Jerusalem is one of the oldest cities in the world, has been destroyed, rebuilt, conquered, besieged, captured and recaptured so many times and all that history is right there, at the grasp of your fingers for you to discover. No matter your faith, Jerusalem is one of the Holiest places on the planet. From the Western Wall, the Holy Sepulcher to the Dome of the Rock, every major religion is represented and held within its walls.
Starting at the Mount of Olives, you will have one of the most spectacular sights of the Old City. From this lookout point, you can clearly see the eastern side of the Old City and some of its landmarks like the Dome of the Rock or the Holy Sepulchre. Looking down we’ll see the Kidron Valley and the City of David.
Starting the descend we will find the Dominus Flevit church. This church, along with others we will find on the way down from the Mount of Olives, was designed and constructed between 1953 and 1955 by the Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi.
Barluzzi has been able to merge beautifully the archeological findings of the site, along with the significance this church has for Christianity. Here, according to the 19th chapter of the Gospel of Luke, Jesus, while riding toward the city of Jerusalem, becomes overwhelmed by the beauty of the Second Temple and predicting its future destruction, and the diaspora of the Jewish people weeps openly.
The outer shape of the church has been fashioned to look like a teardrop, symbolizing Christ's grief over the impending destruction of Jerusalem.
Behind the altar is a much-photographed picture window overlooking the city. The cross and chalice in its arch-shaped design focus not on the Dome of the Rock but on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
The church stands where once stood a Byzantine church in the 5th century dedicated to the prophetess of St. Anna and in an area where tombs are dated back to 1600 BC. Also unearthed were the remains of an elaborate mosaic floor from the Byzantine church. It has been preserved, to the left of the entrance.
The mosaic is richly decorated with intersecting circles and pictures of fruit, leaves, and flowers.
Want to know more about this landmark of the Mount of Olives?
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