March 2015203

Spiritual Tourism

alestine

32

Riyam Kafri-AbuLaban and Tala Abu RahmehContent Editors

Dr. Mamdouh Aker Urologist

Vera Baboun Mayor of Bethlehem

Aref Hijjawi Author and media expert

Dr. Nabeel Kassis Director of Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS)

Sami Khader Director General of MA’AN Development Center

Nour Odeh CEO, Communications Consultancy

Advisory Board

April 2015: No Specific Theme

May 2015: Disappearing Professions

June 2015: Banking Sector and Finance

Forthcoming Issues

Telefax: +970/2 2-295 1262info@turbo-design.comwww.thisweekinpalestine.comwww.facebook.com/ThisWeekInPalestine

Publisher: Sani P. MeoArt Director: Taisir MasriehGraphic Designers:Shehadeh LouisHassan Nasser

Printed by: Studio Alpha, Al-Ram, JerusalemMaps: Courtesy of PalMap - GSEDistribution in the West Bank: CityExpress

Spiritual Tourism

4 Reawakening in Wadi Qelt

8 From the Personal to the Global, and from the Past to the Present: Reminiscences of a Spiritual Tourist

14 Jerusalem of the Spirit: Sufism, Mysticism, and the Sublime

22 A Kairos Perspective of Tourism and Pilgrimage: Come and See

30 Spiritual Journeys vs. Israeli Tourism

36 Spiritual Tourism: The Bethlehem Sumud Choir

40 Sufism: A Spiritual Path in Palestine

46 Has the Pilgrimage Been Hijacked?

52 Maqam En-Nabi Musa Al-Kalim: A Picturesque Holy Site in Al-Barriyah

58 Iconography in the Holy Land

62 Forgotten Sanctuaries: A Genuine Opportunity for Spiritual Tourism in Palestine

66 Bethlehem: Ancient Center of Spiritual Travel in Palestine

72 In the Limelight

76 Reviews

80 Events

84-95 Listings

96-97 Maps

98 The Last Word

Cover: Wadi Qelt.Photo courtesy of Malak Hasan.

The views presented in the articles do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.Maps herein have been prepared solely for the convenience of the reader; the designations and presentation of material do not imply any expression of opinion of This Week in Palestine, its publisher, editor, or its advisory board as to the legal status of any country, territory, city, or area, or the authorities thereof, or as to the delimitation of boundaries or national affiliation.

In this issue

March 2015203

Spiritual Tourism

alestine

In search of spirituality, we often get lost in all that is religious and ritualistic. We often forget that spirituality is achieved by journeying inward into oneself. In meditation, what we often seek is oneness with truth, God, or self. Hindu traditions describe this higher level of meditation as blue energy. Neuroscientists repor t the observation of a centralized surge in electromagnetic waves in meditating brains, often appearing blue in color on detector screens. Whether you

believe this or not, what Hindus, Sufis, and other faiths that depend on this practice have in common, is the quieting of the mind so that the soul may finally levitate and find spiritual climax. This issue is exactly that, a meditation on the concept of spirituality in Palestine. What started as a theme on spiritual tourism, has turned into an inward look on what is spirituality in Palestine, and what defines spiritual tourism in a country crowded with assumptions about faith. We bring together an array of writers: some who have experience in the field, and who have been bringing spiritual tourists to the Holy Land for years. We include writers who find the term spiritual tourism problematic, and others who have redefined their relationship with the old worn paths with new ideas and plenty of hope.

We start with “A Reawakening in Wadi Qelt” by Malak Hasan, “From the Personal to the Global” by Saleh Majaj, a beautiful and bold journey through Ali Qleibo’s Jerusalem in “Jerusalem of the Spirit,” a history of the amazing Kairos and their pilgrimage trips in Palestine by Rifat Kassis, and an interesting contemplation by Ahmad Damen on spiritual journeys versus Israeli tourism. Several of the articles have a reoccurring sub-theme of Sufism in Palestine. While some of our readers may not find any of those articles surprising, to the majority of us, uncovering Sufism in Palestine will be a spiritual discovery in itself. Huda Imam writes knowledgeably about the faith and relays her own personal relationship with Sufism. We are also featuring articles on the possible hijacking of the concept of pilgrimage by Pastor Richard LeSueur, Bethlehem, Maqam En-Nabi Musa, iconography, and other magnificent subjects that will reformulate your idea of spiritual journeying in Palestine.

This issue is important because we don’t seem to have deep discussions on the concept of spirituality in Palestine, and we are not used to walking through our country with this beautiful concept in mind. But Palestine is a basin of simple spirituality, a place where you can find God in the roots of a tree.

54

Reawakening in Wadi Qelt

By Malak Hasan

still remember the day when I sat at the edge of a rocky cliff in Wales overlooking one of the most beautiful beaches in the entire world, feeling envious that we do not have similar places in Palestine. I have lived in the United Kingdom and traveled to Sri Lanka, the United States, Lebanon, and Jordan, and I always want to travel more, not only because it’s exciting, but also because it is a form of spiritual transformation. When I traveled, I understood the world around me and myself, but there was always something missing: I was still ignorant about my own country. I am almost 100 percent certain if Palestinians were asked about their favorite destinations in Palestine, their answers would be as strikingly predictable as Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Nablus, Jericho, or some city in the land occupied in 1948, known as Israel. I realized I was one of those people, so I decided to start another journey, but within the borders of my own country this time.

In January, the Birzeit-based Rozana Association invited me to hike in Wadi Qelt, a valley located between the holy city of Jerusalem and the oldest city in the world, Jericho. I was feeling a growing sense of curiosity, so I agreed without hesitation. I was extremely excited about the idea of hiking, but I didn’t expect to have an adventure that would change my attitude towards the tourism potential of Palestine. I took the familiar road to Jericho, but this time turned off from the highway following the sign reading Wadi Qelt in Arabic, English, and Hebrew. We kept driving for another fifteen minutes until we started seeing tourists and Palestinian vendors in the distance. A cross was peaking from the tip of a hill, and a few donkeys were carelessly grazing the dry plants. The gate stood on its own like a portal that vowed to send us back into the past, to an era where miracles were a possibility.

The adventurous hikers, in sturdy shoes clutching cold water bottles, descended into the belly of the valley. Crosses could be spotted everywhere as we walked the same route that Jesus Christ took on his journey from Jerusalem to Jericho. Pride seeped into my soul knowing that Jesus Christ and I share the same homeland. We zigzagged our way up again while listening to the growling of a stream running beneath an old bridge. We then reached the Monastery of St. George

(Deir Al-Qelt in Arabic), a complex housing a chapel crowned with a small cave that is believed to have been carved into the rocks 900 years before the bir th of Christ. The monastery is home to around ten Greek monks who continue the tradition of living the experiences and celebrating the lives of the prophets.

I had a quick chat with the monk who welcomed us to the monastery. It didn’t matter to me that I follow a different faith. On the contrary, it made me realize that, when it comes to spirituality, we are the same. The fact that I was a practicing Muslim female wearing a hijab, and he is a practicing Orthodox Christian monk made the conversation even more enlightening. He walked me to a chamber extensively decorated with candles and flowers, and showed me a dozen skulls sitting in a glass box.

Ever y twenty minutes, l ike clockwork, water spurts out of a spring and collects into a pool. According to a Palestinian legend, two demons living below the spring are engaged in a never-ending battle. When the good demon gets the upper hand, water pours out of the spring. If the bad demon prevails, the flow miraculously slows down. The spring is known as Ein Fawwar, a living legend that locals consider lucky and one of Wadi Qelt’s wonders.

76

I cried out, finding the idea quite foreign. But he took no offense and told me it is a special way to celebrate the lives of saints. The diversity of the human tradition is fascinating.

He told me over 3,000 priests lived across the valley in small caves where they mediate and worship God. Mar Elias, for example, lived in the valley for three years and the Virgin Mary’s father, Imran, also known as Joachim in the Christian tradition, stayed in the cave above the monastery and prayed to God to give him a child. Rozana’s staff team leader, Rafat Washaha, whom we called Abu Jamil, told me that not only Christian monks, but also Sufi Muslims took shelter in the valley’s wilderness, away from the mundane pleasures of life, to experience the highest levels of spirituality. The valley has embraced people from all faiths who, despite their differences, were after one thing, understanding and appreciating their existence. Abu Jamil and the monk became my tutors and I began picturing humble men bringing to life the now quiet valley, growing comfortable with the creatures of the night, thinking about the almighty Lord and trying to answer the difficult questions. “Lets get going,” a young man interrupted my stream of thoughts.

As we hiked the narrow trails, Abu Jamil told us all about the history of the valley. At one point we were standing a hundred feet apart, but I could still hear him clearly because of the echo. I said jokingly, “No need for telephones!” Experiencing the simple life the monks lived made me appreciate the technology and modern luxuries we take for granted too often.

“Look! A fox,” a man with grey-streaked hair yelled. “A Ferret?” I replied doubtfully. Abu Jamil corrected us saying it was a rabbit. The valley is inhabited by wild rabbits, which are brown in color, to blend with the rocks and hide from hungry predators. After walking for five hours, the valley faded out slowly and we found ourselves standing at the outskir ts of Jericho heading towards Herod’s Palace. I couldn’t believe we had walked from Jerusalem in the west to Jericho in the east. I was surprised at how relaxed and entertaining the hike was. I stood in the greenish fields and looked back at the hills, now remembering the rocky cliff in Wales.

My friends and I always complain that Israel has deprived us of our right to know our country. I disagree; our ignorance has robbed us of that right. This is why Rozana began organizing hikes five years ago on twenty-five trails in Ramallah, Salfit, Nablus, Jenin, and Hebron. The results are promising, as many Palestinians and internationals are participating. Samar, a 21-year-old Palestinian from Germany, said that she joined the hike, because she wanted to know her country as more than just a place of conflict. “It is good to see this side of Palestine, just to see its beauty and to be able to see the historical aspects.” Her

friend Laura, 23, is from Germany and studying at Birzeit University. She said the hike was an eye-opener. “I didn’t know about the landscape in Palestine. I thought it would be a surprise and it was a good surprise.” Sitting around a table in Jericho we concluded our day eating Musakhan, a Palestinian dish made of roasted chicken baked with onions, sumac, and fried pine nuts and served over traditional taboun bread,

and reflecting on our hike. I couldn’t have been more proud of the country I call home.

In a time where people are blinded by materialism and dazzling commercials about destinations that have little to no cultural value, it is essential that we take the time to explore ourselves and the universe around us, challenge our beliefs, and educate ourselves

by living the experiences of our ancestors. It is possible that through advancing the concept of meaningful tourism, we could teach ourselves that entertainment and education shouldn’t necessarily be separate, and that through taking a spiritual approach to tourism, we could support our country, appreciate our heritage, and bolster our economy.

Malak Hasan is a Palestinian journalist and amateur photographer who lives minutes away from Jerusalem. She holds a master’s degree in communication and public relations from the United Kingdom and is currently in charge of the English page of the Palestine News Agency WAFA. You can follow her on Twitter @MalakHsn.Article photos courtesy of Malak Hasan.

Monastery at Wadi Qelt.

98

From the Personal to the Global, and from the Past to the Present:

Reminiscences of a Spiritual Tourist

By Saleh Majaj

he term “spiritual tourist” was introduced to me many years ago during one of the several spiritual retreats I participate in each year. The term did not have positive connotations because it was given as a description of someone who, even though may have a genuine interest in developing the deepest parts of oneself, hopped from one retreat to another, changing disciplines, teachers, and groups based on whim. It was not applied to someone who went on pilgrimages to holy sites, nourishing his or her deeper inner nature with the surroundings and the unique energies and the insights that these places provide.

Of course, the reason I became familiar with the term was because I was labeled by my peers as a spiritual tourist, and rightly so. I was globetrotting from one country to another, taking part in various practices and schools under different teachers and formulations, from the ancient to the modern. Even though such an approach gave me the advantage of sampling the many traditions currently available in these “modern” times, the main disadvantage was that I did not stay long enough in any one discipline to harness the forces of the lower parts of human nature (so to speak) and allow my spiritual heart to flourish. Let’s not forget that a short yet honest look at what happens within us is enough to prove that our lower nature, whatever it is made of, cannot be depended upon as the source of wise action in the world.

So, what is a spiritual tourist to do? As I was told by the man who eventually became my guide and my teacher, the minimum period recommended to adhere to any one discipline is three years. And that is only the beginning because it is the period one commits to

before deciding whether this path is the chosen path one is destined for. In the following years, that same man would always remind me to follow a path with a heart and, if that path was lead by a living master, to follow that master as long as his or her heart was open. If we stick to the commonly adopted definition of spiritual tourism, then three years is a long time to go on a spiritual vacation, and I am sure that the organizers of spiritual tourism packages would delight in the thought. Yet, three years is really not that long of a period compared to a lifetime pursuit of spiritual perfection.

