A disclaimer before I begin: there are a couple things to know about Jewish law. One is that according to Jewish law, no Jew is permitted to walk upon the Temple Mount, the most sacred place in Judaism, the location of the First and Second Temples, the latter of which was destroyed by the Romans in 70AD and the last standing remains of which is the wall surrounding the Temple Mount, now known as the Western Wall, Wailing Wall, or Kotel. This is because the innermost point of the temple, the Holy of Holies, was only to be entered by the High Priest on Yom Kippur, and even though the temple is gone, it is believed that the space still holds its spiritual essence. Because the temple is now gone, and there's not an exact blueprint telling us exactly where the different parts of the temple were positioned, we have no way of knowing on what ground we tread as we walk on the mostly open space on the Temple Mount, and could inadvertently "enter" that space which was reserved only for the High Priest, only on the holiest day of the year.
Jewish law has no qualms with non-Jews walking upon this space, other than the 2,000-year-old sadness that the Temple no longer stands. A Christian or Muslim walking across the Temple Mount does not hold the same sacreligious connotations of a Jew walking across the space.
The other thing to know about Jewish law, which I have mentioned before in this blog, is that according to Rabbinical law, Judaism is passed on through the mother and not the father. Because my father is Jewish, but not my mother, Jewish law does not consider me to be Jewish.
It's a confusing context to be placed into, with how blurry the lines are between faith and race and culture within Judaism, but long story short, it means that according to Jewish law, I am allowed to walk across the Temple Mount. I write this long explanation for my observant Jewish readers, to preempt any offense I may have caused by posting photos of myself there without explaining this.
With that being said, I can start my entry about my incredible day walking all around the holy city!
My first stop, after getting a bagel, was to ascend the ugly ramp next to the Kotel and enter the Temple Mount. Presently, the mount is Muslim-controlled, as one of the holiest sites of Islam is situated on that spot: the Dome of the Rock. Contrary to popular belief, the Dome of the Rock is more of a shrine than a mosque - there is also a mosque on the Temple Mount near the DotR. What struck me about the Temple Mount was how much empty space there was - a wide open plaza surrounds the DotR, extending to the outer wall of both the Temple Mount and the Old City, looking down on the Kidron Valley. There are various small structures, either serving functions for Islamic worship or ruins left over from various occupying forces over the last 2,000 years. Also on the Mount are beautiful walkways lined with trees - it was a very pleasant morning just walking the grounds, until the non-Muslim visiting hours were over and all Western-looking people were asked to leave as prayer groups began dotting the plaza. I did not dare to attempt entry to the DotR - perhaps I should have asked someone, and I did have a head scarf with me in case it was asked of me to wear it, but I was intimidated by the man standing by the entrance - I assumed, probably correctly, that he was there to prevent entry to non-Muslims. A shame, as I've never been inside an Islamic place of worship and wanted to experience and learn, but understandable with today's security conditions.
Because it is such an iconic part of the Jerusalem cityscape today, it might interest you to know WHY the Dome of the Rock is so important - it is built on the site that Islamic tradition holds that Muhammad ascended to Heaven and spoke with God and Abraham, and received many of the Islamic laws Muslims abide by today (praying 5 times a day, etc.); it is also built on the "Foundation Stone," bedrock from the hill below the Mount, which Jewish tradition holds was the site of Abraham's almost-sacrifice of Isaac and could possibly be the location of the Holy of Holies (the aforementioned inner part of the temple).
One last tidbit before I give you pictures: The Temple Mount is built on a raised hill many believe to be Mount Moriah, which is where the Talmudic sages theorize the world began. So, this truly is the very center of the world for the Jewish people - the place of creation, the place the Divine Presence rests, the place every synagogue in the world faces (which is why every synagogue in America faces East, and synagogues in Asia should face West).
Morning prayers at the Kotel, seen from the ramp ascending the Temple Mount.
