The church of Saint George in Izraa, Hauran, was erected at the beginning of the 6^th century A.D; it is still standing and is a living historical monument, a witness to the famous ecclesiastical architectural style of that period.

Count Charles Melchior de Vogüé, the French archaeologist, described it to be “…the most enchanting site in the whole region”.[1] In 1865 he visited the church and wrote a report that has been cited by countless historians who have since visited this masterpiece.

Today, almost 1500 years after it was built, the church of Saint George is threatened by collapse. This report will shed light on the importance of this Orthodox monument, a beacon to all believers who appreciate beauty and who are attentive to history and culture, and to all who have adopted Saint George as their patron saint.

The city of Izraa

Izraa, (Zorava, Zorowa or Zorabene) was a Canaanite city mentioned in the Bible. Located 80 km south of Damascus in the northern section of the Province of Daraa, its name appears in the “Tell Amarna letters”, documents which were exchanged between the Egyptian and Syrian rulers in 1334 B.C. Ancient inscriptions left by the Romans after their occupation of the Bashan area evidence the importance of the town.

An inscription, found by the archaeologist Richter, shows that the city was elevated to the rank of metrokomia (Great city) under the Emperor Alexander Severus (222-235 A.D.) and was known as Zorava.[2]

Lejah,( Trachonides or “the Rocky Land ”) forms a triangle with Borac as the summit, Izraa to the south-west and Shahba to the south-east.[3]

In the course of history, this region was a natural fortress that invaders found very difficult to conquer. Herod’s soldiers failed to occupy it. Even the Crusaders under Baldwin III could not subdue it, because of its difficult terrain, the lack of water and the resistance of its people.

In 1840 A.D. the Egyptian ruler Ibrahim Pasha invaded the region and bombarded the church, causing great damage to the walls and dome, but he failed to occupy the city.

   During the great Syrian insurrection against the French Mandate forces (1925-1926), the rebels sought refuge in Izraa.[4]

Izraa is an ancient city which was prosperous at all levels, cultural, official and military, and possessed both a town council and a distinguished administrative system. The historian Ismail Abulfida described in his book “Taqwim al Buldan” that it was “to be one of the major capitals of Hauran, 18 miles from the region of Sanameine”.

The Gospel reached this region early because of its close proximity to the Holy Land ; it thus became an episcopal seat during the Byzantine era. It was ranked second after the metropolitan see of Bosra throughout the whole of the Province of Arabia .[5]

Nonnos, the most famous of its bishops, who participated in the Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D. with the Archbishop of Bosra along with sixteen other bishops of Arabia , played a major role in the spread of the Christian faith. Bishop Auaros is mentioned in an inscription found in the church of Saint Elijah in Izraa (542-543 A.D.), and the name of bishop Theodoros appears in an inscription found in Harran ; his seat was in Zorava.[6]

Today, the city is divided into two sections: the “Mahatta” or station and the “Balad” or city. In the former part, live 45 Christian families and 120 live in the latter. All the inhabitants depend heavily upon agriculture for income. Unfortunately, as a result of poor economic conditions brought about by drought, the poverty level is at an all-time record. Families of the Archdiocese have been forced to migrate into Damascus . Others went to Lebanon or emigrated to distant lands.

The local family names are: Farah, Nseir, Nasrallah, Atieh, Oufan, Bitar, Freige, Dib, Shlaouit, Haddad, Ghanem, Bishara, Shedid, Nmeir, Massoud, Massaad, Boutros, Youssef, Jawabri, Zawahri, Salloum, Ghoraib and Dahdal…[7]

Honoring the relics of the Saints and enshrining them in churches became a custom in the Mediterranean basin during early Christian times. This tradition also spread in Syria , and many churches and cathedrals were dedicated to saints and liturgies were held to commemorate their memory.

