The Garden of Gethsemane is composed of eight centuries-old olive trees located at the foot of the Mount of Olives. Its name comes from the Aramaic word gat semãnê, which means 'crusher' and suggests the presence of an olive press in ancient times. According to the Evangelists Matthew and Mark, this is the place where Jesus was betrayed by Judas and arrested while praying with his Disciples after the Last Supper. Today, the term Gethsemane refers to three places, guarded by the Franciscans, that commemorate the agony and arrest of Jesus on the night he was betrayed: the Grotto of Gethsemane, the Garden of Olives and the Basilica of the Nations. Already at the end of the third century, Gethsemane was considered a place of prayer by Christians. With Br Eugenio Alliata, archaeologist of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum, we will make a pilgrimage to the origins of this Sanctuary. Br EUGENIO ALLIATA, ofm Archaeologist Studium Biblicum Franciscanum "The Franciscans together with the other pilgrims, leading them, came to Gethsemane, and where did they stop? In a small garden containing ancient olive trees, called "the olive trees of the Romans". These olive trees belonged to Muslim owners in Jerusalem. They were merchants from Bosnia who bought the land in the 17th century and made a votive gift to the Christian religion. And so the place was fenced with a wall and became exclusively a place of prayer. Br EUGENIO ALLIATA, ofm Archaeologist Studium Biblicum Franciscanum "Later on, the Custody wanted to enlarge this land with olive trees, and bought an adjoining land, in the southern direction. On this land there were also some quite ancient olive trees that could be used as a place for prayer. But it was precisely in this place that the remains of the ancient churches came to light." During excavation work, a church from the time of the Crusaders came to light. Beautiful walls could be seen and a stone was also identified that served as a memorial for pilgrims. Br EUGENIO ALLIATA, ofm Archaeologist Studium Biblicum Franciscanum "The church is mentioned in the sources, in the ancient stories of the pilgrims, as the "church of prayer," because the focus of the church is on that prayer that Jesus made at Gethsemane: "Father, if it is possible, pass from me this cup. But not my will, but your will be done." This is the center of the message of the place, the prayer of Jesus." The intention was to build a beautiful church, new, in place of the destroyed one from the time of the Crusaders, and several projects were made for this. Br EUGENIO ALLIATA, ofm Archaeologist Studium Biblicum Franciscanum "And work began immediately, but while they were digging the foundations of this new church, beautiful colored mosaics appeared, the remains of an even older church. So the decision was taken to rebuild the oldest church, which is of the Byzantine era, the fourth century, and is already mentioned by the famous pilgrim Egeria. These mosaics really gave an idea of the elegance of this church." And as Br. Alliata points out, the modern mosaics are very well done and preserve the elegance of the ancient church to this day. The current Basilica was built between 1922 and 1924. For its construction, several nations collaborated with large donations, which is why it is also called the Basilica of Nations. It was the architect Barluzzi who was given the task of designing the new church. The one who benefited from Barluzzi's work was Brother Gaudenzio Orfali. Br EUGENIO ALLIATA, ofm Archaeologist Studium Biblicum Franciscanum "This is the central rock of the Basilica and according to the Christian custom, in the center, in front of the altar, there is the most characteristic element, the most interesting for the history of the Sanctuary. In this case the most characteristic elements are the rocks: the rock that is in the center of the Basilica is the one that attracts pilgrims who come to venerate it, not for itself, but for He who prayed on it." One mosaic depicts the betrayal of Judas, the rock of betrayal, while the mosaic on the other side depicts the scene of the capture of Jesus, who is taken by the soldiers, again on a rock. So it's the rock of prayer, of betrayal, of Jesus' capture. On the roof the brasses of the countries that collaborated in the construction of the Basilica. But also a curiosity that is the portrait of Barluzzi. From 2012 to November 2013, the Basilica underwent a long renovation. The project: "Gethsemane: preserving the past and forming the future" saw the restoration of the precious mosaics. In 2020, during the construction of a connecting tunnel between the Basilica of Agony and the Cedron Valley we were confronted with a surprise: a mikveh, a Jewish ritual bath from 2000 years ago. The archaeological excavations, carried out by the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum of Jerusalem and the Israeli Authority for Antiquities, have also brought to light a Byzantine church, the medieval remains of a monastery or reception house for pilgrims together with some cisterns for water collection. Br FRANCESCO PATTON, ofm Custos of the Holy Land Archaeology in this case is a confirmation of what tradition has transmitted from the biblical text. And when we have these three elements - biblical text, tradition and archaeology - we can say that we have elements of sufficient certainty to identify the place. The olive trees of Gethsemane were also subjected to analysis by experts in biology and plant physiology from Italian universities and the National Research Council, at the request of the Custody of the Holy Land. The study showed that their logs and branches are about 900 years old, making them among the oldest known olive trees. But that's not all. The olive trees belong to a single original variety and they also all have the same DNA, which means they were propagated by cuttings from a mother plant. Exceptional pilgrims to the Holy Land have also been the Pontiffs, who have venerated the stone of the Agony of Jesus but also planted an olive tree in the Sacred Garden. As did Pope Paul VI on a pilgrimage in 1964 and Pope Francis in 2014. For every Christian, these olive trees are a living reference to the Passion of Christ. Br BENITO JOSÉ CHOQUE, ofm Guardian of the Basilica of Gethsemane "On this 2021 Lenten Pilgrimage, kissing the rock of the Lord's agony, we ask for life and reconciliation for all, especially in this time of pandemic, where people are suffering." It was from this place that the procession to the Basilica, the destination of the second pilgrimage of Lent, began. The Mass was presided over by Brother Donaciano Paredes Rivera and concelebrated by the friars of the Custody together with priests from other religious congregations. The focus is on Jesus' prayer before his arrest. After recalling another moment of dialogue with the Father, on the occasion of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor, "It is the moment of another revelation - Father Łukas Popko explains in his homily - , not in the light but in the night. An episode that reveals that Jesus' communion with the Father is even deeper." "All our prayers and liturgies are reduced to this 'Thy will be done,' that is, 'I place myself in Thy hands,' - Father Popko then remarked, recalling the words spoken by Jesus on the Agony stone - But what we observe here - he concluded - is not Jesus' solitude, it is communion with the Father." Read More