Postcard from Jerusalem
Published in
May 12, 2021
DOME OF THE ROCK/AL-AQSA PLAZA, est. 691 🇵🇸
The Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem is charged with symbolism and contention. Often overlooked is the significance of its location on Temple Mount (Harem al-Sharif) to Prophet Muhammad’s first followers, who prostrated toward Jerusalem years before making Mecca the Muslim capital.
Islam is, as it was conceived, an offshoot of the Abrahamic faith, and fundamentally as “western” a religion as Judaism and Christianity.
The name simply means “The Furthest Mosque,” but of course it’s not the furthest anymore. That would be the Southland Muslim Association in Invercargill, New Zealand.
