\u201cHe is not here\u201d\u2014but was He ever?<\/b><\/p>\n
The Church of the Holy Sepulcher<\/b><\/p>\n
The most recent and comprehensive study of the Constantinian, Crusader and modern Churches of the Holy Sepulcher has just been completed. Findings offer no great revelations, but clarify what scholars have been piecing together over the past century<\/i>.<\/p>\n
In the spirit of the season, the six occupants of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher\u2014Latin Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Armenian, Syrian, Coptic and Ethiopian churches\u2014have agreed to open a new door. It only took five years of negotiations between the various church groups and a public announcement by officials of Israel\u2019s Ministry of Religious Affairs last spring that the structure was a potentially serious fire hazard (see ABR Newsletter<\/i> 29.6). On the heels of recent renovations of the church\u2019s ceiling and the removal of the famous ladder at the church\u2019s one open entrance, make one wonder if revival is breaking out in the church!<\/p>\n
While the new door is good news in itself, church officials recently received even better news from Medievalist professor Martin Biddle. The church houses the final five stations of the Via Dolorosa<\/i><\/p>\n
(article continued on page 63)<\/p>\n
Church of the Holy Sepulcher<\/b><\/p>\n
BSP<\/i> 12:2 (Spring 1999) p. 62<\/p>\n
Gordon\u2019s Calvary is so named because of its identification as Calvary by British General \u201cChinese\u201d Gordon. It sits about 100 yd northeast of the Damascus Gate opposite the Old City\u2019s north wall. \u201cCalvary\u201d (Lk 23:33) is the Latin term for skull, corresponding to the Hebrew \u201cGolgotha\u201d (Mt 27:33), the name of the crucifixion site. It may have been called \u201cthe place of the skull\u201d because of the death that took place there or because the site had a skull-like appearance. The root for the Hebrew word \u201cGolgotha\u201d means \u201crolling.\u201d A skull is rounded and thus can roll. The same root word \u201crolling\u201d also means pardon or forgiveness, as in the hymn \u201call my sins were rolled away.\u201d In truth, at the place of the skull (rolling\u2014Golgotha) all my sins were rolled away (pardoned).<\/b><\/p>\n
The Garden Tomb near Gordon\u2019s Calvary (Jn 19:42). Carved out of the solid rock (Mt 27:60) and located today in a beautiful garden (Jn 19:41), it could be considered a rich man\u2019s tomb (Mt 27:57).<\/b><\/p>\n
BSP<\/i> 12:2 (Spring 1999) p. 63<\/p>\n
(Way of Sorrows), including the purported sites of both Christ\u2019s crucifixion and His tomb. Biddle and his team just completed a ten year survey of the church, creating the first complete record of the structure as it is currently, through a three-dimensional computer-driven procedure called photogrammetry. Now that the various churches have agreed on the door, they will begin discussing future structural restorations using Biddle\u2019s research.<\/p>\n
Projected first to be uncovered and restored is the church\u2019s floor. Ancient records suggest they will find evidence of quarrying in the bedrock, dating to the First Temple period. Biddle anticipates signs of a small Jewish cemetery will be found, demonstrating Jesus\u2019 tomb was not just an isolated grave.<\/p>\n
The final restoration project will be the \u201cedicule,\u201d the structure constructed around the tomb itself. According to the New Testament (Mt 27:60), the tomb was carved out of bedrock. Ancient records suggest the First Temple quarry was reused in the Second Temple period as a cemetery. Biddle has documented four structures built around the tomb to beautify and protect it over the centuries. The first structure was built by Constantine in AD 326, when it was called the Church of the Resurrection. A second structure was rebuilt around the tomb in 1009. A third edicule was constructed in 1555, and the final was a Franciscan rebuild in 1890, still in place today.<\/p>\n
Biddle expects that remains of the first three edicules, none of which have been seen by anyone alive today, will be found in the restoration. Beneath it all, he hopes there is still evidence of the original rock-cut tomb. \u201cI have no doubts at all that parts of it are standing,\u201d Biddle said. If what is found in the process is deemed significant by the churches, possibly a glass plate could be part of the restoration so more of the original tomb could be seen.<\/p>\n
Some scholars question the authenticity of the Garden Tomb, yet most accept the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, within the modern walled city\u2019s northwestern Christian Quarter, as the authentic site. Biddle believes the very respected historical tradition for this site lends credibility to its authenticity. His findings are published in his new book The Tomb of Christ<\/i>, now available in English.<\/p>\n
GB<\/p>\n
(See A. Kaplan Sommer, The Jerusalem Post Daily Internet Edition<\/i>, October 7, 1998.)<\/p>\n
On the sixth century Madaba Map, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (7) can be seen opening onto the Cardo (the city\u2019s colonnaded main north-south road). At the time the Madaba Map was made, the church was already 300 years old, constructed under the direction of Constantine.<\/b><\/p>\n
The \u201c Edicule\u201d constructed around the presumed tomb of Christ to beautify and protect it over the centuries. Medievalist scholar Martin Biddle suggests there were four edicules constructed around the tomb and that evidence of the original tomb can still be found beneath.<\/b><\/p>\n
Bible and Spade 12:3 (Summer 1999)<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cHe is not here\u201d\u2014but was He ever? The Church of the Holy Sepulcher The most recent and comprehensive study of the Constantinian, Crusader and modern Churches of the Holy Sepulcher has just been completed. Findings offer no great revelations, but clarify what scholars have been piecing together over the past century. In the spirit of … Continue reading “RECENT
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