Why do some people feel an urge to seek the fruit of a spiritual discipline and practice? Why is there an urge to seek spirituality elsewhere, motivating us to leave our homes, families, and jobs, travel long distances, spend hard-earned money, and live in unfamiliar places? I cannot speak for others, but only for myself, and I have found the answers to these questions in the questions themselves. There is an urge drawing me to seek and be nourished by a depth of being that is not usually accessed in everyday life. By seeking spirituality, I have ended up in places that give me this special something, all the while feeling a sense of satisfaction and comradery with people who were complete strangers only a short while ago.

Let’s move onto spiritual pilgrimages. Why do we go on pilgrimages? I have had a taste of a few holy sites around the world, and this has helped me harness some sense of the nature of these places and allowed a better appreciation of our local holy sites. Many years ago, I was visited by a friend who is in the psychotherapeutic field, and who is highly intuitive and sensitive to the energies of places and people. Before her visit, I would perceive places and people only with my five senses, clouded with judgment and my own reactions. Her visit initiated a new era for me, that of perceiving with more than what the five senses provide. At first I would sense

“All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts and made up of our thoughts. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, suffering follows him as the wheel follows the hoof of the beast that draws the wagon... If a man speaks or acts with a good thought, happiness follows him like a shadow that never leaves him.”

—Gautama Buddha

Photo by Mohammad Aqrouq.

1110

something within me that I couldn’t define. Then as time progressed and I was “shown,” gradually the additional perceptions became clearer and I realized that we naturally posses this extrasensory awareness of the world, but that it disappears because of disuse.

My friend and I toured parts of the country together and I had the extreme fortune of getting a taste of that other world that spiritually inclined people are seeking. It was fortunate, for I had not yet developed the sensitivity to tap into the energy fields surrounding places. By accompanying her and tuning into what she was perceiving, I got to know the holy sites of our dear, beloved country from a totally different angle. We went into the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and there, we sensed the deep suffering of all the Christian pilgrims who had visited that location over the past centuries and silently shared their sorrows and prayed for the alleviation of their pain. Their sorrows resonated deeply within and I felt my own sorrows.

We went into the Dome of the Rock, and there, while looking up into the Dome, she helped me perceive the

nature of a powerfully raw geophysical energy emanating from the ground (the rock) up into the heavens. With that experience very much in every cell of my body, I fully understood and appreciated the story of the Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him), rising up into the Seventh Heaven on the buraq. With that visceral experience, I had the opportunity to transcend the human sphere and enter into a new one that spoke to a part of my nature that I had long forgotten.

Next we went into Al-Aqsa Mosque, but my friend was not able to enter, so she asked me to go in and spend a few moments there. I went in and sat in a spot that was brightly lit by the sunlight coming in through one of the windows. In contrast to the strong energy of the Dome of The Rock, in Al-Aqsa Mosque I felt like an infant in his mother’s arms, safe and at home. We went and visited Qumran, the long-abandoned center of the community known as the Essenes. As we walked through the relics, we could sense their dedication and perseverance in their constant efforts to purify themselves, a purification that spanned all levels of the human

constitution, from the physical, to the psychic and spiritual. It was a reminder that others have traveled this path and consecrated themselves until they reached self-perfection. Yes, here in this land, others have preceded us, and this gives us hope for our own efforts.

On other occasions I had the privilege of visiting other holy sites, and the feeling that was generated is still very clear, as if just experienced moments ago. Once I was with a visiting relative, a kindred spirit, standing near the Mount of Beatitudes on the nor thern shores of Lake Tiberias. Simultaneously we were both struck by a realization, which at first we could not articulate. Then, within the span of a few seconds, we were able to clearly put that experience into words. It was here, in this same exact spot, that Master Jesus spoke the now famous words of the Beatitudes. And the words started playing in my head, “Blessed are…” Then, as now, I could not understand with my mind the cryptic messages, but with the feeling of the energy being channeled through us while in that place, I realized the importance of being blessed. We were

overtaken by the feeling that, of all the places in our country that people claim are the exact spots where something important happened, we were now standing on or very near the spot where it actually happened. And, we felt blessed.

The Holy Land is full of hidden places holding these special intelligent energies that are a conduit for other states of being that are our right, not by birth into a physical body, but prior to birth. Because of the magnetically hypnotic effect of the coarse vibrations of material life, we have gradually succumbed to forgetfulness, yet something keeps nudging us to remember until we awaken to the need to consciously seek what is rightfully ours. One such place is in the northern part of the country, just south of our beautiful port city of Haifa. Hidden in the mountains that contain prehistoric caves are very special energy vortexes that speak of a highly rarefied source of power, perhaps that same power that inspired the prophet Elijah to suffer for and do harsh things in defense of the truth.

Here in the Holy Land, we are part of a very special global network of energy-

“Taking the first footstep with a good thought, the second with a good word, and the third with a good deed, I entered paradise.”

—Zoroaster

12

acupoints, or, as a dear friend calls them, “places of peace and power.”1 These places are the heritage of the entire human race, testimony to the fact that generations upon generations of spiritual masters, initiates, guides, and aspirants have placed significance onto this singular human pursuit. In many traditions, a group of these places are linked together, serving a specific purpose for the spiritual aspirant. For example, in the Fourth Way, we find an inner exercise that is integral to this tradition, the exercise of conscious stealing.2 It is simply an effort to attune to sacred sites of great significance around the world and draw from their intelligent and informing energies, and the spiritual leaders they’re associated with, to help us in our own personal work: Lhasa (Lama), Mecca (Muhammad), Benares (Buddha), and Jerusalem (Jesus). Of course, as we can see, spiritual tourists don’t really need to physically travel to reap the rewards of pilgrimages. However, it goes without saying that, for some, practice is needed, as well as guidance from experienced people. And, a few pilgrimages in the physical world do help guide the way for inwardly accessing holy sites.

In our hypnotized states, driven by psychotic needs, often times we living in the Holy Land forget that we are part of this network of holy sites. We forget that our role is to give generously to the world the added value of this heritage. Sharing the spiritual heritage of our country does not mean the mere opening up of borders for visiting pilgrims and tourists, this is the least that is expected from us. We are expected to grow and develop with the richness of this place and manifest this into the world. Yet, we find that all of us in this country, Palestinians and Israelis, continue taking more of the world’s attention and resources and demanding more. And how are we investing these resources? Siphoning

1 http://www.sacredsites.com/2 http://www.duversity.org/foundationexercises.htm

them for luxury? Preparing for war? What would the Prophet Elijah have to say to each one of us about this? He would have some harsh words, of this I feel certain.

It is very common to witness how our religions, religious sites, ceremonies, artifacts, and other symbols (just like money, power, and other possessions) become items of idolatry. We focus on worshipping our religions, our prophets, our holy books, our beliefs and ideas, and our scepters more than worshipping God, the Creator of all. And this is one reason why the prophets have come to inform, enlighten, and awaken us, again and again: we keep missing the point. Our idols become the supreme embodiment of the truth, and no one else can or should have a superior position to ours. As if truth can be owned or copyrighted! And in this we manifest the extreme egotism that enlightened spiritual masters patiently endure in the hope that one day we see the light ourselves.

A few weeks ago, I was visited by a gentle, insightful energy, the nature of which is difficult to put into words. I felt that all that has been known, experienced, and achieved by humankind to date is but one small part of the greater truth of the totality of the created universe. This is not to belittle the human race and its achievements, but it comes with a sense of a new freedom that results from knowing of the existence of a larger domain of truth, beyond the familiar.

Saleh Majaj is a doctor of Naturopathic Medicine living with his family in Jerusalem. He is a student of Kriya Yoga of Mahavatar Babaji Nagaraj and The International School of Self-Awareness.

1514

Jerusalem of the Spirit:Sufism, Mysticism, and the Sublime

By Ali Qleibo

he mere name, Al-Quds, triggers an emotional, affectional upsurge in every Muslim heart and mind, wherein nostalgia, piety, and the love of God and his prophet Mohammed meet. Pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the footsteps of the Prophet Muhammad is a spiritual journey leading to a process of religious transformation, and touching the deepest aspects of the human spirit. It is a mystical rite of passage that promotes one’s personal connection with God.

The lore of Jerusalem as the axis mundi –the symbolic center of the world where the four compass directions meet– reverberates

throughout Islamic history. Inspired by Prophet Mohammad’s Night Journey to Jerusalem to connect with God, the pious believe that travel and correspondence between Heaven and Earth, between the higher and lower realms, is possible at Al-Aqsa Mosque. Communication from the lower realms may ascend to the higher ones, and blessings from the higher realms may descend to the lower realms. Jerusalem functions as the omphalos (navel), the world’s point of beginning, inflaming Muslim passion with yearning for the holy city. The belief that contact with God, which in Mecca had been mediated by the Archangel Gabriel, took place exclusively in Jerusalem gives the Holy City a distinctive sacred status; it represents the hallowed ground where all biblical prophets who have connected with God reside. Alternately, Jerusalem is believed to be a piece of Heaven on Earth, the closest place to Heaven and the site where the Day of Judgment will take place, and where the righteous and pure of heart shall convene.

Jerusalem is a constituent of Muslim faith. The Prophet Mohammed ordains travel with the exclusive desire to pray in Jerusalem, Mecca, and Medina. “Journeys should not be taken (with the intention of worship) except to three mosques: the Sacred Mosque

in Mecca, my mosque in Medina, and Masjid Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem.” The relationship of the three holy cities, it must be stressed, is not of a hierarchical order, but of a dialectic nature based on their value as symbolic expressions of the eruption of the sacred in Islam.

By enjoining Muslims to visit these holy cities and associated holy shrines, Prophet Mohammad recognized the idea that we are all to form our own relationship with God. The belief that we are able to have that instant, direct, and personal spiritual experience of and communication with God underlies

Muslim spiritual tourism highlights Palestinian Sufi heritage. The travel itineraries include sanctuaries, medieval theological colleges, Sufi hostels, and residential quar te rs , where Mos lems from heterogeneous ethnic backgrounds have resided over the past millennia. These iconic sites symbolize fundamental aspects of Muslim spirituality: a culture, a history, and an outlook that embody esoteric spiritual mystical trends in Islam.

Detail from the Dome of the Rock.Photo by Nabil Darwish.Copyright 2015. All Rights Reserved.

Al Aqsa Mosque. Photo by Mohammad Aqrouq.

1716

the mystical esoteric theology that is often opposed by orthodox Islam. Muslim mysticism can best be thought of as a constellation of distinctive Sufi practices, discourses, texts, institutions, traditions, and experiences, which have been variously defined by different Sufi schools (tariqa).

Muslims and mainstream scholars of Islam define Sufism as simply the name for the inner or esoteric dimension of Islam, which is supported and complemented by the outward or exoteric practices of Islam, such as Islamic law (shari’a). In this view, it is absolutely necessary to be a Muslim to be a true Sufi because

Sufism’s methods are inoperative without Muslim affiliation. This can be conceived of in terms of two basic types of law (fiqh):laws concerned with public actions, and laws concerned with one’s own actions and qualities. The first type of law consists of rules and rituals per taining to worship, transactions, marriage, judicial rulings, and criminal law—what is often referred to, broadly, as qanun. The second type of law, which governs Sufism, consists of rules about repentance from sin, the purging of surreptitious qualities, and how to inure oneself against human susceptibility to carnal material desires. The Prophet was the model of spirituality for the world. In the Sufi interpretation, the Prophet Muhammad is perceived as the first Sufi because of his exemplary God-consciousness, deep spirituality, acts of worship, and love for Allah.

Prophet Muhammad’s central position in Sufism is closely related to the belief that Allah sent the Prophet as the source of knowledge par excellence of the Quran, tafsir (exegesis), rhetoric, fiqh (jurisprudence), and Hadith. All that the Prophet said and did is known in Arabic discourse as Sunnah. After the Prophet’s death, various scholars studied and propagated each of these sacred expressions in specialized discourses within distinct fields of study that came to be known as the Islamic Sciences (علوم It is recognized that Imam .(اال�سالمAbu Hanifah preserved the science of fiqh (jurisprudence), and after him thousands of scholars continued in his footsteps. Hence these scholars are believed to have preserved discursively the fiqh of the Prophet. Similarly Imam Bukhari and the other famous scholars of Hadith preserved the maxims, sayings, and life of the Prophet, in other words, the Sunnah. The scholars of tajweed (a method of reading the Quran) preserved the recitations of the Prophet, and the scholars of Arabic grammar preserved the language of

the Prophet.Thus, the Prophet was the model of spirituality for the world. His exemplary comportment, as well as his love for, and connection with Allah were preserved and propagated by an Islamic science called tasawwuf. The aim of the scholars of this discipline was purification of the heart and development of a heightened consciousness of Allah through submission to the Shariah and the Sunnah.

