Have you heard of the mysterious Well of Souls? Did you know that the answer to these mysteries are hidden beneath the ruined Jewish Temple, which is believed to be found under the Islamic shrine beneath an undisclosed underground cave.

It is believed that the Well of Souls is found on Jerusalem, in a site known as Temple Mount to the Jews and Noble Sanctuary to the Muslims. According to religious experts, the Well of Souls contain the elusive, mysterious and fabled Ark of  the Covenant. According to the Bible, the Ark of  the Covenant is the sacred vessel that contains the original Ten Commandments which God gave to Moses in Mount Sinai, when the ancient Israelites strayed the desert.

Some people say that the Wells of Souls is found under a natural cave where Abraham prepared his son Isaac as a sacrifice to God. No one knows whether this Wells of Souls really exists or its just a mystery, but knocking the cave floor beneath the Muslim Dome of Rock shrine produces a hollow echo, which some people alleged as a hidden chamber. However, some individuals also concluded that this sound is the byproduct of small fissure below the floor. Some individuals alleged that the Temple Mount contains 45 cisterns, tunnels, chambers and caves.

What is The Ark of  the Covenant?

Don’s ask Indiana Jones, but it is considered the most important Biblical relics of all times because it contains the bedrock of righteous Christian life, the Ten Commandments. For centuries, the mystery of the Ark of  the Covenant aroused the interests of laymen,  scholars, explorers and writers.

Results of the archeological studies of W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research senior fellow Shimon Gibson reveal the presence of historical references of the Ark during the First Temple’s establishment, but records disappeared completely during 40 B.C., the time of King Herod.

Some alleged that the Ark was destroyed during the demolition of the First Temple in about 586 B.C. They believed that it was hidden and spirited away during the invasion. Some also purported that the Ark could have been stolen or destroyed during the invasion of Roman legions in Jerusalem in 70 A.D.

Biblical accounts show that the Ark was made of wood and coated with several sheets of gold. Since it was made of wood, some scholars concluded that the Ark was destroyed and was not able to survive the unfavorable weather conditions, otherwise it contained holy properties.

According to archeologist Ronny Reich from Haifa University, countless books were written about the account of the Ark of  the Covenant and movies were filmed to account the existence of the Ark, but no real data was found about it.

At present, the Temple Mount and the natural cave underneath the Dome of Rock are open to tourists, depending on the political and local security situation.

Until now, the Ark of  the Covenant remains a mystery to everybody and no one really knows its location, its status and its whereabouts. A mystery that stays hidden for centuries.

There have been many issues that involved changing original Christmas traditions for the sake of being politically correct.

Just recently, at Rhode Island, during the annual tree lighting event, Governor Lincoln Chafee insisted upon calling what people have always known as a Christmas tree, a Holiday Tree instead. This is in an effort to respect the religious diversity of the State.

Unfortunately, not everyone responded nicely to this change. Soon Gov. Chafee’s office was filled with complains that didn’t just come from the state but also from all parts of the country. A big portion of Rhode Island’s residents are Catholics and for them, the change is a direct insult to their tradition. Changing the name erases what is for them, the true meaning of this holiday: the birth of Christ.

Gov Chaffee however pretty much stands by his decision and even argues that if the tree is inside his house, then it would be called a Christmas tree. But for the sake of the public, the tree that was mounted for this particular holiday will be called a Holiday tree. Rhode Island, after all, is supposed to be a sanctuary of different religions and hence there shouldn’t be any biases in terms of religion whenever the state celebrates a holiday.

Republican lawmaker Doreen Costa couldn’t disagree more. She argues that the governor is trying too hard to be politically correct. She even went as far as putting up her own Christmas tree located at the State house and decided to light it up on the same day that the Holiday day tree was lit. This way, people can have an option: go for the Holiday tree or the Christmas tree?

Even the Christmas tree farm that donated the tree to the state had something to say about it. They candidly argued that they are a Christmas tree farm and not a Holiday tree farm.

Those who opposed the Governor’s decision argue further that in the first place, no one has been offended by the fact that a Christmas tree is called a Christmas tree. The purpose that motivated the change is simply not worth it compared to the controversies created.

The question here is whether other religions really do mind the way Christmas is being celebrated.

Apparently, Muslims don’t have anything against it. They even have their own trees as decoration and even exchange gifts too.

Jews are pretty neutral about Christmas too. They even participate with the events although they don’t consider it a religious holiday like the Christians do.

