A Christian nun kneels outside the closed small wooden door leading into the Church of the Nativity, traditional site of Jesus Christ's birth in a small grotto inside the ancient church, as the site is closed November 22. Christian leaders in the Holy Land ordered all churches closed for two days beginning today after Israel decided to allow Moslems to build a mosque near the main church in Nazareth, the boyhood town of Jesus Christ. The three main churches in Israel and the West Bank are closed bringing pilgrims walking in the footsteps of Jesus to a halt.

JWH