Jerusalem

I can’t think of any place in the world that can match the history and complexity of Jerusalem. Center of the universe for the three great monotheistic religions, Judaism, Islam and Christianity, it remains a city divided by the schisms of those religions. Jews pray at the Western Wall, Christian pilgrims walk the path of the ‘Via Dolorosa‘, the route of Jesus’s crucifixion, and Muslims worship at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. Despite the essential role of religion here, Jerusalem hardly felt awash in spiritual uplift. Most of us know, or think we know, the broad strokes of the story.

Putting aside the politics and recent history, the main sticking points are property disputes. Palestinians and Israelis both claim Jerusalem as the capitol of their respective homelands. In today’s version of this ancient dispute, the Israelis run the show and show little interest in the Palestinians ever having a homeland. Palestinians chafe at Israeli rule, which has become a de-facto apartheid, something that’s never gone down well with the rest of the Muslim world. Further heightening the political frisson is the disputed status of the Temple Mount, or as Muslims know it, ‘al-Haram al-Sharif’.

Some 3000 years ago this was the site of Solomon’s temple.  Today, the large plaza at the top is home to the Al-Aqsa mosque, the third holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina. Even more prominent, perhaps, is one of the world’s most stunning Islamic architectural gems, the Dome of the Rock, which has become the most iconic feature of the Jerusalem skyline.