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

In 415 AD the Greek priest Lucian discovered the tombs of the Martyr Stephen (who was stoned to death), Rabbi Gamaliel, his nephew Nicodemus  and his son Abibos. Lucian wrote that Gamaliel, St. Paul’s teacher, appeared to him in his dreams and pointed to the location of his tomb in Beit Jamal. Their remains were transferred to Mount Zion Abbey (Dormition) in Jerusalem.

In the 5th-6th  century  AD a church was established on the site of the tombs. Some of its remains can be seen in the back of the Ottoman period monastery. The Byzantine church, St. Stephen,  was named after the first Christian martyr. His name was written on a 5th-6th  century  Greek inscription which was found (mostly damaged) on its floor.

The Byzantine church was destroyed during the Arab invasion (614 AD), as most of the churches in the Holy Land.

A new monastery was constructed in 1881 in the village of Beit Jamal, near the location of the ruins of the earlier church.  It served as an agriculture school for the poor and orphan children.

The property was purchased in 1892 by the monks of the Salesian Society order.  

Today, in the premises of Beit Gemal are two monasteries (one for men, one for women), and two churches (Sisters of Bethlehem church, and St. Stephen’s church). The place is open to the public, offering weekend concerts, a shop where you can purchase locally made wine or olive oil,  a video presentation of the life of nuns, and a visit to St. Stephen’s church.

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