Destinations / Top cultural destinations in Asia / Jerusalem in Israel

 

  Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel and the largest city in the country. Situated on the Mountains of Judea, at an altitude of about 800 meters, Jerusalem, which counts 760,000 inhabitants, is one of the most beloved and visited places in the world. The city became the political, cultural and religious centre of Israel, with 450,000 Jews and 100,000 Muslims, as well as many Christians co-exisiting together. Their cohabitation raises great challenges: Muslim fanatics organize bomb attacks, to prevent any Arab-Israeli agreement.

 

  Jerusalem is one of the most important cultural and religious centers in the world. A symbol of spiritual tourism, Jerusalem is considered sacred land by Jews, Muslims and Christians, three of the four major monotheistic religions in the world. In the old city, priests, nuns, rabbis and Mullahs can be seen everywhere. Churches of all kinds scatter the city; the mosque with golden dome can be admired from far away, while the Wailing Wall is always crowded. Muslim believers come to meditate in a magnificent mosque dedicated to the spirituality of the Arab world, the beautiful Qubbat as-Sakhra. Not that far, Orthodox Jews murmure prayers at the Wailing Wall, the remains of the Second Temple destroyed by the Romans around the year 100, a living testimony of a millenary belief. And if for the Jews Zion represents the spiritual centre, the temple of Solomon, for Muslims, Jerusalem is the third city after Mecca and Medina, with the holy shrines on Mount Moriah (Dome of the Rock and El-Aqsa Mosque), for Christians, Jerusalem is the place where Jesus Christ was crucified and resurrected. Local people each pray in their own way at certain hours, while prayers, the roar from the bells from all part of the city, the shouts of the muezzin from the top of the minarets make the city become a huge litany to heaven by the evening.

 

  The history of Jerusalem is long, tumultuous and dramatic. Jerusalem is one of the oldest cities in the world -archaeologists determined after the style of pottery found in the hearth of the city that the first foundation was made 5,000 years ago. Jerusalem was the capital of the Kingdom of Judea for 400 years. It was beleaguered and conquered by the Assyrians, Persians, Romans, Arabs, and Turks. The beginnings of Christianity are related to the rule of King Herod, conquest of the Romans and the Byzantine Empire, Constantine the Great. The 19th century is the beginning of modern history of the city. The edifices were built mostly in 1931-1956, the most important being located in the area formed by Alenbi Str. to the South, Beghin and Even Gvirol Str. to the east, Haiarkon River to the north and the Mediterranean Sea to the west.

 

  The city is divided into different quarters: the Old City area with four distinct quarters (Jewish Quarter, Muslim Quarter, Christian Quarter and Armenian Quarter), new Israeli town (West Jerusalem) and Arabic one (East Jerusalem). Considered a Holy City, Jerusalem features many religious edifices, which annually attract millions of believers. What impresses most is the Old City area surrounded by walls, with narrow streets with entrance through eight gates, of which the best known one is the Lions’ Gate. The Old City has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1982. Beyond these gates, there are the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Ecce Homo arch, the Armenian Quarter with the Cathedral of St. James, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, from where one can enjoy the wonderful panorama of the city. In the Muslim quarter, on the Temple Mount there can be visited the Qubbat as-Sakhara mosque. Tomb of David is located in the western part of town.

 

  Wailing Wall is the pilgrimage destination of Jews around the world. Located to the west, on the outskirts of the Temple Mount, it is the holiest place of the Jews and it represents the ruins of Solomon’s Temple destroyed by the Romans in AD 70. The temple was built in the tenth century AD and was destroyed by Babylonians; the second temple was completed in 516. Much of the wall, 488 meters long, is underground and is located in the Old City area. The height of the wall is 32 m, of which 19 m can be seen only. The wall has 45 rows of stone, of which 28 are on the surface. The first seven stone rows date from the reign of Herod the Great, the following seven rows date from the seventh century, while the other 14 rows were added during Ottoman domination. The last three layers were added before 1967. On the esplanade in front of the wall there are held prayers and religious events. Believers put their wish notes in the wall, besides praying here. Twice a year, before Easter and Jewish New Year, notes are removed and buried on the Mount of Olives. The best time to visit the Wailing Wall is during the feast of Sabbath, from Friday evening to Saturday morning, when all Jews gather, sing and dance on traditional Jewish songs until dawn.

 

  Church of the Holy Sepulchre, called by the Orthodox the Church of Resurrection (as Jesus resurrected here) boasts the most important Christian sites: Mount Calvary and Jesus's tomb. Immediately after the resurrection of Jesus, Golgotha and the Holy Sepulchre were revered as sacred by all Christian believers around the world. By the order of the Roman emperor Hadrian, who could not stand Jews and Christians, on the site of Golgotha there was built a pagan temple, which was later demolished in the fourth century and replaced by a complex of edifices in the honour of the Savior. In 325, Emperor Constantine ordered for the most beautiful church in the world to be built here. This was completed by the architects Zenobiu and Eustatiu and in 335 the building was dedicated and named the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The building was burned by the Persians in 614, resisted the 808 earthquake and was demolished in 1009. The church was rebuilt by the Byzantine emperors and later on by the crusaders, with the works being completed in 1149. Another major restoration work has been undergone by Franciscan monks in 1555. The current dome dates from 1870. The last major restoration took place in 1994-1997. Church of Holy Sepulchre stands as a bell on top of Golgotha and the churches located there.

 

  Dome of the Rock, often called the Mosque of Omar, is a sanctuary that was built by the order of Caliph Abd al-Malik ben Marwan on the Temple Mount, the third most sacred place in Islam, the place where al-Aqsa Mosque dating from the seventh century stands too. It is the largest mosque in Jerusalem and can accommodate up to five thousand people. The Esplanade of the Mosques is the third holiest place in Islam after Mecca and Medina.

 

  In Jerusalem there is another church that became a pilgrimage site: the Church of All Nations, built, as the name suggests, by several nations. It lies on the Mount of Olives, next to the Garden of Gethsemane. It is the place where the entire panorama of the city can be admired. That is the place where Jesus prayed in the night before he was crucified, and the name of the Church of All Nations was given as to its construction several countries countributed. In the fourth century, on that site there was a basilica that was destroyed by an earthquake; the Crusaders built a chapel instead. The current church was designed by the Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi and was built between 1919 and 1924. The church is cared for by the Franciscan monks, and inside there is a piece of stone where it is said that Jesus prayed.

 

  Besides all these wonderful sanctuaries, Jerusalem also features an impressive number of museums such as the Israel museum, the largest and most prestigious institution of this kind here, exhibiting a great collection of painting and sculpture as well as famous artifacts alike the manuscripts of the Dead Sea. Also, the Islamic Museum, a series of memorial houses, the museums dedicated to David, the second king of the people of Israel, are part of the vast cultural heritage that should be included in the tourist circuits. 

 

  Nightlife is not as diverse as in Tel Aviv, but not entirely lacking. Most cafes and bars around the Old City area close at sunset. On Saturday evening, at the end of the Sabbath, you can have fun in the surrounding areas of Yoel Solomon Street, Yaffa, Rivlin and Zion.

 

  Jerusalem urges you to look beyond your own religion and accept spirituality in its complexity of forms.

 

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