Ein Karem

En Kerem (Arabic: عين كارم; Hebrew: עין כרם, even in transliteration Ein Kerem, translated as " source of the vineyard " ) is an ancient city within the present city limits of Jerusalem. Here the Baptist was born, so the place is a place of pilgrimage today, according to Christian understanding John.

Reason for the founding of the place was a water source. Archaeological finds indicate a settlement after the Bronze Age. It is probably here to the place of the Old Testament Bet Kerem ( Jer 6.1 EU; Neh 3,14 EU). The Bible tells us in the Gospel of Luke that Mary went " into the hill country of Judea " (Luke 1.39 EU) when she visited Zechariah and Elizabeth. Theodosius (530 ) reported that the distance to the place where dwelt Elizabeth ( mother of John the Baptist ) was five miles.

The most important sight En Kerems is the Church of St. John the Baptist, a Catholic church built in the late 19th century. There are also on the opposite slope an eponymous church building of the Orthodox Church in 1894 and the visit some church beneath the church lying (Jerusalem), also known as " visitatio church" or " Magnifikatskirche ". The walk to the church leads to the " Mary's Well " - engl. " Mary's Spring" over.

In 1961, on the hill, a medical training center opens ( Hadassah ).