It is considered one of the oldest Christian churches in the world, with its construction dating back to the year 59 AD. It was built by the Syriac people of Homs after being evangelized by Saint Melia (Elijah) the Martyr, one of the seventy apostles. The apostles Peter and John later visited it, and shortly thereafter, Homs became an episcopal see under the Apostolic See of Antioch. Its first bishop was Saint Silvanus, who served for forty years and was martyred in 312.

This church is currently located beneath the cathedral to its southeastern side. It is a simple underground cave, accessed by a staircase leading to a ten-meter-long corridor, approximately two meters high and eighty centimeters wide, which leads to the church hall. The hall, completely carved out of kaddan (a type of stone), has a diameter of 15 meters. Christians practiced their religious rituals here in fear of pagan persecutions, and it was known as the Church of the Virgin Mary, accommodating about thirty people.

In 476, Father David Torabdin transferred the Holy Girdle from the city of Edessa to the Church of the Virgin Mary in Homs. He found the girdle with the relics of Saint Thomas the Apostle, who had received it directly from the Virgin Mary during her Assumption to heaven as a clear sign and truthful proof of her bodily assumption to the right side of her son, the Lord Jesus Christ, in heaven. Since 476, the girdle remained in the old church, which became known as “The Church of the Girdle” or “The Church of Our Lady of the Girdle.”

After Christianity settled from persecutions and following the issuance of the Edict of Milan in 313, Christians began constructing grand churches as Christianity was recognized as an official religion. The Syriac people of Homs built a larger church adjacent to the old one in the sixth or seventh century AD. It is believed to be beneath the current church’s bell tower. They used black Homs stone in its construction and roofed it with wood. Although sufficient details about its length and width are lacking, the holy girdle was transferred to this church, kept in a metallic container within a basalt basin. Syriac sources and discovered documents mention that this church remained thriving until 1852 when Bishop Julius Peter of Homs renovated the church. The wooden roof and some walls were replaced, and the current church, supported by sixteen massive columns, eight in the center and the rest within the walls, measuring 18 meters in length, 16 meters in width, and 10 meters in height, was built. A beautifully crafted semi-cylindrical dome was erected in the center. When the old church was demolished, the holy girdle was found placed in a container at the altar, bringing great joy to all. They moved it to the consecration table in the current church within a basalt basin, covering it with a large stone engraved with the history of the church’s renovation in 1852 and the donors’ names, noting that the church dates back to the year 59.

Due to various factors, mainly the persecution of the church, the fathers hid the girdle until it was revealed to the blessed Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem I Barsoum, who resided in Homs from 1933 to 1957. On December 1, 1953, he issued a patriarchal decree stating: “In late April 1953, while examining a Karshuni book containing stories and sermons, we found it bound with several sheets stacked together. Since three hundred years ago, Easterners have bound their manuscripts this way or with thick wood, then covered them with leather or thick cloth. When we opened the book’s cover, we found it composed of forty-six Karshuni and Arabic letters concerning the Diocese of Homs and its dependencies, written over a hundred years ago. One Karshuni letter, dated 1852, written by the notables of the Syrian Diocese to the notables of the city of Mardin near the Monastery of Zafran, the patriarchal see at the time, detailed the condition of their diocese. They mentioned that when they demolished their church named Our Lady of the Girdle in Homs to expand and renovate it due to its age and small size and roof it with wood, as ordered by their bishop Mar Julius Peter of Mosul, they found the Virgin Mary’s girdle in a container at the consecration table, bringing them great joy.”

Based on this information, Patriarch Ephrem Barsoum revealed the holy table on July 20, 1953, in the presence of church leaders in Homs and members of the Directorate of Antiquities and Museums. They found the stone tablet previously mentioned, beneath which was an old basin covered with a copper plate, containing a container that had broken due to its age. Inside, they found the holy girdle wrapped around itself. This news spread throughout Homs, attracting a large crowd of believers to seek blessings from it.