In the sixth century the cathedral of Sergius, Bacchus and Leontius in Bosra was the first church in Provincia Arabia where liturgies were presided over by the Archbishop. Izraa was considered by Eugene Kleinbauer the next ranking church in the Province and a local cathedral took the name of martyr George.[8]

  The worship of the god Theandros was practiced throughout the Hauran region especially in Salkhad, Kanawat, Atil and in the south of Lejah in Izraa. In 515 A.D. the church of St. George was erected on the ruins of a pagan temple.[9]

The construction of the church is attested by the Greek inscription on the lintel of the main entrance: “This has become a house of God which (was once) the residence of demons. Where (once were) sacrifices to idols, now (are) choirs of angels, and where God was provoked to wrath, now God is propitiated. A Christ-loving man, the official Ioannes, son of Diomedes offered (this) noble structure at his own expense as a gift to God, placing herein the revered relic of (the) holy martyr Georgeios, the gloriously victorious, who appeared to him, Ioannes not in sleep but manifestly in (indiction) 9, year 410” (515 A.D.).

Ioannes (John) son of Diomedes was a member of the town’s noble council, and he wanted to commemorate the memory of the martyr George who was martyred and buried in the Hauran, according to an eleventh-century manuscript (417) kept in the library of the monastery of St. Catherine on Mount Sinai .

From this one can understand the importance of St. George in the minds of the people of the Hauran, both Christian and Muslim alike. The church of St. George in Izraa is also known as the “Monastery of Izaa” or “the khodr of Izraa” as well as the “Living khodr of God” and is visited by the believers of all faiths and regions.

Archimandrite Thomas (Bitar) in his book “Forgotten Saints”[10] describes the transfer of the relics of the Saint from Izraa to the place of his birth in Lydda in Palestine ; he also describes what remains in Hauran.

The church of St. George in Izraa is a very important site visited by numerous historians, archaeologists and expeditions:

• J. L. Porter traveled through Hauran and resided for five years in Syria . He described the church from the outside, said that it was very beautiful and that the main entrance was a small stone door, but unfortunately he did not give any details of the inside because a bunch of young men attacked him and his guide so they had to run away.
• Howard Crosby Bulter noted: “The domed church here which antedates by several years the famous domes of Constantinople (Agia Sophia) and Ravenna (San Vitale) presents a plan of an unusual interest”.[11]
• Sir Bannister Fletcher remarked: “A church is a witness to the religious building in the Byzantine period, as in it, this art form has reached its highest and greatest beauty and performance”.
• Kevin Butcher noted: “It is the best known and the most beautiful”.[12]

Scholars considered it as the first example of a square type of church construction at a time when most structures were longitudinal or basilical.

The tectonics of this church are quite unique. It is built of black basalt, the local Hauran stone. Consisting of two octagons inscribed in a square, the plan is beautiful in its simplicity. The central octagon bears a cylinder and eight pillars support the dome[13]. The final two tiers of stone before the dome were arranged in such a way as to transform the shape of the octagon into a 16-sided form; above this element, is a shape with 32 sides, creating a cylinder to carry the dome, which was originally built of stone.

To illuminate the interior using natural light, windows were included in the base of the dome displaying the earliest use of a clerestory in a circular church.

A large apse extends from the eastern side of the external octagon and contains the altar and at one time accommodated the relics of St. George. Within, three steps are incorporated into the curved wall to provide seating for the clergy during the Divine Liturgy. The sides of the octagon that coincide with the four corners of the main square, are transformed into smaller apses. One of these contains a contemporary shrine to the Saint.

On either side of the Greek inscription of the lintel can be found stone medallions decorated with the cross, grape clusters and the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet Alpha and Omega, the symbols of Christ being the beginning and the end of everything.

The original dome was made of small stones with an oval shape different from what was known at that period.[14] 

Present condition of the Church

The Church of St. George was affected by events which weakened its structure and stability.

• In 1840 A.D. the Egyptian ruler Ibrahim Pasha invaded the region and bombarded the church causing great damage to the walls and dome.
• A strong earthquake in 1899 destroyed the original stone and mortar dome and weakened the walls.
• In March 2004, an earthquake shook northern Jordan ; the walls rocked and cracks appeared.

