Bethlehem
The poet called it the "little town of Bethlehem," and rightly so. Yet it is perhaps the most famous little town in the world. And also perhaps the most-visited.
The Church of the Nativity (right) ornately marks the spot that has been treasured for centuries as the possible site of Jesus' birth. Whether that is the exact location or not, of course, we know it was somewhere in this area. And the hills outside of Bethlehem (below) probably look very much the same as they did when the angel appeared to the shepherds there. Those were the hills, too, where the youngest son of Jesse used to watch his father's sheep. That famous shepherd boy was David And so it was that the Christmas angel referred to Bethlehem as "the city of David." In addition to being Jesus' birthplace and David's hometown, Bethlehem (which means "house of bread") was the site of Rachel's burial, the setting for much of the story of Ruth, and the subject of a prophecy in Micah that helped the wise men find the baby Jesus. Bethlehem is located in the hilly, central section of the southern half of Israel. It is not far (less than 6 miles south) from Jerusalem. |