The moon rose in fullness....

As the turn of events would have it, Don's employer decided to put us in a hotel in West (Jewish) Jerusalem. I was very happy about that personally because I wasn't too enthusiastic about secular Israel. I wanted the Holy Land. Jerusalem, divided into sectors, seemed to be a collecting place for all sorts of traditionalists; Muslim, Jewish and Christian. Tel Aviv is very secular, highly influenced by the West. Tel Aviv is to Israel what Bangkok is to Thailand. In Jerusalem, you will see no vulgar billboards or the crass behavior that seems so common in Tel Aviv.

I am a religious pluralist who believes that all religions are just denominations of the Great Religion. A good test of a religion is whether it turns ordinary people into decent people and extraordinary people into saints. We all know those people. There's just something about them that exudes "God". Using that standard, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism and all the other faiths are all true, regardless of the conflicting theologies.

Given that, Jerusalem was the best place I could hope for to get a taste of the three main Abrahamic religions. All of them loved Jerusalem for the same reason. One person said that it is where heaven and earth intermingle. That very well might be true. We could walk two miles in one direction and see Muslims in their unique environment. We could go a few miles in another direction and talk with Christians. We could look out the window and experience the Jewish sector.

It must have been something in the air but in the early morning, we were able to hear the call of the muezzin. Even though it was amplified, it still sounded melodic and haunting. Five times a day, the voice would stop us in our tracks, reminding us of something bigger than our measly existences and oh, so, important activities. I saw a Muslim on a crane at a construction site prostrate himself as though he was blessing the city.

This is life in Jersusalem. You see evidence of faith everywhere.

One time while Don was working, I wandered a few streets of food stalls and outside markets. I heard a steady and deep voice singing a Sufi song: "When Mohammed came to Mecca, the moon rose in fullness." He sat there alone in a chair, watching people come and go. As we'd pass him, he would say that he wished for our "truest prayers" to be granted.

In another snippet of conversation overheard, someone said, "The Lord speaks of a person going on a journey. He stops to rest under a tree and then goes on his way. The short time he spent under the tree is the amount of time we spend in this world."

These kinds of discussions could be heard everywhere. In coffee shops, in restaurants and on the street. It was lively and spirited, even though it was nearly always reverent. I don't recall hearing arguments, although I'm sure they took place.

Israel was tense at that time. Each sector of Jerusalem saw the others as threats to their own existence. Terrorism was always around the corner. Despite the many peacemakers, there were those who wanted to destroy all that had been built in the name of their own particular brand of fundamentalism.....

More tomorrow.....



Peace,


~Chani