THE TOMB OF LAZARUS, BETHANY-whom Jesus raised from dead after four days (John 11).

"Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, "Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me. And I knew that Thou hearest Me always, but because of the people who stand by I said it, that they may believe that Thou hast sent Me." And when He thus had spoken, He cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come forth!" And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus said unto them, "Loose him, and let him go" (John 11:41-44).

Bethany has witnessed many events in the life of Jesus. The village was the home of Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead (John 11:38-44), and his sisters Mary and Martha. The New Testament records that Jesus often stayed in their home. It is here Jesus stayed after His triumphal entry into Jerusalem in a donkey (Mark 11:11). The next day, Jesus overturned the tables of the money-changers in the Temple area and returned again to Bethany (Matthew 21:17). In Bethany, Jesus cursed the fig tree that had no fruit (Mark 11:12-14). At the home of Simon the Leper in Bethany, Jesus was anointed by the lady with a jar of expensive perfume (Mark 14:3). Finally, Jesus' ascension to heaven also happened near Bethany (Luke 24:50).

The Tomb of Lazarus in Bethany has long been venerated by Christians and Muslims alike. Some have identified Bethany with the village Ananiah of the Old Testament (Nehemiah 11:32). Today, the Palestinian Arab village of Al-Azarriyah stands at the site of biblical Bethany and is built around the Tomb of Lazarus. Ancient churches from 4th, 5th and 12th centuries stood over the site, before the modern St. Lazarus Catholic (1953) and Greek Orthodox (1965) churches were built. In the 4th century, this structure was known as Lazarium. The Lazarium was destroyed in an earthquake and was replaced by a larger Church of St. Lazarus in the 5th century. At the time of Crusaders (12th century), a large convent dedicated to Mary and Martha was built here. The Crusaders also repaired the earlier 5th century church and added a new church and a monastery complex with a tower, west to the Tomb (where modern Greek Orthodox church resides).

The Arabic word Al-Azariyeh is probably derived from the Greek word 'Lazarium' which means the 'Place of Lazarus'. By 1384, Muslims built a mosque on the site and Christian access to the tomb was blocked. By 16th century, the Mosque of al-Uzair (Ezra) was built and Christians were allowed to make a new entrance to the Tomb. Today, the tomb is under the control of Muslims. The actual entrance can be seen at the courtyard of the St. Lazarus Church. Since the mosque exists in between the tomb and the Church, this access is blocked. The new entrance is after the mosque and marked distinctly. To pay a visit to the tomb, you are expected to donate an amount to the caretaker. When we arrived the site, a guy approached us and asked for 10 NIS to enter the tomb. We had to believe him as there was no other choice, and only after the payment we were allowed inside.