Since everyone seems to be enjoying the pictures from the Benedictine monastery in Abu Ghosh (a village near Jerusalem), I'll show you some more.
The walls and pillars of the Crusader church still have parts of frescoes from the 12th or 13th century.The frescos were done by Greek Orthodox artists in Byzantine style.
See a fresco up close here. At some point in the conquerings of the land, the faces were de-faced and that is how they were left.
The remains of the Crusader Resurrection Church were restored by the French government and handed over to the Benedictine Order in the 19th century, and since then our present Benedictines have made lots of improvements too.
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Here you see the lectern for the readings.
The monks sit on one side and the nuns on the other, and together they sing heavenly music.
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Click and see a marvelous 360-degree photo of the church!
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It's the modern version of "choir stalls."Benches but with nice individual seats, and next to each seat, a box for prayer books and music.
After Mass, candles at the altar must be coaxed back into shape.Candle care, singing, gardening--it's all part of a nun's work.
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What a dream. Thank you for sharing such peacefulness very much.
ReplyDeleteIt amazes me that the walls and pillars of the Crusader church still have 12 century frescoes intact. What are the chances of fragile frescoes surviving almost 1000 years of man-made disasters and natural disasters?
ReplyDeleteDina, your blog is like a glass of water on a hot day. Your posts are lovely and inspiring and I find I like to save them up and read then all at once at the end of the week to lift myself up. Thank you
ReplyDeleteRobert, dream-like inside, yes. Too bad I couldn't take pictures during Mass when the plumes of incense were rising in the shafts of sunlight. I got lost in these clouds and their smell.
ReplyDeleteElena, oh, thank you, that is nice to know! But really, we have Jerusalem and her hills to thank for this beauty and inspiration.
Helen, at your prompting I added the following to the body of the post:
This is one of the most beautiful crusader buildings to have survived in Israel. The remains of the Crusader Resurrection Church were restored by the French government and handed over to the Benedictine Order in the 19th century.
See exciting photos here:
http://allaboutjerusalem.com/gallery-image/crusader-frescoes-benedictine-monastery-abu-gosh/193
http://www.360cities.net/image/abu-ghosh-crusader#-258.70,49.69,70.0
The artwork in this church is amazing.
ReplyDeleteI am also amazed at the name, "Dandelion," of your new laptop computer. I had never heard of that name on a computer before.
I just bought a new Mac laptop and it should arrive here tomorrow (Friday) and all I know about it is that it is named, "MacBook Pro."
I do like the 360 picture.
The nun shot looks like an
ReplyDeleteold painting. Fantastic, Dina.
Good atmosphere and light in that last one.
ReplyDeleteI sadly missed this one, thanks for showing it.
ReplyDeleteYou make my wish to visit Jerusalem unbearable)). December, maybe.
ReplyDeleteIrina, really, you might come visit?? Great!
ReplyDelete