Bethlehem: Church of the Nativity
Bethlehem: Church of the Nativity From the belltower of the Church of the Nativity the Judean hills look pale in the strong summer sunlight. Bethlehem, a city 860 meters above sea level, about 7 kilometers south of Jerusalem, is first mentioned in the 14th century B.C., in the Tel el-Amarna letters, as Bit-ilu-Lakhama, the House of Bread. In the Old Testament it is referred to by various names: Ephrat, Bethlehem Ephratah and Bethlehem Judah. It was part of the tribal allotment of Judah, and the family of Boaz, who was an ancestor of King David, lived here. 1000 years later Jesus was born in this city, and it became sacred to Christians. “The holiest city in the world”, writes St. Jerome. Today it is an Arab town populated mostly by Christians, who earn their livelihood from the pilgrim trade.