Isabel Ford

Professor Stacey M Burelson

Humanities 1301

August 2022

The Western Wall and its Significance

The Western Wall is known around the world as one of Judaism's most significant places.

For Jewish people, it is a place of prayer and holiness. This wall is located in Jerusalem and is

one of the oldest holy sites in Judaism.

Understanding the significance of the Western Wall, it is important to know the

background on Judaism itself. It is known as one of the “Big Three” religions, along with Islam

and Christianity. Each are monotheistic and stems from Abraham. The religion’s prophet, Moses,

started leading them well before Jesus’ time in History. The Isrealites (named after Abraham’s

grandson), were located in Egypt. However, they became slaves for the Egyptians. The story

goes that God reached out to Moses to lead the Irealites out of slavery to their land that god has

waiting for them. (Ahuvia, 2016) This became known as the Exodus in the Bible and is one of

the most popular stories to come out of it. It is also widely debated whether the exodus actually

happened or if it was fictitious.

One of Judaism's religious holidays actually comes from this exodus. Passover is still

celebrated by Jews today, and originated in Egypt. The story was that God was punishing Egypt

because they had the Israelites enslaved. So he sent many “Curses” to affect Egypt. One of these

curses was the eldest son in the household to be killed. But Jewish people knew this would

happen so the put the blood of lamb on the door to save their child and show that they follow
God. (History.com, 2009) Now passover is represented through a dinner held in households, and

the food eaten during these dinner’s represent something.

Moses is extremely important to Judaism. He was raised in egypt during the time of

Jewish slavery. There actually was an order that all born Israelites be killed, however his mother

hid him to prevent this from happening. When she could no longer keep him, she floated him

down the river in a basket. A woman from the palace actually found him and raised him.

(Menachem Posner) Moses went out on his own after killing a man, and God appeared to him in

a burning bush, giving him instruction to free the israelites.

In addition to freeing his people from Slavery, Moses did more for them. He wrote the

ten commandments on a stone, and Moses was also the one to write the Torah (Jewish holy

book). Moses was also the one that spent 40 days and 40 nights on the mountain.

Later in History, the Babylonians started expanding, threatening the Jews and Israel. This

caused the Jews to move elsewhere around the middle east to flee from them. However, the

religion stayed intact despite the nation being scattered. (Ahuvia, 2016) Almost a century later,

the Persians started conquering where the Babylonians were. However, the Persians wanted to

make amends with the Jews, so they allowed them to come back into Israel. The Persian king

Cyrus was actually recognized as a king by the Jewish. (Ahuvia, 2016)

There are also more significant things in Judaism. It is important to know the religion so

we can recognize the Western Wall and its importance better. In Judaism, the holy book they use

is a Torah. It can be compared to the Bible in Christianity. Jews base their way of life on this

book. They determine their holy day, when and what they can eat, and also what to expect in the

afterlife. A lot of the reason Judaism and Christianity separated was because of the way the
Torah was interpreted. In modern media, when bahmitzfah’s are portrayed, the text that is being

read is the Torah.

Another recognizable thing from Judaism is Hanukkah. It started after the Maccabees’

victory over Antiochus IV, after he tried to end Judaism entirely and outlawing the practice of it.

After the Maccabees win, it started an 8 day celebration, which is now known as Hanukkah.

(Himeles, 2022)

The Western Wall is the most significant place for jewish people. The traditional place of

worship in Judaism is a Temple. The very first temple built in Jerusalem was the Temple Mount.

This was the main place of worship for the Jews. Like talked about previously, the Babylonians

attacked, causing them to disperse. The Babylonians were extremely destructive when trying to

conquer land, and in doing so destroyed part of the Temple Mount. When the Persains gained

control, Jews attempted to rebuild what the babylonians had destroyed, making a second temple.

During the Reign of the Roman Empire, Jewish people were yet again persecuted under

rule. This caused a rebellion against the empire within Jerusalem. The rebellion resulted in the

city trying to be overtaken, and some battles occurring within the temple. (Perry, 2022) The only

standing wall left is the Western Wall. It is also known as the wailing wall because its common

for people to be crying during prayer or ceremony. The reason its so important is because it

represents the only remaining part of the temple. It gives hope to the Jewish people that even

through multiple persecutions throughout history, they still can come to the original place of

worship that God blessed them with.

Now the western wall is a mass place of worship for the Jewish. The wall is a stone wall,

so there are cracks in place from natural deterioration. In these cracks you can actually find

written prayers, flowers, and other important things that people wanted to leave. Another
interesting thing is that the wall is divided into a male area and a female area. There is also a

certain dress code that you're supposed to wear when praying. The wall is open to everyone and

they can visit, but you must follow the certain regulations they have in place, since it is a site of

prayer and holiness. (Britannica, 2022)

The western wall is actually disputed over between Judaism and Islam. The wall connects

with the Dome of Rock, which is were the first prophet of Islam is believed to go to heaven

from. There was conflict between both Islam and Judaism in the late 1960s to control the city,

and ever since then tension has been tight. Both sides regularly try to control the wall and claim

“ownership” of it. Ironically it is a holy place for both religions.

The architecture of the wall is notable as well. Currently the praying area is raised from

its original level. However, there was a plan to lower that area back down to its original ground

level, and then allow more areas to be restored. Many parts of the western wall have been

restored, but there’s other areas that have not been touched. You can actually tour the original

tunnels that ran under the temple. (Safdie Architects, 2022)

The wall is still relevant today due to its large significance to the Judaism religion. Jewish

people have been persecuted since the beginning of time for their belief and Faith in God. This

happened with the Babylonians, the Greeks, the Romans, and more recently the holocaust. The

western wall is a symbol of a still prevalent hope that they share. For the temple to have gone

through two attacks and still have a part of it standing over 2,000 years later is astonishing.

Currently there are almost 15,000,000 active practicing Jews. Whether the story of the exodus

and the promise land is true or not, there is still a large amount of people rallying behind that

story.
 Works Cited

Greenberg, Rabbi Irving. “Why the Exodus Was so Significant.” My Jewish Learning, 13

Apr. 2020, https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-exodus-effect/.

Himeles, Sara. “How to Celebrate Hanukkah.” Unpacked, 26 July 2022,

https://jewishunpacked.com/how-to-celebrate-hanukkah/.

History.com Editors. “Passover.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 9 Nov. 2009,

https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/passover.

Jewish Population by Country 2022,

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/jewish-population-by-country.

“Landscape of Jerusalem.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.,

https://www.britannica.com/place/Jerusalem/Landscape.

Moses - the Israelite Prophet and Lawgiver Known as Moshe in ... - Chabad.

https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/73398/jewish/Moses.htm.

Perry, Tyler. “The Siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE.” World History Encyclopedia,

Https://Www.worldhistory.org#Organization, 5 Aug. 2022,

https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1993/the-siege-of-jerusalem-in-70-ce/.

Tourist Israel. “Western Wall.” Tourist Israel, 17 Mar. 2021,

https://www.touristisrael.com/western-wall/15946/.
“Western Wall Precinct.” Safdie Architects,

https://www.safdiearchitects.com/projects/western-wall-precinct.

“Who Are Jews? an Overview of Jewish History from Ancient Times on, and the Origins

of Antisemitism.” UW Stroum Center for Jewish Studies, 11 Mar. 2022,

https://jewishstudies.washington.edu/who-are-jews-jewish-history-origins-antisemitism/.