Holy Land Research Articles

Welcome, Child of God 1: Enter the Holy Land!

Welcome, Child of God 1: Enter the Holy Land!

«Умелое слово» священника А. В. Анисимова: из истории русской духовной миссии в Иерусалиме во 2-й пол. 1880-х гг.

The article characterises the educational activities of the visiting employee of the Russian Spiritual Mission in Jerusalem, priest Alexander Vasilyevich Anisimov in 1887–1889. It describes the main facts of his biography and shows that prior to his appointment to Jerusalem he had had close contacts with the Holy Land as a pilgrim and spiritual writer. The position of a visiting employee established on the initiative and with financial support of the Orthodox Palestine Society, was associated with the need to accompany Russian pilgrims during their trips to Holy Places, to hold cultural and educational lectures (Palestinian readings) in Russian houses in evening time. A. V. Anisimov, who worked under the direct supervision and in collaboration with the head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission, Archimandrite Antonin (Kapustin), successfully coped with his responsibilities and gained love and respect of pilgrims. The readings were devoted to regular Christian holidays, the Sacred history of the Old and New Testaments, the history of the Russian Orthodox Church, various spiritual and moral issues, and were accompanied by a demonstration of pictures and choral singing. The obstacles to the continuation of A. V. Anisimov’s work included health problems, his desire to go beyond the boundaries of his duties, confl icts with the Greek clergy of Jerusalem Patriarchate. It is concluded that A. V. Anisimov’s activities laid the foundation for the Palestine Readings, which at that time were a new form of work and by the mid-20th century gradually transformed into a mass phenomenon, involving millions of Orthodox people throughout Russia.

Orientalism and Christian Pilgrimage in Contemporary History

This study focuses on the concept of orientalism and its relation to Christian pilgrimage in modern times, and the views of Western Christian religious figures, historians, researchers, and pilgrims to share their experiences with Christians who want to make a journey to the Holy Land, monks’ caves or other holy places around the world. The benefits of Christian pilgrimage in their view will be spiritual more than physical by visiting the Christian pilgrim's true places of pilgrimage. The invitation here is to teach Christians the religious ceremonies that were done by the early pilgrims who had followed Christ's steps and his apostles who took the Bible as their guide. According to them, pilgrimage is not for fun or entertainment but for worship and forgiveness, an idea that lasted for a long time until now. This study included an introduction, a definition of orientalism, and an explanation of the western Orientalists’ point of view of pilgrimage, by giving examples of pilgrims' stories who made their journey whether in reality or in a dream.

Exploring Israel/Palestine Through the Eyes of Writers: German-Language Authors and Undiscriminating Anthropological Glasses

Abstract German language texts, across a range of genres have been written about the Holy Land, Mandatory Palestine, the State of Israel, and about Israel/Palestine. These texts reveal the positioning of the authors either in the subtext, or directly. As they were authored in German, these texts were written with a German-speaking audience as a mental interlocutor in the writing process. This article considers German-language texts as primary sources to learn about the authors, the nexus of the Holy Land, Mandatory Palestine, the State of Israel, Israel/Palestine, and Germany; how generational differences manifest in the topics; and how flows of knowledge have diversified over time. The choice of texts follows the logic of ethnographic fieldwork: it is opportunistic, as anthropologists consider the written word in all its forms and genres as data.

Transformative journey experiences to heritage sites: a dark tourism spectrum

ABSTRACT Dark heritage sites can evolve from being merely sites of tragedy to places that offer transformative experiences for travelers. This qualitative study explores travelers’ transformative experiences of Christian pilgrimages after an 8-day Holy Land tour and of Jewish travelers after a 7-day Holocaust sites tour in Poland. Both tours represent different points on the dark tourism spectrum. We explored experiences tapping four domains in which travelers ascribe place meaning to these dark places: personal, spiritual, communal, and global (i.e. broad humanity). The travelers’ experiences in these four domains are mapped onto a matrix of cognitive vs. emotional and self-centered vs. other-centered experiences. In addition, place meaning in each of the four domains was found to be reflected differently in each of the transformation stages in the two examined journeys on the dark tourism spectrum. Each domain triggered different transformational processes in both of these journeys. Tourism planners are encouraged to design transformative journeys to dark heritage sites in light of the dynamics of the four place-meaning domains.

