ISRAEL 08 #3: Jerusalem, heart and soul of Israel

Jerusalem is the heart and soul of Israel. Jerusalem - a holy city to three faiths, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Jerusalem - the capital of the State of Israel, its seat of government, and the holiest city in Judaism. It is also Israel's largest and most populated city.

Since 1004 BCE, when King David established Jerusalem as the capital of his kingdom, there has been a continuous Jewish presence in Jerusalem, the holiest city in Judaism. Following the building of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and the designation of other holy sites by Constantine the Great in 333 CE, Jerusalem became a destination of Christian pilgrimages. During Umayyad rule from 661 to 750 CE, the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa Mosque were built on the site where the Jewish Temples had once stood, and Jerusalem became the third holiest city in Islam.

As we drove into Jerusalem, I was stunned at how much the city had changed since the time I had been there many years ago. When I was last there in the early sixties, the Old City was in Jordanian hands and our travel within Jerusalem was extremely limited. Today, the modern city of Jerusalem is growing at hyper speed and has expanded far beyond the old walls---schools, synagogues, shopping centers, roads (and traffic jams), government buildings, universities, hospitals, museums, industrial centers are all surrounded by new housing developments that overlook the city.

As we stood high on Mt. Scopus, overlooking much of the city, I felt overwhelmed by all these changes and the realization that I could finally visit the Old City, the Western Wall and, that this city, so important to Jews as well as Christians and Muslims, was now open to all.

We drove into the center of town and checked into the David Citadel Hotel, near the Old City. To our delight, there were Heather and Rob, welcoming us to Jerusalem. We went to dinner at the most incredible Moroccan kosher restaurant and, over several bottles of wonderful kosher wine, we heard all about the wedding plans. We were looking forward to meeting their friends and having Shabbat dinner in the Old City. (I realize that wonderful kosher wine may sound like an oxymoron, since when we think of “Jewish “wine, most of us think of Manoshevitz, a very sweet wine usually served at Passover. Over the next week we discovered Israel has some incredible kosher wines that rival many California wines).

Our days in Jerusalem were full. Be prepared to do a lot of walking. This morning we planned to follow the Via Dolorosa (the route Christians believe Jesus traveled carrying the cross from his trial to the place of his crucifixion), to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, revered by Christians as the site of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The first seven Stations of the Cross wind through the Arab quarter, so we entered the Old City through Jaffa Gate, which leads directly into the Arab Quarter. (Today, the Old City is divided into four neighborhoods, which are named by the ethnic affiliation of the people that live in them: the Arab or MuslimQuarter, the Jewish Quarter, the Christian Quarter and the Armenian Quarter. The entire area of the old city is one square kilometer (not even a half mile square).

Over the centuries the Church was destroyed and rebuilt several times. The building that stands today dates back to the 12th century and according to our guide, is zealously guarded by four different religious denominations: the Greek Orthodox, the Roman Catholics, Armenians and Copts (members of the Coptic Church --- mostly Egyptian Christians). What I found fascinating is that due to the squabbling of the different religions, “the key to the church” was entrusted to a Muslim family. Nine centuries later, the 10-inch metal key is still safeguarded by the Nuseibeh family. Every morning at dawn Wajeeh Nuseibeh, who took over the job of doorkeeper from his father 25 years ago, picks up the keys and opens the church doors. At 8:00 pm, he returns and locks them. I love stories like this. It’s part of the magic of traveling to so many different countries and learning about so many different cultures. I’m a real whiz at Jeopardy!

We continued walking through the narrow alleyways of the Arab Quarter lined with shops selling all types of souvenirs from scarves for head coverings, to wood carvings, jewelry, pottery and lots of religious paraphernalia. It was hard not to stop, but it was harder getting out of the shops --- bargaining is definitely a way of life in the Old City.

It’s obvious when you come to the Jewish Quarter, all foot traffic stops and all your packages, purses, etc. are x-rayed and you walk through a metal detector, just like at an airport. We walked through the Jewish Quarter, past the Cardo, which was a Byzantine Road, roughly the equivalent of an eight lane highway that ran through the heart of the city. Next we entered a large plaza and then we were, in front of the Western Wall and looking at the gold dome of The Temple Mount. It’s a remarkable sight.

When Rome destroyed the Second Temple in 70 C.E., only one outer wall remained standing. The Romans probably would have destroyed that also, but since it was not part of the actual Temple itself, they thought it was insignificant. For the Jews however, this remnant of what was the most sacred building in the Jewish world quickly became the holiest spot in Jewish life. For centuries, Jews from throughout the world traveled to Palestine and immediately headed for the Kotel (The Western Wall) to thank God. The prayers offered at the Kotel were so heartfelt that non-Jews began calling the site the “Wailing Wall.”

The area around the wall is open 24 hours and is usually filled with worshippers. The Wall is divided by a fence, with a small area for women only on one side, and a much larger area for men on the other. If you go up close to the Wall you’ll notice rolled up pieces of paper stuck into the Wall--- these are messages and prayers that people write and put into the Wall, hoping their prayers will be answered.

Standing by the Wall is an awesome experience. Tourists from around the world still flock there, mingling with the pious and truly religious. The men in black coats with their wide, black rimmed hats and payot (side curls), standing next to the Israeli soldier, gun slung over his shoulder, standing next to the tourist wearing shorts is quite a sight to see.

Join me next week as we continue our tour of Jerusalem including Yad Vashem (the Holocaust Memorial), the Garden of Gethsemane, Bethlehem and the Israel Museum where the Dead Sea Scrolls are on exhibit.