Visit to Armenian Jerusalem

11.20.05
YnetNews
By Ron Peled

The Armenian and Jewish peoples have several things in common: Both have a defined religion and nationality, both have a past of continuous pogroms and persecutions, and both have been subjected to genocide – the Armenians during the first World War and the Jews during the second. Both peoples have realized their age-old dreams of national independence in the modern period, we in 1948, and the Armenians in 1991.

To our happiness, both Jews and Armenians have quarters in the Old City of Jerusalem – and this time we will visit the pearl of the Armenian Quarter, The Saint James Church.

The uniqueness of the Armenian Quarter is its being placed within its own walls, in addition to the walls of the Old City. The Quarter, sort of its own enclosed ghetto, takes up around a sixth of the territory of the Old City, and is home to around 2,000 Armenian, both secular and religious (another point in common with the Jewish people). Most earn a livelihood from local businesses, artwork (like the famous ceramics), printing and academe.
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James, known in Hebrew as Yaakov, the brother of Johannan, was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus of Nazareth. According to Christian tradition his head was chopped off by Herod Agrippas in the year 44 CE. His head is buried here, in a small room off the Church, and the rest of his body is scattered in burial sites around the Church.
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In the center of the church is the central Capella, called in Christianity "Opsis". Here, the altar another Yaakov is buried, the brother of Jesus and the first Bishop of Jerusalem. His body was brought here from Nahal Kidron.
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