Ethnocratizing the “Holy Land” The Politics of Sacred Places: A View from Israel-Palestine Nimrod Luz. London, New York and Dublin: Bloomsbury Academic, 2023. pp. 223.

Ethnocratizing the “Holy Land” The Politics of Sacred Places: A View from Israel-Palestine Nimrod Luz. London, New York and Dublin: Bloomsbury Academic, 2023. pp. 223.

Medievalism, Orientalism, and the Botany of the Holy Land

ABSTRACTThis article considers the intersection of medievalism and Orientalism in the botanical study of the Holy Land from the Middle Ages itself through the 1930s.

Excavating ancient pilgrimage at Nessana, Negev

Abstract The ancient site of Nessana in the south-western Negev had an important role in the logistics of early-Christian pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The arid climate, which preserved organic material, and the richness of multilingual epigraphic evidence from this region make Nessana a key site for archaeological study of the material culture of pilgrimage.

Fr. Cyprian (Kern, 1899–1960), His Diaries and Memoirs

Abstract The article is devoted to Fr. Cyprian (Kern, 1899–1960), evaluating his Diaries and Memoirs, edited it 2021 by the author. One of the eminent theologians of the Russian Emigration, professor of Saint Sergius Theological Institute in Paris, Fr. Cyprian was born and brought up in Russia, took part in the Russian Civil war, and lived as a young Russian emigrant in Yugoslavia in 1920–1930. In 1928–1930 he was the Head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem. His Memoirs and Jerusalem Diaries are a very important and in fact unique source not only on the biography of Fr. Cyprian himself, but for the religious and cultural life of the Russian Emigration in the Balkans and in the Holy Land during the first half of the 20th century. They also shed light on characteristic patterns concerning the interaction between different communities in those regions.

A Critical Voice on the Hajj by a Sumatran Pilgrim from the Early Twentieth Century

This paper examines a late 19th-century brochure entitled ‘Perdjalanan ke-‘Tanah-Tjoetji’ (A Pilgrimage to the ‘Holy Land’) written by Dja Edar Moeda, a Dutch-educated native teacher and a pioneer journalist and vernacular press entrepreneur in Sumatra. The text offers a critical perspective on the Hajj, differing from the majority of this corpus, which tends to show religious enthusiasm and saintly connotations. This paper demonstrates that the ‘deviant’ voice on the Hajj in the Brochure reflects the author’s concerns. As a native intellectual and religious modernist with a Western-secular education, he worries about the fate of his fellow native pilgrims, who are often victimised by rampant fraudulent practices in the organisation of the Hajj due to their illiteracy, map illiteracy, innocence, naivety and tendency to be submissive in their religious practice. In this respect, the Brochure indirectly criticises the Dutch East Indies colonial authority’s deficiencies in organising the pilgrimage and protecting the pilgrims as its colonial subjects.

Was Gallus Anonymous, author of the famous Cronica et gesta ducum sive principum Polonorum, of Croatian origin?

