St Nicolas is the patron saint of Beit Jala, and as a result Saint Nicolas Church is one of the most important in the city. Underneath the church is a cave in which St. Nicolas is believed to have lived in during the 5th century AD in order to worship close to the site of Jesus’ birth. The cave currently houses an icon of St. Nicolas and an eternal flame that remains lit in honor of him. An ancient monastery was built on the site as early as 200 AD, and was destroyed and rebuilt many times. The last monastery was built during the Ottoman period by Karj monks from Russia. In 1921 the old church building was torn down and the current building erected by the local populace, finished in 1925. The church shows off much of the work of Beit Jala’s famous stone masons, including a magnificent Iconostas, considered a masterpiece of stone iconography.
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