JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - NOVEMBER  19, 2016 Cenacle Last Supper Room Crusader Building Jerusalem Israel.  Church later became Muslim Mosque.  Also located above the Tomb of King David.; Shutterstock ID 646754140; Your name (First / Last): Lauren Keith; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Israel Update 2017

Shutterstock / Bill Perry

Room of the Last Supper

Jerusalem


Medieval beliefs about the location of the Last Supper have embedded the Coenaculum (Latin for dining hall) in Christian tradition. Most historians agree that this hall is unlikely to be built on the spot where Jesus ate his final meal. Nonetheless, this elegantly rib-vaulted chamber (formerly part of the 4th-century Holy Zion church) usually teems with pilgrims. Retaining the 14th-century Crusader structure that replaced the original church, it was converted to a mosque during the Ottoman period.

The building features stained glass and a 16th-century mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca), forming an intriguing contrast against its Gothic-style Christian framework.

A more widely accepted belief about this site is that it was where Jesus's disciples received the Holy Spirit on the Pentecost and gained the ability to speak foreign languages (Acts 2), enabling them to spread Christianity.

The room is above King David's Tomb, reached by a staircase nearby.


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