Shabbat Shalom

I just briefly wanted to share my experience at the Wailing Wall on Friday night. The wailing wall, also known as the western wall, is the last thing standing after the destruction of the second temple built by the Jews during the time of Herod the Great in 19 BC and destroyed in 70 AD by the Romans. The Jews to this day have not been able to rebuild their temple on the temple mount, so this wall is the most sacred place on earth to most Jews. On Friday nights, thousands of Jewish people gather at the wall to welcome in the Shabbat (sabbath). I got to experience this firsthand and it was unbelievable! Because it is so sacred, pictures are not allowed so here's some pictures I got from google.

I'm not sure why the men are wearing white in this picture because they weren't when I was there, but I'm sure it has some sort of religious significance. Men are on the left, and women are on the right.

The women go to the right side and the men go to the left. The men in our group had to wear kipas and to be honest I was a little jealous of the men's side because they there was a lot of dancing and singing the BYU guys got to join in on. On both sides, people make their way up to the wall, put their hand on it, recite prayers, read the Torah, and shove prayers written on paper into the cracks of the wall. The women's side is full of a lot more crying (because it is so spiritual) and "wailing" than the men's side but I guess that's just because women are usually more inclined to cry. I was able to make my way up to the wall, place my hand on it, and admire the history and traditions of this Holy Land. Being surrounded by so many devout Jewish women reading sacred scripture and worshiping God left me overwhelmed with appreciation for religious people who have endured so much persecution and oppression throughout so many thousands of years. I was also able to look in on the men's side who were doing the same as the women and watched groups of them singing and dancing in their kipas and top hats in celebration of the Sabbath. There was even some crowd surfing at one point! I've grown a deep respect for the people here because they are so religious- whether they are Jewish, Muslim, or Christian, people here are very dedicated to their religion. I feel like I'm doing a terrible job of portraying how awe-inspiring this experience was, but I guess the only way it can be fully understood is to experience it firsthand.