Al-Aqsa Mosque
The Dome of the Rock
Raised platform on which the Dome of the Rock stands, and some Islamic structures near the edge of the Temple Mount.
The Mount of Olives can be seen across the Kidron valley through these arches.
Various structures on the Temple Mount, and the shadows from the above-pictured arches.
Myself and the Dome of the Rock.
Some of the lovely gardens on the Temple Mount.
I finally found my way out of the Temple Mount through the only exit that seemed open and found myself in a part of the Muslim Quarter I hadn't seen before - it's incredible how just around the corner of a windy stone street, you can feel like you're in an entirely different world. There was no Hebrew to be seen, but fortunately there were signs in English directing me back to the Western Wall. I stopped for a moment to rest and made a little friend:
Small kitten that hung out with me near the Kotel for a while.
I then exited the Old City through the Dung Gate (which, yes, derives its name from its use in ancient Jerusalem), and was greeted by a long line of Bar Mitzvahs, on their way in to perform their ceremonies at the Western Wall. There was singing, dancing, shofars... I've posted a couple video clips for you to see, it was awesome.
Blowing the shofars
In this clip, you can hear the shofars being blown near the end, just before they disassemble to go through security.
In this [longer] clip, you can see the ceremonies lined up, one after the other, on their way into the Kotel - you can skip about 1:00 in of you don't want to wait for them to get closer. This clip gives a much better view of the surroundings.
It was so much fun - I felt like dancing along, and wished I knew the words to the songs!
My next Mount of the day was the Mount of Olives, the hill behind the old city of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. I'm just naming things as much as possible, for anyone familiar with the Bible or other religious texts... it's still surreal to me that these are real, physical places, and that I WALKED to/through/across/between them.
If I do bullet points, I may be able to shorten this already epically long entry. Here are some things to know about the Mount of Olives:
1. It has been a Jewish cemetery for over 3,000 years (AKA the time of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs)
2. According to Jewish tradition, when the Messiah comes, the ressurection of the dead will begin here (hence the desire to make it a cemetery)
3. Many prophets and famous rabbis are buried
4. In the Bible, there are many mentions of Jesus crossing the Kidron Valley and ascending the Mount of Olives, either to teach there or while on his way between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
5. It is called the Mount of Olives because, surprise, it used to be covered on olive trees. The Romans burned them all down.
6. Because Jesus is said to have ascended to heaven from the Mount of Olives, the hill is dotted with beautiful churches of all different denominations.
Now with that information out of the way, enjoy some pretty pictures of my hike!
Descending from the Old City - apparently I was following the path Jesus is said to have taken in his walks across the valley and didn't even realize it. Those big structures there are the tombs of Beit Hazir and Zachariah, the ancient Jewish cemetery can be seen above them, and the hill covered with churches and trees beyond the cemetery.
Closer view of the tombs of Beit Hazir and Zachariah.
Myself behind Yad Avshalom (Tomb of Absalom), named for David's patricidal son (incorrectly attributed - the tomb was built around 1,000 years after Absalom would have lived).
Only a small ways up the Mount of Olives - you can see a little of the Kidron Valley between the Mount of Olives and the old city of Jerusalem.
Dominus Flevit Church, built on the site Jesus wept for the future destruction of the Temple - built by Antonio Barlucci, a famous Italian architect who designed many of the newer religious structures in the holy land in the 1950's.
View of Jerusalem from the top of the Mount of Olives - you can see the entirety of the Temple Mount, where I was earlier that morning, and most of the old city of Jerusalem. Eize nof (what a view)!
Myself, overlooking Jerusalem from the top of the Mount of Olives.
Crusades-era chapel at the top of the Mount of Olives, where it is said Jesus took his last step on Earth before ascending to heaven after his resurrection.
Church of St. Mary Magdalene, inside the Garden of Gethsamene.
