Ein Kerem is a picturesque neighbourhood in the south-western part of Jerusalem. Its name in Hebrew means “Spring of the Vineyard.”
The area is home to one of the campuses of Hadassah Medical Center, one of the leading medical institutions in Israel, as well as several important Christian churches and monasteries.
In Christian tradition, Ein Kerem is associated with two significant events: the birth of John the Baptist (also known as John the Forerunner) and the meeting of the Virgin Mary with Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist.
Key sites in Ein Kerem include:
Gorny Convent (Russian Convent of Ein Kerem)
The Gorny Convent, belonging to the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem, was established on the site traditionally associated with the meeting of the Virgin Mary and Elizabeth.
In 1871, a hospice for Russian pilgrims was built here, which was later transformed into a convent.
The main shrines of the convent include a stone brought from the site of the first sermon of John the Baptist and a revered icon of the Kazan Mother of God.
Church of the Visitation
The Church of the Visitation belongs to the Franciscan Order and was built on the remains of a Byzantine church. It is traditionally believed to stand on the site where the Virgin Mary met Elizabeth.
According to tradition, this was the location of the summer residence of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, where Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth.
At the entrance to the church, the text of the Magnificat—Mary’s hymn of praise—is displayed on the walls in 41 languages.
Church of St. John the Baptist
The Church of St. John the Baptist and the adjacent Franciscan monastery were built in 1885 on the ruins of a 4th-century Byzantine church.
According to tradition, the church stands above the cave where John the Baptist was born.
In the monastery courtyard, inscriptions of the Benedictus—the hymn of thanksgiving by Zechariah—are displayed in many languages. Regular services are still held in the church today.
Hadassah Synagogue
The Hadassah Synagogue was inaugurated on 6 February 1962 to mark the 50th anniversary of the Hadassah Medical Center.
Its most remarkable feature is a series of 12 stained-glass windows created by Marc Chagall, together with his assistant Charles Marq between 1960 and 1961.
Each window represents one of the Twelve Tribes of Israel—the sons of Jacob. The designs were inspired by Chapter 49 of the Book of Genesis, in which Jacob blesses his sons.
As Chagall later recalled:
“All the time I was working, I felt my father and my mother were looking over my shoulder, and behind them were the millions of Jews who had disappeared recently and thousands of years ago.”