This is perhaps the
only chapel in the world where the altar is not shared but divided
between three denominations, each allowed to decorate only a third of
it. The chapel is tiny, hardly big enough for three people to stand
in front of that altar. This is the Edicule, or the Tomb of Christ,
the place where His body was laid after He was killed. Many people
were killed afterwards because many nations wanted to control this
place.
A chapel has been built
around the tomb. It has been rebuilt many times afterwards, the
present one dates from 19th century. It is hight time to
rebuild it again, but there is no agreement as to who should be
allowed to rebuild it, so it has been bound with iron bars to stop it
falling apart. So it stands, a perfect symbol of an imperfect church.
Many people from all
over the world come here and want to enter this place. You can enter,
there is no restriction, but you have to be prepared to queue for
more than an hour an you won't be allowed to spend inside more than a
minute.
 |
| The Edicule seen from the entry to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. |
 |
| Iron bars binding the Edicule. |
 |
| The door to the chapel. |
 |
| The door |
 |
| The door to the Tomb from inside the antechamber. |
 |
| The altar inside the Tomb. |
 |
| A Coptic chapel at the back of the Edicule. |
 |
| The dome above the Edicule. |
No comments:
Post a Comment