CHURCH OF THE CONDEMNATION AND
IMPOSITION OF THE CROSS
(click on the candle)
Picture: Chebishev
(c) Daniel Amarilio
Catholic -
Franciscan Order
GOD,
Please give Humanity wisdom
To eliminate the Poverty in the World.
So that the rich become richer.
So that no Poverty exists.
So that no Parent bury his Child.
So that our wonderful Planet is safe.
So that we to live with Joy, in Peace and surrounded by
Love.
So that we will glorify You through our short lives,
finished even before
being conceived.
So that to hear New prayers coming from every humans
heart,
Which is the same for every Human in this World,
independently rich or
poor, white or colored, Abraham or Buddhas children.
Because I believe only in Goodness..
(Amarilio's Prayer)
Located within the Franciscan
Compound:
Station IV, Via Dolorosa, Old City
Originally a Byzantine church of resplendent beauty, the Chapel of
the Condemnation and Imposition of the Cross was at a later period
turned into a mosque. The church, which marked the site where Jesus
took up the cross after being sentenced to crucifixion, was finally
restored at the beginning of the twentieth century. By the end of
its renovation in 1904 it had returned to its former Byzantine
splendor.
Today's lovely sanctuary is topped by five shiny white domes, each
of them sitting on a stained-glass window- enveloped drum. But most
extraordinary is the artwork within the church interior:
papier-mache figures in the apse tell some of the most powerful
stories of the Passion. In one of the representations, Pontius
Pilate condemns Jesus to crucifixion. Another haunting scene shows
John desperately trying to keep the Virgin Mary from seeing Jesus
carrying a cross down the Via Dolorosa.
Other momentous biblical events and individuals are pictured in the
church's brilliantly colored stained-glass windows. Angels can be
seen within the small windows in the ceiling; in wall illustrations
Pontius Pilate washes his hands, and soldiers impose the cross on
Jesus.
An interesting feature of this church is the Roman- period floor
found next to its western wall. Typical of floors of that era, it is
made of very large, striated stones that kept people from slipping
as they walked.