Garden of Gethsemane- Church of All Nations

Garden of Gethsemane

Across the Kidron Valley
 from the Temple Mount, 

on the base of the Mount of Olives, 

is The Garden of Gethsemane. 

Its name comes from the Hebrew

 - Gat Shemanim, 

which means- "oil press."

This reflects the presence of the many olive groves 

on the western slope of the Mount of Olives.

Although it is called a garden

 it was amore likely an enclosed orchard 

owned by a wealthy citizen of Jerusalem.

Some conjecture that it was owned 

by John Marks father, 

who also provided the upper room for Jesus 

to celebrate the Passover with his disciples.

We see the passion story here in Luke 22:39-53. 

Agony and Betrayal.

The original site of the garden now 
includes the Church of ALL Nations-

(because many nations contributed funds 
to build the church.)

It is also called the church of the Agony.

Byzantine and Crusader churches
 had been erected

 on this site but were destroyed 
in the many wars in Jerusalem.

This current church was built 

between 1919 and 1924

 and is a blend of Christian basilica
 and Byzantine monastery architectures.

                                                                               

The rock which is situated in 
front of the altar is perhaps a fragment
 of the rock on which Jesus prayed on 
before his crucifixion.
There are lines always here-

 people waiting to touch the rock.

As with all of the Holy Week sites.
the buildings visited are used 
to bring us back to THE STORY.
Visits to the places in Jerusalem 
that depict the Holy week story
  can be disappointing.
 It is necessary to understand 
that in Israel there are absolute sites,
 like the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee.
There are traditional sites,
 like the Garden of Gethsemane.
And sites with a bit more hazy source- 
like the Last Supper.

This map might help a bit in getting an idea
of the locations of settings for the Holy Week stories.

Reading this book as a resource 
for the Easter story and
to learn a bit more of THE STORY-.

Lutheran historian Paul Maier
 weaves fascinating history
 with archeologist findings to recreate
a modern day Jerusalem.
He brings the life of one man-
Jesus- into eternity for all of His followers.