There’s simply no religion that disagrees with what Christmas is about: goodwill, joy and peace. Even atheists agree that what Christmas represents is right and that is enough for it to be celebrated.

Is there actually anybody out there who finds Christmas activities offending?

Would anyone disapprove of giving Christmas gifts to charities during Christmas time? Sure it could be done more often and at different time of year, but a lot of people are actually happy at the idea that there is one time of the year where help is abundant.

Christmas season is not just a celebration that is exclusive to Christianity after all so why make a big deal about the religious aspect of it like this?

Introduction

Palestine, the Holy Land, is visited by people of different faith – Jews, Christians and Muslims. Bethlehem is been a pilgrim center for Christians. Bethlehem and olive wood handmade sculptures are meant to save humanity. The Olive branch signifies love, good health and peace. The Bible mentions the olive branch in Noah’s Ark.
Olive Wood Articles

Olive wood is ideal for carving works and lends itself easy to work accurately with simple hand tools. It is available in natural colors. Its tonal depth due to annular structure renders complex artistic carvings possible. Religious articles, crosses, picture frames, cute boxes, paper knives, ink stands and crucifixes are some of the olive wood handicrafts made by the dexterous fingers of men and women of Bethlehem. Tourists from Europe taught the art of carving olive wood to the native people of Palestine. In turn there was transfer of wisdom to the workmen who eventually setup their own shops for these artistic items.

Mechanization

During the World Wars, Palestine was brought under British regime wherein a small industrial revolution stormed through the quiet cottage industry of olive wood carvings. Electric saws replaced hand saws. General purpose lathes and motorized drills replaced simple manual gadgets. Revolutionary copying machines were deployed to produce multiple designs from the master pattern operated by single workmen within a short time. This resulted in enormous increase in volume of production at a faster rate with high degree of accuracy. New products such as chandeliers, beads were also added to the array of sculptural works. In essence the market was flooded with articles at affordable prices beckoning tourists from all over the world. Owners of business houses made high profits due to reduced cost of mass production. The high volume of production enabled export of artworks to countries all over the world.

Ill Effects of Mass Production

Mechanization had its own adverse effects – high degree of unemployment and lack of job satisfaction amongst artisans. Original hand carved masterpieces became things of the past. Precious creativity of artisans was killed virtually. Workmen were utilized as mere assembly mechanics and machinists.

To cut short the process time, irrigated olive wood was used as raw material which was inferior in quality as it contained moisture. This resulted in cracking and disfiguring of the artworks despite careful handling. This quality dilution resulted in sudden rejection of souvenirs by tourists.

Other Problems

The perennial struggle between the ethnic groups in Palestine resulted in political uncertainty and economic imbalance. Israel imposed strict restrictions in respect of tourist guides and bus operators of West Bank and Gaza Strip. This had a negative effect on tourists visiting East Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Tourists postponed or cancelled their trips fearing trouble. Pilgrims made trips in organized tours wherein they were taken to specific shops only for short duration. In some tour programs shopping facility might not be available.
Small business houses and individual artisans were unable to compete with the big business houses as they were not able to cut production costs owing to small volumes and hence their products were priced out.
On the whole, the overall situation was grim for olive wood industry at the end of the twentieth century.

Religious gifts are the best way to touch the hearts of our loved ones. No other gift can replicate these religious gifts as they are widely accepted by all types of people. Before choosing a religious gift, we should know something personal about the person. All of us do have faith in some religion and so this is the main factor to be considered while choosing a religious gift. The religious background of the person is the basis on which we select the religious gift for him. If unknowingly we give a wrong gift, then it would cause much harm than good.

If you are a Christian follower or do wish to give some gifts to some one of Christian faith then there are actually plenty of options before you to choose. Most of the Christian religious gifts are based from the events of the bible. It may include both incidents from the Old Testament and New Testament as well. Bible offers us a variety of subjects covering happiness, suffering, sadness, pain, charity and hope. Any occasion you think off, there are incidents in bible which you can make use of to prepare gifts to your loved ones.

The most popular religious gifts of the catholic faith do come from the Holy Land. These are genuine handmade gifts from Bethlehem. Most of these handmade gifts are made from olive woods. These woods are taken from olive trees which are hundreds and thousands of years old and found in the locality of Bethlehem. These trees are believed to be very holy as they are in existence from the times of Jesus Christ. Bethlehem is the place where Christ lived and preached among people. So the woods from these trees are found very holy by the faithful.

