Christian pilgrims of all nationalities will be the very first to experience Jerusalem's brand new Pais Arena, for their annual week-long celebration of The Feast of the Tabernacle, the Israeli Christian Embassy of Jerusalem (ICEJ) announced this week. Every year, thousands of Christians make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to come together and celebrate the Feast of the Tabernacles.The feast is traditionally known as the third great annual pilgrimage festival, in which Jews, among others religious groups, gather in Jerusalem to recall God's provision on the wilderness, and look forward to the messianic age. It is one of the seven annual biblical festivals of God introduced to Israel at the time of the Exodus, and can be found in Leviticus 23 as well as in Zechariah. 'And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of the Tabernacles.' ZECHARIAH 14:16 The messianic message appeals particularly to Christians, and many make the annual voyage to Israel to celebrate. For over three decades, the ICEJ has hosted thousands of Christians for a celebration of the biblical festival. In the past, the celebration has taken place in a smaller venue, but this year, they have received special permission to use the Pais Arena. Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat inaugurated the new, state-of-the-art Pais Arena in Jerusalem on September 14. The arena has eight levels and 11,600 seats to fill, and cost over 400 million NIS to construct. The mayor described the arena as “the most advanced, state-of-the-art venue of its kind in the Middle East.” “Our move to this new facility in Jerusalem is a very exciting development which will allow us to further grow the Feast of Tabernacles,” ICEJ executive director, Dr. Jürgen Bühler, said. “We believe that in the years to come, this new hall will be filled every Sukkot with even more pro-Israel Christians from around the globe. So this is a thrilling moment for the city of Jerusalem and for our ministry.” Jewish Israelis will get to experience the arena for the first time on October 14, as the feast will include an “Israeli Guest night,” which opens the event up to a Jewish audience for musical performances.
