Church of Saint Porphyrius
Encyclopedia
The Church of Saint Porphyrius (or St. Porphyrius Church) is the Orthodox Christian church of Gaza
, and the oldest active church in the city. Located in the Zaytun Quarter of the Old City, it is named after the 5th century bishop of Gaza, Saint Porphyrius
, whose tomb is situated in the northeastern corner of the church.
s in the 1150s or 1160s and they dedicated it St. Porphyrius. Records from the 15th century show that dedication of the church was also attested to the Virgin Mary. In 1856, it was renovated. There are some cornices and bases that date back to the Crusader period, but much of the other portions are later additions.
's remarks citing a Byzantine
scholar's critical position on Islam. It may be the church was targeted for the reason of the Byzantine link, or just being a convenient Christian shrine, even though there is no connection between the church and the Vatican
.
The church consists of a single aisle made up of two groin-vaulted bays, with a projecting semi-circular apse
preceded by a barrel-vaulted presbytery. Internally, the building measures 22.9 metres (75.1 ft) by 8.9 metres (29.2 ft), including the apse. It has architectural and constructional similarities with the former Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist (currently the Great Mosque of Gaza
).
There are three entrances for the church: the western one has a portico
with three marble
columns supporting two pointed arches. The bases of the marbles date from the Crusader era. The church can also be entered from its façade
or from a side door which opens onto a modern gallery, equipped with stairs for going down to the level of the pavement. Its colossal walls are supported by horizontal marble and granite
columns and pilaster
s.
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
, and the oldest active church in the city. Located in the Zaytun Quarter of the Old City, it is named after the 5th century bishop of Gaza, Saint Porphyrius
Porphyry of Gaza
Saint Porphyry , Bishop of Gaza 395–420, known from the account in his Life for Christianizing the recalcitrant pagan city of Gaza, and demolishing its temples.Porphyry of Gaza is known to us only from the vivid biography by Mark the Deacon...
, whose tomb is situated in the northeastern corner of the church.
History
Original construction of the Church of Saint Porphyrius dates back to the beginning of the 5th century, however the modern construction was undertaken by the CrusaderCrusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
s in the 1150s or 1160s and they dedicated it St. Porphyrius. Records from the 15th century show that dedication of the church was also attested to the Virgin Mary. In 1856, it was renovated. There are some cornices and bases that date back to the Crusader period, but much of the other portions are later additions.
Israeli attacks
Gaza's Christian community and church suffered from the Israeli occupation and the continues Israeli attacks on Gaza, as Dr. Elias AKleh says: "Israeli government had confiscated land belonging to Christian church. The Israeli army had bombed Christian churches including the Nativity church in Bethlehem, a Sumerian church in Nablus, and an Orthodox church in Gaza.". Moreover, the Gaza Christian community were denied by Israel the right to visit Bethlehem and Jerusalem to celebrate Christmas and Easter.2006 attack
The church was one of the targets of attacks in the Palestinian Territories in the wake of Pope Benedict XVIPope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
's remarks citing a Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
scholar's critical position on Islam. It may be the church was targeted for the reason of the Byzantine link, or just being a convenient Christian shrine, even though there is no connection between the church and the Vatican
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
.
Architecture
The Church of Saint Porphyrius has a rectangular shape, ending with a half-domed roofed temple. Its pavement 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) below ground level in its southern part, and 3 metres (9.8 ft) below ground level at the northern end, suggesting that the present building was built atop of an earlier church structure.The church consists of a single aisle made up of two groin-vaulted bays, with a projecting semi-circular apse
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
preceded by a barrel-vaulted presbytery. Internally, the building measures 22.9 metres (75.1 ft) by 8.9 metres (29.2 ft), including the apse. It has architectural and constructional similarities with the former Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist (currently the Great Mosque of Gaza
Great Mosque of Gaza
The Great Mosque of Gaza also known as the Great Omari Mosque is the largest and oldest mosque in the Gaza Strip, located in Gaza's old city....
).
There are three entrances for the church: the western one has a portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
with three marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
columns supporting two pointed arches. The bases of the marbles date from the Crusader era. The church can also be entered from its façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
or from a side door which opens onto a modern gallery, equipped with stairs for going down to the level of the pavement. Its colossal walls are supported by horizontal marble and granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
columns and pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s.