Gnosis, or the individual quest to love, know, and connect with God, is founded on the orthodox concept of dhikr, or remembrance of God. The injunction to conjure God’s presence constantly is replete throughout the Quran. Faith and ritual conjoin in the Sufi practices of dhikr, which allow the practitioner to dissolve human consciousness, disengage from material earthly distractions, and induce a state of grace in which God’s presence is conjured and a connection established with the divine. A diversity of Sufi schools of thought and practices have been deployed to achieve this ecstatic state of dhikr, which often takes the form of rhythmic chanting of the holy name. Sama’ (listening closely) is another means of disengagement from the material world through music

and dance, of which the whirling dance of the Mevelevi dervishes is a prime example. Meditation is another way of conjuring God’s presence. Visiting holy places to absorb barakah, or grace, is of paramount importance. In this respect the lore of Jerusalem and its mystical connection with the Prophet’s miraculous Night Journey acquires special allure for Muslims in general, and Sufis in particular. Sufis, mystics, and spiritualists travel to Jerusalem/Al-Quds to touch and see the physical manifestations of their faith and confirm their belief in God.

During the Muslim lunar month of Rajab in the year 620 AD, almost one and a half years before Prophet Mohammed’s Hijra (migration) from Mecca to Medina, the symbolic event of Isra’ and Mi’raj (the Night Journey and Ascension) occurred. The Prophet Mohammed made a night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and thus ascended to the heavens. Whereas the horizontal voyage to Jerusalem is referred to as Al-Isra’, the vertical ascension to heaven is called Al-Mi’raj, which is derived from the word arj (عرج), to ascend, and refers to Prophet Mohammed’s ascension to the heaven to seal God’s covenant with the Muslim

The tension between inner esoteric Sufi Islam and outer exoteric orthodoxy underlies the alternately high valuation and undervaluation of Jerusalem throughout history. Within the context of puritanical fundamentalism, tenets of faith are reduced to prescriptive normalizing public rituals that co-opt one’s direct experience of God. The Sufi quest to connect individually with God is judged as a presumptuous, arrogant transgression and act of hubris. The vacillating value of the Dome of the Rock as a mere architectural masterpiece or as the expression of the mystical locus of the sacred is symptomatic of this chronic crisis in the history of Muslim thought.

The Rock of Ascension beneath the Dome of the Rock where Prophet Mohammad ascended to heaven and connected to God. Photo by Shareef Sarhan.

1918

Prophet. As it says in the Quran, “Glory be to Him who made His servant go on a night from the Sacred Mosque to the remote mosque of which we have blessed the precincts, so that we may show him some of our signs; surely He is the Hearing, the Seeing.”1

Prophet Muhammad’s overnight stopover in Jerusalem is of pivotal symbolic and theological significance. The story of the Night Journey is full of miraculous legends and symbols of special allure to Sufis. The angel Gabriel provided the Prophet with the legendary buraq that whisked him at lighting speed from Mecca to Jerusalem. Legend por trays a magical animal, bigger than a donkey and smaller than a mule, with lightning speed—hence the name, Al-buraq, an anagram of the word barq, Arabic for lightning. There, it is believed that the Prophet stood at the Sacred Rock (Al-SakhrahAl-Musharrafah) and then ascended to the heavens where instructions related to prayer were revealed. In Jerusalem, he meditated in the Cave of Souls inside the Holy Rock, met with the biblical prophets who are mystically perceived as residing in Jerusalem, and led them in prayers. After these experiences the

Prophet returned to Mecca astride the mysterious buraq.

Al-Mi’raj, as a symbolic expression of the sacred, remains shrouded in evocative mystery, around which folk culture has deployed fantastic narratives. According to folk legend, the Holy Rock, from which the Prophet rose to the heavens has changed and has come to assume a symbolic function as a sign of that mysterious Night Journey. That night, according to the Qur’an, God blessed the rock and its environs. Blessed and sanctified by God (حوله باركنا the rock ,(الذي assumed a new identity as the “Holy Rock” (املقد�سة Roman .(ال�سخرة Jerusalem, Aelia Capitolina, assumed its new Muslim identity as the City of the Holy Rock, Bayt Al-Maqdis, from which the present-day appellation Al-Quds, the Holy Rock, is derived.

An overpowering sense of sacred presence permeates the precincts and comingles with the architectural beauty of the Noble Sanctuary to endow the location with a transcendent quality. Throughout history, mystics, overwhelmed by the great spirituality that Al-Aqsa Mosque exuded, settled in

Jerusalem. Their successors form the social fabric of Jerusalem, each family distinguished with its own banner indicating the Sufi sect they belong to. Stored in the house of the grand mufti on Aqabet Al-Bayraq Street, these banners are ceremoniously hoisted in official Sufi processions, such as Nabi Musa and for funerals, a tradition dating back to Saladin.

The local patrician Sufi families and Sufi expatriates bequeathed us their

respective endowments, zawiya and khanqah. Among the expatriates, Al-Moghrabi is a common family name and refers to anyone whose grandparents came to Palestine from Morocco where they lodged in their endowments, living quarters, and khanqah, which were bulldozed to make room for the huge empty cour tyard comprising the Wailing Wall. Similarly Al-Afghani, Al-Bukhari, and Al-Naqshbandi are family names ascribed to Jerusalemites

Al-Sheikh Ali Abed Al-Razzak Haidar Ali Qleibo Yahya Al-Khalyl Al-Tamimi Al-Dary. My grandfather seen bearing the family Sufi banner during the Nabi Musa procession in the late nineteenth century.

Theological colleges in Bab Al-Hadid.Photo by Ali Qleibo.

Lady Tansiq Mauseleum.Photo by Ali Qleibo.

Khasqi Sultan.Photo by Ali Qleibo.

Aqabet Al-Tikkiyeh and Khasqi Sultan.Photo by Ali Qleibo.

Sabyl Al-Bab Majlis on Al-Wad Street.Photo by Ali Qleibo.

20

1 Qur’an, Sura 17 (Al-Isra), ayat 1.

whose Sufi ancestors, over the past 500 years, came on pilgrimage to Jerusalem from Uzbekistan, Bukhara, or Afghanistan and took up residence in their respective zawiya adjacent to Ecce Homo. Sunni Muslims from diverse ethnic backgrounds and from various Sufi schools of thought, enthralled by the holiness of the city, settled in Bayt Al-Maqdis. Similarly, Muslim Nigerians from the Hausa, Fulani, Bergo, Kalambo, Salamaat, and Berno tribes settled following their pilgrimages to Jerusalem within the premises of Ribat Mansour and Ribat Al’el Din, adjacent to Bab Al-Majlis the main entrance on the northwestern side of Al-Aqsa. Both in Mecca and Jerusalem they are generically referred to as Takarnah(singular Takruniالتكارنه) in contradistinction to the Arabic-speaking Sudanese community.

Jerusalem exudes great allure for all Muslims alike. The Sufi pilgrim to Jerusalem invariably belongs to a halaqa, a circle or congregation, each of which belongs to specific tariqah (order), which is formed around a master. During their extended sojourn in Jerusalem, the Sufi pilgrims, known also as dervishes, are received, housed, and provided with spiritual guidance by his or her respective ethnicity-affiliated zawiyeh or ribat. Each community can find spiritual guidance under the sheikh who is also the head of the Sufi tariqah that was associated with its respective country of origin and spoke its mother tongue. These zawaya (plural of zawiyah) and arbitah (plural of ribat) and khanqah,or residential-cum-spiritual quar ters, further enriched Jerusalem’s allure as a pilgrimage center where various Sufi schools and theological colleges thrived. Dispersed throughout the Old City, the grandiose edifices, medieval theological colleges, zawaya, ar’bitah, khanqah, mausoleums, decorative water fountains (sabil), public kitchens, and diverse endowments form a virtual archive of a long train

of princes, emirs, kings, and religious personalities who immortalized their names by their association with the Holy Rock enshrined under the golden dome of the Noble Sanctuary.

Notwithstanding the current tense situation, the Israeli siege and blockade imposed on Jerusalem, and the constant incursions, closure, and denial of access for Muslims and Palestinians in general to Al-Aqsa Mosque, the pilgrimage to the Noble Sanctuary, as a transcendent experience, remains an elusive dream.

The first view of the Dome of the Rock is visionary. The beauty of the Noble Sanctuary is astonishing. The architecture evokes the exhilarating feelings of awe, delight, and admiration. I ts emotive splendor assuages existential loneliness and stimulates intimations of the infinite. Its immensity, lyricism, and harmony trigger the feeling of the sublime. The beauty of the Noble Sanctuary is accentuated by light. But neither the bouncing light nor the tenebrous shadow outshines the form of the sanctuary to the degree that it can obliterate the sight of the monument. Instead, the imagination is moved to awe and wonder. Tears fall copiously from the eyes of Muslim visitors to Al-Aqsa Mosque. The sight of the Noble Sanctuary and the Blessed Rock, Al Quds, is a moment of great intensity.

Dr. Ali Qleibo is an anthropologist, author, and artist. A specialist in the social history of Jerusalem and Palestinian peasant culture, he is the author of Before the Mountains Disappear, Jerusalem in the Heart, and Surviving the Wall, an ethnographic chronicle of contemporary Palestinians and their roots in ancient Semitic civilizations. Dr.Qleibo lectures at Al-Quds University. He can be reached at aqleibo@yahoo.com.

2322

A Kairos Perspective of Tourism and Pilgrimage: Come and See

By Rifat Odeh Kassis

hen we created the Kairos Document (launched in December 2009), we at Kairos Palestine tried to reflect

on what tourism and pilgrimage really mean to us. In our advocacy, we try to see and respond to both our

reality and our rights. We address churches, tourists, and pilgrims of all faiths and ethnicities in hopes they will see the injustice happening in Palestine and walk and work in

solidarity with us along the path to justice. Kairos Palestine believes in facilitating the “sight” of the many people who

visit our land, whether they are tourists or pilgrims.

To be a tourist is to play an unusual role.

You arrive in a place you’ve never seen before and stay for some time. You explore. Perhaps you read a book that tells you where to go, or recruit a guide to take you there. You take pictures, you look and look, and what you see will be the only material you can use to make sense of where you are. Perhaps you realize that the information offered to you is, in itself, a purposeful narrative that will demand your acceptance and affirmation, often at the exclusion of other narratives.

Because of this, tourism is a heavily political business anywhere you go, whether or not the politics are advertised. This is especially true when it comes to tourism in places of conflict, and it raises many crucial questions: How do you know you’re not contributing to a situation of injustice? What are your responsibilities?

Martha Honey, co-director of the Centre for Responsible Tourism, writes in her article, “Tourism: Preventing Conflict, Promoting Peace,” that “It is responsible tourism, not simply conventional or mass tourism that

holds the potential to prevent conflict and promote peace.” (The italics are hers.) Honey also stresses that “tourism developments that come in from the outside without respecting and working with the local communities can exacerbate existing tensions and conflicts; they can also give rise to new injustices, inequities, and conflicts.”

There are several different forms that tourism takes in Palestine: tourism organized directly by Israel; tourism organized by other countries with Israel’s coordination and approval, including religious pilgrimages; “political thrill” tourism; and Birthright Israel programs, which are free trips Israel that Israel offers to any Jew in the world as a birthright and which many participants report are used to brainwash them. Each of these forms reveals the political agendas that are at work in the tourism industry and at work in shaping the Palestinian/Israeli conflict itself.

Most countries use tourism to market themselves. But, in the case of Israel, its strategy is also to demonize the Palestinians, vilifying their narrative and stripping them of their places, resources, and rights. During the past few decades, Israel has actively prevented Palestinians from taking the initiative in their own tourism industry. Since Israel controls all of Palestine’s borders and regulates all movement inside those borders, impeding

Palestinian-led tourism is just another tactic employed by a comprehensive occupation.

Most tourists (including pilgrims) are received in Israel by Israeli tour guides, accommodated in Israeli hotels, and fed Israeli stories and Zionist interpretations of the Old Testament. While visiting the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, an Israeli tour guide may offer a quip about Arab backwardness, or a warning about Arabs’ exploitative nature. The tourists may be discouraged from wandering beyond the immediate vicinity of the tourist site and from patronizing Palestinian businesses. They are then ushered back onto their buses and sped through the checkpoint back to Jerusalem.

The fact that few Palestinians are permitted to cross the checkpoint at all is a reality that the tourists may never be told. The

Addressing the Palestinian-Israel conflict is crucial, given its ramifications for global peace. The Holy Land attracts pilgrims from around the world who join tours that are strongly promoted by the Israeli government. But this type of tourism is of little benefit to Palestinians.

Graphiti on the Separation Wall in Bethlehem.

2524

distor tion and repression that are par t of these strategies are not only present in tourist initiatives led directly by Israel, but also in those funded and organized by other countries. And this applies to pilgrims also, as pilgrimages have been successfully monopolized by the Israeli tourism industry and its accompanying political agenda, which begins with coordinated Israeli propaganda before the pilgrimage even starts.

