Feb. 16th Temple Mount, Dome of the Rock, More Old City etc.

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU DO YOUR FIVE POSTS BEFORE I GET BACK :)

Again, it’s overwhelming how many things I have seen and how much I still will have to show you when I get back!

Today, we started the day by going to the Dome of the Rock. This is the 3rd holiest site for Muslims because of the rock that is housed there. This picture is up close at the dome and then the next shows it father away from the Mount of Olives, which in Christian tradition is where Jesus is supposed to return from. I couldn’t enter the dome because I’m not Muslim. However, the rock there is not only important to Muslim but Jews as well.
1.      Why is this rock important to Jews? Why is it important to Muslims?

This statue is of the disciple of Jesus who denied him, Peter. Judas, was the betrayer, basically he sold Jesus out. We will learn a little about the disciples when we learn about Christianity, which started during the time of the Roman Empire. At first, Christianity was met with lots of adversity, however it was later legalized in the Roman Empire.

2. So what language is written on the statue?

The area where Jesus was born is called Bethlehem. This area is technically part of Israel, but is highly contested so when we went to the Church of the Nativity, we had to be searched by soldiers with M16s when we left. Basically, there is a large wall surrounding this area not allowing the people who live here to leave. It's a very rough political situation and I will try my best to explain more about it to you when I get back. The picture below shows the wall that surrounds the entire area.

3. What is this contested area called?

This is one of my favorite churchs - The Church of all Nations. I will tell you more about it when I get back too, but this area picture shows America's seal in the ceiling.