The Mount of Olives is a hill east of Jerusalem, separated from the ancient city by the Kidron Valley. From its summit the whole Temple Mount can be seen, and for that reason the place appears in decisive moments of biblical history.
In the Old Testament, David climbed this mountain weeping, fleeing from his own son Absalom. Later the prophet Zechariah announced that there, on the day of the Lord, his feet would stand, splitting the mountain in two.
In the New Testament, the mountain marks the last week of Jesus in Jerusalem. It was from there that he came down riding on a young donkey, acclaimed by the crowd.
Seated on that slope, Jesus taught the disciples about the end of the age. On the night of his arrest, he withdrew there, as usual, and prayed in anguish before the cross.
After the resurrection, it was from there that Jesus rose to heaven before the apostles, with the promise that he would return in the same way. The place thus unites humiliation and glory: the way of the cross and the certainty of Christ’s return.
