Mount of moses. Egypt, South Sinai Governorate

Mount of moses

Egypt, South Sinai Governorate

Mountains

Mount Moses is located in Egypt, on the Sinai Peninsula, 130 km from the city of Sharm El Sheikh. Jewish tradition has not preserved the exact location of the mountain. Christians worship the present mountain of Moses as the biblical Mount Sinai only from the beginning of the 4th century. In 330, the monks built a small church at the very foot of the mountain, and in 527, the holy emperor Justinian the Great founded a monastery here, which from the 11th century began to be called the monastery of St. Catherine. According to the Bible, on this mountain God appeared to Moses and gave him the ten commandments. At the top of Mount Moses there is a cave in which, according to the Bible, Moses took refuge for 40 days and nights. The frescoes on the walls of the chapel of the Church of the Holy Trinity reflect the life of the prophet Moses. On the walls there is also a mosaic of the 4th century: the Virgin Mary with little Jesus in her arms and the prophets Moses and Elijah. According to legend, those who ascended the Sinai and met the dawn here, God forgives all sins, regardless of which person of faith and what language he speaks. Since ancient times, Christians have made pilgrimages to Mount Sinai. Two paths go to the top of the mountain from St. Catherine’s Monastery: short and long. They connect near the top. The short path is much steeper and more difficult. This is a traditional monastic and pilgrimage route. It has approximately 3,750 steps of the “Ladder of Penance”. At various sections of the path they are laid out of boulders or carved into the rock. You can walk on it only on foot in the daytime. The long “Camel Trail”, about 8 kilometers long, rounds the mountain several times. It is more gentle and allows you to drive almost to the top on a camel. To the top, where the observation platform and the remains of the Holy Trinity Chapel are located, you need to overcome another 800 steps. During the ascent, which begins at about 2 a.m., the landscape around changes every minute. First - a bottomless dark or blue sky with huge bright stars. With the approach of dawn, a bright game of gold colors of various shades begins over the mountains. And when the dawn finally gathers its strength, at the very top it will become clear that this is not an easy journey. The huge sun, rising above the mountains, illuminates the nearby rocks. Then it slowly sinks to the sea, flooding the bay with its light.