Dominus Flevit – When Jesus Cried - A Tear Drop Shaped Church

Dominus Flevit is not the name of the latest delivery pizza….

….It is a small Catholic church situated on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. The name in Latin means “The lord Cried” – this refers to Jesus who wept while looking at the Second Temple after predicting its destruction which would lead to the Jewish exile by the Romans.

The church is relatively new and was built in the mid 1950’s by Antonio Barluzzi – an Italian architect, who also designed other new 20th century churches in Jerusalem. The church was designed in the shape of a tear drop to symbolize the occasion of Christ crying over Jerusalem.

While building the church archeologists found objects from as early as the Canaanite period (some 4,000 years ago or more), and also tombs from the time of Jesus and from the Byzantine period. While in the church you will be able to see mosaics that were discovered during the construction and belonged to a 5th century Byzantine monastery. The view from the church overlooking the Old City of Jerusalem is quite something…so if you visit the church get your camera ready!