Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Seidnayya was one of the episcopal cities of the ancient Patriarchate of Antioch. Associated
with many biblical and religious events, local tradition describes it as the site where Cain
slew his brother Abel.
I was surprised to hear that this town is second only to Jerusalem as a centre of Christian
pilgrimage. Apparently pilgrims from all over the world seek Seidnayya for renewal of
faith and healing. Renowned for its faithfulness to Christianity, tradition holds that the Con-
vent of Our Lady of Seidnayya was constructed by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I in
547 AD, after he had two visions of Mary. One vision indicated where to build the church
and the other outlined its design. Justinian dedicated the finished project to the feast of
Mary's Nativity.
Annually thereafter on September 8, and through to the present day, both Muslim and
Christian pilgrims come to commemorate the feast day. There were numerous icons in the
church and it is claimed that one of the Holy Mother and Child, known as the Shaghurah,
was painted by Luke the Evangelist. It is also claimed that it will protect its owners from
harm in times of danger.
In the inner chapel there were several women going through a ritual of prayers. I had the
impression that they were Muslim, although none were wearing a headscarf.
There were groups of Muslim women within the convent. One in particular was a group of
three women with children. One of the women was dressed all in white and gold trimming.
She would have been in her early to mid 20's and looked absolutely magnificent. Her com-
panions, slightly older were dressed in black. I wasn't sure about the significance of it all
but they were very keen for me to take their photo as a group. I suspect that the one in white
may have been a 'bride-tobe' and she was there for a form of blessing.
The presence of many Muslims in Christian shrines and sites is a simple demonstration of
the fact that there are many common saints between the two religions and that Muslims
will seek a blessing of one kind or another from those saints just as Christian pilgrims do.
William Dalrymple visited these Christian towns and noted the presence of both Christians
and Muslims praying together in the various churches. When he asked about this, the re-
sponse given to him was:
“We are all children of God. The All Holy One brings us all together.”
Coming back into Damascus, Mohammed agreed to take some of us to the Commonwealth
War Cemetery. It was a real exercise to get there, tucked away as it was down a side road