The famous chronicler Gallus Anonymous was certainly the author of both the Historia de translatione sanctorum Magni Nicolai and the Cronica et gesta – and he was of Slavic origin, Croatian to be precise. He probably came from an aristocratic clerical family with links to the Croatian royal court. Gallus (who was known to have been a Benedictine monk) probably originated from the royal monastery of St Bartholomew in Knin. He belonged to the pro-Hungarian faction revolving around the Croatian queen, Helen the Fair, sister of Hungary’s Ladislaus and niece of Poland’s Kazimierz the Restorer. Gallus probably welcomed the intervention of the Hungarian king Ladislaus in Croatia in 1091. Gallus may have travelled to France in 1095 for the Council of Clermont and then, in early 1096, to Tours. In 1099, he was in Venice, possibly as an envoy of the Dalmatian party, trying to enlist the help of Venice against Coloman. Gallus witnessed the Venetian-Zadar negotiations which took place in Zadar in 1099, at the beginning of the Venetians’ naval expedition to the Holy Land. Gallus participated in the entire Venetian expedition to Palestine, and on his return in 1100, he edited the Historia de translatione sanctorum Magni Nicolai. This work was probably completed before 1005, i.e. before the final subjugation of Zadar and other Dalmatian cities to Coloman. In 1005/6 or later, perhaps in connection with Almos’ diplomatic activities, Gallus arrived in Germany. There, for a time, he was associated with the famous Benedictine monastery on Reichenau island. He came to Poland probably as a result of Almos’ connections with Bolesław the Wrymouth. In 1013 at the latest, he began writing the Cronica et gesta.

Splinter from the Storm: An Exhibition in the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem

Splinter from the Storm: An Exhibition in the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem

The Holy Land of Saints: The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Life Story of St. Marie Alphonsine

Utilizing the lens of new historicism, this study examines how hagiographers Stolz, Duvignau, and Khoury, from the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, have constructed and modified the narrative identity of St. Marie Alphonsine through different periods—1936, 1989, and 2012–2015. This approach illuminates the complex relationship between religious storytelling, cultural identity formation, and perceptions of “otherness”. The chronological dissection of St. Marie Alphonsine’s portrayal uncovers the hagiographers’ efforts to recalibrate her image in response to the changing cultural, spiritual, and communal demands within the Patriarchate’s jurisdiction and among the faithful. Highlighting the hagiographers’ instrumental role on behalf of the Patriarchate in molding religious and cultural discourses, the article explores the profound impact of saintly veneration on shaping the religious identity and cultural narratives of the Catholic community in the Holy Land. It underscores the essential function of the Patriarchate in steering the Catholic community through the complexities of the evolving socio-religious landscape.

Newly discovered inscriptions from the armenian cathedral of st. James in Jerusalem

The article focuses on the epigraphic legacy of the Armenian Cathedral of St. James in Jerusalem and its recently discovered inscriptions. Since the late 19th century, scholars have been gathering and publishing epigraphs from the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem, encompassing not just the Cathedral but also other sanctuaries, and the neighbourhoods within the convent. These efforts have provided a valuable resource for those interested in the history of Armenians in the Holy Land. Similar to inscriptions found in other sanctuaries across the Holy Land, those found in the St. James Cathedral were left by both congregants of the Cathedral and Armenian pilgrims who visited the Holy Land over the centuries. Local inscriptions typically include details about the individuals mentioned, such as their families, birthplaces, and occupations. These sources frequently document renovations or constructions, shedding light on known and previously unknown projects undertaken in the area. Through epigraphic research conducted in Jerusalem in 2019 and 2022, several inscriptions previously absent from earlier editions were discovered in the Cathedral. This article presents 10 of these newly found inscriptions, accompanied by images and explanatory notes.

Kontinuita, proměna, zánik nebo obnova poutní tradice v České republice pohledem etnologie

The study deals with the phenomenon of pilgrimages after the year 1989. Except for the traditional pilgrimage festivities associated with the confession of faith, such as in Žarošice in South Moravia, where a pilgrimage ritual with many Baroque relicts is still practised on the so-called Golden Saturday, we can notice the disappearance of pilgrimages. At the same time, the traditional form of pilgrimages is transformed, and we can observe innovative trends after 1989. Pilgrimage tourism is developing significantly, professional and association pilgrimages (e.g. these of firefighters, gamekeepers, beekeepers, and teachers) are being organised, and cycling pilgrimages are becoming popular among all age groups. In contrast to Western Europe, the phenomenon of longdistance pilgrimages, not only to Santiago de Compostela in Spain, but also to Mariazell, Roma, Assisi, and the Holy Land, has arrived in the Czech Republic with a certain delay. After the year 2000, pilgrim routes have been replicated and trucked, modern pilgrim routes are being built. Last but not least, we try to answer the question of what role a pilgrimage site, a pilgrimage or a pilgrimage tradition plays in the Czech society of the twenty-first century.