The wood is never harvested by killing live trees but in fact the woods are taken from the branches of those trees that have been cut down for maintenance or those trees that have died due to old age or disease. Most of these olive trees are thousands of years old and the authorities make sure that no live tree is cut down to take wood from it. The suppliers of these olive woods should certify that these woods are from the Holy Land and no live tree has been cut down for the purpose of taking woods.

The religious gifts from the Holy Land especially those made out of the olive woods are very popular among the faithful. There are many handmade gifts that can be made out these olive woods. In fact the craftsmen of the surrounding locality do come with more and more new ideas each time. Some of the products that can be made out of these woods are a cross with a leather strap for the purpose of hanging it around our neck or a handmade statue to be kept in your home. There are some websites were we can go for specialization by selecting the event of our choice from the bible and ask them to do a statue on it.

Bethlehem is a haven for artists who wish to earn a living for themselves. It attracted a large number of buyers all the way from Israel and other parts of the world until the Palestinian takeover. Nevertheless, the artists there continued to thrive by making out a living with the skills that they have been blessed with. The olive wood artists started practicing their craft from the start of the fourth century. This skill was taught mainly by the monks who came to that area. The monks taught them how to cut and shape the olive wood so that they can create beautiful statues.

Larger artists had only one major problem, how to bring buyers into Bethlehem to see their work. In the case of the smaller artists, they faced several roadblocks (pun intended). They faced problems in getting tools to do their job. Since they were not as well established like a few others, they could not get enough buyers as many chose to buy the lovely olive wood gifts from the established artists. So, these smaller artists had to do with what little they have.

Many of the smaller artists work from their own basements or little nooks. They do not have the resources to have a separate office or workshop. Many of the houses in Bethlehem have a basement. So, the artists make use of these basements to work on the lovely products. Even a little space somewhere in their homes is more than enough for them to work. As an example, one artist had a small workshop measuring only about 3 meters by 3 meters (just under 30 square feet). You can barely call this a workshop he made do with whatever space that was available to him. His gift was making little crosses. He used to get olive wood from the market. Once getting the olive wood transported to his ‘workshop’, he used to carve them until they came to the shape of a cross. Once the shape has been achieved, he used to smooth them until the edges are perfect. With a little laquer and a few more finishing touches, the gift would be ready. Then, he used to take it to the market to see if he could get any buyers for his products. Since he was a smaller artist, he would not attract many buyers immediately.

Another artist had so little space for a workshop that one needed to duck in order to move inside it. There was not even space for an average adult to walk upright inside his basement workshop. But, a little space was all that was needed for him to make his gifts. He used to sit in his little wooden desk and carve various Mother of Perl pendants, earrings and broaches.

Even the smallest artists can make do with a little ingenuity.

For thousands of years the Olive Tree has been associated with holistic concepts like love, good health, peace and more. It is a great symbol of Christian tradition. It is said that during the sailing of Noah’s Ark, the dove carried an olive branch in its beak signifying that land was found. Even Jesus Christ offered prayers for the welfare of humanity near an olive tree at Jerusalem immediately after the famous Last Supper. It is believed that the holy tree still exists and is visited by pilgrims in Jerusalem even to this day. The sacred olive oil has been used to anoint papal authorities, clergymen, faithful followers of Christianity and Head of States.

The tall, stately and evergreen Olive tree owes its origin to the Mediterranean Region where it was growing even before the Birth of Christ, as early as 2500 BC. Olive wood has some special properties – it is ideal for carving; it is easy to work precisely with standard tools. Olive wood is available in different colors and it is resistant to decay.
This glorious Olive wood has been converted into artistic master pieces in the olden days by artisans from France and Italy in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries AD. These artisans, who traveled to Bethlehem on pilgrimage, taught the local people the art of carving on olive wood. In fact this was a major industry running profitably at that point of time in Europe. In due course the local people mastered the art of carving olive wood and many adopted it as a family business. Even today you will be able to find descendants of the old families of artisans earning their bread and butter from this job.

Olive wood can be carved into beautiful master pieces in the form of crosses, crucifixes, statues, boxes and picture frame covers for historical and old books. Furthermore exquisite candle holders, rosaries, urns, flower vases and other Christian ornaments can be carved out of olive wood.

Olive wood carving is a labor intensive work. The process is elaborate which can be divided into six stages of operation. The wood is subject to traditional drilling and machining operations to form the rough outline of carving. Then comes the role of a skilled artisan who chisels with great precision to produce the finished product. The art piece is subjected to burr removal and polishing operations. The finished product is given a final coating of olive wax or lacquer to impart natural shine and long life before dispatch. The entire process cycle takes about 45 days.

