Jesus Christ, son of Joseph and Mary, Son of God was always destined by prophesy thousands of years before His birth that He would die on the cross. The place that His crucifixion occurred was Golgotha, a Hebrew word meaning Place of the Skull and in Latin the location is entitled Calvary. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is home to the exact location that is reported to be the place in which Jesus gave His life, fulfilling the prophecy of old.
Initial historical evidence dictates that followers of Christ prayed at this site within forty years of His death. Hadrian would build a temple to Aphrodite over the site, which would later be destroyed in the Crusades. Crusaders rebuilt on the site the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the 12th century. Different divisions of the faithful have arguments as to what belongs to what faction, which is one of the reasons why the prayer times may vary in the Church, as it is dependant upon whom is running the service at the time. Since the Church has such a varied past, the architecture within is a mixture of Byzantine, medieval and 12th century remnants from the Crusaders. For instance, before the mid 19th century Muslims would only allow the Church on Golgotha to be opened on holidays and the monks within were sequestered there until such time. There is still a ladder leading up to the window where they received their food and supplies. It is not permitted to remove this ladder because of the significance it withholds.
Golgotha itself is protected by the presence of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Within its walls, in a glass encasement is held the very spot on which the Cross of Christ was raised. It is here that Christians believe Jesus, the Son of God, gave up His life to save mankind from sin. Golgotha is also known as Mount Calvary that comes from the Latin Calvariae Locus and Kraniou Topos that is the Greek term for the location. An altar rests at the place of the Crucifixion so that those who wish can come in adoration.
Mentions of Golgotha became famous with Jesus Christ. This hill, or simply "place" as the Gospels describe it, was the hill on which crucifixions of criminals took place; Crucifixion was a Roman form of torturous death. Since it was decided upon that Jesus was a criminal, he also hung here on a cross. It would have been in large view of passersby so that those coming and going from Jerusalem would see the criminals perish. It was used as a deterrent to stop crime. Helena, mother of Constantine whom would declare on his deathbed Rome to be a Holy Empire, is responsible for the identification and discovery of Golgotha in 325 AD. Since the location of this hill was outside the city walls of Jerusalem in the time of Jesus, it is now well agreed upon that this is indeed the location of Calvary.
Within the Church of the Holy Sepulcher are three of the last four Stations of the Cross. These would cover the stripping of Jesus' garments, the nailing to the cross, Jesus dying on the cross and being taken down. You will also find the Tomb of Jesus, Chapel of St. Helena, where she found the true cross and Deir Al-Sultan a village of Ethiopian Coptic monks on the roof of the chapel and Chapel of Adam. Be sure when you visit to have a guide and/or map with you so you do not miss any of the rich history of the secular and faith filled worlds contained upon Golgotha.
Source: http://www.ArticlePros.com/author.php?Myriam Miller
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