Even though the dome was renovated at the beginning of the 20^th century, thanks to the help of the Russian Tsar Nicholas II, the zinc lamina is worn thin and the wooden frame of the dome is cracked, and water leaks into the church.

The historian Issa Iskandar al Maalouf describes the inauguration of the dome in July 1911, which was presided over by the late Patriarch Gregorious IV (1906-1929), with the then Metropolitan Zakharia Zakharia, bishop of Bosra, Hauran (1908-1930). “Present at the inauguration was Prince Boris Chakhofski, the Russian consul in Damascus , with his interpreter Youssef Bek Al Sabeh, Paolo Karolri, representative of Izmir , many clergymen and faithful. During the liturgy the Patriarch inaugurated a new holy altar and; in his speech he mentioned the ancient history of the church and its present condition and the restoration undertaken with the help of the Russian Tsar”.[15]  

In the summer of 2002, a group of architects headed for Izraa to inspect this monument. A full report was written and it described the present condition of the church and its needs.

An-Nour: How would you describe the present condition of this church?

Riad: “Without a shadow of doubt this church is a treasure of great value from an architectural point of view. It needs special care, for we are dealing with a delicate case, so it is better to consult many specialists. The church is under the threat of collapse, due to time, dry climate and numerous earthquakes. We see many cracks and bulging and for this, work is urgently required”.

An-Nour: What damage did you find?

Riad: “We can see damages inside the church, on the roof and in the surrounding courtyard. For instance we found:

• The walls are bulging.
• The wooden frame of the dome is cracked and the zinc lamina is worn thin.
• Water leaks through the ceiling.
• The electrical system is outdated and unsafe.
• There is no protection from lightning.
• The iconostasis is old and without any historical significance.
• The iconography does not fit the architecture and is of no value.
• The seating in antiquated.
• There are no liturgical vessels.
• The windows and doors are damaged.
• The flooring is uneven and the walls need cleaning.
• The exterior must be restored.
• The pillars are out of plumb”.

An-Nour: What are the steps to be taken?

Riad: “First an examination of the foundations as well as the surrounding soil and a seismic study are required to facilitate the work of the architects. I must say that any renovation should consider the value of the monument without changing it. We are preserving its structure and preventing its collapse”.

An-Nour also talked to the geologist Dr. Mahmoud Haidar, who inspected primary samples of the stones and soil. “The soil is very fragile while the basalt stone is very strong. Examining the foundation is necessary, it helps to know its load-bearing capacity. Dismantling the walls and rebuilding them is a second step, on the condition that action be taken to prevent water from leaking through the ceiling, or else the moisture content will increase and the walls will bulge again”.

Metropolitan Saba (Esber), of Bosra, Hauran, Jabal al-Arab and all of the Joulân, began a project to restore the church. He said: “The church is under the custody of the Ministries of Education and Antiquities, so any step we take will take will be under their control. We have prepared two surveys, one made by the American University of Beirut , the other by a group of architects, and both studies are in English, French and Arabic. We have contacted the officials and we will examine parts of the foundations. The seismic study is a complicated matter on both the technical and economic levels. The steps we will undertake will limit the danger of collapse of the building. We are also launching a campaign to rescue the church of St. George . So far we have published a brochure in five languages, Arabic, French, English, German and Greek. We will publish postcards and Christmas cards. The visitors and tourists will help the church by buying the brochure and cards. We have formed the commission called the ‘Friends of the church of St. George , Izraa’, the names of the members will be published later. Its job is to help provide the necessary funds. Next year, God willing, during the celebration of the feast of St. George, we will launch the renovation work. May God, through the intercessions of His saint, help us. Ten years from now, the church of St. George will celebrate its 1500th anniversary. Should it remain as it is? Through these pages, the church of St .. George beckons to all believers who love the church of Christ : Cleanse me of the dust from my painful past so that I may return to my former glory and transport you to your heavenly homeland”.

Blessed are those whose faith is combined with good deeds.

Loulou Saybaa
The Friends of the St. George church in Ezraa  

Originally published by An-Nour magazine, 2004, Lebanon