The consequence of such tourism in Palestine is the promotion of a historical narrative that excludes Palestinians, causes economic damage, erodes solidarity, and cu l t i va tes p re jud ice . As the Ecumenical Coalition on Tourism (ECOT) writes, “Tourism promotes the wrong assumption that people have the ability to gain fulfillment through interaction with objects, like nature, beaches, or objectified humans, and that a subject gains subject-hood by relating with an object. In the absence of a subject-to-subject relationship, people are deprived of their human dignity. Interaction with objectified people or nature leads to the erosion of people-ness. All forms of objectification are anathema to God in whose image we are created.” To extend these thoughts to the Palestinian context, the dominant tourism industry in Palestine/Israel not only perpetuates injustice, but is actually built upon it.

In recent years, Palestinians have been trying to counter the unjust restrictions imposed upon them by the tourism industry and to put themselves on the map. Alternative and authentic tourism groups have flourished in Palestine as a way to secure a new kind of tourism, which tells our stories and speaks our truth. Predictably, Israel recognizes the power of these alternative tours and has continuously placed obstacles in their path. But Palestinian tourism has already gained great momentum, and its participants are determined to keep building networks, resources, and communities of supporters.

One such initiative was embedded in the Kairos document, “Come and See,” which included a call sent out to international churches, the principal coordinators of pilgrimages. The document was based on the concept of Justice Tourism, which is ethical in formulation, spiritual in orientation, and places human dignity

at the core of any tourism project. This document seeks to promote a paradigm by means of which tourism becomes a quest for spirituality through encounters with other people, and a quest in search of God’s truth. Within this paradigm, a traveler can make the choice to seek people-to-people encounters, a path that leads to mutuality, solidarity, and the real discovery of human community.

Kairos emphasizes the power of “Seeing” because we believe that for many people of goodwill who come to visit Israel and Palestine, a clear vision of the reality around them is enough for them to be transformed. The “Come and See” call was born of our belief in the significance of tourism as an economic, political, and spiritual force that can effectively and truthfully advocate for the Palestinian struggle and for peace with justice through Palestinian-organized tours.

We seek truthfulness, meaning truthful communication of our reality and truthful connections with those who visit us, not melodrama or pity. Our aim is to introduce Palestine in all its cultural, historical, and religious richness, unaltered by Zionist influence, to international tourists. This experience, also known as a Kairos Pilgrimage, will speak for itself, leading to more enlightened attitudes toward Palestinians, our reality, and our work for a just peace.

When do we need Kairos pilgrimages?

1. When “Seeing” becomes easier for tourists than for the indigenous people.

Palestinians are not free to travel in their own home. Many sights and many forms of seeing are denied to them. The illegal Israeli Occupation controls the daily lives of Palestinians through roadblocks, checkpoints, draconian permit systems, and other restrictions. Due to the enclosure of Jerusalem, most Palestinians (both Christians and Muslims) are unable to access their religious and tourism sites.

Tourism, in addition to being a cultural enterprise, is also an economic one. For Palestinians, this adds insult to injury because Israel prevents Palestinians from accessing their own lands, holy sites, and stories, and also prevents their access to the income generated by tourism.

2. When “Seeing” is perceived as a threat to national security.

Many people around the world have already seen the truth of the Israeli Occupation and engage in publ ic nonviolent actions to protest what they have seen. Israel, of course, tries to stop them. Among the many examples are the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla, the “Welcome to Palestine” campaign, and the conference, “Christ at the Checkpoint.” Israeli opposition to these events only sharpens our focus.

3. When the state monopolizes the “Seeing” industry, and turns it into a tool to justify its own oppression and brutality.

Israel’s manipulation of tourism in order to whitewash its image before the

Over time, Palestine’s historical, cultural, and religious heritage has been exploited to serve Israel’s political and commercial interests at the expense of Palestinian identity, dignity, and economic autonomy. Not only do most tourists remain ignorant of Palestine’s cultural richness, but they also tend to be provided with a distorted image of both the Israeli state and Palestinian society.

H.B. Patriarch em. Michael Sabbah celebrating a mass in Cremisan, 2012.

Photo from Palestine Image Bank.

2726

international community is evident.

4. When tourists come to what they believe is the Holy Land, while, in reality they are visiting a land without holiness, where God’s creation is humiliated daily.

Such a country can’t be legitimately called a holy land. Maintaining this illusion, by either the people leading tours or the people who participate in them, does not bring hope to this land, as many visitors think it does. On the contrary, it removes hope and dignity.

5. When the oppressed indigenous people adopt the narrative of the oppressor because they fear losing their jobs.

Some Palestinian tour guides have come to call the West Bank “Judea and Samaria,” and refer to it as “disputed land.” This is the result of fear of being reprimanded or fired.

When can we call a pilgrimage a Kairos pilgrimage?

1. When “Seeing” becomes a necessary step on the journey of a spiritual pilgrim.

The hajj is not a journey undertaken for comfort. It is undertaken out of concern for a person’s spiritual, emotional, intellectual, and social wellbeing. It is an expression of commitment to the other.

2. When “Seeing” is a deliberate step, not an accidental one.

“Looking” means you are simply in a certain place at a certain time. “Seeing” means you actively involve yourself with what surrounds you.

3. When “Seeing” becomes an act of repentance for the sins of silence and ignorance.

Human beings are implicated both in the actions and omissions of their community. “Seeing” may be an individual gesture, but it can only occur by assuming collective responsibility. If we have looked away from injustice before, we must repent for having looked away, and we must then look farther inward.

4. When “See ing” becomes an experience of living and walking with the oppressed, not just talking about them.

In the past, pilgrimages took many years to cover the same distance we can now cover in days. Then, the distance was part of the pilgrimage. Today, given the speed of technology and transportation, we must find new ways to grasp the obligations of pilgrimage. Although we may not travel by foot or animal today, the “spiritual distance” of the journey should stay intact with the pilgrim taking time to reflect and meditate.

5. When “Seeing” becomes a true journey to solidarity.

One star ts from bias and travels to a change of belief, skepticism, committed engagement, and true solidarity.

What precautions must be taken during a Kairos pilgrimage?

1. “Seeing” should not become an alternative to action.

It is a beginning, not a conclusion. So “Seeing” must not replace action.

2. “Seeing” does not take the form of normalization with the occupier.

Tourism in Palestine should not be an act of normalization with the Occupation. The situation on the ground is not normal, and Israel is not a country that respects freedom of worship. Israel interprets religious tourism as recognition of their “democracy,” but Israel is a country that systematically denies Palestinians the right to visit their holy sites and pray there.

3. The oppressed do not look at “Seeing” as simply an industry they need to

compete with, but as solidarity and action.

“Seeing” involves sharing a vision with someone, who, in turn, reciprocates. It is not only the visitors who must “see” the oppressed, but the oppressed must “see” the visitors too. Only then can solidarity take root.

4. “Seeing” should not become restricted to the rich and those able to secure a visa.

The matter at hand is beyond tourism. What we’re calling for is a fundamental act of advocacy and solidarity that leads to broader practice. This is the great challenge we’re faced with today.

When do we know the Kairos pilgrimage has been successful?

1. When it becomes an act of conscious

Photo from Palestine Image Bank.

Group photo from the Kairos Conference 2014.

28

struggle and an act of serious solidarity.

This must occur despite all the propaganda against Palestinians and against visiting Palestine.

2. When it becomes a platform for continuous education.

This platform should be accompanied by educational materials that are easy to use and understand.

3. When the Palestinian tourism industry realizes that dignity comes first and financial benefits come second.

Palestinians must refuse to let others

objectify them and we must also refuse to objectify ourselves.

4. When all of us, both pilgrims and Palestinians, are transformed.

We all must establish the humane in the midst of the inhumane, the just in the midst of the unjust, participation in the midst of domination, and deliverance in the midst of captivity. We must understand how our faith in God opens up the possibilities of human freedom, and points to a better human society for which we must work.

To experience the possibilities of human freedom – together – is indeed to be transformed. I echo the words of Kenneth Cragg, an American Methodist, who, on a visit to my town of Beit Sahour, eloquently said, “We should all feel an urgency to know the Arab Christian, lest the aura of the Holy Land lead us to think of a spiritual museum rather than of living, dying people in the throes of a deep struggle for survival and fulfillment.”

We are, indeed, very much alive.

Throughout his career, Rifat Odeh Kassis has been advocating for the effective application of international human rights and humanitarian law in Palestine through various professional and voluntary positions. He was the driving force and one of the co-authors of Kairos Palestine document and has been the general coordinator of the Kairos Palestine Movement since its inception. He has published two books: Palestine, A Bleeding Wound in the World’s Conscience and Kairos for Palestine.

Palestinian farmer harvesting olive trees, Cremisan, 2013.

Bishop Attallah Hanna meeting with the youth, 2013.

3130

Spiritual Journeys vs. Israeli Tourism

By Ahmad Damen

ackground

The Occupation of Palestine, Al-Nakba, and the expulsion of the Palestinian people did not only affect our material world but also our spiritual culture, a culture that is still under constant threat by imperialist ideology. Although this is not a problem solely affecting Palestine, this land still represents a unique and

critical case. First, it is a land with religious significance for the three largest Abrahamic faiths, which all originated in this region.

Second, the Palestinian people were faced with drastic external changes more than sixty-five years ago, which left them scattered in different locations and incapable of creating a collective spiritual identity. For example, there are some spiritual traditions that have been preserved in some Palestinian towns beyond the Green Line due to their solitude. These villages are disconnected from the Arab world on one end, and marginalized by the Western world on the other end. This is despite the fact that many Palestinians on the other side of the Green Line are still Christian like most of those in Western countries, but as the article discusses later, spiritual and religious identity are not the same.

The Palestinian people created a unique spiritual society that encompassed all faiths during a time when Western Europe was occupied with creating a strict religious identity that was lacking in spirituality when compared to Eastern civilizations. Local Palestinian Christians are the descendants of the early believers in Christ and represent an example of early Christian values, according to Christian scholars like Samih Ghanadreh in his book, 1املهد العربي, because they preserved many of the spiritual aspects of Christianity that were lost in the European model. During a period of time described by the Europeans as the Dark Ages, Palestine and its surroundings were part of a thriving religious and intellectual culture in which the Arabs interactively connected with the spiritual systems in China, India, Persia, and Central Asia through the historical exchange route, the Silk Road. This led, among many other benefits, to the spread of Islam through trade into eastern Asia and Africa, and the expansion of other Islamic schools of thought, like spiritual Sufism, in Central Asia. This fusion helped to form a unique Eastern identity in Christian communities in Palestine, which continued to preserve that spiritual aspect missing in Christian Europe.

Europe’s lack of spiritual depth led to a Descartian model that ultimately rejected the impractical form of centralized religion and treated spirituality as a

superstition. The superiority of man and the power of the mind swept through Western culture and created something that lacked both ethics and spirituality. This new dogma was capable of producing colonialism and slavery and supporting capitalism. It was the same dogma that ultimately created Zionism, Israel, and the current tourism model practiced in Palestine today.

Spiritual journeys

It is difficult to pinpoint a definition of spirituality, especially for those who do not believe in any higher power or purpose for the universe and life. It is a concept that requires a different dictionary of concepts and language, and if such a dictionary exists, it is not likely to be written in English. However, what seems to be a common

“Often, one wakes up to find an emigration application form at his doorstep stamped by the ambassador or the consul. Just fill in your name and post it. [Israel] does not want any Christians here: neither visitor nor resident. Foreign pilgrims bring a huge income, but they are not concerned with economic benefit. They just do not want Palestine to be a Christian sanctuary. They want to transform it into a Jewish land.”

Archimandrite Milatios Basal in the documentary Forbidden Pilgrimage

Photo from Palestine Image Bank.

Photo from Palestine Image Bank.

3332

factor is that spirituality is a process of transformation and change that involves experiencing higher dimensions than the ones available through physical perception and our five senses. One simple way to describe it would be as an “elevation” process in which you suddenly realize that the elevator of a three-story building has extra buttons for levels four and five that you did not see before. Once you visit these new dimensions, your whole concept of this “building” and the elevator itself is likely to change forever and this change will have a transformational impact on your life. Despite the lack of tangible evidence that such dimensions exist or that spirituality is crucial, nobody can deny that it provides many people around the world with essential tools. There is sufficient evidence that spirituality changes people’s lives for the better and provides an inner peace and satisfaction that is unmatched in a material and desire-driven world.

Spirituality has traditionally been practiced by millions of people through religion, but that does not mean that the two words are synonyms. Many spiritual people are not necessarily religious and vice versa. Followers of a certain religion are more likely to confuse their

internal spiritual needs with the needs of religious institutions, religious clerics, or hierarchies. This sadly deprives them of essential aspects of spirituality, since they lack their own experience of God and their belief system is typically fragile and unstable.

