All Nations in Agony at Gethsemane

Nir Topper
7 days ago
3 min read

The "Church of All Nations" (Italian: Chiesa di tutte le Nazioni), also known as the Church of Gethsemane or the Church of the Agony (Chiesa dell’Agonia), was built between 1919 and 1924. It was designed by the Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi, who planned many churches in the Land of Israel during the first half of the 20th century. It received its name from the donations that arrived from Catholic communities in numerous countries, and the symbols of twelve donor nations are incorporated into the ceiling domes. The current church is the third to be built on this site: it was preceded by a 4th-century Byzantine basilica, upon which a 12th-century Crusader church was built, which was later abandoned and destroyed in the 14th century.

Most scholars believe that the name "Gethsemane" means "oil press," given to the site due to the olive oil production that took place at the foot of the mount in antiquity. This interpretation has even received archaeological backing: in the Grotto of Gethsemane, before it was converted into a chapel, remains were uncovered that were interpreted as a Second Temple period olive oil production installation. Alongside this prevailing interpretation, there is an alternative, primarily philological explanation, suggesting the name originates from the phrase "Ged Shmani" meaning "slope"—an allusion to the slopes of the Mount of Olives or the bank of the Kidron Valley. This interpretation is supported by the ancient Aramaic-Syriac form of the name, "Ged-Siman."

The site, nestled at the foot of the Mount of Olives, has become etched in global historical and cultural memory due to its crucial importance in Christian tradition. According to the New Testament, this is the garden where Jesus Christ stayed and prayed with his disciples on the night before his arrest. "And they [Jesus Christ and his disciples] came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he [Jesus Christ] saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray" (Gospel of Mark, 14).

At the focal point of the church, which is adjacent to the garden, lies the "Rock of Agony," upon which, according to Christian tradition, Jesus Christ prayed on the night before his arrest: "And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch. And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him" (Gospel of Mark, 14). The interior design was intended to recreate the atmosphere of that night: purplish alabaster windows dim the light and cast a perpetual twilight over the space.

In the garden at the foot of the church stand eight ancient olive trees that have become the definitive symbol of the site. Christian faith wishes to see in these trees a continuation of the olive trees from the time of Jesus Christ, and tests conducted on behalf of the National Research Council of Italy even dated some of the trees that can still be dated to the 12th century, meaning they are approximately 900 years old. DNA tests showed that all eight trees share an identical genetic profile—evidence that they were propagated from cuttings of a common mother tree, most likely as part of the garden's restoration during the Crusader period. Therefore, the trees seen today are not the ones that stood there during the Second Temple period. However, olive trees are capable of regenerating from their roots even after their trunk has been cut down or has died, and the root system may be much older—but there is no way to date it without harming the trees.