piacenti-spa-Basilica-of-the-Nativity-in-Bethlehem-restoration-smithsonianmag

Smithsonianmag – Endangered Site: Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem

By Abigail Tucker. Feuding monks at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem don’t just cast the first stone—they stockpile rocks in anticipation of future altercations. Several holy men landed in the hospital two Christmases ago after a fight broke out over the dusting of church chandeliers. The occasional brawls at the 1,700-year-old basilica, believed …