Fellow Travelers, Common Journey, Lissa Gundlach, November 15, 2009

Fellow Travelers, Common Journey — Lissa Gundlach

The poet Rumi wrote:

"O you who’ve gone on pilgrimage where are you, where, oh where?

Here, here is the Beloved! Oh come now, come, oh come!

Your friend, he is your neighbor, he is next to your wall."

Jerusalem may be the most Holy city in the world, a site of pilgrimage for Christians, Jews, Muslims, and seekers alike. The Temple Mount is a shared spiritual landmark for Jews and Muslims — the Dome of the Rock marks where Muslims believe the prophet Mohammad ascended to heaven, while the Jewish people believe the site to have supported the original Temple during Biblical times. How might a common pilgrimage journey provide fertile ground for connections amongst as well as conflict between people of faith?