Christmas Eve at the Patriarchate of Jerusalem
On the morning of Monday, 24th December 2024 / 6th January 2025, the Chief Celebrant of the Christmas Feast, His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem, received at the Patriarchate the Body of the Orthodox Scouts and representatives of the Israeli Police, in the presence of the representative of the General Consulate of Greece, Mrs Anna Mantika.
After this meeting, His Beatitude, accompanied by the Holy Sepulchre Fathers, departed through Jaffa Gate. There, His Beatitude and the Holy Sepulchre Fathers boarded vehicles that transported them to the Holy Monastery of the Prophet Elias, between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
There, His Beatitude was welcomed by the representatives of the Communities of Bethlehem, the Shepherds’ Village, Beit Jala, the Israeli Ministry of the Interior, and the Abbot of the Monastery, Reverend Monk Achillios.
From the Monastery of the Prophet Elias, His Beatitude, preceded by riders of the Israeli Military Command, proceeded to the Syrian-controlled area of the Tomb of Rachel.
There, he was received by representatives of the Palestinian State, who led him through their vehicles until they reached Manger Square in Bethlehem. At this point, the Patriarchal Commissioner of Bethlehem, His Eminence Metropolitan Benedict of Diocaesarea, addressed him. The procession began through the Courtyard of the Church of the Nativity, with the Hierarchs leading and the Priests dressed in liturgical vestments, chanting the hymn of the Holy Church, led by the Byzantine Chanters of the Church, deacon Eustathios and Hierodeacon Simeon, singing the Dismissal Hymn: “Thy Nativity, O Christ our God.”
The procession reached the humble gate of the magnificent Basilica, and here, the entrance was made, where the General Consul of Greece in Jerusalem, Mr Dimitrios Angelosopoulos, awaited His Beatitude, following the protocol. The Patriarchal procession proceeded through the Basilica, a privilege reserved solely for the Orthodox, until the area in front of the iconostasis (Katholikon).
At this point, there was the descent through the Southern Gate, and the veneration at the Star and the Manger of His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem, accompanied by the Hierarchs and the General Consul of Greece in Jerusalem, Mr Dimitrios Angelosopoulos.
Subsequently, the procession ascended through the Northern Gate of the Cave, and from the Katholikon area, the reading of the Great Hours of Christmas, Vespers, and the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great began, with His Beatitude presiding. Deacon Eustathios and Hierodeacon Simeon chanted in Greek on the right, and the choir of Bethlehem sang in Arabic on the left, in the presence of the General Consul and the faithful of Bethlehem and its surroundings. The service concluded at 3:30 p.m.
After Vespers, His Beatitude, having passed through the Basilica, reached the Baptismal Gate, where the Patriarchal Commissioner, who had renovated the Holy Site of the Basilica, offered a fasting meal at the Rectory.
From the General Secretariat
Source: Patriarchate of Jerusalem
