Dormition Abbey (Mount Zion)
On Mount Zion, commemorating the 'falling asleep' (Dormition) of the Virgin Mary.
Blessed Virgin Mary → Plan a trip hereThe Story
Dormition Abbey rises on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, just outside the Zion Gate of the Old City, at the place where Christian tradition commemorates the Dormition — the 'falling asleep' — of the Virgin Mary at the end of her earthly life. The Benedictine abbey church, with its round nave, conical roof and tall bell tower, is one of the most recognizable landmarks on the Jerusalem skyline, standing a short distance from the traditional site of the Last Supper. Mount Zion was venerated from the early centuries of the Church. A great Byzantine basilica called Hagia Sion stood here by the fifth century and was counted among the mother churches of Christendom before its destruction. Among the traditions attached to the hill, Christians honored it as the place where Mary lived her final days in the company of the apostles and was taken from this world. The present church has a modern history. In 1898 the German Emperor Wilhelm II acquired the plot and entrusted it to German Catholics; the church and monastery were built in the following decade and the church was consecrated in 1910. Since then a community of Benedictine monks has kept the round of prayer on Mount Zion, welcoming pilgrims from around the world. At the heart of the church's crypt lies a serene sculpture of Mary asleep in death, surrounded by mosaics. The image expresses what the Church believes about the Mother of God: that at the completion of her earthly course she was assumed, body and soul, into heavenly glory — the mystery defined as dogma by Pope Pius XII in 1950 and celebrated each year on August 15, the Solemnity of the Assumption. Today the abbey is a place of quiet prayer amid the intensity of Jerusalem, a station on nearly every Holy Land pilgrimage, and a reminder that the destiny Mary already enjoys is the hope held out to all who belong to Christ.
Church Recognition
The Basilica of the Dormition and its monastery are in the care of Benedictine monks; the mystery commemorated here is bound to the dogma of the Assumption of Mary, defined by Pope Pius XII in 1950.
Catholic Teaching
Recalls the Church's faith that Mary, at the end of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory (CCC 966) — a pledge of the resurrection promised to all believers.
Plan Your Visit
Practical
Additional Information
The Benedictine abbey sits beside the traditional site of the Last Supper.
Go Deeper
The abbey's official website is https://dormitio.net; see Pope Pius XII's apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus (1950) and CCC 966 on the Assumption of Mary.
Location
Visit the official website ↗ See it on the interactive map →Pilgrim Photos
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In the Area
Other sacred sites within 40 miles.