in this spot.

• Behind the Stone is a mosaic depicting Christ's anointing for burial.

• Matthew 27:59-60: And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut out in the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away.

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15. Mosaic by the Stone of Unction

• Just above the Stone of Unction is a large mosaic showing a timeline of the events of the death, anointing, and burial of Jesus.

• The events in this mosaic are not only told in chronological order from right to left, but they are also in geographic order. 

 

16. Mourning Place ~ Holy Women Monument

• An Armenian Shrine, also known as the Chapel of the Three Marys. It marks the place where they watched the crucifixion of Christ.

• John 19:25: Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.

 

17. Altar of the Myrrh-Bearing Women

• Just to the right, before entering the rotunda, is an altar dedicated to the women who came to anoint Jesus’ body with spices and perfumes on Sunday morning, after He had already been resurrected.

• Matthew and Mark say that there were many women in this group, among whom were the three Marys – Mary, his mother, Mary Magdalene, and Mary, the wife of Clopas. 

• In the Bible, we read about how these women watched Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea to see where Jesus was buried. They did this because Jesus was taken down from the cross hastily, and His body was not entirely prepared for burial. Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea had cleansed the body, but they hadn’t anointed it with spices and perfumes. That task was left to the women who watched Him being buried, to be completed on the Sunday morning after the Sabbath.

 

18. The Rotunda or Anastasis (the place of resurrection)

• For many years, the church was known as the Church of the Resurrection, rather than the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which translates to 'Church of the Holy Sepulchre', referring to the 'Church of the Holy Tomb'. 

• The dome holds great significance.

  • It has a hole in the center, and when the daytime sun is shining through, it symbolizes Jesus – the Light of the World. 

  • The 12 rays emanating from the skylight are symbolic of the multi-directional ministry of the 12 Apostles as they spread the Gospel's light throughout the world.

  • There are 120 stars around the bottom of this dome. These stars symbolize the 120 people who were baptized in the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, when the church was born.

  • The apostles, along with the 120 who were part of the early church, look down upon us today, hoping that we will carry out the mission of the church.

 

19. Tomb of Jesus ~ Via Dolorosa Station 14

• Underneath the large dome of the church (Rotunda) is the Tomb of Jesus. It is housed in a large shrine referred to as an Edicule.

• All of human history revolves around what happened inside this little building 2000 years ago. This is the tomb of Jesus Christ – the place where He was buried, and where He rose from the dead. 

• The word edicule is Latin for little house, and it’s generally used to describe a building that is constructed over tombs.

• There have been four Edicules that have covered the tomb of Jesus.

• When you go inside the tomb, you are only a few inches away from the place where Jesus was laid to rest, and where He rose from the dead three days later. 

• The rotunda is not only the primary focus of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, but is the center of all Christianity.

• The stone that sealed the tomb is housed in the Church of Saint Savior on Mount Zion.

• It was originally Joseph’s tomb that he gave to Jesus. It was different than other tombs in that it was a bench-type tomb, where Jesus lay parallel to the wall. This type of tomb was more expensive to build because of the labor involved in carving out an entire room around the burial bench. 

• In the first room of the tomb is a rock in a case on a table. It is believed to be part of the original stone that was rolled to seal the tomb.

• In the second room of the burial tomb is bedrock from the original tomb.

• To the right is the bench where the body of Jesus would have been laid.

• When you walk into the Edicule, you’re following in the footsteps of Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, the wealthy man who carved this tomb out of solid limestone. 

• When you look into the tomb, you’ll be doing exactly what the Apostles Peter, John, and Mary Magdalene did when they looked into His empty tomb. When you walk out of the tomb, you will be following the same path as Jesus Himself, when He walked out into the early morning air on Easter Sunday.

• Matthew 27:57-60: Now when it was evening, a rich man from Arimathea came, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. 58 This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. 59 And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut out in the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away. 

• Matthew 28:5-6: The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified. 6 He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.”

• In 2016, an archaeological team was granted permission to lift the marble slate covering the tomb, and an older marble slab with a carved cross was discovered beneath it. Underneath it was the original limestone burial bed of Christ.

 

20. Coptic Chapel

• Around the back side of the Tomb of the Edicule is the small Chapel of the Coptic Church – the Orthodox Church of Egypt.

• Probably the most interesting aspect of this small chapel is what lies beneath the altar. Under it is an exposed portion of the original rock that surrounded the tomb of Jesus, which Joseph of Arimathea built.

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21. Syrian Chapel ~ First Century Tombs

• The chapel is located within the original 4th-century walls of Constantine's church.

