Page 43 - Holyland Magazine - 2020 Edition

The doorway to the
Beit Jimal Convent.
Left: The Latrun
Monastery.
After the Second Temple was destroyed in Photo: Itamar Grinberg
70 CE, Emperor Titus built a city here, which
he named Nicopolis. Later, when the city
became Christian, a large church was built
here, and it became famous. An earthquake
in the year 499 stopped up the hot springs
and over the years, the city declined.
In 1927, a monastery and an inn were built
here, but the site was generally closed to
visitors. Over the past few years it has been
reopened, with visitors holding prayers and
Bible study against the backdrop of the
impressive Byzantine church. The site also
has a small archaeological museum and
shop, and Roman mosaics are on display.
A very special community of monks and nuns,
from all over the world, now lives at Emmaus,
where they have built a beautiful chapel. Most
are relatively young, and see their mission
as working and praying for understanding
among all faiths.
Havens Beit Jimal a chance to speak with the sisters. Visitors

can also see a short film that describes the
Some 130 years ago, Italian monks of the
sisters’ daily life. A charming shop offers wine,
Salesian order established this picturesque
monastery at the top of the hill overlooking the
by the nuns.
city of Beit Shemesh, where Rabbi Gamaliel, olive oil and the stunning ceramics produced
teacher of the Apostle Paul (Acts 22:3), was Deir Raf’at
said to have had his home and farm. A few kilometers west of Beit Shemesh,
but light-years away from a modern urban
A narrow, winding road climbs to the site, experience of the 21st century, is the
passing through beautiful, quiet olive groves. monastery of Deir Raf‘at. The name, which
The large gate, opposite a pleasant pine in Arabic means “monastery of mercy,”
grove, will lead you to what seems no less preserves the name of the village which once
than the perfect combination of beautiful stood near here. Built in 1926 by the Latin
architecture, well-kept gardens, a captivating Patriarchate in Jerusalem, the monastery is
view and a welcoming atmosphere. Behind inhabited by Italian nuns from the Order of
the monastery stands a church, built in St. Dorothy. A courtyard, shaded by aromatic
the 1930s over the remains of a Byzantine old pine trees, overlooks cultivated fields
church. The balcony next to it offers a lovely and rolling hills. These are the same fields
view of the surrounding hills. where thousands of years ago the Israelites
were harvesting their wheat when they
looked up and saw the cart bearing the Ark
The church walls have been decorated with of the Covenant coming back from Philistine
sections of original mosaic that once adorned captivity (1 Samuel 6:13).
the ancient church on this site – a wonderful
way of expressing Christian continuity in this Within the church, the walls and ceiling are
land. A dark burial cave under the church is covered with the words Ave Maria – the
believed to hold the bones of Rabbi Gamaliel words with which the Angel Gabriel greeted
and his son, Habib. Mary (Luke 1:28) – in hundreds of languages
and dialects.
In 1989, new life was breathed into this place These four monasteries, each on or near
when a convent was built to house nuns of a significant biblical site, bring greetings to
the order of the Little Sisters of Bethlehem. modern Christian visitors on an off-the-beaten-
The design is modernist and Spartan, and the track adventure that is just a 20-minute ride
in the Hills
visit is unforgettable, especially if you have from Jerusalem.

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