• ESPAÑOL: Un estudio sugiere que hubo una iglesia en el Monte del Templo, por encima de la Mezquita de al-Aqsa y la Cúpula de la Roca

According to a study by the Temple Mount Sifting Project (TMSP), unusual finds on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem suggest that a Byzantine church once stood on that sacred ground, the Daily Caller reports.

In a news release, TMSP announced that it had recently discovered what it describes as two “very rare four keration denomination” coin weights on the Temple Mount.

One is purple and made of glass and was stamped with an imperial seal, indicating it was created in Constantinople, the original capital of the Byzantine Empire. It’s believed that it arrived at Temple Mount sometime before the Muslims were on the site.

The second weight is made of brass and has the Greek Kappa Delta mark on it. This is the 12th Byzantine coin that TMSP researchers have found on the Temple Mount.

These coins along with the discovery of some exquisite Byzantine flooring tile on the Temple Mount lead some to believe that a Byzantine church once stood on what is referred to as Mount Zion.

“[We] found a lot of fancy floor tiling from the Byzantine period, which was only used on monumental buildings. We also found pieces of chancel screens, which is an element of early church architecture, and lots of Byzantine-era mosaic stones, meaning that someone had invested a lot in flooring,” said study co-author Haim Shaham in an interview with the Times of Israel.

While Muslims currently claim sole ownership of the Temple Mount as their religious site, in fact, they are recent newbies to the area. Islam as a religion only showed up after the arrival of its prophet Muhamad, who lived between 570 CE (AD) and 632 CE (AD).

History shows that long before the Muslims arrived, the Temple Mount was home to two Jewish temples, for which it was named, and possibly now a Byzantine Church.

There is a move among Orthodox Jews to build a third temple on the Temple Mount, and extensive arrangements including the construction of utensils and training of priests are underway.

At this point, the Israeli government has given the Muslims complete control of Judaism’s most holy site, so this effectively would prevent this from happening.

But that could change, as the Likud Party, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is dependent on the support of several Orthodox Jewish political parties to maintain its control of the Israeli government.

Though Muslim buildings probably sit over the original sites of the Jewish temples, there is ample room for the construction of a third temple on the Temple Mount.

However, Muslims vehemently oppose this and there is even indication that Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, was in part sparked by a desire to stop the construction of a third Jewish temple.

History of the Temple Mount

BUILDING	CONSTRUCTED	DESTROYED
First Jewish Temple	Constructed by King Solomon in 957 BCE (BC) in the fourth year of his reign.	Destroyed by King Nebuchadnezzar in the sacking of Jerusalem in 587 BCE (BC).
Second Jewish Temple	Constructed by Ezra in 516 BCE (BC) and renovated by Herod in the 1st century BCE. Some have suggested that Herod’s renovation was so extensive, it could be called a third temple.	Destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE (AD) during the Jewish revolt. The Romans hauled away all the rock associated with the temple, leaving the site completely barren and the original location of the temple unknown.
Roman pagan temple	A pagan temple dedicated to the Roman god Jupiter or Venus was constructed on the Temple Mount in 135 CE (AD) by the Roman Emperor Hadrian after the Jewish Bar Kokhba Revolt.	Unknown
Attempt to build Third Jewish Temple	Permission was granted by Roman Emperor Julian (361 CE to 363 CE) to build a third Jewish temple on the Temple Mount. The project was abandoned after reports of workers being injured by balls of fire that suddenly appeared at the construction site.
Byzantine Church	The Byzantine Empire controlled Jerusalem between the 4th and 6th centuries, so it is possible a church was built on the Temple Mount during this period.	Was destroyed or fell into disrepair sometime after the 6th century.
Muslim Dome of the Rock	Constructed in 693 CE (AD) on what many believe was the site of the second Jewish Temple, though this is contested. It is considered Islam’s third most holy site. Coincidentally, its construction is similar in design to a Byzantine Church built on the road between Jerusalem and Bethlehem in 458 BC (AD). However, it could have as easily been patterned off a Byzantine Church that was originally located on the Temple Mount.	The Dome collapsed in 1015 CE (AD) and was rebuilt in 1024 CE. The gold plating on the dome for which it is famous was added in 1959-61 and 1993.
Al-Aqsa Mosque	Finished construction in 705 CE (AD). Some believe the Mosque sits on the site of the original Jewish temples.	Destroyed during an earthquake in 746 CE (AD) and rebuilt in 758 CE. Destroyed by an earthquake in 1033 and rebuilt in 1035.