'En Kerem

The village of 'En Kerem is situated to the west of Jerusalem. It is nice, green and hilly.

It used to be an Arabic village but its inhabitants moved out in 1948. Its present population is generally comprised of emigrants from different countries. There are many artists, studios, and exhibitions there.

When I went there by bus, I missed it (as usually!) and had to tramp back from the Hassadah hospital. To make a shortcut I walked through the Gornensky Convent of the Russian Orthodox Mission. Here is a view from it to the West.

The convent has a large belltower and a tiny church. At the beginning of the 20th century the construction of a new church was initiated. Unluckily, it ceased with the outbreak of the two revolutions in Russia in 1917.

The Church of St. John the Baptist (Spanish Franciscan Monastery) marks his birthplace. (It was destroyed and rebuilt twice; the present construction is from 1674.)

This is the Grotto of the Birth of St. John. On the lintel (not seen here) is a Latin inscription "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people" (Luke 1:68)---the first words of the prophecy uttered by Zacharias at the birth of his son. The full text is written in many languages on walls of the courtyard.

Ascending these stairs...

...we come to the Church of Visitation. This is the place where St. John's mother Elizabeth met Virgin Mary, who arrived from Nazareth (Luke 1:39-40).

On the front wall there is a mosaic depicting Mary on her way from Nazareth.

Here Mary said the Magnificat, "My soul doth magnify the Lord..." (Luke 1:46-55).

And its text is written in 42 different languages on a wall.

This photo shows the interior of the upper part of the church.

In the lower part there is a rock behind which an angel hid the little John when Herod ordered to kill all infants. A notice says that it is possible to find a print of a child's foot there but, unluckily, I couldn't see it!

In the middle of the village there is a spring, called Mary's Spring. Of course, all local inhabitants claim that Mary, on her way from Nazareth, stopped there to drink.

A mosque with a hexagonal minaret is built over the spring.