On what mountain is the Samaritan Passover sacrifice held?

The Samaritan Passover sacrifice is held on Mount Gerizim. The mountain is the central sanctuary of Samaritan religion, whose traditions identify it—not Jerusalem—as the place chosen for Israelite worship.

Gerizim rises to about 881 metres above sea level on the southern side of the valley containing Nablus, with Mount Ebal on the northern side. The two mountains are associated with the biblical ceremony of blessings and curses after the Israelites entered the Promised Land.

Samaritan tradition gives Gerizim an especially ancient status. Samaritans associate it with major biblical events, including Abraham’s near-sacrifice of Isaac, whereas Jewish tradition identifies that episode with Mount Moriah. A Samaritan temple stood on Gerizim from roughly the fifth century BCE until its destruction in the late second century BCE.

The mountain remains active rather than merely archaeological. Samaritans ascend it for Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot, and the Passover ceremony includes the community’s distinctive sheep sacrifice. Mount Ebal, Mount Sinai, and Mount Carmel are important biblical mountains, but none is the site of this Samaritan ritual.