- Bethlehem of Galilee
Infobox_Kibbutz
name = Bethlehem of Galilee
pushpin_
pushpin_mapsize=
latd=32 |latm=34 |lats=8.52 |latNS=N
longd=35 |longm=11 |longs=26.16 |longEW=E
caption= Templer communal building in Bethlehem of Galilee.
imgsize= 250
hebname=Hebrew|בית לחם הגלילית
foundation = 1906 (as a Templer colony)
1948 (as a moshav)
founded_by =
region =Galilee
council = Jezreel Valley
district=north
industry = Agriculture, tourism
affiliation =Moshavim Movement
website =Bethlehem of Galilee ( _he. בֵּית לֶחֶם הַגְּלִילִית, "Beit Lehem HaGlilit") is a semi-cooperative
moshav in northernIsrael . Located in theGalilee nearKiryat Tivon , around 10 kilometres north-west ofNazareth and 30 kilometres east ofHaifa , it falls under the jurisdiction ofJezreel Valley Regional Council . In 2006, it had a population of 651.A former Templer colony, it is mentioned in the Book of
Joshua (19:15) as the city of theTribe of Zevulun .History
Early history
To distinguish the town from the city of
Bethlehem nearJerusalem , it was originally known as Bethlehem of Zevulun, whilst the town near Jerusalem was called "Bethlehem of Judea."The hometown of the judge
Ibzan , Bethlehem of Galilee was inhabited byJew s until some time after the destruction of theSecond Temple in 70 CE. In theJerusalem Talmud it is referred to as "Beth Lehem Zoria", as it was part of the kingdom of Tyre at the time. During theCrusade s, it was a smallChristian town, later abandoned.Due to its proximity to Nazareth, some historians believe that this is the Bethelehem where
Jesus was born. Aviram Oshri, a senior archaeologist with the Israeli Antiquities Authority, supports this claim. Until the late 19th century, ruins of a church and asynagogue could be seen there, and archeological findings show it was a prosperous city. Some scholars regard Bethlehem of Galilee as one of the birthplaces of Rabbinical Judaism.Fact|date=February 2008Templer colony
In 1906 Templers from the German Colony in
Haifa established a colony in the Galilee, [http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=789914&contrassID=2&subContrassID=20 Yet to be discovered: The Jezreel Valley] Haaretz] naming it for the ancient city. In 1939 the Templers were deported toAustralia by the British authorities on account of their Nazi sympathies - they openly supported theThird Reich and ran a Naziyouth movement .Moshav
On
17 April 1948 , theHaganah captured the village and it was resettled by Jewish farmers. Much of the original Templer architecture survives, and is similar in style to the homes built by the Templers in other parts of the country, such as Sarona inTel Aviv , and the German colonies ofHaifa andJerusalem .In recent years, tourism has replaced agriculture as the main economic branch. A dairy, a herb farm, restaurants and country-style accommodation are among the tourist-oriented businesses in the village today.
References
External links
* [http://www.Bethlehem-of-Galilee.org The Archaeological Research of Bethlehem of Galilee]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.