Artisans require special skill to carry out these artistic works. They are trained rigorously for a period of 6 to 7 years to attain perfection in this trade.

But for the artisans of Bethlehem you will not be in a position to obtain these world famous olive wood marvels! Also Palestinian Churches thrive on account of these artisans and their creations. In turn the country’s economy looks up!

Are you planning to visit the Holy Land? If so, then the best thing that you can bring for your friends and relatives from the Holy Land are religious gifts made from olive wood in Bethlehem. A religious gift is the best way to touch the hearts of our loved ones. They can feel so happy when they find that you have brought them some gifts for them from the Holy Land. The most popular type of religious gifts from Holy Land are those that are made from olive wood. These gifts are held dearly by Christians as the olive trees from which the wood is harvested is said to be in existence from the times of Jesus Christ.

The olive wood has a very long history. It may be hard for anyone to believe that any type of wood is considered to be so sacred. But it is really true that most Christians around the world consider the olive wood of Holy Land sacred. The first olive tree is said to have grown in the Holy Land around 4000 BC and then spread into other areas. These olive trees are considered so sacred because Christ lived and preached in these areas. According to the Bible, the major part of Christ’s life was spend in Nazareth which is one of the places where these olive trees are found. The Bible says that the Christ himself was a carpenter by profession. Most Christians believe that Christ would have worked on this wood as well. There are many instances in the Bible were the olive trees have been mentioned. On the way to Jerusalem for his crucifixion, Christ is said to have offered prayers beneath an olive tree. There are many who believe that the cross on which Christ was crucified was made out of olive wood. The bible does not say anything on it and thus it still remains as a mystery.

The olive tree of the Holy land is considered mostly as an immortal tree. When these olive trees get to be around two centuries old, their trunk eventually disappear and new shoots develop from the base giving birth to a new tree. In this way these trees never die and live from one generation to another. There are many who compare the rebirth of these olive trees to that of Jesus Christ.

The wood from the olive trees are now used to make religious gifts. The authorities have ensured that no olive tree would be cut down for the purpose of taking woods from them. The wood which is used to make religious gifts are taken from the trunks of those olive trees that have died due to their old age or which have been cut down for maintenance purpose. Carpenters in the Holy land make different types of statues and other religious gifts from these olive woods. Most people who visit Holy Land do prefer these religious gifts that are made out of olive wood.

The Cross is held dearly to those of the Christian faith. In fact it has a sacred and has deep meaning for all Christians. The Cross implies redemption of our sins, because Jesus Christ was nailed to death on a cross for the sins of mankind. The Cross was not so common in the first three centuries. It became very prominent among Christians during the end of 3rd century.

We can find crosses in different shapes, sizes and styles. It is often seen on the top churches and used as jewelry. It is a prominent feature in cemeteries of Christians where you can find it often either carved upon gravestones or scriptures. It is widely believed that crosses were in existence even before the times of Christ. It was used in sacred acts of the churches. The grave of kings, heroes and bishops were differentiated from others by using a cross on them. In the middle ages, crosses were mostly set up in the market places. In those days the churches and the cathedrals were built on the shape of a Latin Cross. In ceremonies of the church, the clergy and the followers trace the cross with their fingers. Crosses are also used for processions.

There are different types of crosses for different sects of Christians. The Latin Cross is the type of cross on which Christ died. The characteristics of this cross are that it has an upright long pole and a crosspiece fastened near to its top. The cross used by Saint George or the Greek cross has four arms which measure in same length. This cross is mostly used with the cross of Saint Andrew which is a part of the British Union Jack. In this flag, the cross of Saint Andrew depicts Scotland and the cross of Saint George stands for England. The characteristic of a Maltese cross is that there are eight sharp points and it was the emblem of the knights in the middle ages.

The earlier references to a cross can be found from 6th century. The Cross with the dying image of Jesus Christ is called a Crucifix. The Lord Jesus Christ was crucified on a cross and this was why Christians regard cross with such importance. In early times Catholics prayed with their arms extended which was a sign of the death of Christ on a Cross. This tradition can be traced back to the third century and is in existence even now.

Most of us cannot travel to the Holy Land. A unique gift that a person visiting the Holy Land can bring back is a cross made out of olive wood. The crosses are mostly hand made from olive wood, harvested from tress which are thousands of years old and found only in the area of Bethlehem. The gifts made out of this olive wood are considered Holy by Christians and there is much demand for it.

