Old City Walls

The current wall around the old city in Jerusalem was built in 1538 by Suleiman I, the longest reigning Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. This Turkish empire had control of the land that is now Israel from the late 1400's to the early 1900's.

The holes in the wall were used be soldiers to attack anyone trying to capture the city.

Camels vs. Cars

I was traveling through the Negev Desert in southern Israel last week where it is more common to see a camel parked next to a house rather than a car.

While they make for a bumpy ride, you can't beat their gas mileage!

Dome of the Rock

The building with the gold dome is called the Dome of the Rock, which was completed in 691 AD. Gold was not put on the outside of the dome until 1998, after an 8.2 million donation was made from King Hussein of Jordon, who sold one of his houses in London to fund the project. The Dome of the Rock is located on top of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, above the Western Wall.

The Temple Mount (see black and white diagram), the man-made platform on which the Dome rests, was greatly enlarged under King Herod the Great. Today, the Dome of the Rock is a shrine, rather than a functional mosque. The functional mosque located on the Temple Mount, the Al Aqsa Mosque (the shorter building shown), was finished in 705 AD. Al Aqsa translates to "the farthest mosque".

The world religion Islam was founded by an Arabian from Mecca named Muhammad (Muhammed, Mohammed)(ca.570-632 AD), who claimed he received repeated supernatural revelations from God through the angel Gabriel. Muslims believe this began at age 40 in the Islamic month of Ramadan. These revelations were memorized and written down by his followers and were then compiled into the Muslim bible, the Koran (Qur'an). Muhammad died in 632 at the age of 63 after battling a sickness. Some manuscripts say he was buried in the place where he died. Other manuscripts say Muhammad went on a night journey from Mecca to the farthest Mosque, translated Al Aqsa, and there ascended from the rock to Heaven accompanied by Gabriel. Based on this information, The Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque together are considered the third most holy site to Muslims, behind Mecca and Medina.

Many people today believe that the Dome of the Rock was also the exact former sight of the First and Second Jewish Temples, destroyed in 587 BC and 70 AD respectively. Jews are still discussing the exact location of the Holy of Holies, the most sacred part of the temple, in preparation for the construction of a third temple. Jews agree that this location is on top of the Temple Mount. Herein lies the reason that the Temple Mount is one of the most contested pieces of property today.

Ayelet

This is Ayelet (eye-ael-ate), one of the Israelis that Sunshine Community Development has been helping. She made aliyah (the imigration of a Jewish person to Israel) from the Ukraine just after her 17th birthday. Arriving in Israel all alone since her parents were not able to come at the that time, she stayed in an Israeli aliyah youth "camp" with other young Russians during her first year. There she was taught basic Hebrew as well as the customs of Israel. The camp was a very difficult time for her as she was alone and young.

Three years later, she now works in a stationary store for minimum wage, which is not really enough to pay rent and bills here. Israel will pay for her to go to college, but she does not have enough money for daily living expenses and must work. Ayelet would like a good job but, like many youth, she is not sure of the direction she should pursue. Sunshine CD helped her with transportation and food expenses this month. Thank you for your donations!

Shabbat

Shabbat is about to begin here in Israel. From Friday night to Saturday night, all the stores, restaurants, and places of employment close. The Western Wall is a popular place on Friday night before sundown. The sections in front of the wall are divided into a men's section and a women's section.


The men, who are leaving the wall, are dressed in their Shabbat attire. Even in the summer, some Jewish men wear fur hats as opposed to other fabrics better suited to the climate. The style of hat denotes the county from which they come.