Wailing Wall - (in Hebrew "Hakotel Hama'aravi, "Kotel," also Western Wall) - The "Wailing Wall" is all or part of the Western Wall of the ancient Jewish temple destroyed by Titus in 70 C.E. The Muslims believe that Mohamed tethered his horse here when he and the horse were transported miraculously from Arabia to Jerusalem in one night by Allah. They call the wall al Buraq.
The wall, apparently an outer retaining wall or surrounding wall of the Second temple or the Herodian restoration, was the only part of the Temple remaining after Titus sacked Jerusalem.
Jews have prayed at the Wailing Wall for nearly two thousand years. In Jewish tradition, the Wailing Wall is holier than any other accessible place. The Temple mount, the Temple and its courtyard are holier, but are off limits to most Orthodox Jews. A tradition of placing prayers or requests written on small pieces of paper in cracks in the Wall goes back hundreds of years.
| 
Wailing Wall, 1912 (Larger Photo)
|
The wall was a frequent point of friction with Arabs. In 1929, riots began (see Arab Riots and Massacres of 1929) because rumors were spread that Jews were going to build a synagogue at the Wailing Wall. The British government, appeasing the Arabs, issued a document in 1931 guaranteeing the rights of the Muslims to the wall and limiting Jewish rights. In 1948, when Jerusalem fell to the Jordanians, they prevented Jewish access to the Wailing Wall, in violation of the armistice agreements, and built structures close to the wall. In 1967, when the old city of Jerusalem was liberated by Israel, the wall was restored. Structures built near the wall were cleared, and archeologists dug out parts of the wall that had been buried.
It became a custom to hold Bar-Mitzvah ceremonies at the wall, as well as other events. In recent years, friction developed between orthodox Jews and conservative and reform Jewish women, because the latter wished to pray in the area that orthodox Jews have reserved for men.
Synonyms and alternate spellings: Al Buraq, Western Wall, Kotel Hama'aravi)
Further Information: Arab Riots and Massacres of 1929
Destination Yisra’el Archives on the Eastern Wall of the Temple Mount
Jewish Visitors straining to see the Western Wall (circa 1929)
Modern Orthodox Jews at the Western Wall
- See more at: http://destination-yisrael.biblesearchers.com/destination-yisrael/2012/07/tisha-bav-mourning-at-the-western-wall-90-years-ago.html#sthash.z0klKJda.dpuf
Tisha B'Av -- Mourning at the Western Wall 90 Years Ago
Notice the Jewish cemetery in the foreground and how there are no Arab graves aligning the Eastern Wall to desecrate the entrance to the Eastern Gate and prevent the coming of the Messiah
Destination Yisra’el Archives on the Eastern Wall of the Temple Mount
The ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av -- Tisha B'Av -- is the day in the Hebrew calendar when great calamities befell the Jewish people, including the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem, the fall of the fortress Beitar in the Jewish rebellion against Rome in 136 CE, and the expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492. The day is commemorated with fasting, prayers and the reading ofLamentations. In Jerusalem, thousands pray at the Kotel, the Western Wall.
Jewish men sitting on the ground at the "Wailing Wall" (circa 1935)
The American Colony photographers frequently focused their cameras on the worshipers at the "Wailing Place of the Jews." The Colony founders who came to Jerusalem in 1881 were devout Christians who saw the return of the Jews to the Holy Land as a sign of messianic times.
Of the dozens of pictures at the Kotel there are several of elderly men and women sitting on the ground or on low stools, customs of mourning practiced on Tisha B'Av.
"Devout Jewish women" at the Wailing Wall (circa 1900).
One of the two women on the left is wearing a traditional Arab embroidered dress. We suggest that the two women in the black cloaks were companions or care-givers to the Jewish women.
Note others sitting on the ground. The day is almost certainly Tisha B'Av and he is probably reading the Book of Lamentation.
See another view here
Other pictures presented here show the very narrow and confined area of the Kotel over the ages until Israel's army captured the Old City in 1967 and enlarged the Kotel plaza.
The tragedies that occurred to the Jewish nation are also evident in the pictures of the deserted plaza after Arab pogroms in 1929. The area was deserted, of course, during the 19 years of Jordanian rule of the Old City when Jews were forbidden to pray at the site.
Modern Orthodox Jews at the Western Wall
A story is told of Napoleon passing a synagogue and hearing congregants inside mourning. To his question who they are mourning, he was told they were weeping over the destruction of the Jewish Temple 1,800 years earlier. Napoleon responded, according to the legend, "If the Jews are still crying after so many hundreds of years, then I am certain the Temple will one day be rebuilt."
Dedicated in memory of Chaim Menachem ben Levi
Credit to Israel Daily Picture a Day – “Tisha B'Av -- Mourning at the Western Wall 90 Years Ago” - July 26, 2012
************
To the one who has an innate curiosity to know more about the role of the Temples of King Solomon and later King Herod in the lives of the Hebrews and then later just the Jews, this may be a genetic whistle by HaShem, the G-d of Israel who is calling you back to the brotherhood of Klal Yisra’el (All Israel). To learn more about this redemptive process, you are Welcome to Contact “Kol Ha Tor”, the Voice of the Turtledove.
Here is a joint Orthodox Jewish and 10-Triber Mission to bring awareness of the imminent fulfillment of the Biblical Prophecies regarding the Redemption of all Israel (12 Tribes Re-conciled and Re-United). This super Event of all Times will entail establishing in the region of Shomron (the Ancient Bible Heartland of the Patriarchs) and the Judean Wilderness into a new homeland for the Return of the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel when All Israel will finally be redeemed.
For inquiries about Kol Ha Tor Vision for the Lost Tribes of Israel, Visit – “Shomron Lives!”, a Spiritual Retreat and Guest House in Samaria, that hosts Shomron (Samaria) Tours to reacquaint the Returning Lost Tribers of the House of Israel.
No comments:
Post a Comment