Gorny Monastery

Gorny Monastery is a Russian Orthodox Monastery which was built in Ein Kerem in 1871 as a part of Russia’s attempt to establish its hold in the Holy Land. For this reason it was also named "Moskovia" after the city of Moscow. The Gorny Monastery spreads over hundreds of dunams and includes three churches – two small and one big. The large church, the Church of the Holy Trinity, has domes and golden crosses by which this place is recognized. The initiative for the founding of this church was that of Elizabeth Feodorovna, the wife of the Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia who was responsible for the Russian pilgrimage in Jerusalem. The construction of the church started in the beginning of the 20th century but has stopped after the murder of Feodorovna by Bolsheviks and it was completed only in 2004. The entrance to the church is allowed only to pilgrims. At the Gorny Monastery live 48 Russian nuns and 2 priests who run the prayer services. The complex, with its well-kept gardens and stone houses, includes the living quarters of the nuns, an inn for pilgrims and a cemetery. One can usually visit the Gorny Monastery during prayer times except on Sundays. The entrance to the Gorny Monastery is through the Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital.