Day 4 Part II. Western Wall and Shabbat Dinner 100 yrds away

We arrived in Jerusalem just in time for a quick overlook of the city from the south before heading to the Western Wall for the coming in of Shabbat (the Sabbath). I have been churning for a while, trying to find some sort of words or metaphor to describe the aura, weight, and experience of being present at the Western Wall of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem for the beginning of Shabbat on a Friday night. Nothing would do. I have nothing of appropriate description to paint and relate it. Singing, Praying, Dancing in Circle, Mourning, Observing, Crying, Sweating, Pushing and Shoving, Black and White Garb, Rocking and Twisting, Peace, and Organized Chaos. All words to describe, yet so much more.

(My buddy, Clark, and I. Jerusalem in background-Dome of the Rock over my bum shoulder)

From the wall we walked one half block to a Jewish community center for Shabbat dinner hosted by a wonderful, young couple who have recently immigrated to Israel from Canada. We were greeted as family, hosted as honored guests, included in the singing of the Hebrew blessings and songs, and fed very well (a common theme on the trip- each meal seems to outdo the last). Over the course of the meal, Patrick, our host asked two of our group members to speak about their impressions of Israel so far. They both spoke factually yet from the heart and afterwards, one of the Jewish-Israeli women who was eating with us rose from her seat in a purely impromptu manner. She spoke of holding back tears while hearing from us and being with us over the course of the dinner. She said that she felt a unique connection to our group and that we were unlike any student group that she has hosted before.

The dinner invoked in me a strange since of connection to our hosts and an increased love for this nation and its people. I felt a certain sense of being at home at that dinner. All of the unfamiliar and uncomfortable tensions that I have felt in the past at religious functions with which I am not accustomed faded away. Everything just seemed to click- sounds strange to most, I guess. That’s the way it is though. Patrick taught us that Shabbat is, of course, a time of rest. Shabbat dinner is supposed to be a time of joy and rest. Those two characteristics certainly lived up to their claims.

(no pictures of Wall & Shabbat because it is inappropriate to have electronic devices at the Wall during Shabbat out of formality and respect)