The Many Faces of Jerusalem

July 6, 2017

By: Jared Hurwitz

So today was packed...

This years ISS theme is "The Many Faces of Israel," and today was extremely consistent with that theme. We started the day with a bus ride to the Old City. Our first stop in the Old City was a quick tour around The Dome of the Rock. We toured the area outside the mosques. After our tour, we crossed over to the Western Wall. We had 20 minutes or so to put our notes in the wall or have a moment of prayer. I had a small mishap at the wall with some birds but I later learned that it's a sign that my prayers will be answered. After the Wall, we walked to the Christian quarter and many of us toured a church. Following that tour, we were all given a half an hour to shop in some of the stores nearby. For lunch, we were given money and walked around the food court in groups. Touring such a historic and holy site that means so much to the Jewish people and has brought so much joy and hope deeply impacted us all. This impact was paired with the rare opportunity given to us to tour one of the holiest sites for two of the worlds major religions. Actually visiting these sites that attract so much attention and debate provided us with a new perspective and appreciation. After our visit, we rode the bus to a chasidish neighborhood where we listened and asked questions to a chasidish Jew. Afterwards we went to a challah bake with another religious woman. Seeing these two chasidish figures showed us the range of Jews that we don't have in Baltimore. We wound up the busy day with a seminar where we heard from a secular and an Orthodox Jew about politics in Israel. This seminar evolved into a discussion within our group, where we had a panel from both sides of the political and religious spectrums. Despite the ideological differences between the conservative and orthodox program leaders, as well as the differences between our own cohort, we were able to engage in positive and constructive debate with the universal goal of strengthening elongating the state of Israel. Back at the hostel we had dinner and then magal layla. So far, so good!