Again, a very calm service for the Women of the Wall. I seems as though many people were still on vacation since there wasn't much of a crowd. I was joined by some of the AJU, American Jewish University, students who just arrived for the beginning of their year in Israel. I've only met about 4 or 5 of them so far, but they are a nice bunch of kids. I'm excited to do some joint-programming with them. Or even just hanging out with them.
Torah reading about to happen. There was a Bat Mitzvah!
After this, I decided to explore the Old City. In class, we learned that what we now consider the Old City is not necessarily what was the Jerusalem in the days of David, Herod, and Muhammad. Rather, the Old City is merely defined by the walls created by the Ottomans. It is fairly possible that where I live right now, less than a kilometer from the Old City walls, might have been the original Old City. Of course, until they find remnants of the original walls, this cannot be 100% confirmed. Back on topic.
The Jewish Quarter was busy and filled with activity. People rushing to the Kotel to get in their morning prayers. Shops with tourists from all over the world. Beggars asking for money. Interestingly enough, if you compare this with the other parts of the city, the Muslim, Christian, and Armenian Quarters, you would find a similar narrative, just change the name of the religious site. I'm not sure why this excited me or confounded me, but I can connect to every person in the Old City despite language or religion barriers.
The reconstructed Hurva Synagogue, opened only about a year ago.
When I went to the Muslim Quarter, the streets were empty. Every now and then, I'd come across a juice stand or small grocery store open. I forgot that this past Wednesday was Eid, the final part of Ramadan, making it one of the biggest holidays of the Muslim year. Still, it was very exciting to see some part of the festivities. As a result, though, the Temple Mount was completely closed. Oh well.
One of my major plans for the year was to see the Christian sites in Israel. Top of my list: the Via Dolorosa, or where Jesus walked the stations. I walked through the stations by myself with only my tour guide to help me. Along the way, I ran into many pilgrim groups also walking the stations. This made me think of when my grandparents were in Israel in the 1970's and they also walked the stations. I also visited the Church of Saint Anne, which is near the place where Anne gave birth to Mary.
Site marking Mary's birth.
I continued my day of major Christian sites as I left the Old City to explore Mt. Zion and the Mount of Olives. Mt. Zion's great claim to fame is the supposed site of David's burial and the location of the Last Supper. I wish I had something amazing to say about these sites, so all I can say is I had a nice time.
Then, in a moment of craziness, I felt like walking around toward the Mount of Olives. I'm quite glad I got myself a little lost because I ended up seeing much more than I would have ever imagined. In between the Old City and the Mount of Olives is the Kidron Valley. Archaeologists are digging up amazing things that have been covered for centuries. Two of the more striking are the Tomb of Absalom, the ill-fated son of David, and the Tomb of Zechariah. After exploring the area a little bit, I met some children who called me a donkey because I refused to deal with them. I had a good laugh out of it.
Tomb of Zechariah. My shots of the Tomb of Absalom disappeared on my computer. I'm so angry.
On my way up the Mount of Olives, I explored through the graves of probably thousands of religious Jews who are buried near the Old City. The idea is that their souls will reawaken when the Messiah comes to Jerusalem. This is all hunky-dory, but there are some problems the Messiah will have to overcome. First, the gate s/he will have to go through, the Golden Gate, is sealed. To make matters worse, there is a cemetary in front of the Gate. Elijah is also supposed to go through the Gate to mark the coming of the Messiah. Well, Elijah is a Cohen, the priest tribe, and they are not allowed to go through a cemetary. As they would say in Hebrew, בלגן balagan.
View of the gate and the cemetary around it.
Entrance to the chapel of Gethsmane.
Special icon apparently only here for a week at the Tomb of Mary.
A sign outside of the Dominus Flevit.
Side story: I picked up a conversation with a random people while on the Mount of Olives. First, he asked if I were Russian due to my coloring. Then, he asked if I were a Mormon since apprently I was dressed like a Mormon for the day and hadn't realized it until that point. So, in one day, I evolved from Kenny to a Russian, Mormon donkey.
"JCS" is the common abbreviation for the musical, Jesus Christ Superstar.
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