The Holy Land and Mary, the places of Mary in Israel and Palestine

The Holy Land is the territory where Mary lived, prayed, and accompanied her Son throughout His whole earthly life. To walk through these places is a privileged form of Marian meditation. The principal places of Mary in the Holy Land correspond to the great moments of her life as documented in the Gospels.

Nazareth: the house of the Annunciation

In Nazareth stands the Basilica of the Annunciation, built over the grotto identified with the house of Mary. It is the largest Marian shrine in the Holy Land and one of the most visited in the world. The basilica was built by the Franciscans in the years 1960-1969 over the ruins of earlier churches going back to the Crusader period.

Ain Karim: the Visitation

In Ain Karim, southwest of Jerusalem, the Church of the Visitation marks the place where Mary went to visit Elizabeth. The frieze bearing the Magnificat in dozens of languages is one of the most moving elements of the shrine. The Church of Saint John the Baptist marks the place of John’s birth.

Bethlehem and Jerusalem

In Bethlehem, the Basilica of the Nativity is the place of Jesus’ birth. On Mount Zion, in Jerusalem, an ancient tradition locates the “Dormition” of Mary, the place where she is said to have fallen asleep in the Lord. The Abbey of the Dormition, in the care of the German Benedictines, is a place of intense Marian prayer.

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Magisterium of the Church

Nazareth, Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Ain Karim: haec loca sancta cum vita Mariae coniuncta sunt et peregrinationem fidei fidelium invitant.

S. Ioannes Paulus II, Homilia in Terra Sancta (5 martii 2000)

📚 Literal translation: Nazareth, Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Ain Karim: these holy places are bound up with the life of Mary and invite the faithful to a pilgrimage of faith.