By Silvia Holgado

But where did all this happen? What was “the neighborhood” like where the Holy Spirit first came? Actually, it is a difficult question to answer in our day. However, the Holy Scriptures, Historiography and Archaeology give us good clues. Today the area of the Cenacle is called the Christian “Mount Zion”.

Beginning with the Scriptures, the Synoptic Gospels narrate a peculiarity that undoubtedly led the apostles to request a house in this area for the celebration of the Last Supper: “A man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him.” This is described in Mk 14 and Lk 22 and a similar narrative in Mt 26. It must have been very curious that a man carried a pitcher of water so that Jesus would give it as a sign and be easily recognizable. What kind of men did tasks assigned to women and children? 

The ancient historian Flavius Josephus offers us a name when describing this walled area of Jerusalem (“The Jewish War” Book V:142):

“The oldest of the three walls was impregnable due to the eaves and the height on which it was built; In addition to the advantage of its natural location, it had been solidly built. […] Starting north from the tower called Hippicus, it extended to the Xisto (meaning open colonnade), then reached the council house and ended at the western portico of the temple. On the other hand, starting from the same point and facing west, the wall crossed the place called Betsus to the Gate of the Essenes, then extended southwards until it surrounded the spring of Siloam […]”.

Archaeological finds from this neighborhood include cisterns, ritual baths, towers, moats, and remains of terracotta pipes from an ancient aqueduct. We can get the idea of a neighborhood inhabited in ancient times and very organized. However, the most interesting thing is the site in the area of the “Gate of the Essenes” excavated for the first time at the beginning of the twentieth century. The gate is currently located inside the Protestant cemetery, and it is possible to access it. The pottery found between the pavement slabs (on the lower threshold, the oldest) is from the Herodian period, so it cannot be dated beyond 70 AD. The gate and walls were razed after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.

But then, was it a neighborhood where members of the Essene sect lived? The answer is not entirely conclusive, but there are many scholars who believe that there was no Essene neighborhood, a neighborhood of its own, within the walls of Jerusalem. The community would be settled in Qumran, and would access the city through that gate, which is the one that leads, geographically, to its settlement on the slopes of the Dead Sea. Their influence in Jerusalem would rather be testimonial through their practices and the presence of their members.

What is undeniable is that Christian tradition has located the first house of Christians in Jerusalem here. Here the Last Supper, the apparitions of the Risen Christ, and the coming of the Holy Spirit are remembered. All of these places would be identified with the Upper Room. The Christians lived here and transformed it into the Church. 

The pilgrim Egeria (384 A.D.) bears witness by speaking of various liturgies celebrated on Mount Zion: therefore, the church must have already existed. He states that liturgies were celebrated on Mount Zion commemorating Albis Sunday (second Easter Sunday) and Pentecost.

After 2000 years, we continue to celebrate the liturgy of Second Vespers here on Pentecost Sunday, commemorating the fulfillment of the promise: “You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit, who will come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)