Reading Response #2

It’s very interesting how a city with such religious and cultural significance can also at the same have “the most fiercely contested history of any city in the world” (Khalidi 1). In addition, it was new to me that the it is not necessarily the religious beliefs that the conflict stems from but rather the narrative of Jerusalem’s history. And the different variations of the political agenda are what also seem to be highly contested between both sides of the conflict.

But expanding beyond the conflict is the issue of the numerous faiths that occupy Jerusalem and its effects. The three Abrahamic faiths each have their complied stories and occurrence of events, in the Bible, Gospel and Quran. The fact that most of these events cannot necessarily be verified using historical methodology, to many people it’s the religious tradition that is what grounds individuals to the holy city of Jerusalem.

The influence of all the faiths has had a very significant impact on Jerusalem’s history. It is also a question of who were the original inhabitants of the land. Following the Islamic conquest in the 7^th century, Jerusalem’s population was Arabized (Khalidi 2). The tradition shared by both Arab Christians and Muslims, is what ultimately has caused both groups to have an utterly strong connection to the holy city. The religious nature of the city for Muslims serves as the third holiest place in the world. Such significance in the monumental structures of Jerusalem, such as the Dome of the Rock and Al-Masjid Al Aqsa have deep connections with Muslims in respect to the religious nature of the buildings that date back to the first century of the Muslim Era.

Ever since the arrivals of the Europe knights dating back to 1099, there was always a constant struggle with the “intemperate arrivals”(Khalidi 3). Despite the certain degree of tolerance there was still difficult in maintaining the city of Jerusalem from being seized. By the Crusaders attempting to take Jerusalem this caused the Arabs and Muslims to unite to protect and recover the city that means everything to them.  Learning that the Ottoman era (1516-1917) was the last period in which Jerusalem was under Islamic sovereignty brings me to tears knowing the blood, sweat and tears that were lost to maintain the Islamic religious endowments. The impact of this conflict that began to implant itself in Palestine in the late 19^th century has become so massive that the religious history of the buildings and structures mean more to the Palestinians than ever before.