Nazareth, Church of Annunciation

Based on a few passages in the New Testament, Nazareth became known as the town, where Jesus spent his childhood and youth. From quite early in the development of Christianity it became a center for Christian worship and has over the centuries attracted thousands of pilgrims.

The site most visited is the Catholic Church of the Announciation. It is built over a grotto, the place where tradition has it that the Angel Gabriel visited Mary. The church is one of the largest churches in the Middle East. It was built in the 1960′s, replacing the previous small, crumbling building, and dedicated by Pope Paul VI during his historical visit to The Holy Land.

Adjoining The Church of the Announciation is the Church of Joseph. This church is also built over a grotto where tradition tells that this was the workshop (carpentry) of Joseph.

An additional place to visit is the Greek Orthodox Church of The Angel Gabriel. A great part of this Church dates back to the Crusaders. It is built over an outflow of the original spring in Nazareth, which is known as Mary’s Well. According to the Greek Orthodox tradition, this is where the meeting between Mary and Gabriel took place.

Nazareth is today the largest Arab town in Israel with a population of more than 60.000, and one of the few places where Christians are still a large minority, some 30%.

On the eastern and northern hills of Arab Nazareth is Nazareth Illit, a separate Jewish Israeli municipality.

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