There are few places in the Bible that stand out to Jews and Christians alike as much as the Mount of Olives.
For Jews, it features throughout the Torah, serving as the setting for several stories that remain at the heart of Judaic theology and mythology. From celebrations of Sukkot to cemeteries dating back thousands of years, the Mount of Olives has been part of the life and death cycle of Jews for millennia.
For Christians, it is at the crux of some of the most important events of the New Testament. Most prominent among these, it is the site of one of Jesus’s Olivet Prophecies and, according to Acts, the site of his ascension to Heaven.
In addition to the mount itself, there are many sites around the area that make it so significant.
Jewish Cemeteries
For millennia, the Mount of Olives has been known as the preferred resting place for many of the greatest rabbis, artists, and statesmen in Jewish history. A massive Jewish cemetery here hosts the graves of influential Jewish figures from Israel and throughout the Diaspora. Chief among these cemeteries is the Silwan Necropolis, which is home to many of the oldest graves dating back to the ninth century BCE.
The Mount of Olives appears throughout vital moments in the lives of Jewish kings, ranging from David in II Samuel to Solomon and Josiah in I and II Kings. Its sacredness is alluded to in Ezekiel. With as much myth as surrounds the Bible, the Mount of Olives is a place where that mythology and legacy lives on.
Other Sites
A number of other sites dot the landscape around the Mount of Olives. Perhaps most notably, it is home to what Christians believe to the Tomb of the Virgin Mary. The Chapel of Ascension, held by first Christians and then Muslims, marks the site where Christians believe that Jesus ascended to Heaven. Both of these sites as well as others in the region are protected by a 250-year old “Status Quo” in which Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religious leaders have agreed to maintain a truce around these shared parts of our historical, religious, and cultural heritage.
Modern Living
In addition to those historic and Biblical sites, the site remains active today. Its prominence makes it one of the great places to get an apartment for rent in Jerusalem.
King David Street runs quite close to the Mount of Olives, making apartments at places such as the King David Residence easy and tonally consistent with the aura exuded by this historic area.
