Mar Elias Monastery


Mar Elias Monastery is a Greek Orthodox monastery in south Jerusalem, on a hill overlooking Bethlehem and Herodium.

History

According to Christian tradition, Elijah rested here after fleeing the vengeance of Jezebel. It is also said to be the burial place of the Greek Bishop Elias of Bethlehem who died in 1345, and St. Elias, an Egyptian monk who became Patriarch of Jerusalem in 494.
From the hill east of the monastery, in 1956 one or rather several Jordanian soldiers opened fire on a group of Israeli archaeologists visiting the excavation sites across the valley at Ramat Rachel, killing four and injuring 16.

After 1967

During the 1967 Six-Day War, attackers of the Israel Defense Forces quickly overran Jordanian defences around the monastery on the way to Bethlehem and Hebron. After 1967 the height, known as Elijah Hill, was renamed in Hebrew as Givat ha'Arba'a, Hill of the Four, in honour of the four victims.
Facing the monastery is a stone bench erected by the wife of the painter William Holman Hunt, who painted some of his major works at this spot. The bench is inscribed with biblical verses in Hebrew, Greek, Arabic and English.
Since the 4th century, the monks of Mar Elias have cultivated olives and grapes.

Picture Collections