• This room is used every Sunday for worship by the Syrian Orthodox Church, which claims to be the oldest Christian denomination in the world. The Syrian church worships in the first-century language of Aramaic, and its Bible is written in the Syriac language, which is closely related to Aramaic.

• According to tradition, the Apostles Peter and John are considered the founders of the Syrian Church, which originated in the first century in the city of Antioch. It was here, as recorded in Acts 11:26, that the followers of Christ were first referred to as Christians. 

• There are five tombs in this room that date back to the first century. Three of them are blocked, as if they have no significance. A decorative arch surrounds the two open tombs in the middle. That means these tombs were reserved for individuals of special status. 

• It's believed that these were the tombs of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, members of the Jewish ruling council who were secret disciples of Christ, and who laid Him in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea.

 

22. The Catholicon

• It was the central part of the Crusader Church.

• It's the largest chapel in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the main prayer hall of the Greek Orthodox church in Jerusalem.

• At the front of the chapel is a short, rose-colored marble basin containing a circular stone marked with a cross. It’s called the Omphalos, a word that means navel. It has been here for almost 1,000 years.

• The Orthodox Church teaches that the place where Jesus died and rose from the dead is the center of the world. A specific spot, known as the Omphalos, is situated exactly halfway between the cross and the tomb. They believe this spot is the spiritual center of the entire universe.

• This throne, located on the right side of the chapel, is reserved for the priest who oversees the Greek Orthodox Church in the Holy Land. He is called the Patriarch of Jerusalem. 

• The throne on the left side of the chapel is dedicated to the Patriarch of Antioch, a city located in southern Turkey. 

• The lecterns on each side of the chapel are called the Analogion. It is where the priest reads Scripture and leads his congregation in song and holy liturgy during Orthodox worship services.

• The wall in the front of the church is called an iconostasis, or icon stand, and virtually every Greek Orthodox church in the world has one. The iconostasis symbolically separates the main worship hall, which represents all of us on earth, from the sanctuary and the main altar behind the wall, which represents heaven.

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23. Chapel of Mary Magdalene

• In between the rotunda of the church and the Arches of the Virgin is the Roman Catholic Chapel dedicated to Mary Magdalene. This chapel is believed to be the site where Jesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene after His resurrection.

• Above the altar in this chapel is a bronze statue depicting the encounter of Mary Magdalene with Jesus. High on the opposite side is the pipe organ that accompanies the worship services celebrated here.

• The tiles on the floor are new, but they are laid in the same pattern that they were in the 11th century. The circle with the rays represents the location where Jesus stood when He and Mary first encountered each other after His resurrection, and the three concentric circles represent the positions where Mary Magdalene stood when she saw Him.

• John 20:14-16: At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. 15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).

 

24. Chapel of the Apparition

• It's approximately 1,000 years old and in the custody of the Franciscan Catholic community in Jerusalem. 

• On the front left side of the church, a sculpture depicts Jesus appearing to His mother shortly after His resurrection. This appearance of Jesus to his mother is not recorded in the Bible. It’s a legend that was first mentioned in the third century.

• In this chapel is a column of stone believed by many to be part of the pillar to which Jesus was tied as the Roman soldiers whipped Him. 

• On the far side of this room is a bronze statue on the wall, showing all fourteen stations of the cross – from the point at which Jesus was condemned by Pontius Pilate to die, to the tomb where He was buried, and from which He rose from the dead.

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25. Arches of the Virgin Mary

• This is a long gallery under the custody of the Franciscan Catholics in the Holy Land. It’s called the Arches of the Virgin because it commemorates the moment Mary visited the tomb of Jesus, where He appeared to her after His resurrection.

• This legendary appearance to Mary is not mentioned in the Bible, but found in historical accounts from two ancient sources from the third century AD.

• The northern wall of this gallery is part of the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built by Constantine. There are holes in this wall that once supported large marble panels that adorned the rotunda over the Tomb of Jesus.

 

26. Northern Wall of Constantine's Church

• This wall was part of the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and there are holes in it that once supported large marble panels that adorned the martyrium.

• When the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre was completed in 335 AD, this area was part of a large worship hall called the Martyrium.

• All the columns in this original martyrium were square. However, in 1009 AD, the entire church was destroyed.

• Thirty-nine years later, in 1048 AD, the church was completely reconstructed, and the builders decided to switch from square pillars to round ones, although a couple of square pillars remain in this gallery. 

 

27. Chapel of the Prison of Jesus

• This chapel is under the authority of the Greek Orthodox Church.

• One of the remnants of this prison was this leg stock, where a prisoner’s legs would have been slipped through these holes, and then shackled at the ankles, so that the prisoner could not escape.