Church of All Nations at the foot of the Mount of Olives
Inside the courtyard of a church complex on top of Mary's Tomb
The church built on top of Mary's tomb.
I happened to be up at the top of the Mount of Olives when a call to prayer went off, resulting in one of the most incredible sounds I have ever heard. From that vantage point, I could hear every mosque in Jerusalem sounding out the call, and they all mixed together in the most beautiful, eery sound I have ever heard in my life. It was impossible to capture in a recording, but this video clip was my best attempt:
Listening to the call to prayer, overlooking Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.
I then proceeded to walk along the floor of the Kidron valley around Mount Moriah to the City of David. The City of David is an archaeological site with excavations dating back thousands of years, up through biblical times, and up through the first millennium. There is an entrance fee, but since I hiked in through the "back" (up a kabillion stairs through the Palestinian village on the side of the ridge), I accidentally snuck in and didn't have to pay. I was just desperate to be done going up stairs, I had no idea I was sneaking into the archaeological park until there were suddenly ruins in front of me.
View from (only) partway up the ridge to the City of David - you can see the path on the valley floor by which I walked around Jerusalem - around the corner to the left is the Temple Mount, and you can see the back of the Mount of Olives in this picture. The Arab village on the right is built atop more ancient Judaen tombs.
Ruins in the City of David possibly belonging to King David's palace.
After meandering through the ruins in the City of David, I continued along my path around the outer edge of Jerusalem until I got to Mount Zion. The actual location of the Biblical Mount Zion is disputed, but today it refers to a hill attached to but just outside of the Old City of Jerusalem (that attachment being at Zion Gate, the entrance to the Old City I could not find to save my live a couple days before, and had actually passed through the sites on Mount Zion inadvertently on that day in my attempt to find that gate).
On Mount Zion is the precursor museum to Yad Vashem (the Holocaust museum we visited while on Birthright), Oscar Schindler's grave, King David's Tomb, the room of the Last Supper, and the Church of the Dormition. I didn't stop at the holocaust museum, nor did I know to look for Schindler's grave, but I visited the other sites and they were quite beautiful.
Entrance to King David's Tomb (probably not the real location, it's hard to keep track of these things over the course of millennia).
Prayer candles outside King David's tomb.
The sound of the men praying behind the divide next to me was so haunting, I had to capture it and share it with you. In the frame is the cenotaph for King David's Tomb, which would theoretically be somewhere beneath it.
The Cenacle, the room where the Last Supper supposedly took place. The building has been destroyed and rebuilt several times, hence the Gothic architecture in a room supposedly at least 2,000 years old. That's me sitting there in early-second-millenia architecture (sometime between 1100-1300).
View from the roof of the Cenacle, where I took an hour-long nap.
Church of the Dormition - built on the site where Mary died.
Interior of the Church of the Dormition - unfortunately it is impossible to capture the incredible scent of pine and several different incense fragrances, but it was almost overpowering.
The crypt of the Church of the Dormition.
I returned to the Heritage House when it re-opened for the evening, met a new girl named Nicole, and went with her to check out the Arab markets. Unfortunately they were all closed up - I didn't realize they shut down so early - so we went on a dinner-finding mission. We settled on a restaurant, which was more than I was used to spending, but it was a great change from my bagel/falafel routine - and even though Chanukkah was over, I got my first taste of latkes in the holy land!
My first Israeli latkes.
I cannot believe how much I wound up writing for this entry... even more, I cannot believe how much I saw and tried to take in and process in a single day. It was incredible, and my feet are STILL recovering from the damage (I am writing this in late February). I hope you get a chance to read it all, I think what I saw and did was pretty fascinating. If you did read the entire thing, congratulations! You get a gold star! And you will all be rewarded next time with a MUCH shorter entry.
As always, I do not include all (or even close to all) of my photos
here in my blog. To see all my photos from my post-Birthright travels,
see my Flickr album: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mtashalocke/sets/72157628990457609/
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