A unique site in Jerusalem dedicated to Mary’s parents

In St. Anne's Church - an icon depicting the birth of Mary, photo by Amata J. Nowaszewska.

“The Basilica of St. Anne in Jerusalem, visited by many pilgrims, is a place where the Mother of God and her parents intercede for us,” says Father Christopher Stolarski, a Missionary of Africa, who is currently working in the Holy Land. The feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, which falls on 26 July, is specially celebrated here.

The Basilica of St. Anne is located near the ruins of the famous Pool of Bethesda, also known as the Sheep Pool, where Jesus healed the paralytic. “Some of the stone steps here date back to the times of Jesus. In the 5th century, an imposing 45-meter-long church was erected by the empress of Byzantium. It was dedicated to the Mother of God. In the 7th century it was destroyed by the Persians,” says Fr. Stolarski.

However, the veneration of Mary and the memory of the healing of the paralytic were still very much alive in this place. As Fr. Christopher points out, “The Crusaders built two churches: a small onededicated to the healing of the paralytic and a large basilica of St. Anne.”

The Basilica of St. Anne in Jerusalem is associated with the birthplace of the Mother of God. “It is a Marian Romanesque church that dates back to the 11th century. Rather austere in style, it is known for its superb acoustics. It is a beautiful place where we pray every day for the intentions of those who come here,” emphasizes Fr. Stolarski.

“Coming to Jerusalem for holiday will always lead to a profound spiritual experience, as we walk in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus and his Mother Mary. And St. Anne’s Basilica is closely linked to Mary’s parents, Anne and Joachim. I could not recommend enough traveling to the Holy Land,” dr. Anna Sadowska, Assistant Professor at the Institute of Linguistics at the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin shares with Family News Service while spending a week in Jerusalem.

In 1878 the Basilica was entrusted to the Congregation of the Missionaries of Africa, also known as White Fathers, who now administer the site. In June 1967, the church was bombed and severely damaged during the Six-Day War. It was reopened on 14 July 1971.

One of the most important statues in the church is the statue of St. Anne teaching little Mary the Scriptures from a scroll. In the south aisle, there are stairs leading to a crypt commemorating the birth of Mary.

During World War II, in 1944, some soldiers from the Polish Armed Forces in the East placed an image of Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn in the church with a memorial plaque in Polish reading: “Marching to Poland through the Holy Land, the students of the cadet schools, the training center of the Polish Armed Forces in the East, pay homage to the Immaculate in the place of her birth andentrust themselves to her perpetual protection, especially for the time of the fight for the freedom of the homeland and their safe return home. Jerusalem 29 January 1944.” The plaque was later moved to the New Polish House of the Elizabethan Sisters in Hahoma HaShlishit Street in Jerusalem.

The Basilica of St. Anne is one of  France’s extraterritorial possessions in the Holy Land by a treaty with the Turkish Sultan who gave the shrine to the French emperor for his assistance in the Crimean War.