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HOLY SEPULCHER
THURSDAY, JANUARY 9,1964
HOLY LAND SUPPLEMENT
Pope’s Mass Brings Peace
To Long-Troubled Basilica
JERUSA EM, Jordan (NC)~
The , erful, peaceful manner
In • :h Pope Paul VI offered
Mi.jd (Jan. 4) at the site of
Christ’s Resurrection, the
Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher
in Old Jerusalem, was like
an act of atonement for the
centuries of strife disrupting
the sacredness of the shrine.
For the basilica, intended
as a hallowed monument to
the Resurreciion, has itself
never been completely resur
rected, although there has been
a greater unity of effort in re
cent years among the principal
religious communities sharing
the basilica: Catholics, repre
sented by the Franciscan
Custody of the Holy Land, Greek
Orthodox and Armenians. The
basilica is also shared by the
Copts and Syrians, but
unanimous consent of only the
first three communities is re
quired for any changes
affecting ity
THE BASILICA WAS built by
Constantine the Great and con
secrated in the year 336. When
first seen by the crusaders in
the eleventh century, it had un
dergone 700 years of disaster
and reconstruction. There had
been desecrations by the Ro
mans, Persians, Arabs, Sara
cens, Tartars, and Turks.
Most of the present basilica
dates only from 1810, when
the church was rebuilt by the
Greek Orthodox after a
devastating fire broke out in
its upper gallery on Oct. 12,
1808. The fire destroyed the
crusaders’ chapel over the Holy
Tomb, the great dome of the
rotunda and damaged the stone
columns supporting the dome.
THE BASILICA disintegrated
steadily and was in precarious
condition following a severe
earthquake in 1927. British
military engineers installed
steel girders and makeshift
braces to prevent it from col
lapsing.
In 1948 a mortar bomb struck
the main dome of the church,
directly over the Tomb of
Christ, piercing the church’s
outer wall but causing only
minor damage to the interior.
The tomb itself is a space
only seven feet long by five
feet wide. Three people at
most can stand in die space
to the right where, three feet
above the floor, a piece of
marble covers the tomb.
IN NOVEMBER, 1949, a fire
that burned for 28 hours de
stroyed the outer covering of
the basilica dome. Two months
later heavy rains damaged the
interior of th e basilica, which
AT BASILICA
Pray
er
By Pope Paul
JERUSALEM, Jordan (NC)— Following is the prayer for
Christian unity made by Pope Paul VI at the Basilica of the Holy
Sepulcher (Jan. 4):
0 Lord Jesus, our Redeemer, awaken in us the desire and the
confidence in Your forgiveness, strengthen the resolve of our
conversion and of our fidelity, grant us to feel the certainty and
to taste the sweetness of Your mercy,
0 Lord Jesus, our Redeemer and Teacher, give us the strength
to forgive others in order that we may truly be forgiven by You.
0 LORD Jesus, our Redeemer and Shepherd, instill in us the
capacity to love as You would wish that, following Your example
and with the help of Your grace, we may love You and all our bret
hren in You.
O Lord Jesus, our Redeemer and peace, who have made known
to us Your supreme desire that all may be one, grant the fulfill
ment of that same desire which we have made our own prayer;
that all of us may be one.
O Lord Jesus, our Redeemer and our Mediator, intercede
before the Heavenly Father in behalf of our prayers, which we
address to Him in the Holy Spirit.
BRETHERN and children, let us pray. Omnipotent and eter
nal God, who have revealed Your glory to all men in Christ, pre
serve the works of Your mercy, so that the Church spread over
the whole world may perserve with strong faith in the confess
ion of Your name.
0 omnipotent and eternal God, consolation of the sorrowful,
strength of the afflicated, may the prayers of all who suffer
tribulations reach You, in order that all may experience Your
mercy in their necessities.
Omnipotent and eternal God, who wills not the death but always
the life of sinners, propitiously grant our prayers and free them
from the pursuit of error, joining them to Your holy Church, to the
praise and glory of Your name.
jm m*'
was left unprotected following
the fire.
Besides the natural disasters
affecting the basilica, there
have been “incidents” between
the communities sharing it.
IN OCTOBER, 1951, Greek
Orthodox officials attempted to
stop French pilgrims from tak
ing pictures in front of the
basilica, and in May, 1952,
monks of the Armenian and
Greek rites tried to bar a Ca
tholic procession from entering
the church.
