Damascus, March 13 (SANA) The Old City of Damascus, shaped by successive civilizations and surrounded by ancient walls preserving a history that stretches back thousands of years, continues to offer a distinctive example of coexistence and religious fraternity. Within its historic quarters, mosque minarets stand alongside church bells, forming a rare spiritual and human landscape that reflects the city’s long-standing role as a cradle of the various religions and a center of cultural and spiritual influence.
Damascus: A Cradle From Which Faiths Reached the World
Historical researcher Ghassan Shaheen described Damascus as a “cradle of religions” in an interview with a SANA. According to Shaheen, it was in Damascus that the Apostle Paul converted to Christianity in 36 AD before embarking on missions that helped spread the faith beyond the region.
Six centuries later, the Islamic conquest set out from Damascus and eventually expanded across vast territories. The city also once hosted a Jewish Quarter and several synagogues, reflecting its historical role as a meeting point for different religious communities.
Shared Life: Minarets and Bells Side by Side
Shaheen pointed to a long tradition of coexistence in the city. Islamic urban development began in 636 AD when Muslim forces entered Damascus through its various gates. Mosques and minarets were built alongside existing churches, creating neighborhoods where different houses of worship stood side by side.
He added that these mosques and churches were not limited to religious functions. Many also served as centers of education, where subjects such as chemistry, physics and languages were taught. Institutions such as the Asiya School and Quranic schools were among those that played a role in the city’s intellectual life.
Over time, Shaheen said, religious diversity often gave way to a shared Damascene identity.
The Umayyad Mosque: Layers of Civilization
According to Shaheen, the Umayyad Mosque embodies the history of a city shaped by multiple civilizations. The site was originally a temple dedicated to the god Hadad during the Aramaean period before later becoming a temple to Jupiter in the Roman era.
For a period after the Muslim conquest, Christians and Muslims shared the space as both a church and a mosque, where prayers were held side by side. Shaheen described the arrangement as a rare historical example reflecting deep shared roots and a tradition of tolerance associated with Damascus.
During the reign of the Umayyad caliph al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik, the complex was transformed into the grand mosque that stands today, one of the most prominent examples of early Islamic architecture. The mosque still contains a shrine holding the remains of the Prophet John the Baptist, known in Islam as Yahya.
Three Cathedrals in the Old City
Shaheen also highlighted several important Christian landmarks within the walls of Old Damascus. The city hosts the main seats of three historic patriarchates that remain influential spiritual centers in the region:
– The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate (Al-Maryamiyah Cathedral): A historic church that underwent major reconstruction in the nineteenth century and regained its role as a key spiritual landmark in the heart of Damascus. It is also considered the largest church in the city by area.
– The Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate: Located in the Olive Quarter, it was built in 1840 on the site of an earlier synagogue that once belonged to the Karaite Jewish community before the community eventually disappeared. The site was later sold to the Greek Catholic Church.
– The Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate: Completing the presence of the Antiochian patriarchates in the Syrian capital. Together, these patriarchates form what Shaheen described as an Antiochian patriarchal triangle in Damascus, administering the affairs of their followers worldwide from the city.
Shaheen said these churches relocated from Antioch to Damascus and are known as the “Churches of the Dormition of Our Lady,” referring to the passing of the Virgin Mary’s soul.
Old Damascus, Shaheen said, is therefore not just a historic residential district but a “spiritual icon.” The city is notable for hosting a dense concentration of places of worship belonging to different religions within a single geographic area. This diversity, he added, has helped shape the Syrian capital’s enduring identity as a place where different traditions have historically coexisted within a shared civic culture.
