Bethlehem

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2,11)

Bethlehem is the combination of two Hebrew words meaning the house of bread. It is located about 6 miles southwest of Jerusalem by the hill country of Judea on the way to Hebron. It is first mentioned in the Armana letters [discovered in 1887, these letters are dated to the reigns of Amenhotep III 1402-1364 and Akhenaten Amenhotep IV, 1350-1334]. Bethlehem is sacred to three major religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

In 326, the Roman Emperor Constantine commissioned a church to be built over a cave believed to be the place of Christ’s birth. This church, dedicated on May 31, 339, had an octagonal floor plan and was placed directly above the cave. In the center there was a 4-meter-wide hole surrounded by a railing  to provide a view of the cave. Portions of the floor mosaic survive from that period. The first evidence of a cave in Bethlehem being venerated as Christ's birthplace is in the writings of Justin Martyr around 160 A.D. The tradition is also attested by Origen and Eusebius in the 3rd century.

Jerome, translator of the Latin Vulgate, lived and worked in Bethlehem circa 384 A.D., and was buried in a cave beneath the Church of the Nativity when he died.

The Door of Humility, a small rectangular entrance to the church, was created in Ottoman times to prevent carts being driven in by looters, and to force even the most important visitor to dismount from his horse as he entered the holy place. The doorway was reduced from an earlier Crusader doorway, the pointed arch of which can still be seen above the current door. The outline of the Justinian entrance can also be seen above the door.

Manger Square is the focus of Christmas celebrations not once, but three times a year. In addition to the traditional Western celebration, which begins on December 24, the Greek Orthodox mark their Christmas on January 6, and the Armenian observance is on January 19.