Pilgrimage is a life-changing experience for religious believers and a gateway for personal transformation and connection with their souls and with God. Christian pilgrimage to Palestine in particular is a case I have researched, studied, and observed for some time while working on my second feature documentary Forbidden Pilgrimage (2014). More than 2 million Christian pilgrims from around the world visit historical Palestine annually for pilgrimage purposes.

Christian pilgrimage is not an obligation, but many continue to pursue the journey. Writings from foreign pilgrims go back to the early Christians, and despite obstacles that prevented pilgrimage visits at different periods of time throughout history, pilgrims always found a way to resume the trend. It is a chance for many to renew and strengthen their faith and to experience the spiritual benefits of pilgrimage at the highest level possible.

Different Christian churches have different

concepts and itineraries when it comes to the Holy Land (Palestine). Some seek to visit certain sites associated with the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, while others prefer to perform religious rituals while visiting. During the research process, I interviewed priests who represent the three largest Christian churches in Palestine (Catholic, Or thodox, and Evangelical). They all expressed that a spiritual pilgrimage dedicated to unlocking a desired transformation would be spent in worship and service, while following the steps of Jesus and taking part in the life and practices of the local community of their fellow Christians.

Israeli tourism

The Israeli approach to pilgrimage represents a different model from the one suggested above, and is mainly focused on the tourism aspect of the visit. The aim of the Israeli Ministry of Tourism and the Israeli tourism agencies is to maximize their economic gains to an extent, but, even more importantly, their goal is to emphasize their distor ted version of history and present a Zionist narrative of the country.

First, they attempt to forbid the interaction between the pilgrims coming from abroad and the local Christians. The Israeli tour guides do so by making the pilgrims afraid of the locals and by spreading false information that was previously prepared for the occasion by the Israeli Ministry of Tourism. They even

go as far as denying the existence of a local Christian community in Palestine and do not allow the pilgrims to be guided by a local who shares the same faith. It is a no-brainer that, if the guide shares the same faith, he or she is more likely to better serve the pilgrim’s needs.

Second, the Israelis have a clear long-term goal to break the special bond that connects local Christians to this land by making their lives difficult. They also continue to facilitate their immigration to other countries with the help of some Western governments. Rev. Riyah Abu El-Assal said in Forbidden Pilgrimage

“I fear for the Holy Land if the majority of the Arab Christians emigrate. The Holy Land will be a museum of holy stones without genuine value. What is the value of a sacred site without its blessed inhabitants visiting it to pray for and preserve it?”

Rev. Riyah Abu El-Assal in the documentary Forbidden Pilgrimage

Making of “Forbidden Pilgrimage.”. Photo courtesy of Ahmad Damen.

Photo from Palestine Image Bank.

3534

that it would be a great calamity to turn iconic Christian sites like the Nativity Church and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher into museums deprived of their own local residents.

Third, the Israelis limit the time that tourists spend in the West Bank and steer them away from important sites there. Important churches like Jacob’s Well in Nablus and the Lepers’ Church in Burqin are not part of Israeli tourism agencies’ programs. Israel still promotes a fake baptism site near the Sea of Galilee and was only forced to create a new one near Jericho after the Jordanian site was discredited by most Christian churches. They wish to limit the time spent by pilgrims in the West Bank as much as possible.

Fourth, they turn a pilgrimage into an entertainment tour deprived of spiritual essence. Rev. Stephen Sizer compared such pilgrimages to a visit to “Disney World.”2 Some of the tours now schedule a three-day visit to Eilat in the far South, which has no recorded biblical history related to the ministry and life of Jesus Christ. If we account for traveling time, this takes away five days of their ten- to twelve-day pilgrimages. It is not a surprise that a country that claims to be religious, but in fact has nothing to do with any spiritual doctrine, is unlikely to offer a valuable pilgrimage journey to

1 http://bit.ly/1zWpgvX2 http://stephensizer.com/articles/travel.html

Christian pilgrims. This poses a question whether the Israeli mentality can even organize a genuine Jewish pilgrimage, not to mention pilgrimages for other faiths.

Last but not least, the continual targeting of priests and vandalism of churches will always show that Israel is a country harboring and suppor ting terrorism. Many Israeli ministers use the same language and share the same ideology as terrorist gangs, like “price-tag” attacks. Also the Israeli authorities rarely, if ever, punish anyone engaged in price-tag attacks or other terrorists who continue to attack churches and monasteries. Such trends are on the rise with little or no media attention. This shows that Israel will never be a religious country. No religion or spiritual doctrine would support terrorism and hate. Their aim to become a “Jewish” country is both ironic and volatile considering that it totally excludes locals who hold Israeli passports but come from other faiths.

Last word

Some voices in the media believe that we cannot really change the situation here. This would make my film on spiritual tourism and many other films and efforts futile. However, with all respect, I think that such commenters are too

impatient to appreciate the real potential of incremental change. It is human nature to want everything finished quickly with as little effort as possible.

Another major problem is the lack of understanding of spiritual tourism and the role it plays in spiritual awakening for all faiths and spiritual doctrines. Because it goes beyond the physical realms of this world, one cannot understand or appreciate the potential of such experiences on the human soul and psyche without going through the experience oneself. Spirituality has changed me and many people I have come to know over the past few years in ways we could not have imagined possible. The effect of such a transformation is as wonderful and grand as magic itself.

The new spiritual identity that could spring out of a spiritual awakening could help us as Palestinians figure out how to present our culture both to ourselves and to those coming to the Holy Land seeking their own spiritual journeys. There is no single path, and, sadly, there is a lack of a spiritual rite of passage in our culture today to help direct the young generations, but there are still many ways forward. The least we can do is to keep all the options available and never scare seekers away from choosing their own paths up the mountain. It is those who label individual choices as “sins” that we should be really wary of.

The revival of our collective Palestinian spiritual identity is a hugely underrated aspect of our culture and its future options. It could provide innovative ways of dealing with cer tain iner tias and hurdles that are blocking us from advancing into the twenty-first century with confident steps and with our culture intact. This is something that countries like China, Japan, and Malaysia were able to unlock in order to preserve their own cultures and spiritual values.

Pilgrims will only experience a spiritual journey when they experience it with the people who have merged their culture

and identity with this land for thousands of years. We already have the resources and potential to fully revive and keep this culture strong and original. The Israeli model does not offer that. It offers a completely opposite model that is shackled by the greed of institutions. Those institutions are only obsessed with the physical and materialistic needs of our world, and do not offer any sincere spiritual potential.

There have been some special Palestinian tours that invest in the spiritual side of pilgrimage. However, we are still at fault for advertising these tours as “alternative,” which makes the tour sound like it is not genuine. Palestinian-led tours are offering the pilgrimage opportunity, the only one that can offer spiritual value. The majority of tours today are offered by Israeli tourism agencies, and this trend has become the norm. But that does not make them in any way the right choice for value and salvation.

“My people have been lost sheep;

their shepherds have led them astray

and caused them to roam on the mountains.

They wandered over mountain and hill

and forgot their own resting place.”

Old Testament - Jeremiah 50:6

Ahmad Damen is a Palestinian writer, composer, and filmmaker. He is a former content editor of This Week in Palestine. In addition to writing several articles and blogs, he has directed, researched, and composed music for two internationally successful feature documentaries: The Red Stone (2012) and Forbidden Pilgrimage (2014). A professional oud player, he takes a special interest in film scores and world music. Damen is currently in charge of the TV Unit at Birzeit University’s Media Development Centre (MDC).

Photo from Palestine Image Bank.

3736

Spiritual Tourism: The Bethlehem Sumud Choir

By Toine van Teeffelen

piritual tourism is more than yet another type of tourism. The term implies a criticism of mainstream mass tourism with its

tendency toward consumerism. In mass tourism, tourists are hurrying to crowded places on busy holiday programs, their heads overflowing with rather superficial impressions.

Instead, spiritually oriented tourists are looking for deep, meaningful experiences. Spiritual experiences may occur at

holy places, monuments, or at natural spots enhanced by a special beauty, atmosphere, or story.

However, spiritual tourism can also go beyond beautiful or religious places and engage ordinary people in seemingly not-so-special places. Thus, modern tourists in the Holy Land increasingly want to meet Palestinians within the contexts of their authentic lives. Religious and non-religious visitors want to learn about customs and practices that contain spiritual elements, or, even more importantly, experience a spiritual quality in their meetings with Palestinians. Most of the time, such spiritual moments do not happen at the information or discussion meetings through which Palestinian spokespeople address tourist groups.

Christian theologian Mary Grey recently wrote a trilogy of books on spiritual pilgrimages in the Holy Land, taking the seasons of Advent/Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost as starting points for an approach in which the lives of ordinary, struggling people are central.i Spiritual moments are said to be about an “epiphany of connection.” For Grey, this represents a radical departure from the familiar stereotypical

categories usually applied by tourists when observing or interacting with the people they visit.

Grey’s approach is still uncommon in most tourism programs in the Holy Land, even those that include meetings with Palestinians. When visitors meet Palestinians, it all too often happens that the setting, atmosphere, and time available induce visitors to stereotype their Palestinian hosts for example, as victims, or as exemplars of a culture or religion, or as a specific role, like a journalist.

Small miracles

The epiphany of connection happens when there is a moment that you suddenly see the “other” as fully human, and you are able to relate to the other in mutuality and recognition. Such moments of breaking through barriers are actually small miracles in human interaction, which usually do not come just like that, but need an appropriate setting in which the quality of the encounter receives due care.

The following is an example of how, in the context of a visitor program, the quality of connection can be raised. It is not so much a matter of organizing fully professional performances or meetings, but creating authentic exchanges.

At the Sumud Story House near the Separation Wall in north Bethlehem, the Arab Educational Institute hosts Palestinian women’s groups. Five years ago, some twenty members formed an amateur choir, the Bethlehem Sumud Choir. Initially the women came together

Choir song

Refrain

Decorate the cour tyard, oh Palestinians

Oh soil of our land

It is shining with dignity

Verses

Our sumud is wisdom through knowledge in grace

We are steadfast through truth and discretion

From the Lord of the world we request grace

Through sumud and continuity we will overcome the siege

We will dismantle the Wall through our determination and perseverance

Let us remain faithful to our righteous victims of violence

3938

in order to be able to “breathe” a little and release the tensions of their lives—stressed as they are by the burdens of the Occupation, the restrictions on their freedom of movement, as well as the multitude of chores they have at home. Singing is an excellent way to experience what the women call “refreshing the soul,” “bringing joy to the heart,” or “expressing love poetry,” all of which come from deep inside the body.

Over the course of time, the women paid more attention to communicating the Palestinian cultural identity, especially because many of their performances have been held at national or heritage occasions, like agricultural or seasonal festivals. In most of their performances, the women wear traditional dresses with Palestinian embroidery, as they say, “to bring the past alive in the present through beauty.” They whistle, clap, gesture, and ululate, as is customary during Palestinian weddings and other happy feasts, and they communicate Palestinian culture through all kinds of songs—national, religious, didactic, and folkloric. By

doing so, they bring alive a spiritual kind of sumud (steadfastness, resilience),ii love, connectedness, and spirit of Muslims and Christians living together.

After increasing numbers of foreign visitors began coming to enjoy their performances, the choir included in their repertoire English-language songs with a strong message of freedom, like “We Shall Overcome” and Bob Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind.” The spirituality evoked by these songs is obviously not contemplative but engaging. The audience is often inspired to clap and dance together with the women during songs, which can also be humorous or satirical. Group singing and dancing undermine the traditional tourist routine of observing. Tourists participate and express themselves. Singing also brings to life the human stories, which the choir members share with visitors before and after their performances.

Spirituality beside the Wall

Impor tant in creating a suitable atmosphere for spiritual encounters is the setting. In the case of spiritual tourism we tend to think of a quiet, natural place, or a striking piece of symbolic or religious architecture, such as a mosque or church, but what about spaces adjacent to the Wall? Does a violent and oppressive place lend itself to spirituality?

In fact, yes, a space next to the Wall can be a “sacred place” too. (Once Patriarch Emeritus Michel Sabbah from Jerusalem commented that even checkpoints could be turned into “sacred places” and he made a call to people to do so.) The Bethlehem Sumud Choir regularly performs near the Wall, and creates a symbolic event. Examples are a living star of people holding torches in the form of a Bethlehem star, a living key to symbolize the right of return of Palestinian refugees, or even a Christmas stable in front of the military watchtower, where the choir made a video called “The Birth of Jesus Between the Walls.”

Singing can facilitate the required atmosphere for spiritual tourism. At the Sumud Story House near the Separation Wall in north Bethlehem, some twenty women formed an amateur choir, the Bethlehem Sumud Choir. Singing turned out to be an excellent way for their audiences to experience what the women call “refreshing the soul.” In the experience of the audience, the deadly silence of the Wall is replaced by the living silence of reflection and meditation and the vibrant sounds of group singing.

i Mary C. Grey, The Advent to Peace: A Gospel Journey to Christmas. SPCK, London 2010.

