Bethlehem

(house of bread) (Gen. 35:19; Micah 5:1 [as given]; Matt. 2:1; Ruth 1:2), also called Bethlehem Ephratah (Micah 5:2), was so small and insignificant a town, in the tribe of Judah, that it is not even mentioned in the general lists of the cities of Judah, as, for example, in Nehemiah, chapter 11. David was born in this city (Luke 2:4–11). The settlement of Chimham, near Bethlehem, was the usual place from which travelers set out for Egypt (Jer. 41:17). The city is situated on a height, about 6 English miles south of Jerusalem.

At all times Bethlehem was visited, and until quite recently is still visited, by a multitude of pilgrims. The view of Bethlehem from a distance is very beautiful. Amid fertile fields, surrounded on all sides by hills, it indeed presents one of the most picturesque localities of Palestine. And how many precious historical memories are bound up with it! Here Rachel was buried (Gen. 35:19 [as given]); here once, in the fields of Bethlehem, Ruth gleaned ears of grain. It was the birthplace of David, the king-prophet and psalmist, for which reason it is otherwise called the city of David (Luke 2:4–11), and the sweet waters of Bethlehem often refreshed his youthful lips.

But most important of all, it was in the city of David that the Savior Christ the Lord was born. The Most Holy Virgin Mary lived in Nazareth, but, owing to the Roman census, she had to go to Bethlehem, since she was of the house and lineage of David, and when she stopped here together with Joseph, at that time the divine Infant Jesus was born, and, for lack of room in the inn, was laid and swaddled by her in a manger. This most glorious event lends a special, exalted, sacred significance to Bethlehem and its environs, since here the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth (John 1:14).

Here, in the fields of Bethlehem, an Angel appeared to the shepherds who were tending their flocks, and here too, on that wondrous night, the angelic doxology sounded forth from heaven: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14). Here too, guided by an extraordinary star, came the Wise Men from the East to worship the newborn Savior of the world. At present Bethlehem, known under the name Beit Lahm, resembles a village more than a city, with its houses in ruins, and with three or four thousand Arab inhabitants, occupied in agriculture, gardening, beekeeping, or the manufacture of various small sacred objects — icons, rosaries, crucifixes, and other sacred items.

Bethlehem itself is situated on a hill, in the form of an amphitheater, from the western hill to the eastern, and on this latter hill is found the grotto, or cave, of the Nativity of Christ, known to Christians from the very first centuries, and hence visited from ancient times. In the fourth century St. Helen, Equal to the Apostles, erected over the cave of the Nativity of Christ a magnificent church in honor of the Mother of God, whose main — central — altar, raised several steps up, stands directly above the very grotto.

It belongs to the Greeks. From it, by 15 marble steps, one enters the underground church, which is the very Grotto-cave. The birthplace of the Savior, in a semicircular niche, is marked by a silver star with 14 rays, and a row of silver lamps. Here a table, an altar, and a marble slab serve as the throne on which the Divine Liturgy is celebrated. A few steps from the site of the Nativity of Christ, to the right, is a separate cave with a manger, where the divine Infant Jesus rested.

The manger, hewn in the natural rock, is lined with white marble. In this same church there are also several more caves and altars, such as: the cave where St. Joseph the Just dwelt, the cave in which are buried the innocent infants of Bethlehem slain by Herod, the cell and tomb of the blessed Jerome, and others. In the environs of Bethlehem many other noteworthy places and ancient monuments are pointed out, such as: in the valley of Rephaim — the house of Simeon the God-receiver; not far from the Bethlehem road is pointed out a shoot of the terebinth tree, under which, by tradition, the Holy Virgin rested on the way from Bethlehem to Jerusalem.