Daily Alert Archives

A Muslim Pilgrimage to Jerusalem

(Toronto Sun-Canada) Salim Mansur - I arrived on a Saturday, when practically all of Jerusalem shuts down for the Jewish Sabbath. The Old City was open, however, and after a brief rest I headed down Jaffa Rd., Jerusalem's main artery, for my first visit to the Holy Sanctuary or, in Arabic, al-Quds Sharif. I joined the evening prayer congregation at the Dome of the Rock and bowed, knelt and touched the sacred soil of Jerusalem with my forehead. Later I walked over to the Western Wall, where a large number of Jews of all ages were gathered at the end of their Shabbat. The ease with which I moved - alone and without restrictions - from the inner sanctum of the Muslim sanctuary to Judaism's holiest site, embracing both, is a testimony to the openness of Israel as a Jewish state and democracy. Palestinian, Arab and Muslim narratives of Jerusalem's recent history, however, are a denial of what my experience affirms, and the larger denial of Jewish rights that is the source of conflict here.
2010-08-06 09:23:43
Full Article