The Monastery of the Temptation ( el, Μοναστήρι του Πειρασμού, ''Monastḗri tou Peirasmoú''; ar, دير القرنطل, ''Deir al-Quruntul''; he, דיר אל-קרנטל) is a

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

located in

Jericho Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho ...

, Palestine. It was built on the slopes of the Mount of Temptation 350 meters above sea level, situated along a cliff overlooking the city of

and the

Jordan Valley The Jordan Valley ( ar, غور الأردن, ''Ghor al-Urdun''; he, עֵמֶק הַיַרְדֵּן, ''Emek HaYarden'') forms part of the larger Jordan Rift Valley. Unlike most other river valleys, the term "Jordan Valley" often applies just to ...

. Its most ancient structures date back to the 6th century, having been built above the cave traditionally said to be that where

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

spent forty days and forty nights fasting and meditating while he was tempted by

Satan Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an entity in the Abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or falsehoo ...

. It currently serves as a tourist attraction and its land is under the full jurisdiction of the

Palestinian National Authority The Palestinian National Authority (PA or PNA; ar, السلطة الوطنية الفلسطينية '), commonly known as the Palestinian Authority and officially the State of Palestine,

, while the monastery is owned and managed by the

Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, el, Πατριαρχεῖον Ἱεροσολύμων, ''Patriarcheîon Hierosolýmōn;'' he, הפטריארכיה היוונית-אורתודוקסית של ירושלים; ar, كنيسة الرو� ...

.Deir Quruntal & the Monastery of Temptation
Visit Palestine.

History

Hellenistic period

A fortress built by the

Seleucid The Seleucid Empire (; grc, Βασιλεία τῶν Σελευκιδῶν, ''Basileía tōn Seleukidōn'') was a Greek state in West Asia that existed during the Hellenistic period from 312 BC to 63 BC. The Seleucid Empire was founded by the ...

s called "Doq" stood at the summit of the mountain. It was captured by the Hasmoneans and it was here that Simon Maccabaeus was murdered by his son-in-law Ptolemy.

Byzantine period

The earliest monastery was constructed by the Byzantines in the 6th century CE above the cave traditionally said to be that where

spent forty days and forty nights fasting and meditating during the

temptation Temptation is a desire to engage in short-term urges for enjoyment that threatens long-term goals.Webb, J.R. (Sep 2014). Incorporating Spirituality into Psychology of temptation: Conceptualization, measurement, and clinical implications. Sp ...

, about three kilometers northwest of Jericho. The monastery receives its name from the mountain which the early

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ� ...

referred to as the "Mount of the Temptation". The Mount of Temptation was identified by '' Augusta''

Helena of Constantinople Flavia Julia Helena ''Augusta'' (also known as Saint Helena and Helena of Constantinople, ; grc-gre, Ἑλένη, ''Helénē''; AD 246/248– c. 330) was an '' Augusta'' and Empress of the Roman Empire and mother of Emperor Constantine th ...

as one of the "holy sites" in her pilgrimage in 326 CE.Jericho – Monastery of Temptation (Quarantal Monastery)
Flickr.

Early Muslim period

Palestine, including Jericho, was conquered by the

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

s under the

Islamic Caliphate A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...

Umar ibn al-Khattab ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ( ar, عمر بن الخطاب, also spelled Omar, ) was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () as the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate ...

in the 630s.

Crusader period

When the Crusaders conquered the area in 1099, they built two churches on the site: one in a cave halfway up the cliff and a second on the summit. They referred to the site as Mons Quarantana (compare with ''quarante'' in modern French and ''quaranta'' in modern Italian, both meaning forty, the number of days in the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

account of Jesus's fast).

Late Ottoman period

The land upon which the modern monastery was built was purchased by the Orthodox Church in 1874. In 1895, the monastery was constructed around a crude cave

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common type ...

that marks the stone where Jesus sat during his fast.Lee, 2002, p. 346.Jacobs, 1998, pp. 425–426. The Orthodox Church, along with its Palestinian Orthodox followers purchaser, originally attempted to build a church at the summit, but were unsuccessful; the unfinished walls of that church are located on a slope above the monastery.

Palestinian Authority

In 1998, a cable car was built from Jericho's Tell es-Sultan to the level of the monastery by an Austrian-Swiss company as a tourist attraction for the year 2000.Jericho cable car
/ref> As of 2002, three Orthodox

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedic ...

s were dwelling in the monastery and were guiding visitors to the site. At present there is a restaurant, a café, and a souvenir shop at the monastery entrance for the tourists.

References

Bibliography

* (pp.
201
3) * (pp
41
5) *Jacobs, Daniel. Eber, Shirley. (1998
Israel and the Palestinian Territories
Rough Guides. *Lee, Risha Kim. (2002
Let's Go 2003 Israel and the Palestinian territories
Let's Go Incorporate. * (pp
252258

External links

Monastery of the Temptation
, seetheholyland.net *Survey of Western Palestine, Map 18:
IAAWikimedia commons
{{DEFAULTSORT:Temptation, Monastery of Greek Orthodoxy in the State of Palestine Churches completed in 1895 Greek Orthodox monasteries Christian monasteries in the West Bank 19th-century Christian monasteries Buildings and structures in Jericho 6th-century religious buildings and structures 6th-century establishments in Asia Temptation of Christ