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Topic:
Bethlehem - The Christian Era
In the New Testament Bethlehem is mentioned as the birthplace of the
Messiah Jesus (Mt 2:1,5; Lk 2:4,25) in consequence of which event
occurred Herod's "massacre of the innocents" (Mt 2:8,26).
Inasmuch as Hadrian devastated Bethlehem and set up there a sacred grove
to Adonis (Jerome, Ep. ad Paul, lviii. 3) it is clear that veneration of
this spot as the site of the Nativity must go back before 132 AD.
Constantine (circa 330) founded a basilica over the cave-stable which
tradition pointed out as the scene of the birth, and his church,
unchanged in general structure though enlarged by Justinian and
frequently adorned, repaired and damaged, remains today the chief
attraction of the town. During the Crusades, Bethlehem became of great
importance and prosperity; it remained in Christian hands after the
overthrow of the Latin kingdom, and at the present day it is in material
things one of the most prosperous Christian centers in the Holy Land.
Source: Erdman's Bible Encyclopedia, 1939, Erdman Publishing
Contributor: E. W. G. Masterman
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