Sabastiya, a site in the Holy Land from past to present

Sabastiya is a city founded by Herod the Great in honor of Emperor Augustus in ancient Samaria, in the Holy Land. Still visible atop the ancient acropolis today are the remains of the old Roman city, which were partially excavated over the last century in the Holy Land.

This includes the forum, the basilica, the theater, the temple to Augustus, a colonnaded street and parts of Sabastiya’s ancient walls. A church was built during the Byzantine period on top of the Roman necropolis, outside the walls on the eastern side, where today stands a Mosque, in memory of the body of Saint John the Baptist. Several Christian sources dating back to the Fourth century AD, site the latter’s final resting place in Sabastiya, in the Holy Land. The current building was constructed by the Crusaders during the second half of the 12th century and was the second biggest church after the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, other Holy Place in the Holy Land.

Sebaste, from past to present

The Project “Sabastiya, a site in the Holy Land from past to present”

ATS involvement in Sabastiya in the Holy Land, in collaboration with the local Municipality and the Mosaic Center of Jericho, was strongly encouraged by Father Michele Piccirillo, a Franciscan of the Custody of the Holy Land. The latter was an  archeologist at the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum, and put great efforts in developing this project, before his recent unfortunate passing. ATS intends to persevere in his commitment to preserve this Holy Place in the Holy Land. It also seeks to sustain the local economy and education of Sabastiya’s inhabitants through the raising of local sensibilities towards these Holy Place and its preservation. Through hiring local labor we will continue securing the buildings of Sebastia and renovating them in order to clean the center of this Holy Place from rubbish and rubble. Only after doing so will the local community of Sabastiya be able to live there, and Christian pilgrims be able to come and enjoy the Holy Place and the Holy Land as in the past.

Future Activities

- Research and document the given conditions of preservation of the Holy Place of Sabastiya;
- Clear-out ancient ruins in Sabastiya from rubble and drifts;
- Consolidate and renovate the old core of the village of Sabastiya, a Holy Place;
- Professional training of the local population in Sabastiya aimed at increasing its awareness and care of artistic and cultural heritage in the Holy Place and generally in the Holy Land;
- Preserve, optimize and promote the Holy Place of Sabastiya in the Holy Land and the guest rooms allocated to host small groups of tourists visiting the Holy Land.

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http://www.proterrasancta.org/en/help/

New stage for Sabastiya’s exhibition: the Biblical Festival of Vicenza (May 2012)

Stories and impressions from the Sabastiya students (April 2012)

A special visit to the Sabastiya project (April 2012)

Sabastiya: the youth of the village taking Italian lessons (March 2012)

Sabastiya: the new guest house at the top of the listings of TripAdvisor (February 2012)

The past and the future meet in Sabastiya: the archaeological restoration works carried on by young people from the village (February 2012)

Mosaics, cultural heritage and youth participation in Sabastiya (January 2012)

The works continue in Sabastiya: enlargement of the guest house and creation of a new conference hall (January 2012)

Presentation of the Massolini Calendar, dedicated this year to Samaria (December 2011)

A group of pilgrimage guides visit Sabastiya, its historical beauty and a heritage-preservation project (November 2011)

The Sebastia exhibition in Florence: “Sebastia, the fruits of history and the memory of John the Baptist” (October 2011)

Exhibitions of the Holy Land hosted in Italy: seeking new exposition areas (September 2011)

Archaeology in the Holy Land: a book dedicated to Father Michele Piccirillo (September 2011)

Pilgrimage to Sebastia (June 2011)

Sebastia in the news: how the ATS pro Terra Sancta project is slowly bringing tourists and pilgrims back to the town of John the Baptist (May 2011)

Opening today of the exhibition “Mosaic Heritage of Palestine”, in the main campus of the Al-Quds University of Jerusalem (May 2011)

Great success for the Sebastia conference organized by ATS pro Terra Sancta and held in Palestine (May 2011)

The exclusive catalogue of the exhibition on Sebastia is online (April 2011)

The Sebastia Conference at Birzeit University (April 2011)

Sebastia: an exhibition on the city of John the Baptist at the Catholic University of Milan (February 2011)

Support the Holy Land and the Christian population living in the Holy Places!

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ONLINE on www.proterrasancta.org/en/help/

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ATS – Associazione di Terra Santa
Banca Popolare Etica IBAN: IT67 W050 18121010 0000 0122691 – BIC CODE: CCRTIT2T84A