BETHLEHEM
The Church of St. Catherine
Thousands come every year to celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem, the birthplace of the Savior. Many crowd into Manger Square, sing carols in Shepherds’ Field or worship in the Church of St. Catherine.
Built in 1881, St. Catherine’s is dedicated to the Egyptian martyr who died upon a wheel. Its grounds incorporate a Crusader cloister surrounding a peaceful courtyard with a statue of the 4th century church father, St. Jerome.
Beneath the courtyard is a series of underground caves connecting St. Catherine’s to the Grotto of the Nativity. One cave was home to St. Jerome while he translated the Bible into Latin. Another houses a small chapel dedicated to the Innocent Children. This recalls the story told of Herod the Great in Matthew 2:16, “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old under”.
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 Seen around the world every Christmas Eve, the traditional Midnight Mass is broadcast from the Church of St. Catherine |
Entrance to the Church of St. CatherineThis page is part of the book The Holy Land of Jesus
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