Location Bethlehem Denomination Roman Catholic Church | Country West bank | |
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Similar Chapel of the Milk Grotto, Chapel of the Shepherd, Mosque of Omar, Church of the Nativity, Mount of Temptation | ||
The Church of St. Catherine or simply Chapel of St. Catherine (Latin: Ecclesia Sanctae Catharinae) is a religious building that is affiliated with the Catholic Church and is located in the northern part adjacent to the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem in the West Bank in the Palestinian territories. It works as a parish church in Bethlehem and Franciscan monastery. There is a complex of caves underneath the temple.
Is included in the Patriarchal See of Jerusalem, follows the Roman or Latin rite and is included in the World Heritage List of UNESCO since 2012 as the birthplace of Jesus: Church of the Nativity and the Pilgrimage Route in Bethlehem.
It was dedicated in 1347 to St. Catherine of Alexandria. It was built in a more modern Gothic style, and has since been modernized several times according to the approved liturgical trends after the Second Vatican Council (Concilium Vaticanum Secundum Oecumenicum). This is the church where the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem celebrates Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve.
It was extended in 1881 with funds provided by the emperor of Austria-Hungary.