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Temple Mount

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The Temple Mount, or Noble Sanctuary, is a hill in the eastern part of the old city of Jerusalem. It was the site of the first and second Jewish Temple in Jerusalem; since the 7th century has been the site of two Muslim religious shrines, the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque. It is the holiest site in Judaism, the third holiest site in Islam, and has special significance to Christianity. It is thus one of the most contested religious sites in the world.

The religious status of the Temple Mount in Judaism and Christianity

In the Bible, the Temple Mount first appears as a threshing floor owned by Araunah the Jebusite (2 Samuel, 24:18-25) overlooking Jerusalem, which King David purchased to erect an altar. As his hands were "bloodied," he was forbidden from constructing the Temple there, so this task was left to his son Solomon, who completed the task c. 950 B.C. That Temple was destroyed by the Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians in 586 B.C.

According to a later rabbinic account, it was from here that God gathered the earth that was formed into Adam (some Christians later chose Golgotha as the site), and it was here that Adam--and later Cain, Abel, and Noah--offered sacrifices to God.

To Jews and Christians (though not Muslims), this is also the site where the biblical patriarch Abraham nearly offered Isaac as a sacrifice.

Many parts of Jewish rabbinic literature state that the Jews built the First Temple in Jerusalem about 3000 years ago; it is the holiest site in Judaism. The Temple was the central sites of Jewish worship. The destruction of both temples, five hundred years apart, were central points in Jewish history. Religious Jews have prayed from the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem for the last 2,000 years.

The Western Wall is one remaining wall of the Temple Mount. For all practical purposes this wall is the holiest site in Judaism. Many Jews pray there, and often leave written prayers addressed to God in the cracks of the wall.

File:Temple mount small.jpg

Aerial view of Temple Mount, with the Dome of the Rock in the center and the Al Aqsa Mosque on the upper left of the compound Full Size Version

The religious status of the Haram al-Sharif in Islam

After the Muslim conquest of this region, the Temple Mount became known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif الحرم الشريف (the Noble Sanctuary); it is traditionally regarded by Muslims as the third most important Islamic holy site, after Mecca and Medina.

Islam respects David and Solomon as prophets, and on that basis alone regards the Temple as one of the earliest and most noteworthy places of worship of God. (The Kaaba's sanctity has a similar basis in the Islamic tradition that it was built, or rebuilt, by Abraham.) When Muslims first entered the city of Jerusalem, according to Arab historians of the time (eg Mujîr-ud-Dîn[1]), the temple was being used as a rubbish dump by the Christian inhabitants, in order to humiliate the Jews and fulfill Jesus' prophecy that not a stone would be left standing on another there; the Caliph (and companion of Muhammad) Umar ibn al-Khattab, horrified to see it in such a state, ordered it cleaned and performed prayer there at once.

In addition to this, the "farthest Mosque" (al-masjid al-Aqṣa) in verse (17:1) of the Qur'an is traditionally interpreted by Muslims as referring to the site at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem on which the mosque of that name now stands, though some historians consider this interpretation to be historically invalid; see Al-Aqsa Mosque regarding this interpretation.

In 690 CE, after the Islamic conquest of Palestine, an octagonal Muslim shrine (but not a mosque) was built around the rock, which became known as the Dome of the Rock (Qubbat as-Sakhra قبة الصخرة). In 715 CE the Umayyads built a second mosque on the Temple Mount; they named this Mosque al-Masjid al-Aqsa المسجد الأقصى, the Al-Aqsa Mosque or in translation "the furthest mosque". It has been destroyed several times in earthquakes; the current version dates from the first half of the 11th century. Both buildings are considered holy to Muslims and make Jerusalem the third-holiest city, after Mecca and Medina.

The mosques are currently administered by a Waqf (an Islamic trust) that has been granted almost total autonomy starting in 1967.

Archeological Controversy

In recent years many complaints have been voiced by Jews about Muslim construction and excavation underneath the Temple Mount and by Muslims about Israeli excavation under and around the Temple Mount[2]. Some claim that this will lead to the destabilization of the Western Wall and/or the al-Aqsa Mosque, and allege that one side is doing so deliberately to cause the collapse of the sacred sites of the other. Some believe that the Palestinians are deliberately removing significant amounts of archaeological evidence about the Jewish past of the site, or that the Israelis are deliberately damaging the remains of Islamic-era buildings found in their excavations[3]. Since the Waqf is granted almost full autonomy on the Islamic holy sites, Jewish archaeologists have been forbidden from inspecting that area; they have, however, conducted several excavations around and under the Temple Mount.

In autumn 2002, a bulge of about 70 cm was reported in the Southern Wall part of the complex. It was feared that that part of the wall might seriously deteriorate or even collapse. The Waqf would not permit detailed Israeli inspection but came to an agreement with Israel that led to a team of Jordanian engineers inspecting the wall in October. They recommended repair work that involved replacing or resetting most of the stones in the affected area which covers 2,000 square feet and is located 25 feet from the top of the wall. [4] Repairs were completed by mid-2003.

Jewish Claims of Exclusivity

  • Many Israelis object to the continued Arab presence on the Temple Mount. One extreme group, the Temple Mount and Eretz Yisrael Faithful Movement advocates the removal of the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa mosque, which they deem signs of "Islamic conquest and domination", suggesting that they be "rebuilt at Mecca". This group has very little support in Israel.

Jewish Acknowledgement as Muslim Holy Site

Jews do not deny that Muslims have built religious structure on the Temple Mount. Neither do Jews deny that Muslims are "significantly invested" in the these structures.

The Arab world views Jerusalem as one -- albeit not the most significant -- of their holy places. Furthermore, while almost three-quarters of Jerusalem's citizens are Jewish, many Palestinian Arabs also call the city their home.—The Status of Jerusalem Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Israel [5]
On the 7th June 1967, immediately after the fighting had died down in Jerusalem, the then Prime Minister, Levi Eshkol, convened the spiritual leaders of all the communities in Jerusalem and assured them that "no harm whatsoever shall come to the places sacred to all religions", and that contacts should be maintained in order to make certain that spiritual activities of the religious leaders in the Old City may continue. He also mentioned that upon his request the Minister of Religious Affairs had issued instructions according to which arrangements in connection with the Western Wall, Muslim Holy Places and Christian Holy Places should be determined by the Chief Rabbis of Israel, a council of Muslim clerics and a council of Christian clergy respectively. Together with the extension of Israeli jurisdiction and administration over east Jerusalem, the Knesset passed the Preservation of the Holy Places Law, 1967, ensuring protection of the Holy Places against desecration, as well as freedom of access thereto.—Jerusalem–The Legal and Political Background Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Israel [6]

Muslim Claims of Exclusivity

Muslim Acknowledgement as site of Jewish Temple

A Brief Guide to al-Haram al-Sharif, a booklet published in 1930 by the Supreme Moslem Council, the supreme Muslim body during the British Mandate period states:

"The site is one of the oldest in the world. Its sanctity dates from the earliest times. Its identity with the site of Solomon's Temple is beyond dispute. This, too, is the spot, according to universal belief, on which David built there an altar unto the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings." A footnote refers the reader to 2 Samuel 26:25. [8]

Recent Damage

On February 16, 2004, a portion of a stone retaining wall supporting the ramp that leads from the Western Wall plaza to the Gate of the Moors (Arabic Bab al-Maghariba, Modern Hebrew Sha'ar HaMughrabim) and on the Temple Mount collapsed. [9]


See also: Al-Aqsa Mosque - Dome of the Rock

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