One of the less explored venues in the 'Old City' of Jerusalem is the Armenian Quarter. It is the smallest among the four quarters of Jerusalem and occupies one sixth of the 'Old City'. Today, approximately 1500 Armenians live inside the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem. The quarter is concentrated around a cathedral known as the Cathedral of St: James'. The church complex occupies two-third of the Armenian Quarter and is also where the Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem resides.
The Cathedral of St: James' (see James' is written with an apostrophe after S), commemorates the names of actually two James'. 1) 'St: James the Great'-one of the 12 Apostles of Christ and the brother of Apostle John; He was the first Apostle to be martyred; beheaded by King Herod Antipas in 44 AD (Acts 12:1-2). His severed head is supposedly buried inside the church, while his body was interred in Spain, where he frequently preached. 2) 'St: James the Less'-the brother of Jesus and the first bishop of Jerusalem. He is buried somewhere beneath the main altar of the cathedral. According to Armenian tradition, the cathedral was built at the site where James the great was killed by King Herod Agrippa. The current church stands on the site of earlier 6th century Byzantine and 11th century Crusader churches.
Although, Armenian Quarter is one of the oldest neighbourhoods in the 'Old City' with many attractions, visitors are allowed only when the church services are held; unfortunately that is for just one hour in the early morning and from 3.00 to 3.30 pm in the afternoon. We paid a visit to the church for the afternoon services. While services are being held you are not supposed to take photographs (with flash) and sit with crossed legs. I could not explore much here, as immediately after the services outsiders were asked to leave and the cathedral was locked.
No comments:
Post a Comment