Church of All Nations (Jerusalem)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Church of All Nations near Mount of Olives in Jerusalem

For other churches called Church of All Nations, see Church of All Nations (disambiguation).

The Church of All Nations, also known as the Church of the Agony or the Basilica of the Agony, is located on Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, next to the Garden of Gethsemane. It enshrines a section of bedrock where Jesus is said to have prayed before the night of his arrest.

The chapel was built from 1919 to 1924 using funds from many different countries (hence the title). The symbols of each country are incorporated into the glass of the ceiling, each in a separate, small dome. The front of the church is a facade supported by a row of pillars. Above is a modern mosaic depicting Jesus Christ symbolically as the link between God and humanity. The bubbled-dome roof, thick pillars, and mosaic give the church a Byzantine look architecturally. The architect of the building was Antonio Barluzzi.

The current church rests on the foundations of two earlier ones - a 12th century Crusader chapel abandoned in 1345 and a 4th century Byzantine basilica, destroyed by an earthquake in 746.