The Directorate of Antiquities and Museums in Damascus issued a statement on August 16, 1953, signed by Dr. Joseph Saba, director of the Damascus Museum, and Mr. Raef al-Hafiz, technical assistant and expert at the museum. The girdle was placed in a proper location in a special wing beside the church, where believers could seek blessings. The church became globally renowned, attracting thousands of tourists annually to venerate this sacred relic, considered one of the greatest Christian relics after the Holy Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In 1901, the current bell tower was added to the church, and by the order of the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed Reshad, the Syriacs renovated the church. In 1954, Patriarch Ephrem I Barsoum expanded the church westward, adding a wing. In 2000, the blessed Bishop Mar Silvanus Boutros al-Nama restored the church in collaboration with the restoration committee, removing the cement layer from its walls and returning it to its black stone after treatment. They added some beautiful decorations, engravings, and Syriac inscriptions, supported by donations from believers at home and abroad, along with several mosaic icons and a beautifully carved wooden altar.

Items discovered with the girdle include:

1. The Stone Tablet: Measuring 46 cm in length, 44 cm in width, and 2 cm in thickness, inscribed in Karshuni, stating, “In the year 59 AD, this church was built during the time of the evangelist Melia, also known as Elijah,” and mentioning the church’s renovation in 1852 under Bishop Julius Peter, listing the countries and villages whose people donated towards the construction. The tablet is unrelated to the girdle as its purpose was to record the church’s renovation history.
2. The Basin: Made of volcanic stone, shaped like a simple column crown, measuring 12 cm in height, 24 cm on its top side, and 29 cm on its base side, with a roughly oval cavity of 16 cm in diameter. This basin dates back to the Byzantine era.
3. The Copper Disc: Covering the volcanic stone basin, 15 cm in diameter, decorated with concentric circles.
4. The Cylindrical Container: Found in the volcanic stone basin, made of oxidized metal to the extent that only its shape remained. It was likely made of silver mixed with another metal. When Patriarch Ephrem tried to extract it, it broke into small pieces, leaving the bottom stuck in the basin, which he removed in several pieces, finding the girdle inside, suggesting that the container had been placed at the altar of the previous church for a long time, evidenced by its severe oxidation and the wear of the girdle during its stay in the container.
5. The Holy Girdle: Discovered within the cylindrical container, wrapped with threads and fabric pieces, measuring 74 cm in length, 5 cm in width, and approximately 3 mm in thickness, beige in color, made of longitudinal wool threads, possibly lined with linen and silk threads. It was embroidered with gold threads on its outer surface, with its edges worn and showing signs of oxidation from the metal container.
6. The Copper Cylinder: Attached to the side of the cylindrical container, 5.6 cm in length, containing a piece of human arm bone of the same length, with what appeared to be a rolled parchment inside.

The importance of this church lies firstly in its antiquity and secondly in the presence of the holy girdle given by the Virgin Mary to the Apostle Thomas as a blessing for believers, blessed by the Lord Jesus Christ while in the arms of his pure mother Mary. Additionally, the church houses relics of Saint Mar Basus (martyred around 380 AD), and the cathedral preserves sacred soil from the graves of Saint Mar Jacob of Serugh (521 AD) and Saint Mar Gabriel (667 AD), along with the tomb of Patriarch Ignatius Ephrem I Barsoum (1957 AD) and the tombs of several bishops and priests.

The church also contains a well of fresh water, dug in the old church for drinking. After constructing the current church, they lined the well with black stone, reaching the left side next to the altar with a depth not exceeding 20 meters. Believers constantly seek blessings from it, attributing many miracles to it.

In 2012, during the Syrian crisis, the church was attacked, resulting in the burning of its roof, pews, doors, and the destruction of its bell tower, roof, valuable icons, and more. However, the girdle was not inside the church as it had been placed in a safe location during the events. After the liberation of old Homs from terrorism, Bishop Boutros al-Nama, in cooperation with the restoration committee and supported by church institutions, fully restored the cathedral, including the three historical churches. We thank God that the first phase of the new shrine for the holy girdle

beside the cathedral was completed and consecrated by His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II on August 14, 2022. Since then, the holy girdle has been placed in the new shrine, accessible for blessings by the city’s residents and cathedral visitors. Work continues on the second phase of the shrine, which includes a museum of church vessels and Syriac heritage.