Four Quarters - One Whole?

 

 

    There is no doubt that Jerusalem holds incredible significance to all three Abrahamic religions; Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The city contains the Dome of the Rock, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the Western Wall, which are all showcased in the documentary and considered holy sites by Muslims, Christians, and Jews respectively. Even though these sites exist in incredibly close proximity within the same city, the communities that venerate them exist as distinctly separate entities. Over the course of the documentary, members of each of Jerusalem's religious communities are interviewed, and they share what significance the city holds to them. Each person shares a love and bond with the city, but they also identify strongly with their own religious group. They see themselves as a Muslim, a Jew, a Christian, not a Jerusalemite.

    There is a self awareness about the separation of the communities living in Jerusalem, however. One of the women featured says as much, remarking on how she is curious about the other religious communities in the city. The subject of separation is interesting, as it does not seem to come from any sort of malicious desire to avoid people of other religions. Instead, it seems Jerusalem is more separated based on how much reverence individual people have for the city and sites, specific to their religion. A site holy to Christians may not be holy to Jews, and so it makes sense why a Jew would not find it necessary to enter the Christian Quarter to go visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This sort of fixation on one's own religious community would only be more present in religious pilgrims, who have come to the city to see the holy sites, and not necessarily stay long enough to take in what day to day life is like beyond the religious significance of the sites they visit.

Even though each community that calls Jerusalem home may live separately, they share a love for the city itself. The end of the documentary carries an optimistic sentiment that I share, that each community may look beyond itself to learn and satisfy its curiosity about the other communities that live side by side.