Manger Sets are an important part of our Christmas celebrations. We prepare these Nativity Sets to commemorate the story of a baby named Jesus, who was born to free the all of mankind from our sins. His was a miraculous birth, the fulfillment of a promise by our Lord in the Old Testament. Setting up Nativity and Manger Sets is the most cherished moments of Christmas. In fact there are many ways to set up a Nativity scene. Different parts of the world have their own ways of putting up the Nativity Scene. The choice is completely ours and we tens to follow our traditions. The only significant difference between a Nativity and a Manger Set is the inclusion of the stable – Manger. A Nativity Set may or may not have the stable, but a Manger always have the stable as part of the set. Adding the stable brings in much more relevance and depth to the Nativity Scenes.

There are a number pieces that you will need to set up a Manger Set. The first thing that you should have is a crib and baby Jesus at the center of the Nativity Scene. Jesus is kept at the center of the Nativity Scene as he is its focus. On the side of baby Jesus, Mary and Jesus should be placed. Most of us do not place Jesus in the Manger until Christmas Eve. The decision is yours and you can decide where to place The Baby Jesus before Christmas. It is a customary to place a sheep and oxen in the scene as they were the only other ones present at the time of Jesus’ birth.

There are some additional figures which are usually included in a Manger Set. They include the shepherd and the kings who visited baby Jesus and offered gifts as well. The way to place these figures in the Manger is an option left to you. Some choose an inner and outer circular pattern, placing the figures in it. Mary, Joseph and Jesus are placed in the inner circle as they are the most important ones in the Manger Set. Some place shepherds closer to Jesus, because The Bible says that it was the shepherd who came to first visit Jesus. The kings can be placed next in the circle which can depict the slow journey that they made to visit the new born baby. In some Latin communities there is a tradition of not placing the kings until January 6th.

Another popular figure in the Manger set is an angel. You can place it on the top of the Manger making it feel like the angel is looking from the Heaven to Earth. If this cannot be done then the next best way to place an angel would be near the Holy Family.

Manger Sets are popular gifts from Holy Land made out of the famous olive wood. All the Nativity characters are made out of this olive wood and these religious gifts are admired all around the world.

The Crucifix is one of the greatest symbols of Catholic Church. The main theme of Christianity is the representation of Christ as a Redeemer and a Savior. The Crucifix reminds us of Christ’s sacrifice of his life for the sins of mankind. It is a symbol of Christ’s love for all people.

The Crucifix is a cross with the image of Jesus’ body. The Catholic Crucifix is a Latin cross with the body of Jesus Christ. It is the symbol of Catholic faith and upon which the whole church have been built up. The Crucifix symbolizes the redemption of mankind of its sins through the death of Jesus. The Crucifix represents a way of life for Christians. Faith is the pillar on which the life of a Christian depends. The Crucifix is among the greatest pillars of Christian faith. Without faith there would not be any hope and our greatest hope is the Christ, who laid down his life in the cross will redeem us from all our sins.

History of the Catholic Crucifix:
The Crucifix was not widely used until 5th century. Prior to this period the most common symbol used to represent Christ was the Lamb of God. In 629 AD, the council of Constantinople ordered that the image of Jesus Christ lying dead on the cross be used as the symbol of faith instead of the Lamb of God. This image was the Crucifix and it depicted Christ’s mortal life and his death in the cross for all the sins of mankind. In the early catholic Crucifixes the corpus of Christ was usually stylized in a kind of abstract manner. This started changing from the 9th century AD when medieval artists started depicting more realistic portals of Christ. In later years artists went for more ideally conceived imagery. The main reason behind this change was the renaissance movement which was happening all around the Europe.

In the coming years the catholic Crucifix became accepted to all as the greatest symbol of Christian faith. It symbolized the sacrifice of Christ and the redemption of sins of all mankind. In the 16th century the formation Protestants rebelled against the use of body of Christ on the cross and stripped the corpus from the Cross. They wanted to put greater emphasis on the resurrection of Christ. This continued and the Catholic Church stayed with the Crucifix while the Protestants went for the bare cross.

Apart from being a strong symbol of our belief and faith, the Cross has also found its place in both art and jewellery. Christians all around the world wear Crosses around their body and proudly proclaim the belief in their Lord, Jesus Christ.

Are you looking for something special from the Holy Land? Among the best religious gifts that you can buy for your Catholic friends and relatives from the Holy Land are Crucifixes hand made out from Olive Wood in Bethlehem. This wood is considered very holy because it is said to be in existence from the times of Jesus and are found only in the Bethlehem area. This is the reason why Crucifixes made from this olive wood are popular all around the world.