he, מערת החלב , native_name_lang = , image = A Churches in Bethlehem3.jpg , imagesize = 250px , imagelink= , imagealt= , caption = Chapel of the Milk Grotto , pushpin map= West Bank#Palestinian territories , pushpin label position= , pushpin map alt= , pushpin mapsize= , relief= , map caption= , coordinates = , iso region= , location =

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital ...

, country =

State of Palestine Palestine ( ar, فلسطين, Filasṭīn), officially the State of Palestine ( ar, دولة فلسطين, Dawlat Filasṭīn, label=none), is a state located in Western Asia. Officially governed by the Palestine Liberation Organization ( ...

, denomination =

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, previous denomination= , architect= , architectural type= , style= , years built= , groundbreaking= , completed date = 1872 , bells= , province =

Custody of the Holy Land , native_name_lang = Latin , named_after= , image = Coat_of_arms_of_the_Custodian_of_the_Holy_Land.jpg , image_size = 200px , alt= , caption = Coat of arms of the Custody of the Holy Land , map ...

, priestincharge = Order of the Friars Minor , priest= The Chapel of the Milk Grotto of Our Lady ( la, Crypta lactea; ar, مغارةآلسثئ; he, מערת החלב) also called Grotto of Our Lady or Milk Grotto, is a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

chapel in

, in the

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

of the

, erected in 1872. Since Byzantine times, the place has been a center of

Christian pilgrimage Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative (especially in the Holy Land) and to sites associated with later saints or miracles. History Christian pilgrimages were first made to ...

, maintained since its last erection together with its

Marian shrine A shrine to the Virgin Mary (or Marian shrine) is a shrine marking an apparition or other miracle ascribed to the Blessed Virgin Mary, or a site on which is centered a historically strong Marian devotion. Such locales are often the destination ...

and

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 ...

by the

of the Order of the Friars Minor of the Catholic Church in Palestine. The '' Status Quo'', a 250-year-old understanding between religious communities, applies to the site.

History

The current Catholic chapel was built in 1872 on the site of a former Byzantine church from around the 5th century, of which only part of the

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

floor remains.

Significance

Christian tradition says is the place where the

Holy Family The Holy Family consists of the Child Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph. The subject became popular in art from the 1490s on, but veneration of the Holy Family was formally begun in the 17th century by Saint François de Laval, the first ...

found refuge during the Massacre of the Innocents, before they could flee to

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...

. The name is derived from the story that a "drop of milk" of the Virgin Mary fell on the floor of the cave and changed its colour to white. 16-03-31-Bethlehem-RalfR-WAT 5539

The space, which contains three different caves, is visited by some in hope of healing infertile couples, the shrine allegedly being a place where prayers for children are miraculously answered.

Monastery of the Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament

A monastery of the

Sisters of Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament A sister is a woman or a girl who shares one or more parents with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer t ...

is attached to the chapel. The red-and-white clad nuns practice perpetual Eucharistic adoration, and are also uninterruptedly praying for peace since 2016, when a 'Queen of Peace'

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle ( he, מִשְׁכַּן, mīškān, residence, dwelling place), also known as the Tent of the Congregation ( he, link=no, אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, ’ōhel mō‘ēḏ, also Tent of Meeting, etc.), ...

was installed in their Eucharistic Adoration Chapel. In the Milk Grotto, a shrine for peace
Christian Media Center – Custodia Terra Sanctae, 9 March 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2018 The tabernacle was donated by the Polish community 'Queen of Peace' to the

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

. It was originally designed for the Fourth Station of the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem, but was eventually moved to the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration at the Milk Grotto in 2016, because they were better prepared to ensure the continuous prayer for peace. The Polish artist who designed the tabernacle, Mariusz Drapikowski, explains his work as inspired by the Apocalypse of St John: the closed tabernacle depicts earthly Jerusalem, with the

twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minis ...

and the

twelve Tribes of Israel The Twelve Tribes of Israel ( he, שִׁבְטֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל, translit=Šīḇṭēy Yīsrāʾēl, lit=Tribes of Israel) are, according to Hebrew scriptures, the descendants of the biblical patriarch Jacob, also known as Israel, thro ...

surrounding the image of Jesus on the cross, while the open shrine is representing the heavenly Jerusalem, brightly shining and flanked by a pair of olive trees which symbolise the two witnesses of the Apocalipse. Their branches are filled with a variety of different crosses, symbolising the various Christian professions emerging from the common trunk of Christianity. At the centre of the open shrine stands the

monstrance A monstrance, also known as an ostensorium (or an ostensory), is a vessel used in Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, High Church Lutheran and Anglican churches for the display on an altar of some object of piety, such as the consecrated Eucharistic Sa ...

showing a Madonna holding in her hands the

Eucharist The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was institu ...

ic Christ, depicted as a large host.

References

External links

Bethlehem municipality websitePhotos of the Chapel of the Milk Grotto
at the

Manar al-Athar Manar al-Athar is a photo archive based at the Faculty of Classics at the University of Oxford which aims to provide high-quality open-access images of archaeological sites and buildings. The archive's collection focuses on areas of the Roman Emp ...

photo archive {{DEFAULTSORT:St. Catherine's, Church Roman Catholic churches in Bethlehem Roman Catholic churches completed in 1872 Roman Catholic chapels in the State of Palestine Status quo holy places Massacre of the Innocents 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings

History

Significance

Monastery of the Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament

See also

References

External links