Church of the Nativity - Bethlehem
History
The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is a basilica which contains a grotto, believed to be the birthplace of Jesus. A church was originally commissioned in 327 AD by Constantine and his mother Helena. The current building was built in 565 by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian.
Over the centuries there have been many restorations and repairs to the building, including a recent restoration which took place in 2017.
The previous entrance to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem was lowered around the year 1500 to stop looters from driving their carts in. New arrangements were more applicable to many pilgrims because one felt that needed to bow before entering the place where baby Jesus was born.
Grotto of the Nativity
The main body of the Basilica are in the possession of the Greek Orthodox. Inside the building, a trap door in the modern floor was slightly open to reveal a portion of the original mosaic floor.
A giant cross is in place before the crypt or Grotto of the Nativity. North stairs bring the visitors down the Crypt of the Church of Nativity (the Grotto of the Nativity). At the bottom of the stairs, a fourteen-point silver star, beneath the altar in the Grotto of the Nativity, marks the traditional spot believed to be the birthplace of Jesus.
It can be hard to reach that star due to the fact that so many people were either kissing or taking photos with it. Inside the grotto, candles were lit behind a caged area, it is believed that baby Jesus was placed here soon after his birth.