In 1955 a seven-man com
mission of Catholic architects
and engineers recommended a
sweeping renovation of the
basilica. The initial phase of
restoring the basilica was
agreed to in February, 1958,
by representatives of the Ca
tholic, Greek Orthodox and
Armenian communities. The
agreement provided for the
erection of scaffolding in the
basilica’s south transept, which
contains the Stone of Unction,
traditionally believed to be the
place where the body of Christ
was prepared for burial.
THE SCAFFOLDING was
completed in 1959 at a cost
of $12,900, which was paid by
the three religious communities
sharing the basilica. Actual
repair work on the basilica
was not started until July 3,
1961.
Before it was undertaken,
a detailed inventory was made
of all movable objects at or
near the Stone of Unction. The
objects, including icons, lamps,
chains and candle snuffers,
were drawn up on a list show
ing to which religious com
munity each belongs, and photo
graphs were taken depicting the
position of the various objects.
RESTORATION PLANS in
cluded construction of a system
o f reinforced concrete tie-
beams to be anchored in the
facade to give added support
to the arches and to brace the
passageway running along the
wall of the south transept.
Architects have said they hope
to remove sometime in 1964
the scaffolding and steel but
tresses that have shored up
the basilica since 1927.
A spokesman for the
Franciscan Custody of the Holy
Land has stated that work on
the basilica, which has been
going on at “a turtle’s pace”
for a long time, has been speed
ed up recently, but it “will
take years” before the basilica
is fully renovated.
ESCAPE FROM ROME
f i u ? Ct c ° f P0pe PaUl VI ° n his arrival in * e Hol y Land was to offer Mass in the
f hC u° l l SepuIcher ’ erected on ±e site of Christ’s burial and Resurrection. As he
IZtfruT basilica thron S s of applauding people closed in about him. Police cleared a
path for the Pontiff to his waiting automobile.
PILGRIMAGE ENCOURAGES
Anglicans Express Hope
For Growing Church Ties
LONDON (NC)—Anglican Arch
bishop Michael Ramsey of
Canterbury on the eve of Pope
Paul Vi's pilgrimage, an
nounced the setting up of an
Anglican commission on Roman
Catholic relations. Its con
stitution and the way it will
set about its task still are
being worked out but a
spokesman explained the aim
was to provide a general basis
for unity endeavor.
“At a time when the Pope
and the Ecumenical Patriarch
are meeting in Jerusalem,”
the Archbishop said, “Angli
cans everywhere will give
thanks for the first official
contact between Rome and Con
stantinople since the Council
of Florence in the fifteenth
century and will intensify their
prayers for unity of all Chris
tian people, remembering not
least our warm and growing
friendship with Reformed
churches in this country and
elsewhere. The Church of
England has maintained con
tact with Constantinople since
the sixteenth century. In the
present century both Arch
bishop Lang and Archbishop
Fisher visited the Ecumenical
Patriarch and one of my earlier
visits abroad after my
enthronement was to the Ecu
menical Patriarch.
“WITH THE VATICAN, the
Archbishops of Canterbury and
Pope Meets Man
Saved During War
MEGIDDO, Israel (NC)--One
of the first people to welcome
Pope Paul VI to Israel was a
former resident of Rome who
with his father was enabled to
escape Mussolini’s harsh anti-
Semitic laws with the Pontiff’s
r T iilee E Gan ^ ? F PR1M ^ G J: Wben p °Pe Paul VI stopped at Tabgha, Israel, by the Sea of
^hfsite wh? he Vl8ited 8 ^ led Church of the Primacy. It is builtover a rock
on ^ r °» according to tra ition, Christ named Peter to head His Church.
aid when he was still an official
of the Papal Secretariat of State.
Meir Mendes, deputy director
of the Israeli Ministry of Re
ligious Affairs, stood on the
windswept border between Is
rael and Jordan to welcome the
Pope a$ he crossed from Jen-
nin to the Taanach Gate;
“MY FATHER WAS a profes
sor and doctor at the University
of Rome,” Mendes recounted.
“When the anti-Semitic laws
were passed in 1939, he was
greatly disturbed and decided
to take the family to the British
mandate of Palestine.”
But admission to Palestine
was not easily obtained, Men
des said, so his father, Dr,
Guido Mendes, turned for help
to the Vatican. Dr. Mendes had
been a medical consultant for
various Vatican institutions and
he contacted Eugene Cardinal
Tisserant, now Dean of the
College of Cardinals, who as
sured him of help.
THE NEWLY ELECTED Pope
Pius XII gave orders to assist
the Jewish family. The task of
handling the affair fell to Msgr.
