SUNDAY, JULY 20, 2008
Today was a semi-fast day – the 17th of Tammuz, the day in which the Romans in 70 CE breached the walls of the city of Jerusalem and, three weeks later on the 9th of Av, destroyed the Temple. How appropriate to spend the day exploring the ancient city of Jerusalem and the history of the Temple.
We woke up early to ascend to the Temple Mount itself. It has been many years since I have been on the Temple Mount. It is among the most volatile places on earth and for years non-Muslims were not allowed on the plateau. We went through heavy Israeli security, and the Temple Mount is guarded by well armed Israeli solders who are there to insure that Muslim sensitivity is not violated.
At the entrance to the security is a sign reminding Jews that many rabbis forbid travel to the Temple Mount for a variety of reasons, including the danger of treading on the spot where the Holy of Holies stood.
We are taken by the fact that this place where the Temple once stood, the place to which we turn in our prayers, is sacred to Muslims as well.
We came to the plaza between the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. The str
ikingly beautiful Dome shone its polished gold into the early morning light. Non-Muslims are not allowed inside, but I remember as a boy seeing the intricate carvings and the massive stone that lies in its heart. Muslim tradition has it as the spot in which Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac (or in some version did sacrifice him) and the spot from which Mohammad ascended to heaven.
We left the plaza through the Chain Gate and wa
lked through the Arab market into the Western Wall Plaza.
Today was a semi-fast day – the 17th of Tammuz, the day in which the Romans in 70 CE breached the walls of the city of Jerusalem and, three weeks later on the 9th of Av, destroyed the Temple. How appropriate to spend the day exploring the ancient city of Jerusalem and the history of the Temple.
We woke up early to ascend to the Temple Mount itself. It has been many years since I have been on the Temple Mount. It is among the most volatile places on earth and for years non-Muslims were not allowed on the plateau. We went through heavy Israeli security, and the Temple Mount is guarded by well armed Israeli solders who are there to insure that Muslim sensitivity is not violated.
At the entrance to the security is a sign reminding Jews that many rabbis forbid travel to the Temple Mount for a variety of reasons, including the danger of treading on the spot where the Holy of Holies stood.
We are taken by the fact that this place where the Temple once stood, the place to which we turn in our prayers, is sacred to Muslims as well.
We came to the plaza between the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. The str
ikingly beautiful Dome shone its polished gold into the early morning light. Non-Muslims are not allowed inside, but I remember as a boy seeing the intricate carvings and the massive stone that lies in its heart. Muslim tradition has it as the spot in which Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac (or in some version did sacrifice him) and the spot from which Mohammad ascended to heaven.
We left the plaza through the Chain Gate and wa
lked through the Arab market into the Western Wall Plaza.
We had a few minutes before our next tour and I noticed a large grouping of young Israelis gathered in the plaza near the wall. Boys and girls of various ages were singing together, arms around each other. I learned that this was a group of orphans, children whose parents and sometimes siblings were killed by rocket attacks and other acts of terror. This gathering, supported by the One Family Fund, helps rebuild the shattered lives of terror victims. These kids had traveled all over the country and were ending their experience at the Western Wall.
It was time to enter into the tunnels that run along the wall. We met my cousin, Faige Kahana, who is one of the most respected guides of the Old City. Faige took us on a remarkable tour of these excavations that travel beneath the city and follow the massive retaining wall of the Temple Mount. We are reminded that the “Western Wall” is but a small portion of a massive structure. We were able to admire the engineering genius that made this ancient wonder possible. Faige was able to engage us in a remarkable journey, including the spot which is considered by many to be the closest point to the where the Holy of Holies stood. We were moved to touch this sacred spot where there seems to be a continuous vigil of Orthodox women.
We left the tunnels though the door which had been a point of great contention between the Israeli government and the Muslim religious authority. Faige told us about the day it was opened and the riots that broke out there.
