THE MOST SACRED SHRINE FOR JEWS
Strong voices ring out in song as other voices join in prayer. It’s
Friday evening in the Old City of Jerusalem, and the Sabbath, a holy day
for people of the Jewish faith, is beginning.
The people sing and pray before their most sacred shrine. In Hebrew,
this shrine is called the Western Wall. That’s just what it is—the
western wall of an ancient courtyard.
A glorious Temple once stood inside the courtyard. The Temple was
destroyed and rebuilt more than once. Finally, only part of the western
wall remained. Then the Jews were driven from their homeland. Many years
passed before they could return to stay. But the Temple was never
rebuilt.
Jews come from all over the world to pray at the wall. Many write
prayers and messages on pieces of paper. They place the papers in small
openings in the wall. They also wail, or cry, for the loss of their
Temple. That’s why the wall has come to be known as the Wailing Wall.
Jews pray before the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.
Men wear either a hat or yarmulka to show respect for God.