Giovanni Montini, who contact
ed the British government.
Through his efforts in the name
of Pope Pius, the Mendes fami
ly was granted permission to
emigrate to Palestine.
“We have all the letters in
our family archives,” Mendes
said. “We have never forgotten
the Vatican assistance,*'
York had established a liaison
since Archbishop Fisher's visit
to Rome, even before the
opening of the Vatican council.
The Anglican churches continue
to help forward in every way
they can the friendship of
Eastern and Western Chris
tendom.
’The Church of England while
adhering to its doctrine as a
church reformed as well as
catholic has already taken the
initiative in informal friendly
discussions of the theological
questions with Roman Ca
tholics, both in this country
and on the continent.”
IT IS IN ORDER to continue
these initiatives—especially in
view of any opportunities the
Vatican council may bring—
that Archbishop Ramsey has de
cided to establish the new com-
SHRINE
Church At Grotto
Nears Completion
NAZARETH, Israel (NC)
tiny grotto of the Annunciation
where Pope Paul VI offered
Mass is now crowned by the
fourth and largest church.
The new structure, now near
ing completion, was begun as a
special project to the Blessed
Virgin during the 1954 Marian
Year proclaimed by Pope Pius
XII.
DONATIONS POURED in
from all parts of the world for
construction of the multimillion
dollar church which rises 165
feet above the white rock plat
form of a Galilean hill. Many
of the gifts came from the United
States, including $5,000 from
Francis Cardinal Spellman,
Archbishop of New York.
The church consists of two
stories, one of Which ishum
underground. The underground
church houses the archeological
remains found during the de
molition of the church built
by the crusaders in the 12th
century and other excavations.
The lower church also houses
the small chapel or grotto where
Pope Paul offered Mass. It
was part of an earlier
Byzantine church, built in the
fourth century, and contains
a pillar marking the site where
Thanks King
AMMAN, Jordan- Following
Is the text of the telegram sent
by Pope Paul VI to King Hus
sein of Jordan (Jan. 5):
We r e p e a t our heartfelt
thanks to Your Majesty for your
cordial personal welcome and
for the many kindnesses shown
us during our personal welcome
and for the many kindnesses
shown us during our pilgrimage
to the Holy Land, while we in
voke upon your person, upon
your family and upon all the
beloved people of the Kingdom
of Jordan the richest graces
and favors of Almighty God.
the Angel Gabriel is believed
to have stood when he an
nounced to Mary that she was
to be the Mother of God.
THE PRESENT STILL un
finished structure replaces a
church hastily built by the
Franciscans in 1730. They re
ceived permission from the rul
ing Turks to rebuild the more
magnificent church which was
constructed by the crusaders in
the 12th century, but which suf
fered ruin and pillage in the
following centuries.
A provision of the permiss
ion to rebuild the church was
that it be done hurriedly. It
was built in seven months and
covered only a third of the
area ot tne crusaders’ church.
THE CHURCH OF the cru
saders was begun soon after
their capture of Jerusalem in
1100. They actually rebuilt a
basilica which dated back to
360. In its renovated state
the church became the cathedral
of Galilee until the defeat of the
crusaders and their departure
in 1291.
The spot of the Annunciation
has been venerated by Chris
tians throughout the centuries.
Its great event is marked with
special reverence as Catholics
pray the Creed at Mass and
bow their heads or kneel when
they say “and the Word was
made Flesh.”
THE SITE OF THE An
nunciation also marks the origin
of the ”Hail Mary” recited
daily by many Catholics. It
was here that the Angel Gabriel
approached Mary with these
words;
“Hail, full of grace, the Lord
is with thee. Blessed are thou
among women.”
Mary’s final reply to the angel
is commemorated in the
Angelus;
“Behold the handmaid of the
Lord; be it done to me accord
ing to thy word.”
LAST SUPPER SITE
Prayerful Pope
Enters ‘Upper
Room’ Of Christ
mission. Members have not
yet been appointed but the chair
man is the Rev. Dr. John Kelly,
principal of St. Edmund Hall
at Oxford University.
The commission will be at
tached to the Church of Eng
land’s council on foreign re
lations of which Bishop
Faulknew Alison of Winchester
is chairman.
CANON BERNARD Pawley is
presently in Rome as the
personal representative of the
Archbishops of Canterbury and
York at the Vatican’s Sec
retariat for Promoting Chris
tian Unity. Apparently the new
commission will take furthers
steps and deal more formally
with the work already being done
in the interests of unity md
closer understanding.