• It is unlikely that this prison existed during the crucifixion of Jesus, as it was located outside the city walls, and there is no mention in the Gospels of Jesus spending time in a prison at Golgotha.

• It is believed that Jesus was imprisoned for the night at the House of the High Priest, Caiaphas. However, not here at Golgotha.

• Today, this prison serves as a commemorative chapel where one can pray and contemplate the imprisonment of Jesus leading up to His crucifixion.

 

28. The Ambulatory

• There is a long, curved hallway that runs around the church behind the main worship hall, the Catholicon. This hallway is called the Ambulatory. When you walk through it, starting from the Chapel of Adam, it is like a little miniature Via Dolorosa. There are three chapels on the right side of this hallway, and they tell the story of Jesus' sufferings in chronological order, from right to left.

  • Chapel of Derision

  • Chapel of the Parting of the Robes

  • Chapel of Longinus

 

29. St Longinus Chapel

• Longinus was the Roman Centurion who commanded the soldiers who stood watch at Golgotha. He was an eyewitness to Jesus' final moments and proclaimed that Jesus was truly the Son of God.

• An ancient source from the fourth century claims the soldier's name was Longinus. 

• John 19:32-34: So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man, and of the other who was crucified with Him; 33 but after they came to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. 34 Yet one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. 

• Whatever happened to this soldier named Longinus? Tradition tells us that Longinus became a believer in Christ, probably not just because of this earthquake, but also because, as a soldier, he likely heard that this same Jesus rose from the dead three days later. 

• Matthew 27:54: Now as for the centurion and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the other things that were happening, they became extremely frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” 

• Today, Longinus is revered as a saint in many Christian denominations because he is believed to have converted to Christianity after the crucifixion of Jesus. That’s why there is a large statue of Longinus in Saint Peter’s Cathedral in Rome today.

• Tradition tells us that Longinus was martyred in Cappadocia.​

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30. Chapel of the Division of the Robes

• While Jesus hung on the cross, the Roman soldiers tore His robe up into four parts.

• This was foretold in Psalm 22:18: They divide my garments among them, and they cast lots for my clothing. 

• The soldiers divided up Jesus’ outer garment into four parts, and then had a kind of lottery drawing to see which one of them would walk away with His tunic, which He wore under His robe.

• His tunic didn’t have any seams. It was woven into one piece. 

• Mark 15:24: And they crucified Him, and divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man would take.

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31. Chapel of the Derision

• This place commemorates the people who derided Jesus by mocking and laughing at him while He hung on the Cross.

• The Paintings in the Chapel of the Derision. Each picture is a fulfillment of an Old Testament prophecy.

  • The picture on the right shows Jesus during one of His trials, where the Jewish rulers are mocking him. This was a fulfillment of verses from Psalm 27 and Psalm 35.

  • The middle picture shows Jesus seated on this granite pillar, with the crown of thorns placed on His head. That was a fulfillment of prophecies in Psalms 35 and 69, as well as Isaiah 50.

  • The picture on the left shows Jesus walking through a crowd that is jeering and yelling at Him. That is a fulfillment of verses from Psalm 7 and Isaiah 53.

• Matthew 27:39-44: And those passing by were speaking abusively to Him, shaking their heads, 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 In the same way, the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying, 42 “He saved others; He cannot save Himself! He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. 43 He has trusted in God; let God rescue Him now, if He takes pleasure in Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 And the rebels who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him in the same way.

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32. Chapel of St. Helena

• Descending the stairs into this chapel, ancient crosses carved into the walls from the 1100s can be seen.

• This area was filled with dirt when Hadrian built his temple to Jupiter and Venus here.

• Helena destroyed the temple that Hadrian had built, removed the dirt from this area, and exposed it.

• She built a stairway tunnel that led down to this area because it was the place where she had found part of the cross of Jesus. Helena had pillars constructed to support the floor above it.

• To the left of the chapel, a section of the structural wall that Hadrian built remains visible today.

• The Chapel of Saint Helena was named after the mother of the first Christian Roman emperor, Constantine the Great.

• In 326 AD, Constantine sent Helena to the Holy Land in her late 70s to build churches on Christianity’s most holy sites, beginning with this location. 

• It was the Crusaders who gave this chapel its common name, but the current custodians of the chapel, the Armenian Apostolic Church, renamed this chapel after their patron Saint. They now refer to it as the Chapel of Saint Gregory the Illuminator.

• Saint Gregory is the most important saint for the Armenian Apostolic Church. In 301 AD, he convinced the king of Armenia to adopt Christianity. After that, the entire nation of Armenia switched from the pagan religion of Zoroastrianism to Christianity. The three large paintings on the north wall of this room tell his story.

