Beit Gemal Monastery: The burial place of Saint Stephen, at whose funeral Mary was present (I)

According to Christian tradition, Beit Gemal (also spelled Beit Jamal) was the site of the Roman village of Kefar Gamala – the village named after  Rabbi Gamaliel the Elder who lived here. Rabban (Rabbi) Gamaliel was the president of the Great Sanhedrin in Jerusalem, a leading Pharisee scholar, and the grandson of the famous Hillel the Elder. Rabbi Gamaliel (? – ~50 AD) was a moderate person and favored the early Christians.

 The Acts of Apostles tell us that Gamaliel was also the teacher of Paul the Apostle, one of the most influential early Christian missionaries.  (Acts 22:3): “I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel…”.

Stephen was tried (34-35 AD) by the council  after preaching to accept Jesus as a messiah, speaking against the Temple and the law. During the trial he accused the council of killing the prophets (and Jesus) who spoke out against the sins of the nation. Stephen was therefore sentenced to be stoned to death (Acts 6:58): “And cast him out of the city, and stoned him…”. Thus, he became the first Christian martyr. (To be continued)

Source: https://www.biblewalks.com/BeitJamal (Adapted)