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26 June 2012, 13:43Putin visits Church of Nativity in Bethlehem
Bethlehem, June 26, Interfax - Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Church of Nativity upon arrival in the Palestinian National Authority in Bethlehem.
Like any other parishioner of this church, the president entered it through a very small door called the "Gate of Humility." At the entrance, Putin was met by the father superior of the church and other clergymen, who told the Russian president about the history of the church.
Archbishop Theophylaktos of Jordan (Jerusalem Patriarchate), the father superior of the church, showed the Russian president the mosaic preserved from the first church dating back to the 4th century and the 11th century wall mosaic.
After that, priests greeted Putin in English, giving him the Star of Bethlehem made by Palestinian artists as a gift "to the president and pilgrim from the people of Palestine."
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