Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem
So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there. John 19: 40-42
On the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they ad prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus….Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Luke 24:5-6
The empty tomb of Jesus, enclosed in an edicule, inside the church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem has been a site of Christian pilgrimage from the 1st century AD onward. There are a number of strong supports for the authenticity of this site gleaned from archeology:
This area was a stone quarry and outside the city walls in the 1st century
Just feet from the tomb in the Church are other 1st century BC - 1st century AD tombs - so this area was also a graveyard (and had to be outside the city walls)
Emperor Hadrian did Christianity a great favor by placing pagan temples over important Christian sites in the early 2nd century AD - including a temple over the tomb of Jesus resembling other temples to Jupiter and Venus. A part of this temple (columns) is still standing in the Russian church next door.
The tomb has been opened for investigations rarely. What has been found is that the tomb has a single rock hewn room and a single bench with an entrance that appears to have sealed by a stone. This is suggestive of it being a new tomb, and maybe even incomplete, not yet used.
Emperor Constantine identified this site with its long history of Christian veneration and commissioned the original Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the early 4th century AD.
In the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, there is a rock quarry chamber where graffiti was found that suggests some of the early builders identified as Christians.
There continues to be debate over whether this is the actual site of Jesus death, burial and resurrection and will likely never be proved conclusively. We pray everyone has a joyous celebration of our Savior’s resurrection - whether you are convinced this is the spot or not!
Dome over the edicule and tomb of Jesus in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem Israel
