Bethlehem​—Symbol of Christian Unity and Love?

“BETHLEHEM . . . is a proof of endless love, it is a lesson in humility.”​—Maria Teresa Petrozzi, authoress of the book Bethlehem.

Does Bethlehem mean something like that to you? Perhaps so, since hundreds of millions of sincere, peace-loving people the world over look reverently toward Bethlehem, especially during the Christmas season. They are mindful that this small Middle Eastern city is the birthplace of the “Prince of Peace,” Jesus Christ. For centuries pilgrims have flocked here to visit one of Christendom’s holiest places and perhaps to venerate it. That is the Grotto of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ. It is in the large, historic complex called the Church of the Nativity.​—Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 2:1.

However, in reality, have these traditional holy places served as focal points of Christian unity, love, and humility? What do you conclude from the following?

Catholic writer Maria Teresa Petrozzi comments in Bethlehem: “Starting from the 16th cent., [Bethlehem] suffered from the bitter and bloody struggles between Latins [Roman Catholics] and Greeks [Greek Orthodox believers] for the hegemony in the Nativity church.” These recurrent “bloody struggles” for control often centered on the silver star in the Grotto of the Nativity, which is located underground, beneath the Church of the Nativity. This star is said to mark the actual site of Christ’s birth. R. W. Hamilton reports in his book The Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem: “It is well known that two of the questions in the dispute between France and Russia which led up to the Crimean war were concerned with the rival claims to possession of the keys of the main doors of the basilica and of the crypt [Grotto of the Nativity], and with the mysterious theft one night in 1847 of the silver star with a Latin inscription which was let into a slab of marble beneath the altar of the Nativity.”

As a result of the continuous interdenominational conflicts throughout the centuries over rights in these places, “the rights of each denomination are now carefully prescribed. Of the 53 lamps in the grotto, for example, the Franciscans are allowed 19. The Altar of the Nativity is owned by the Greeks, and the Latins are not allowed to hold services there.”​—Historical Sites in Israel.

During the Christmas season, if the political climate permits, each of the religious communities of Christendom present holds its own Christmas Mass and has a procession through Bethlehem. On December 24 and 25, the Latins have a procession and midnight Mass in Saint Catherine’s Church, next to the Church of the Nativity, which is now shared by the Greek and the Armenian Orthodox churches. On January 6, the Greek, the Syrian, and the Coptic Orthodox churches celebrate their Christmas Masses. On January 18, the Armenian Orthodox Christmas Mass is held, with a procession on January 19.

Does the foregoing suggest that Bethlehem’s traditional holy places are ‘a proof of endless love, a lesson in humility’? Additionally, do they reflect the truth about the circumstances of the birth of Jesus? For example, when was he born? Was he actually born in what is now the Nativity Grotto? And should you or anyone else venerate his birthplace?

[Picture Credit Line on page 3]

Pictorial Archive (Near Eastern History) Est.