The Resurrection of Peace: A Gospel Journey to Easter and Beyond. SPCK, London 2012. The Spirit of Peace: Pentecost and Affliction in the Middle East. Sacristy Press, Durham 2015.

ii For the concept of sumud, see This Week in Palestine, issue 130, February 2009.

Often held in the context of the World Week for Peace in Palestine convened by the World Council of Churches, it has been common during spiritual meetings near the Wall in Bethlehem not only to sing, but also to read, out loud or silently, wishes and prayers in various languages gathered from all over the world by the peace movement, Pax Christi, and the World Council of Churches.

Singing is a way of releasing inner tension, but it’s also a beautiful way to connect. These concerts lead visitors to contemplate what this place once was in the past, and what it could be in the future. The deadly silence of the Wall is replaced by the living silence of reflection and meditation, and the vibrant sounds of group singing.

At times, the Arab Educational Institute asks visitors what they experience during the concerts. What visitors tell us is that they strongly feel the contrast between the fragility and intensity of the human voice on the one hand, and the violence of the massive Wall on the other. Moments of silence, contemplation, symbolism, as well as listening to and joining the choir, help people to open up to the hearts of Palestinians so much affected by the Wall and other repressive measures of occupation.

The feelings of the visitors develop from being one-dimensional to becoming multi-layered. They come to feel a deeper respect for the painful memories that Palestinians hold about the infringements on their lives and freedoms and the humiliations they experience. They also experience a silent anger because they understand human suffering, which is the result of oppression and heightens their sense of injustice. Finally, visitors feel a strong sense of spiritual solidarity. Despite all the odds and oppression, Palestinians are still very hospitable, celebrating their cultural pride, and even singing their lives.

Toine van Teeffelen is head of education at the Arab Educational Institute in Bethlehem and a tour guide. He has a PhD in discourse analysis from the University of Amsterdam. He lives in Bethlehem with his Palestinian wife and children. For those interested in the Bethlehem Sumud Choir, or the video they made, “The Birth of Jesus Between the Walls,” please contact the Sumud Story House, 02-2746595.

Article photos by Fadi Abou Akleh.

4140

Sufism: A Spiritual Path in Palestine

By Huda’l Imam

ufism is about the path of spiritual advancement, a process of purification. It enlightens the inner being,

which makes it a natural antidote to fanaticism. Sufism is often defined by scholars as the mystical dimension of Islam or “the school of the actualization of divine ethics.” Sufi practices allow light to enter to our hearts, and much more.

The practice of Sufism includes meditation, ziker, poetry, and wisdom, and all of these have to do with ethics. People who practice Sufism are those who seek the truth, who, by means of love and devotion, move towards the truth. Sufism mentions Plato, Aristotle, Murcia, Ibn Rushd, Al-Ghazali, Al-Rumi, Ibn Arabi, and many others. When we talk about Sufism, terms such as tariqa, zawiya, khanqah, and ribat are mentioned. Sufism is the spiritual path or way towards God.

Once upon a time, a long time ago, when we were kids, some of us were privileged to belong to the different youth clubs of the Jerusalem YWCA. One early morning between winter and spring, we took off on a day trip to Wadi Qelt. The bus stopped near St. George’s Monastery, which we saw from a hilltop. We started to hike. It was a very long way. We walked on the high ledges of water canals, hardly looking down, trying not to fall. We moved forward impatiently, seeking to reach our destination. As kids, we were proud to take such a dangerous road. We discovered caves, walked deeper into the gigantic rocky hills,

and met the ancient monks who lived there. I had a feeling like sea waves moving inside my own body that took me back and forth within my inner self, calming my mind and soothing my soul. Today, when I watch the red cable cars carrying people to visit the Greek Orthodox monks living inside Mt. Temptation, this feeling comes to me and I tell myself, this must be a moment of spirituality!

“This is where we used to picnic every year during spring time. Take a quick look.” My mother would point towards a line of white domes in the mountains, amidst the Jordan Valley landscape between Jerusalem and Jericho. Mother’s childhood memories were full of joy, and she repeated to us, “At Nabi Musa, we colored eggs just like during Easter.” The site is a maqam, with a tomb made of a stone covered with green cloth with

Spectrum.

Palestine is a country with deep spirituality, including caves, churches, mosques and maqams. Many magical and spiritual stories are told in towns and villages about hermits and saints. Some of those who passed through the sacred city of Jerusalem are Sufi saints. This ar ticle is not an academic survey, but rather a Sufi trail, revealing a personal account of spirituality, despite the prevailing conditions today, which tend to delete what’s spiritually innate.

4342

Islamic writing on it. When I was older, my friend Musa told me, “You don’t have to feel anything here. Moses (Musa), you know, never reached Palestine.” However, Nabi Musa is a magnificent Sufi site, which goes back to the Ayyubids. Baybers, the Mamluk leader, ordered its construction. Later, the Ottomans added their mark to the site. Despite the contested issue of whether Prophet Moses is lying inside the tomb or never reached Palestine at all, the site remains a spiritual inspiration.

In his book, Al-Dou’al Azraq (the blue light), Hussein Barghouti refers to Palestine as the country of caves, and in Palestinian Walks, Raja Shehadeh mentions Palestinian towns and villages with hidden heritage. Palestine has not only spiritual stones and shrines, but also flora and fauna on its hillsides. Before we reach the Old City of Jerusalem to find out how deep the presence of Sufism is engraved in Palestine, allow me a short stop to propose a Sufi zawiya. A particular, zawiya located on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, around the corner from the former Intercontinental Hotel with its seven arches, is a maqam of a great Sufi Woman who was born in the Iraqi city of Al-Basrah. She crossed the desert to reach Jerusalem, or Al Quds, 600 years ago. Whether the maqam contains the physical body of this unique woman or not (a fact which is contested), the site carries her name Rabaa’ Al-Adawiya’.

A Sufi, poet, singer, and mystic, Rabaa’ was born in Al-Basra in 713 AD

(100 Hijri). Much of her early life was described by Farid Edine Attar, a Sufi saint and poet of the eighth century. Rabaa’ was the fourth daughter in her family, and therefore, her name means the four th. Rabaa’ suffered through poverty and later slavery. She was very pretty and had a beautiful voice, so many were competing to possess her. She challenged abuse throughout her adolescence, and overcame all odds to free herself from oppression. Rabaa’ was liberated when the man who bought her saw light (nour) around her one evening while she was kneeling in prayer. Rabaa’ spent most of her life in Iraq then moved to Eygpt, then Medina, and then to Palestine.

Like the one on the Mount of Olives, many streets in Arab cities carry

her name, such as the square that became a landmark for the Arab Spring in Cairo. Rabaa’ spent a long period of her life crossing the deser t seeking faith and peace. She refused to get married to allow herself to completely indulge in her spiritual love for God. She lived in admiration and worship, or tasawof. Rabaa’ wrote poems describing her love, the reason why she couldn’t get married, and how she finds comfor t and relief when by herself. Her spiritual love was referred to as adoration, in Arabic ‘ashq.

Mufid Darwish Al-Alami is the custodian of Rabaa’ Al-Adawiya’s maqam on the Mount of Olives. When I asked him whether Rabaa’ actually lies in the tomb, he replied that Mujeer Eddin in his book Al-Uns Al-Jaleel wrote about Rabaa’ visiting Jerusalem, so it must be true. Al-Maqdisee and Al-Soyouty, both distinguished historians,

also wrote about her visit to Jerusalem.

Unlike many saints buried in the Mamilla (Ma’manillah) cemetery whose skeletons have been erased or displaced by the Wiesenthal Museum and the municipality, the tomb of Rabaa’ Al-Adawiya is untouched and protected until today, thanks to the Alami family of Jerusalem. From what I discovered, few people visit the tomb of Sitna Rabaa’. Some neighbors residing around the Al-Alami Mosque, under which Rabaa’ lies, feel proud to be close to such a woman saint; others ignore the name and the site.

So Palestine, from Safad to Hebron, boasts a number of Sufi zawiyas from the eras of the Ayyubids, the Mamluks, and the Ottomans, which were constructed by Sufi sheikhs, sultans, or leaders. Many of these shrines are located around Al-Aqsa Mosque. Others are found in the Old City. On the

way to the Via Dolorosa, one passes by St. Anne’s Church, Bab Faysal, and Tareeq Al-Mujahideen. Just opposite the entrance of Ecco Homo or the Notre Dame de Sion school, lies Al-Naqshabandyeh’ Zawiya, a Sufi tareeq, which represents a major order with a spiritual lineage going back to the to the first Khalifa, Abu Baker Al-Sideeq. The order was founded by Baha Eddine Naqshaband (1318-1389) of Turkestan. Today the Bukhary, descendants of Baha’ Eddine Bukhary, who came from Uzbakistan, live in the house on top of the mosque. Dina, a Sufi friend, would stay at Al-Naqshabandyeh for her annual tasawof in Jerusalem. Around the corner from the Armenian Hospice on the Via Dolorosa, is Tareeq Barqouq, a fifteenth-century zawiya where Sufi rituals are led by Sheikh Abdel Kareem Al-Afaghany of Al-Qadyryah, also known as Al-Afaghanyah. A few steps lower towards Tareeq Al-Wad and Bab Al-Nather of Al-Aqsa Mosque lies Al-Ribat Al-Mansoury, which takes its name from Sultan Al-Mansour Qalawoon, a Mamlouk sultan who followed Sultan Babybers.

Sufi zawiyas located outside the Old City walls include Al-Zawiya Al-Adhamyah located between Damascus Gate and Herod’s Gate and Al-Jarrahyah, from the time of Salahadin Al-Ayubi, which lies in Sheikh Jarrah (next to the American Colony); All these zawiyas, mosques, or schools, which are constructed with different architectural styles, housed people who gathered to meditate and practice Sufism, ‘tasawwof.

Rabaa’ Al-Adawiya’s maqam on the Mount of Olives.Bottom left. Ascension.

4544

“Devotional practice has nothing to do

with rosary, prayer rug or robe;

The true practices of devotion

is but serving others.”

—Rumi

During his first visit to Jerusalem in 2005, Abdel Wahhab Meddeb, author of La Maladie de L’Islam and Phantasia, observed that Jerusalem had a fundamentalist appearance. I started worrying that I was blind to reality. In 2013, when Meddeb came to launch his book on the link between Judaism and Arabism, he was walking in the Old City one evening when he came across a group of people reciting ziker. He was wholly moved and so naturally

found himself moving towards the Sufi mosque. This time, the way he described this spiritual experience comfor ted me about Jerusalem and its people. It suggested they are still able to occasionally offer some peacefulness and love.

Like the Moroccan city of Fez, a spiritual festival of Sufi music and Gnawa is organized every year during the month of May. The Holy Land, and I mean Palestine, has several hidden treasures that tour operators in coordination with archeologists and historians ought to reveal. Yes, Al-Aqsa and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher are the main attractions, however, let’s share and learn about other treasures, like the art of spirituality. Sufism is one of those treasures in our country.

Spiritual tourism, like alternative tourism, can boost the Palestinian economy. Spiritual festivals with

poetry, ziker, darawich, trance dance, meditation, and a mix of multicultural Sufi rituals derived from Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Egypt can create a new concept of tourism. We can invite our own children and youth to explore, like Alice in Wonderland, their own inspiring identity.

Today, as the world increasingly sees Islam wearing a rather repressed and prudish outfit, speaking about Sufism allows what’s left of human beings a spiritual tareeq, or a path to breathe.

Huda Farid Jamal Imamis, a Palestinian woman, was born and l ives in Jerusalem. Huda studied in Jerusalem and in Paris, and in ‘98 got her MBA from the London School of Economics. She is the founder of the Center for Jerusalem Studies in the Old City (Al Quds University), and co-founder of several cultural institutions. For the past decade, Huda’s main work has been to preserve and revive cultural heritage sites and life in Jerusalem, such as Hammam Al-Ayn, Sufi tareeqs, libraries, and, currently, the Pool of the Patriarchs.

Article photos by Hani Amra.

Spaceship.

Tajalli.

4746

Has the Pilgrimage Been Hijacked?

By Richard LeSueur

he travel industry has discovered a new word, “pilgrimage.” What was commonly marketed in previous years as a “Tour to the Holy Land” is today promoted as a “Pilgrimage to the Holy Land.” Has anything changed? Not really. The itineraries read the same: the frenetic pace, glossy hotels, air conditioned coaches, sumptuous meals, ample shopping opportunities, and the blur of sites. One might ask then, what do these tours have to do with the ancient practice of pilgrimage? Is this simply a marketing scheme to add sticker value and appeal to religious clients? Has the pilgrimage been hijacked for consumerist ends? Is there a difference between tourism and pilgrimage?