We left the tunnel and spent some time in the Christian Quarter, following the Via Delorosa we came upon several churches and followed the stations of the cross. Through the Arab Market we came to a spot where the Arab Quarters and Christian Quarters meet. Behind us was a building where it was recently discovered that Mark Twain wrote about his impressions of Palestine in his book “Innocents Abroad.”
We came to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre ,one of the most sacred spots in Christianity, which many believe was build around the spot where Jesus was buried.
Through the Arab Quarter we walked near the Jaffa gate and into the Jewish Quarter. There we had lunch near the Cardo and then walked through the Jewish Quarter, past the rebuilding of the
Hurva Synagogue, destroyed by the Jordanians in 1948 and down to the Western Wall plaza again.
Before descending the stairs to the Kotel, we passed the “Golden Menorah” which has been moved from the Cardo to this spot overlooking the plaza. Instead of the plain glass box it was in before, it has been palced in a plexiglass tube that makes it look like an ancient artifact from the future. The Menorah is a replica of the one used in the Temple and is one of the objects being constructed in preparation for what some say will be the new “Third Temple,” a highly controversial enterprise to say the least.
We ended the day with a walk through the
Southern Wall excavations, next to the Western Wall. There we see the very stones the Romans pushed off the Temple Mount in 70 CE when Jerusalem was sacked and the Temple destroyed. How appropriate that we should be there on the 17th of Tammuz, the day when the beginnings of the destruction are commemorated and the Jewish sovereignty was destroyed. And how appropriate to remember that we are living in the rebuilt land of Israel under Jewish sovereignty once again. Am Yisrael Chai! The People of Israel live!
It was time to enter into the tunnels that run along the wall. We met my cousin, Faige Kahana, who is one of the most respected guides of the Old City. Faige took us on a remarkable tour of these excavations that travel beneath the city and follow the massive retaining wall of the Temple Mount. We are reminded that the “Western Wall” is but a small portion of a massive structure. We were able to admire the engineering genius that made this ancient wonder possible. Faige was able to engage us in a remarkable journey, including the spot which is considered by many to be the closest point to the where the Holy of Holies stood. We were moved to touch this sacred spot where there seems to be a continuous vigil of Orthodox women.We left the tunnels though the door which had been a point of great contention between the Israeli government and the Muslim religious authority. Faige told us about the day it was opened and the riots that broke out there.
We left the tunnel and spent some time in the Christian Quarter, following the Via Delorosa we came upon several churches and followed the stations of the cross. Through the Arab Market we came to a spot where the Arab Quarters and Christian Quarters meet. Behind us was a building where it was recently discovered that Mark Twain wrote about his impressions of Palestine in his book “Innocents Abroad.”
We came to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre ,one of the most sacred spots in Christianity, which many believe was build around the spot where Jesus was buried.
Through the Arab Quarter we walked near the Jaffa gate and into the Jewish Quarter. There we had lunch near the Cardo and then walked through the Jewish Quarter, past the rebuilding of the
Hurva Synagogue, destroyed by the Jordanians in 1948 and down to the Western Wall plaza again.
Before descending the stairs to the Kotel, we passed the “Golden Menorah” which has been moved from the Cardo to this spot overlooking the plaza. Instead of the plain glass box it was in before, it has been palced in a plexiglass tube that makes it look like an ancient artifact from the future. The Menorah is a replica of the one used in the Temple and is one of the objects being constructed in preparation for what some say will be the new “Third Temple,” a highly controversial enterprise to say the least.We ended the day with a walk through the
Southern Wall excavations, next to the Western Wall. There we see the very stones the Romans pushed off the Temple Mount in 70 CE when Jerusalem was sacked and the Temple destroyed. How appropriate that we should be there on the 17th of Tammuz, the day when the beginnings of the destruction are commemorated and the Jewish sovereignty was destroyed. And how appropriate to remember that we are living in the rebuilt land of Israel under Jewish sovereignty once again. Am Yisrael Chai! The People of Israel live!
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