Hidden hermit-like on top of Mount Netofa overlooking Deir Hanna, but in reality a five minute stroll from the quiet community of Hararit, you may find amongst the trees and orchards a small stone church and accompanying chalets which form the tiny monastery of Lavra Netofa. A lavra or laura (Greek: Λαύρα; Cyrillic: Ла́вра) is a type of monastery or hermitage, in the Orthodox and other Eastern Christian traditions, and sometimes Roman Catholic, as in this case, consisting of a cluster of cells or caves for hermits, with a church and sometimes a refectory at the centre. The term in Greek initially meant a narrow lane or an alley in a city. At Lavra Netofa the cells or caves have been replaced by chalets, though the church is cave-like, being formed from an underground cistern!
It was founded in 1967 (Hararit only appeared to share its hillside in 1980) by two catholic priest-monks, the Dutch Father Jacob Willebrands and the American Father Toma Farelly (known by the Arabs as Abouna Ya'aqov and Abouna Thomas), who sought to establish a contemplative lavra following the tradition of the 4th-century monks of the Judaean Desert. Instead of that locale, however, they chose the lower Galilee and, while preparing the land, they found a deep Byzantine cistern which they cleared to make a subterranean chapel. Over an opening in the roof of the cistern, at ground level, they built a glass roof, and they dug a staircase to access the cistern from the side, whose head emerges into a stone structure with a further prayer room and a belfry. The air in the cistern-church remains cool, yet it is beautifully light and airy because of the skylights in the roof. The chapel is simply done out with a stone altar and iconostasis.
In addition to the chapel, other ancient cisterns were renovated to collect rain water and, over the years, additional structures were added, including small chalets as living quarters for the monks, a dining room, a library and a winery.
Before he died in 2005, Father Jacob asked the a Roman Catholic religious order of the Monastic Family of Bethlehem, of the Assumption of the Virgin and of Saint Bruno (known more simply as the Monks and Sisters of Bethlehem), whose mother house in Israel since 1985 has been the Monastère de Notre-Dame de l’Assomption at Beit Jamal, to come and live and pray and contemplate at Lavra Netofa, with a vocation of solitude and communion, which they have ever since. Today a few Monks and Sisters of Bethlehem live at Lavra Netofa, most of whom came from the Beit Jamal Monastery after the death of Father Jacob's death. Here they live close to nature, with no running water or electricity in most of their living quarters. They welcome visitors, though there are few; occasionally volunteers from all over the world come to help with the daily chores and take part in the spiritual life of the lavra.
In the slideshow of further images below, hover over each picture for its caption.
A little atmosphere: as we left the chapel a nun appeared and rang the bells for noon prayers.
We finished our short stroll with falafel at nearby Yodfat.
