Wednesday, 17 October  ~ Debby Owen

Today was a very full day and a day full of juxtapositions. We had to go through an Israeli checkpoint to reach the path Jesus took on Palm Sunday.

Women praying at Al Aqsa

We had the incredible privilege of visiting the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in the Muslim world, which sits meters from the Western or Wailing Wall, where Jews come to offer their special prayers.

Women praying – Western Wall

And we walked the Via Dolorosa, the most mournful walk in the Christian world, while surrounded by the colorful wares and fragrant spices of assertive merchants trying to tempt us to stop and spend. Yet this kaleidoscope of the sacred and holy sites of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity enriches and nourishes us in our own faith and reaffirms our common humanity.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

I was struck by the group of women praying in the mosque together and minutes later seeing the crowd of women praying at the Western Wall, while later in the afternoon watching women light candles in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, knowing they were most likely offering up the same prayers for their loved ones and for peace. Jerusalem, more than any place on earth, diminishes our differences and illuminates our similarities and demonstrates that we are all God’s people.