St James Cathedral, the jewel of the Jerusalem Patriarchate of the Armenian Apostolic Church, is located just outside the main entrance to the Armenian Quarter. The temple, considered one of the most magnificent in the Middle East, a tourist can visit only during the service, and even then not always. But those who are lucky will be impressed by the unusual beauty of the cathedral.
Strictly speaking, the temple is dedicated not to one Saint James, but to two - the "elder" and the "younger". The elder is called the Apostle James of Zebedee, the older brother of the Evangelist John. Both brothers, nicknamed "sons of thunder" (probably because of their hot temper), are from the first disciples of Christ. James was present at the Transfiguration of Jesus, along with Peter and John; he was the first of the twelve apostles to be martyred for his faith - he was beheaded with a sword by King Herod Agrippa I. James the younger, "brother of the Lord" (most likely a cousin of Jesus), was the first bishop of Jerusalem, who was stoned to death by the Jews.
Armenian tradition holds that the Apostle James was beheaded on the spot where the cathedral now stands, and that his head is buried under the north wall of the temple, and the body of the younger James under the altar.
The cathedral is 350 square metres in area and 18 metres high and was built in the 12th century, and finished mainly in the 18th century. Even the outer courtyard attracts attention - its walls are decorated with traditional Armenian works of art, khachkars (crosses carved in stone). The oldest of them dates back to the 12th century.
In the inner courtyard, behind an openwork grate, there are paintings depicting the Last Judgement, the two St. Jameses, as well as St. Thaddeus and St. Bartholomew, the patrons of the Armenian Apostolic Church. On the sides of the main entrance are altars in the wall. They were used when Saladin and then the Turks captured Jerusalem (the temple was closed at that time). Near the entrance hangs a long wooden board. It is a gong on which the deacons used to beat with wooden hammers to summon the congregation when the Muslims banned bell ringing. The tradition is still maintained to this day.
The interior of the cathedral is striking. From the height of the vaulted dome, many lamps and ceramic Easter eggs hang from chains. There is no electricity in the temple, only lamps, candles and dome windows illuminate the space typical of Armenian church architecture: three naves divided by four rectangular columns. Remarkable are the altars (the main one is carved from precious wood and covered with gilded filigree), the mother-of-pearl-encrusted throne of Saint James the Younger, and the blue tiles covering the columns and walls two metres from the floor.
During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, residents of the Armenian Quarter used the cathedral as a bomb shelter. They tell of a night when more than a thousand shells fell around, but no one was hurt - the metre-thick walls protected reliably. However, not everyone and not always managed to take shelter. A memorial plaque at the entrance points to the resting place of the 94th Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem, Gureg Israelyan - his heart failed in 1949, too often he held his fallen compatriots in his arms.
