The Temple Mount

On this last full day of my time in Jerusalem, I was privileged to set foot upon the Temple Mount. Known in Hebrew as the Har ha-Bayit and in Arabic as al-Haram al-Qudsi ash-Sharif, this is the holiest site in Judaism, one of the three holiest sites in Islam, and one of the holiest sites in Christianity, for it was here that Jesus's teaching, ministry and last days were centered. In my faith the Temple Mount has additional significance, as my beliefs also center upon Temples and Temple worship.

According to Jewish tradition, the Temple Mount is Mount Moriah, the place where Abraham went up to offer Isaac, his son. Here the Israelites built a Temple under King Solomon, which stood on the site for some 400 years until its destruction by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C.Two later Jewish Temples were built or expanded on the site, in 538 B.C. and again by Herod after 19 B.C.

My personal feelings on visiting this last and greatest site in the Holy City are deep and emotional. There is a power in this place unlike any other. A few impressions. First, I was amazed at the sheer size of the Temple Mount. Indeed, the area is so vast that on the outer fringes one has the sense of being in the country, among the trees and flowers on little country paths. Also, there is a profound sense of peace in the holy space, of something more powerful and more vital than anything below in the bustling and strife-filled city.

As a final act of devotion in my visit to this holy city, I took away a small white stone from the Temple Mount, near the inside of the long-sealed Golden Gate, which I will take with me back to United States.