Mary’s Tomb in Jerusalem

Mary's Tomb

Mary’s Tomb is a site at the Kidron Valley, opposite the old city of Jerusalem. According to some Eastern churches, the place marks the burial of Mary, mother of Jesus, and later her Assumption. The tomb is in a cruciform-shaped crypt at the bottom of the Kidron valley, next to the Grotto of Gethsemane and the Garden of Gethsemane. The Crusader-era Queen Melisenda ordered its construction some 800 years ago. Melisenda and her mother, Morphia, are also buried in the crypt, though the Eastern church attributes these tombs to Anna and Joachim, parents of Mary. They also argue Joseph, Jesus’s foster father, is buried here.

Where and How Did Mary End Her Earthly Life?

While the Gospels record the death (and resurrection) of Jesus in detail, the ending of the earthly life of Jesus’ mother is not documented anywhere in the New Testament. In 1950, Pope Pius XII declared that “having completed the course of her earthly life, [Mary] was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.” Her rise to the heavens, “the Assumption,” is an official dogma in the Roman Catholic Church. However, the dogma does not clarify whether Mary physically died or not. A popular Catholic belief argues Mary never died but fell asleep. The Dormition Abbey on Mount Zion commemorates this event. In its crypt, a wooden sculpture presents the sleeping Mary. The Eastern / Orthodox Churches believe Mary did die, but without suffering, in a state of spiritual peace. Being so, she was buried, in a cave near the Garden of Gethsemane.

Perhaps Mary Ended Her Earthly Life in Ephesus?

There is another third tradition, claiming Mary moved to Ephesus (in modern Turkey), so her Assumption occurred there. To this day, a chapel near Ephesus marks the supposed place of this event. This site and its association with Mary was never officially accepted or rejected by any churches, yet it is a popular Christian pilgrimage destination.