It is well known that the most revered shrine of Christians around the world is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. Its ancient walls rise where almost two thousand years ago Jesus Christ made his sacrifice on the cross and then rose from the dead. Being a monument of this most important event in the history of mankind, at the same time it became a place where every year the Lord shows the world the miracle of giving His Holy Fire.
Temple founded by St. Queen Elena
The history of the Jerusalem Church of the Resurrection of Christ, which is commonly called the Church of the Holy Sepulcher all over the world, is associated with the name of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Queen Elena. Having arrived in the Holy Land in the first half of the 4th century, she organized excavations, as a result of which sacred relics were found, among which the most important were the Life-Giving Cross and the Holy Sepulcher.
At her command, the first church was erected on the site of the ongoing work, which became the prototype of the future Church of the Holy Sepulcher (Israel). It was a very spacious building that contained Golgotha - the hill on which he was crucifiedSavior, as well as the place where His Life-Giving Cross was found. Later, a number of structures were added to the church, as a result of which a temple complex was formed, stretching from west to east.
Temple in the hands of conquerors
This earliest church of the Holy Sepulcher lasted less than three centuries and in 614 was destroyed by the soldiers of the Persian king Khosrov II, who captured Jerusalem. The damage inflicted on the temple complex was very significant, but in the period 616-626. it was completely restored. Historical documents of those years provide a curious detail - the work was personally financed by the wife of the conquering king Maria, who, oddly enough, was a Christian and openly professed her faith.
The next wave of shocks Jerusalem experienced in 637, when it was captured by the troops of Caliph Umar. However, as a result of the wise actions of Patriarch Sofroniy, destruction was avoided and the number of casu alties among the population was minimized. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher, founded by the holy Empress Elena, continued to be the main shrine of Christians for a long time, despite the fact that the city was in the hands of the conquerors.
The death of the old temple and the construction of a new one
But in 1009 there was a catastrophe. Caliph Al-Hakim, incited by the courtiers, gave the order to destroy the entire Christian population of the city and destroy the temples located on its territory. The massacre continued for several days, and thousands of civilians became its victims. Jerusalem. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher was destroyed and was never rebuilt in its original form. The son of Al-Hakim allowed the Byzantine emperor Constantine VIII to rebuild the shrine, but, according to contemporaries, the erected complex of buildings was in many respects inferior to that which was destroyed by his father.
Temple built by the Crusaders
The current Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, the photo of which is given in the article, like its predecessors, was built on the site of the cross sacrifice of Christ and His miraculous Resurrection. It unites the shrines associated with these events under one roof. The temple was erected in the period from 1130 to 1147 by the crusaders and is a vivid example of the Romanesque style.
The center of the architectural composition is the rotunda of the Resurrection - a cylindrical building, which houses the Edicule - a tomb in the rock where the body of Jesus rested. A little further away, in the central porch, are Golgotha and the Stone of Anointing, on which He was laid after being taken down from the cross.
On the east side, the rotunda is adjoined by a building called the Great Church, or otherwise Katholikon. It is divided into many aisles. The temple complex is complemented by a bell tower, which was once impressive in size, but was significantly damaged as a result of the earthquake of 1545. Its upper part was destroyed and has not been restored since then.
Restoration and restoration work of recent centuries
The temple suffered its last disaster in 1808, when a fire broke out in its walls,destroying the wooden roof and damaging Kuvuklia. That year, leading architects from many countries came to Israel to restore the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Through their joint efforts, it was possible in a short time not only to restore the damaged, but also to erect a hemispherical dome made of metal structures over the rotunda.
After the end of the Second World War, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher became the site of full-scale restoration work, the purpose of which was to strengthen all elements of the building, without violating its historical appearance. They don't stop today. It is gratifying to note that in 2013 a bell made in Russia was raised to the bell tower of the temple.
Today's appearance of the temple
Today, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem (photo is given in the article) is a vast architectural complex. It includes Golgotha - the place of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the rotunda, in the center of which is the Edicule or, in other words, the Holy Sepulcher, as well as the cathedral church Katholikon. In addition, the complex includes the underground Church of the Finding of the Life-Giving Cross and the Church of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Empress Helena.
In the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where, in addition to the shrines listed above, there are several more monasteries, religious life is extremely saturated. This is due to the fact that it accommodates representatives of six Christian denominations at once, such as Greek Orthodox, Catholic, Syrian, Coptic, Ethiopian and Armenian. Each of them has its own chapel and time,released for worship. So, the Orthodox can celebrate the liturgy at the Holy Sepulcher at night from 1:00 to 4:00. Then they are replaced by representatives of the Armenian Church, who at 6:00 give way to the Catholics.
So that none of the confessions represented in the temple had priority and everyone was on an equal footing, back in 1192 it was decided to make Muslims, members of the Arab family of Jaud Al Ghadiya, the keepers of the keys. The Arabs, representatives of the Nusayda family, were also entrusted with unlocking and locking the temple. Within the framework of this tradition, strictly observed to this day, honorary rights are passed on to members of both clans from generation to generation.
Fire descended from the sky
At the end of the article, let us briefly dwell on the descent of the Holy Fire in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (Jerusalem). Every year on the eve of the celebration of Easter, during a special service, miraculously kindled fire is taken out of Kuvuklia. It symbolizes the True Divine Light, that is, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Historical documents show that this tradition originated in the 9th century. It was then that on Great Saturday, preceding Easter, the rite of blessing the lamp was replaced by the miracle of finding the Holy Fire. Medieval descriptions have been preserved of how spontaneously, without human intervention, the lamps that hung over the Holy Sepulcher were lit. Numerous Russian pilgrims who visited holy places at different stages of history also left similar testimonies.
A miracle that has become part of modernity
Today, thanks to modern technology, millions of people annually witness the descent of the Holy Fire in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Photo and video materials dedicated to this miracle, arousing general interest, do not leave television screens and pages of printed publications. This is not surprising, since none of the numerous examinations could establish the reason why fire appears in the locked and sealed Cuvuklia.
The physical features also defy explanation. The fact is that, according to direct witnesses of the miracle, in the first minutes after its removal from the Holy Sepulcher, the fire does not burn and those present in reverent awe wash their faces.
In recent decades, immediately after the acquisition of the Holy Fire, it has become customary to deliver it by aircraft to many countries of the Christian world. The Russian Orthodox Church, supporting this pious tradition, also annually sends its delegation to Jerusalem, thanks to which, on Easter night, many churches in our country are consecrated by fire that descended from heaven in the Holy Land.