• The Altar of Saint Helena (also known to the Armenians as the Altar of Saint Gregory). This altar was dedicated to Saint Helena.

• The Armenian Apostolic Church operates this chapel, and you will find a large mosaic on the floor depicting nine historic Armenian churches. Although the mosaic appears ancient, it was actually created in the 1970s. 

• The Altar of the Penitent Thief is located to the left of the chapel.

 

33. Chapel of the Discovery of the Cross

• Going down some stairs located on the right side of the chapel is a room called the Chapel of the Discovery of the Cross. Tradition claims that this is where Saint Helena discovered the "True Cross" on which Jesus is said to have died. 

• Why was the cross left here? This room was once a large underground cistern that collected water for the garden. You can still see the hole in the ceiling where people lowered buckets to get water. Tradition claims that local Christians told Helena that the Cross had been thrown into this old water cistern on the day Jesus died.

• Why was it thrown in this cistern? Jesus died at 3:00 PM, and the Jewish holy day (the Sabbath) began at 6:00 PM. Jewish law required that everything be buried or cleaned up before the Sabbath started. This gave Jesus’s followers only three hours to bury him and get rid of the bloody crosses. Because they were in a rush, they likely threw the crosses into this nearby cistern. Supposedly, the crosses stayed hidden here until Helena found them in 326 AD.

• If you look at the ceiling, you can see straight cuts in the rock. This is because, long before it was a cistern, this room was a stone quarry where workers extracted stone for building construction.

• Later, the old quarry was transformed into a garden, which is mentioned in the Bible (John 19:41). Ultimately, this space was converted into a cistern to supply water for the garden.

• ​The left side of this chapel is under the custody of the Catholics, whose altar features a life-sized statue of the Empress Helena holding a cross.

• The exact place where it is said that Helena found the three crosses is believed to be behind the metal altar railing.

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​​34. Chapel of Saint Vartan

• This chapel is normally closed to the public, and special arrangements must be made to see it. This chapel is at the deepest part of the church. 

• Throughout the centuries, the wall adjacent to the Altar of the Penitent Thief in the Chapel of Saint Helena was merely a wall.

• In the 1970s, a hole was made in the wall, and when they broke through, they discovered archaeological ruins that date back almost 2,700 years.

• The first room was part of a rock quarry that provided the building stones for Solomon’s Temple (960 BC) and other building projects in Jerusalem. 

• A wall containing a boat drawing was part of the foundation of the temple to the false gods that Hadrian built on this site in 135 AD. The only remnants of this ancient temple are in this chapel and the Russian Church of Alexander Nevsky next door.​

• Sometime between 325 AD—after Helena demolished Hadrian’s temple to the false gods—and the completion of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre about eleven years later, a pilgrim made his way to Jerusalem. He had traveled by boat from the western regions of the Roman Empire. Upon reaching this sacred place, he etched a drawing of his vessel onto the wall. Alongside it, in Latin, he inscribed the words: "Domine, imus"—“Lord, we go.” This phrase likely echoes Psalm 122:1: “I rejoiced with those who said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” His journey had brought him to the gates of Jerusalem—and he marked the moment in stone.​

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35. Ethiopian Chapels ~ accessed from the plaza area outside the church, going up stairs to the roof of the church.

• Ethiopian Chapel St. Michael

• Ethiopian Chapel St. of the Four Living Creatures

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36. Ethiopian Monastery ~ on the roof of the church.

• Ever since around 350 AD, monks from the African country of Ethiopia have lived in Jerusalem. Ethiopian monks are still here in a very primitive monastery. 

• The monastery is called Deir es-Sultan, and the Ethiopians have been here on the roof ever since the year 1654 AD.

• Approximately twenty monks reside here in small huts that resemble traditional African clay homes.

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37. Dome over the Chapel of St. Helena

• This is located on the roof of the church.

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38. Original Entrance to Hadrian's Temple and Constantine's Church

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Faith Lesson from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

 

1. While we might disagree with the decorations and atmosphere of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, do we appreciate all the devotion and sacrifice that have been made to remember and commemorate all Jesus did for us on the Cross?

 

2. The fact that this place, along with many others, has been preserved and set aside to honor Christ and the events of the Bible provides powerful evidence regarding the historicity of Christ and the truthfulness of the Bible. Do we truly believe the Bible and everything written in it?

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3. This is the believed place where Christ gave His life for each one of us. Have we received Christ's gift of salvation and the promise of eternal life with Him in paradise?

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4. Are we grateful for the price Jesus paid to save us and have a living relationship with us?