For more than twenty-five years I have been facilitating programs of Christian pilgrimage primarily in the Middle East. Pilgrimage is not tourism. Pilgrimage may involve elements of tourism common to all travel, but it is an ancient, soulful way of approaching a land, its peoples, and its story. Pilgrimage is different from tourism in its intention, design, collective rituals, and the principles that underlie the day-to-day experience.

The photo on the next page is Sinai, the landscape of Genesis, scribed by a thin, grey pencil-line of asphalt. The road was paved in more recent years to make it possible for air-conditioned buses to whisk tourists to the foot of Mount Sinai in a day. Arriving by noon, one can have a quick bite of lunch, visit some of St. Catherine’s ancient treasures, ride a camel, and be back at the coastal hotels for dinner. This is cultural tourism, and it is the most common form of tourism today. One skims the surface of an immense landscape.

A site is seen, a photograph taken, and then one carries on.

Alternatively, travelers can arrive to the Sinai through the relatively new airport at Taba where, within half an hour, one can luxuriate at one of the hotels along the beaches of what is called the “Egyptian Riviera.” The “sun holiday” offered by the Sinai comes with pristine beaches, discothèques, massage beds, and an experience where the cares of home can fade away.

The more adventurous fly to Sharm el-Sheikh, at the southernmost tip of the Sinai Peninsula, where they can learn to scuba dive amongst hammerhead sharks and manta rays in what are described as some of the most magnificent coral reefs of the world. Adventure tourism in the Sinai also offers spectacular granite rock faces for the thrill of first ascents.

There is, however, another way. From the coastal village of Nuweiba, one can travel on the new road into the Sinai for about a half an hour to a place that looks like no par ticular place, and wait at the roadside. Soon, from across the wilderness, the local people of the deser t, the Bedouin, arrive in jeeps. Food and supplies are tied to the vehicle roofs. You get in, and head into the wilderness on what for the Bedouin are “the other ways

through.” As the sun draws near the horizon, your jeep moves toward one of the rock formations, draws into the shadows, and stops. As the engines fall still, an immense silence wraps around you like a warm blanket.

You receive practical instructions as your baggage is unloaded. You choose your sleeping bag and mat, and then you walk out across the sand to find a place to prepare your bed for the night. As you look around at your dispersing companions, you know that some of them have never slept in a sleeping bag, let alone in the open without a tent.

The tourism industry has been marketing tours to the Holy Land for decades. Today these tours are increasingly being called p i lgr images. Has anyth ing changed? Not really. But the name of an ancient, soulful practice has been hijacked for little more than marketing purposes. In what ways is pilgrimage different from religious tourism and why is it important today?

Sinai. Photo courtesy of Richard LeSueur.

4948

As your Bedouin hosts light a fire of acacia wood and start preparations for dinner, the group gathers further along where a niche of rock forms a semi-circle of etched shapes. You are invited to build a cairn from rocks strewn in the sand, an altar. An ancient question is posed from the Psalms, “Can God spread a table in the wilderness?” A cup of wine and a piece of dry bread are laid out, candles are lit, and you listen to sacred texts about the same wilderness you are now in. You offer prayers and share a sacred meal.

Already the deser t is working on everyone in your group. You feel safe, but not protected from the wilds. You have chosen to be at the edge of your comfort, at the edge of your familiarity, at the edge of your experience, at the edge of God. This is the realm of pilgrimage.

In the work of designing and hosting programs of pilgrimage, I seek to generate more than site visits or novel adventure, but moments that create the possibility of sacred encounter, stirring insight and personal transformation. I believe that immersion in the fullness of the specific geography being visited, even if it means risk and hardship, is a necessary precondition to the transformational potential of pilgrimage.

For example, most Christian tours today, even those called pilgrimages to the Holy Land, no longer take their groups into Bethlehem. The city sacred to Christians as the birthplace of the Prince of Peace is avoided. Groups are taken instead to a nearby hill in Jerusalem where one can see Bethlehem in the distance. Political commentary is of ten offered to “explain” the detour: the dangers of

i The Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Psalm 78:19

Bethlehem, the necessity of the wall, and rhetoric aimed to both bolster agreement for Israel’s oppressive measures and reinforce prejudice and fear of Palestinians. Upon arrival at the hilltop the group may be invited to gather outside the bus, sing a Christmas carol, take a photograph, offer a prayer, and then carry on. To this, the pilgrimage must say no. Pilgrimage demands that one go in, that one enter fully into all that a landscape reveals. The Christian pilgrim has to face the Separation Wall, deal with its sorrows, enter Bethlehem, stand amongst Christian brothers and sisters, join them in their churches, and pray there—because that is where God meets us, and where we meet the truth of ourselves and of our time.

In contrast to the worry-free travel packages marketed by the tourism industry, hardship, challenge, risk, and strain are not accidental to a pilgrimage experience. Indeed, the greatest risk of a pilgrimage may not be in the physical challenge, but in the risk of being changed. A pilgrimage ensures that the traveler meets the “living stones” of the present community, hears their stories, learns, and enters deeply into the truth of the setting. If the aim of a Christian tourist in visiting the “Holy Land” is to enhance his or her

Christian faith and re-encounter the living Christ, then it can never be by only looking for what was true in the past, but must include seeing what is also true today.

A renaissance of pilgrimage is underway. The pilgrimage routes of Europe are overflowing. Par t of the challenge in the recovery of this ancient practice, for Christians, is that we are trying to fit a twelfth-century concept into a contemporary reality. The tourist industry will continue to hijack an ancient concept to popularize what is still only a form of religious tourism. The worthy task will be to reaffirm the wisdom of an ancient practice whereby one is immersed in the truth of the world, can engage with its timeless, soulful story, and is spiritually awakened and motivated into new global citizenship.

The Rev. Dr. Richard LeSueur is a former lecturer with St. George’s College in Jerusalem. He has been facilitating programs of pilgrimage in the Middle East for more than twenty-five years and serves as adjunct faculty with Trinity College, University of Toronto, Canada.

Wilderness of Palestine. Photo by Majdi Hadid-Beatiful Palestine.

The Separation Wall around Bethlehem. Photo by Andrea Merli.

5352

Maqam En-Nabi Musa Al-Kalim:A Picturesque Holy Site in Al-Barriyah

By Dr. Hamdan Taha

he spectacular dome-covered monument is located on top of a hill, around 28 km east of Jerusalem and 7 km southwest of Jericho. The Maqam En-Nabi Musa is an iconic monument in Palestine, which dominates the landscape of Al-Barriyah between Jerusalem and Jericho.

The site is known by its popular name, Maqam En-Nabi Musa, and in historical religious sources as the memorial for the Prophet Moses or Musa Al-Kalim (Moses the interlocutor of God). In terms of its religious significance, it is considered the tomb of Nabi Musa in the Muslim tradition. This is contrary to the biblical story, which locates the burial place of Prophet Moses east of the river. In Christian tradition, the grave of Moses is thought to be on Mount Nebo. Some Muslim historians like Mujir Ed-Din have raised doubts about the authenticity of the grave, but it has been established in the memory of the people as the memorial for Nabi Musa.

The site has exceptional historical and spiritual value due to its association with Prophet Moses, and stands as a testimony to the living traditions in monastic life. The site is also associated with social and cultural events, especially Nabi Musa Season, which was once one of the main festivals in Palestine

The historical monument of Maqam En-Nabi Musa has evolved over the past seven centuries as an organic architectural ensemble. It was built in the year 668 AH (1269 AD) by Al-Malik Ez-Zahir Baibars, and then the buildings were expanded by various donors up until recent times. The minarets date back to 880 AH. The history of the maqam has been learned from various historical sources, pilgrims’ accounts, and the Islamic waqf records, as well as the five Arabic inscriptions found on the site, which date the main interventions in the history of the site.

The maqam was described by Mujir Ed-Din in 1494 in Al-Uns Al-Jelil fi Tari’rikh Al-Quds wa’Al-Khalil and by the historian and poet Abdul Ghani En-Nabulsi in Al-Hadra Al-Ansiye fi-Rihle Al-Qudsiye where he described the visit he undertook in the year 1101 AH (1690 AD).

In the nineteenth century, the site was described by Buckingham (1822 AD), Van der Velde (1861 AD), and Tristram (1866 AD). It was described in the Survey of Western Palestine as a deserted mosque on the downs. It was also described in modern archeological surveys, as Maqam En-Nabi Musa was a subject of a series of studies in the last century. The main sources that helped in the study of the site were the works of H. Spoer (1909 AD), Richard Hartman (1910 AD), P. Kahle (1901 AD), T. Cannan (1927 AD), K. Asali (1990 AD), and K. Murar (1997 AD). In the early 1980s, the Department of Islamic Waqf conducted an architectural survey for the first time.

General view of Maqam Nabi Musa. Photo courtesy of Hamdan Taha.

Inscription on the Western Gate. Photo courtesy of Hamdan Taha.

5554

Maqam En-Nabi Musa has great significance for Palestinians. Its festival (mosam) became the most popular of all the festivals and played an important role in the Palestinian struggle during the British Mandate of Palestine.

Maqam En-Nabi Musa is composed of an extensive complex of buildings built in an area of 5,000 square meters within a perimeter wall with three gates. It may be divided into two par ts: the sanctuary, and the rooms surrounding it. The rooms are separated on three sides by an open space, also known as the courtyard. The sanctuary itself protects the shrine of the prophet, and has porches on the north and east sides. The maqam was built of local stones quarried from the nearby hills. The courtyard is paved with slabs of the same stone. Above the door of the mosque, an inscription

states that Abdallah Pasha rebuilt the place in 1235 AH (1819 AD).

The complex is composed of three stories with more than 150 rooms. The lower story is used for storerooms, two kitchens, and an oven, as well as a stable, in addition to many rooms for the pilgrims. The first story includes the shrine, the mosque, and the surrounding rooms around the cour tyard. The rooms serve thousands of visitors who make the pilgrimage once a year and generally spend several days at the site. The upper story opens up on a terrace, which overlooks the courtyard and is used to accommodate visitors. During the festival days, tents are pitched in the open air all around the shrine to accommodate visitors. Large cisterns are used to gather rainwater for use on feast days.

The maqam is surrounded by two smaller buildings: Maqam Hasan Er-Ra’i to the southwest, and the more recent Maqam Sitt Aisha to the east. East of the maqam is a cemetery where people who die during festival days are buried. Notables who die in Jericho are very often brought there as well, and, in the past, Idwan’s tribesmen of Jordan buried some of their dead in the same cemetery. It is viewed as a special blessing to be interred near a man of God.

The Nabi Musa Season

The festival seems to have been introduced by Salah Ed-Din after the conquest of Jerusalem in 583 AH (1187 AD). After the long rule of the Franks, he apparently wanted to create a meeting point for Muslims in Palestine.

The Nabi Musa festival lasts for eight days and ends on Greek Orthodox Good Friday. The feast itself begins on the Friday preceding the Good Friday of the Greek Orthodox Church and ends on Maunday Thursday. The Friday preceding it is called Djumet Al-Mnadat, or the Friday of Calling, since it is on this day that it is officially made known that the mosam of the prophet begins on the next Friday. The night preceding the feast is named Lelatu Al-Waqfeh (Night of Standing). Everyone who intends to participate in the feast prepares for the coming days. Different friends or families come together and talk over their plans. The nights of the next Wednesday and Thursday are called Lelat Es-Sheil (Night of Departure) since most of the pilgrims arrange to leave on those days.

The traditional procession begins by bringing the Nabi Musa banner from Ed-Dar Al-Kbireh, which belongs to the Hussein family. The procession moves slowly to the Aqsa Mosque,

Currently the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), in cooperation with Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Ministry of Waqf, and the local community, and with financial support from the EU, is working on a plan for the conservation and management of Maqam En-Nabi Musa within the framework of the project Suppor t for the Development of Cultural Tourism, which was launched in 2014.

The mosque at En-Nabi Musa. Photo courtesy of Hamdan Taha.

56

entering by the gate of Bab Al-Habs. After the midday prayer is over, the procession leaves the mosque area by the same gate and passes through Via Dolorosa, leaving the city by Saint Stephan’s Gate (Bab Sitti Maryam) to Ras Al-Amud. The spectators fill the streets, the balconies, the windows, the cemetery, and the gardens on both sides of the route. After the reception of the Mayor of Jerusalem, the procession advances slowly to Nabi Musa on the Jerusalem-Jericho road.

Visitors come from Jerusalem, Hebron, Jericho, Bethlehem, and Nablus. All classes of people come, including city dwellers, farmers, and Bedouin from the land east of the Jordan River. It is a family festival that includes women and children.

The mosam was banned by the British Mandate government as part of the repressive measures they took against the Palestinian national movement. After a long interruption, the season was revived again two decades ago.