JERUSALEM, Israel (NC)—
A flood of sacred memories
swept through the mind of Pope
Paul VI as he entered the “up
per room” or Cenacle during
his visit here.
This is traditionally regard
ed as marking the spot where
Christ instituted the Eucharist
with the words; ‘This is my
body. . . This is my Blood.”
JUST ONE MONTH earlier
Pope Paul had promulgated the
new constitution on the liturgy
which is aimed at making the
sacredness and beauty of the
Eucharist more meaningful tc
Catholics throughout the world.
The Cenacle also served as
the site where Christ enuncia
ted two great principles of His
new way of life; peace and cha
rity.
THESE TWO IDEAS have
served as key points of papal
messages throughout the
Christian era as Christ’s vi
cars prescribed remedies for
the maladies of mankind. They
were the key thoughts in the
first Christmas message of
Pope Paul.
It was in the Cenacle that
Christ told his Apostles as they
were gathered around the table
at the Last Supper;
“PEACE I LEAVE you. My
peace I give you. Not as the
world gives do I give to you.”
After His Resurrection,-
Christ again entered the same
room through locked doors and
His first words to the fright
ened Disciples were; “Peace be
with you.”
IN SETTING FORTH His doc
trine of charity, Christ told His
Disciples in the Cenacle at the
Last Supper;
‘This is my commandment,
that you love one another as I
have loved you. . . .
‘ ‘BY THIS WILL all men know
that you are my Disciples, if
you have love for one another.”
The Cenacle was also the
setting for Christ’s prayer for
unity which has become the
motto of the ecumenical move
ment sweeping Christian bodies
throughout the world. The pray
er was quoted by Pope Paul
in his Christmas message as he
explained that one reason for
visiting the Holy Land was to
pray for Christian unity.
CHRIST’S PRAYER in the
Cenacle was; ‘That all may be
one, even as Thou, Father, in
me and I in Thee; That they
also may be one in us.”
But the Pontiff’s sacred me
mories as he prayed in the
Cenacle must have been tinged
with sorrow as he recalled the
checked history of the holy sh
rine, which has not been in
Christian hands for more than
five centuries.
THE CENACLE was used as
a general gathering place for
Christians in the first days af
ter Christ's Ascension. It was
here that the Holy Ghost desc
ended on the Apostles on Pente
cost. It came to be used as a
church and was spared destruc
tion when Roman Emperor
Titus practically leveled Jeru
salem in 69-70 A. D.
At the time of St. Cyril of
Jerusalem (347) it was known as
the "upper church of the Apos
tles” — “upper” because it
was situated on Mount Sion, and
therefore higher than the Basi
lica of the Holy Sepulcher. It
was also the episcopal church
until 335.
UNDER ARCHBISHOP John II
of Jerusalem (386-417) a splen
did basilica, “the Holy Sion,”
was erected on the site of the
primitive Cenacle. This was
destroyed by the Persians in
614. It was partially restored
between 631 an 634, and des
troyed again by the Saracens
in 966.
After their arrival in
1099, the crusaders rebuilt the
edifice and named it “St. Mary
of Mount Sion” in memory of
the adjacent sanctary dedicat
ed to the “Dormidon” or Fall
ing Asleep of Our Lady.
THE FRANCISCANS obtained
charge of the shrine in 1342
at the direcdon of Pope Cle
ment VI and with the permiss
ion of the sultan of Jerusalem.
However the reigning sultan ex
pelled the Franciscans in 1551.
and the Moslems split up the
church in various ways, making
a mosque out of the “upper
room.” During the 1948 Pales
tine war the Cenacle was wres
ted from the Moslems and fell
into Israeli hands.
During the last century and a
half that the Moslems held the
shrine, Catholics, represented
by the Franciscans, visited the
Cenacle twice a year; on Holy
Thursday and Pentecost, in me
mory of the Last Supper and the
Descent of the Holy Ghost.
However, during the last 30
years they were prevented from
kneeling, later from singing
hymns, or praying in the upper
room.
MASS WAS OFFERED furd-
vely on rare occasions during
Moslem tenure of the shrine.
The privilege was given to a
few visidng dignitaries after
the Moslem custodians had
made what they insisted were
“cosdy” arrangements.
Today the Cenacle is in the
charge of the Israeli ministry
for religious affairs. Pilgrims,
who ask for the privilege, are
given entry to the shrine and
may pray there.
POPE PAUL VI kneels to kiss the Rock of the Agony, embed
ded in the floor of a church at the Garden of Gathsemane.