Many people assume that Jesus' Last Supper was a Seder, a ritual meal held in celebration of the Jewish holiday of Passover. And indeed, according to the Gospel of Mark 14:12, Jesus prepared for the Last Supper on the "first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb." If Jesus and his disciples gathered together to eat soon after the Passover lamb was sacrificed, what else could they possibly have eaten if not the Passover meal? And if they ate the Passover sacrifice, they must have held a Seder.

When visitors to Jerusalem are shown a large cave called "Gethsemane" on the lower slopes of the Mount of Olives, they usually give a perfunctory look and hurry on to the famous Garden of Gethsemane, the small garden of olive trees adjacent to the Church of All Nations. Here pilgrims can sit and reflect on the momentous events of Jesus' arrest in what seems a more appropriate, if less authentic, environment.

Most of these pilgrims are never told that the New Testament does not mention a "Garden of Gethsemane." The Cave of Gethsemane, on the other hand, is very probably a genuine Biblical site-the location of Jesus' arrest-unlike so many of the "traditional" holy sites of Christianity that have little or no claim to authenticity.

The cave, within a property now owned by the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, certainly looks unimpressive. Enclosed in a flat-roofed, semicircular building, the cave is reached by a long corridor to the right of the courtyard leading to the traditional Tomb of the Virgin. Its placement makes it seem an afterthought, though in fact it was a Christian holy site long before anyone thought to place the To...]]>

Book a Special Christmas Tour: 4 Day/3 Nights or 5 Day/4 Night

On December 25, Christians around the world will gather to celebrate Jesus' birth. Joyful carols, special liturgies, brightly wrapped gifts, festive ...]]> Petra in the modern day Jordan

For every tourist who visits the ancient city of Petra in modern day Jordan, there is one breathtaking momen