Digital Protection and Innovative Development Path of Red Culture Resources Based on Distributed Machine Learning Supported by Intelligent Information

As a product of the revolutionary war years, red culture, with its strong vitality, strong cohesion and extraordinary charm, with its incomparable positive energy, resists vulgar and flattering culture, promotes people to rebuild their faith, purify their minds, stimulate their motivation, and promote the process of cultural power. Yan’an, represented by red culture, is rich in resources. This is the holy land of Chinese revolution, the first batch of famous historical and cultural cities named by the State Council, and the three major education bases of patriotism, revolutionary tradition, and Yan’an spirit. The development and utilization of such resources have great political, cultural, educational and economic values. This research is based on the development of red culture, and uses the distributed machine learning system to realize in the system architecture of parameter server. In the distributed system set in this study, node downtime and network interruption are random. When the parameter server system adopts static scheduling, it leads to poor scalability and robustness. The experimental results show that under the intelligent simulation of machine learning system, the development of red culture resources meets the expected assumptions, and the accuracy of the model is relatively high.

Perang Salib: Dari Motivasi Religius Hingga Ambisi Kekuasaan - Sebuah Telaah Historis

This research discusses the crusades, a series of military campaigns carried out by European Christian powers in the Middle Ages, which had a profound impact not only on the history of Europe and the Middle East but also on global political, religious and cultural dynamics. It was called a crusade because Christian military expeditions when carrying out war used the cross as a unifying symbol to show that the war they were waging was a holy war and aimed to liberate Baitul Magdis (Jerusalem) from the hands of Muslims. The main goal of the crusades was to reclaim the holy land from the Muslim powers who had controlled it for several centuries. This method was used to collect data to reveal the discussion contained in this article. Reference collection in this activity is carried out by studying books and documents that are considered relevant to the object of study. It is hoped that the results of this research will add insight, new knowledge, and understanding of Islamic history and the crusades.

The Beginning of Ottoman-Brazilian Relations and the Visit of Brazilian Emperor Dom Pedro II and his Wife Empress Teresa Cristina to the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Lands [1876]

The Beginning of Ottoman-Brazilian Relations and the Visit of Brazilian Emperor Dom Pedro II and his Wife Empress Teresa Cristina to the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Lands [1876]

Mosaics of the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem and Crusader monumental painting in the Holy Land in the 12th century

Mosaics of the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem and Crusader monumental painting in the Holy Land in the 12th century

‘Allenby, O’ Allenby’: John Huston Finley’s Internationalist Case for a British Mandate in Palestine

ABSTRACT As the First World War drew to a close, the head of the American Red Cross’s Commission to Palestine, John Huston Finley, stepped into ongoing debates over the future of the Holy Land when he called for an international trusteeship in Palestine. Supporters and opponents of the Zionist movement – as well as the few scholars that have since engaged with Finley’s views – primarily understood Finley’s proposal as anti-Zionist. While Finley certainly presented his plan as an alternative to a Jewish state in Palestine, this article demonstrates that Finley’s proposal was much more directly a case for a British mandate that was rooted in Finley’s experiences working with the British – as well as his personal fascination with General Edmund Allenby. Finley believed and argued that Allenby’s person, character, and conduct demonstrated that the interests of ‘civilization’ could best be secured in Palestine by a British trusteeship. In his 1919 A Pilgrim in Palestine, published amidst the post-war debates over mandate assignments, Finley presented Allenby as a symbol of trusteeship’s possibilities in making an American case for British rule.