Dr. Hamdan Taha, archeologist and cultural heritage exper t is the former deputy minister of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and director general of the Palestinian Department of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage, 1995-2013. Since 1994, he has directed a series of excavations and restorat ion projects in Palestine. He is the co-author of the Qabat iya Publ icat ion (2005), Khirbet Bal’ama Water Tunnel System (2007), Jericho, A Living History (2010), Tell Balata Publications (2014), and The Mosaics of Khirbet Al-Mafjar (2014) He is the author of many field reports and scholarly articles

Southern courtyard showing the minaret. Photo courtesy of Hamdan Taha.

Sufi musical bands are the most prominent during the Nabi Musa season.

5958

Iconography in the Holy Land

By Ian Knowles

assing through Palestine’s churches you can’t but notice icons, hundreds if not thousands of them: old ones, new ones, decayed ones, exquisite ones. The Holy Land wouldn’t

be the same without them.

Numerically, Greek Catholics are the single largest group of Christians in the Holy Land, followed by the Greek Orthodox, both of which follow the Byzantine liturgy. Icons are the art of that liturgy, and so are pivotal to understanding the lived experience of Christians native to the region and their ancient, now endangered culture.

Much about the role of the icon in Palestine is a matter of conjecture, but, from the evidence I have come across in my own research, I am absolutely convinced that the ancient art of the Christian liturgy began here in Palestine, probably in one of the monasteries, sometime in the middle of the sixth century. If this is so, then it makes iconography one of the most impor tant Palestinian contributions to world culture.

What then is an icon? Is any religious picture an icon? The answer is unequivocally no. Even though, the word icon comes from the Greek word eikon, and simply means image or drawing, icons are not religious art except in a very specific sense. They are liturgical art, that is, art designed for an integral role in the Christian liturgy. They complement, in line and color, the words, music, ceremonies, and architecture of the liturgy. They surround the altar and bring out the meaning of what is taking place there.

The icon does this in a very unique way, which can seem baffling

to the non-believer. It reverses what we expect in a painting, in that it literally projects the image into the beholder’s space, rather than creating a scene that disappears into the distance, framed as though being looked at through a window. Icons are not windows into heaven as some mistakenly say. They are doors from the sacred into the world, thin places where heaven and ear th meet and sacred power enters the world, just as took place at Jesus’ Transfiguration on Mount Tabor.

At the same time, the icon is honest art. It doesn’t create the illusion of heaven or a sacred event. It is happy to be a representation: muted, flat, and symbolic. But, in so doing, it allows the reality being por trayed to be truly present, transcending the limitations of matter to bring to our eyes otherwise unseen spiritual realities. These realities are only really understood in context, and that context is the Christian liturgy. Icons need to be understood by cross-referencing them with the scriptures, hymns, and prayers of a particular feast or saint. The iconographer deliberately draws out these connections in creative and inspiring ways. The icon puts a world beyond our imagining within our grasp.

Iconography is thus not an art form for the uninitiated or untrained. Yet sadly,

in Palestine many of the icons are made without any significant training or understanding of their theological, liturgical, and spiritual context.

Icons are traditionally made with egg tempera – a laborious and slow process – and finely burnished gold, which again is time consuming and expensive. The commercial pressures surrounding the making and selling of icons in Palestine have minimized the quality and debased the spiritual basis upon which they are being made. The few trained iconographers that are around usually work independently, and with the lowest of incomes. This makes them vulnerable to fluctuations in the

Until the 1940s there were still icon workshops in Bethlehem, as there had been across the Holy Land for the best part of 1,500 years. During the nineteenth century, the workshops in Jerusalem and Bethlehem specialized in Arabic icons, which originated in Syria, and it is from these workshops that most of the icons seen today in the churches and monasteries of the area originated from.

6160

market and the demands of the buyer. Moreover, the icons’ spiritual foundation cannot be guaranteed. While there exist some very fine iconographers, they are few and far between, and often too busy (and perhaps sometimes too cynical about the motives of potential students) to pass on their skills.

Fo r t h o s e w h o d o w o r k a s iconographers in the West Bank, there are additional difficulties. Obtaining good quality, natural pigments is all but impossible. Likewise, there is a scarcity of quality brushes and other materials, which top-level artists need. Such supplies are mostly available in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, but for the many

who lack permits, access to these vital supplies is unlikely. Thus, these factors conspire to make painting icons of the highest standard nearly unattainable for Palestinian artists. The only place where such supplies can be found in the West Bank is at the Icon Center in Bethlehem.

The Center and its Icon School were founded in 2012 to address this cultural crisis and to help restore iconography as a living aspect of the ancient Christian culture of the Holy Land. This is the only such institute in the region, and perhaps across the whole of the Middle East. By demanding the highest standards and encouraging collaboration, it makes it possible for Palestinians to produce works that meet the highest international standards.

At a time when so many aspects of Palestinian culture are under threat, and the Christian community is rapidly diminishing, iconography is one area which offers a glimmer of hope, as it reaches back into Palestine’s deepest past and yet is still a living part of the Christian communities’ spiritual life. If this initiative succeeds, then a vital part of Palestinian culture will have been preserved and, once again, after many centuries of neglect and decline, begin to flower. This is where forming a community of artists is so important, since it gives not only safety and support to individual artists who would otherwise struggle on alone, but it makes a cultural renaissance possible through creating a cross-fertilization of ideas and a context of trust and spiritual renewal.

Ian Knowles, founder and director of the Bethlehem Icon Center, is an Oxford theology graduate from the UK. He is a professional iconographer with work displayed around the world, and the author of the landmark icon “Our Lady of the Wall.”

Article photos courtesy of the author.

6362

Forgotten Sanctuaries: A Genuine Opportunity for Spiritual Tourism in Palestine

By Ahlam Tarayra

have to admit that, despite the fact that I have lived in Palestine most of my life, it was only last year that I first visited Nabi Musa, an ancient shrine and mosque located near Jericho. I remember that I was speechless while I was exploring the site, which is said to house the grave of the Prophet Moses. I had so many questions flashing through my mind: Why is such a site almost abandoned? Why is it only now that I am visiting? Why are these rooms empty? What is the plan of the Ministry of Tourism for a site as remarkable as Nabi Musa?

This was actually not the first time I was devastated by an abandoned shrine in Palestine, as I have come across a number of Sufi shrines and sacred sites in different places in the West Bank in the past few years. Most of the time, I decide to stop and walk around the sites so I can see how lonesome, unfriendly, and gloomy these places have become. Some of them have been converted into landfills, some seem to have been intentionally damaged, and most of them have been vandalized with ugly graffiti. I always ask myself, why on earth have we abandoned these places? It is very obvious that they were once beautiful places with their own unique history, and that there is no good reason for converting them into these miserable ruins. After every experience at an abandoned shrine, I remember those humble archaeological sites I visited in the UK on organized tours. The British people embrace every tiny trail, even if it is no more than three small rocks spread across two square meters. It is quite painful to me that we do not embrace our remarkable heritage in Palestine.

Nabi Musa is no exception, but the site has been a little bit more privileged because it has a mosque inside where people maintain regular daily prayers, and because the Turkish government has an interest in restoring the annual Nabi Musa pilgrimage that first started

in the twelfth century during the time of Saladin. It is believed that Saladin established this annual pilgrimage after the conquest of Jerusalem in 1187 in order to outnumber Christian pilgrims during Easter, and that it was maintained afterwards, especially during the British Mandate, as a political event in addition to a religious pilgrimage.

The Israeli Occupation banned the celebration of the yearly pilgrimage in the wake of the Second Intifada in 2000. However, Turkish interest in the site led to a visit in April 2014 by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) that included the Turkish ambassador to the occupied Palestinian territories accompanied by the governors of Jerusalem, Ramallah, and Jericho. Their goal was to renew the yearly pilgrimage after more than ten years of interruption. The visit included Sufi scouts, recitation of the Quran, and speeches. The visit was followed by a memorandum of

It is time to reconsider the tourism policies in Palestine and give some attention to the abandoned shrines and sacred sites scattered around the country. There are plenty of exciting and educational stories that can be told about these places and there is a rich history that can be revived.

Sheik Queis Shrine-Dhahriah South Hebron.

Yaqeen Shrine Bani Naim -Hebron.

64

understanding between the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Islamic Endowments (Awqaf) to renovate and revive the site.

However, more effor t is needed to actually breathe life into the place. For example, instead of limiting the annual pilgrimage to Muslims only, the event could involve non-Muslims by expanding it to include other entertaining yet appropriate activities, given that Nabi Musa is a sacred place. The renovation could include rehabilitation of the vacant rooms in the site to house tourists overnight. Other rooms and facilities might be added to the site in order to increase its capacity and make space for more activities that cannot be done next to the mosque, yet are appropriate to do nearby, such as Sufi dancing and singing, poetry, and quizzes.

Similarly, there are dozens of abandoned shrines scattered across the West Bank that nobody cares about or tries to do anything about, gauging by their current state. From the tourism angle, it is mandatory that a root cause analysis be conducted in order to dig up the real reasons for abandoning these sites and suggest solutions to give a new lease on life to these forgotten sanctuaries. I should mention here some obvious causes such as the prolonged Occupation that has changed our priorities, as well as the gradual

invasion over the past few decades of a religious ideology that holds a negative attitude towards the concept of shrines.

Reviving the abandoned shrines might be accomplished as a national tourism project to attract local and international tourism. The Palestinian Authority would need to highlight the project as a part of the Palestinian struggle against the Israeli Occupation and also to underscore the revival of shrines as restoring a par t of the county’s history, which would not require local people to be Sufis in order to be able to visit the sites. In fact, many options for giving life to the shrines need to be examined, so that the government in Palestine can start with a solid plan for building successful spiritual tourism in Palestine. The people of Palestine as well as the people around the world need to know that we have remarkable spiritual sites in addition to the Dome of the Rock and the Nativity Church. The holy land of Palestine has amazing heritage that needs to be spoken about.

Ahlam Tarayra is an Operations Manager at Smart Events and Marketing in Ramallah. She spent eight years working in the non-profit sector as a humanitarian professional. After getting involved in the marketing industry, Ahlam started to spot genuine opportunities for tourism promotion in Palestine.

Abu Kharroubeh Shrine- Dhahriah South Hebron.

6766

Bethlehem: Ancient Center of Spiritual Travel in Palestine

By Annerieke Willemze

ourists taking par t in Holy Land tours often make their way to Bethlehem, wanting to set eyes on the iconic cave where Jesus is said to have been born. The majestic Basilica of the Nativity with the Orthodox, Armenian, and Latin churches within its walls evokes spiritual experiences in many who visit. It is not uncommon to hear groups of visitors singing hymns when gathered in the caves under the basilica, while, for others, a sense of stillness is evoked. Both are reactions flowing from people’s connection with the story of the place. Although many tourists might not be aware of the intricate layers of histories of Bethlehem, the story of Jesus’ birth is often interwoven with their own personal histories.

A tourist from the United States, whom I recently encountered in Bethlehem, told me she experienced a feeling of belonging, a feeling of “knowing” this place that was in reality very “out of place” from what she was acquainted with in North America. Interestingly, she recognized that this was to do with how much the biblical stories of Bethlehem had been ingrained in her.

Bethlehem, as a town, can benefit from the spiritual connection many tourists have with it. The biblical story might not always be the most complete rendition of Bethlehem’s history, but that is something that can be adjusted over time. Fact is, most tourists have a spiritual interest in Bethlehem. What

Bethlehem University’s mission is to serve the Palestinian community through education. At the Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management, the university is now doing that by engaging the private and publ ic sectors to develop unique academic programming geared towards fully utilizing Bethlehem’s distinct tourism potential.

Nativity Grotto, Bethlehem.

Entrence of the Nativity Church.

6968

Spirituality is an impor tant aspect of the philosophy of the De La Salle Christian Brothers, a teaching congregation founded by Jean Baptiste De La Salle three centuries ago. Bethlehem Un ive rs i t y embod ies the Lasallian vision and innovative spirit, centering on personal relationships and academic excellence.

do we mean by spiritual? A simple dictionary definition of the word offers us two options. First, something that is of or concerning the “spirit” as opposed to “matter” and, second, something that is inspired, refined, sensitive. I am particularly taken with the second part of this definition. Spiritual tourism means becoming inspired, being affected through one’s senses, and so, through experience, becoming part of the story of the place you’re visiting. Palestine, Bethlehem especially, lends itself to that experience par excellence.

Unfortunately most visitors are robbed of the oppor tunity to explore that spirituality of inspiration and sensitivity while here, simply because they do not spend enough time in Bethlehem. The political situation has resulted in deliberate fearmongering where tourists are told it is too dangerous to walk around in Bethlehem. They are bussed

in to see the Nativity Church and then immediately taken back to Jerusalem.

Bethlehem University has been asking the question how, as an academic institution, we can contribute to a thriving religious tourism sector in Palestine, and Bethlehem especially. The past few years have been marked by consultations with the private and public tourism sectors to map the religious tourism market in Palestine. One of the outcomes of this benchmarking process is the realization of the need for high quality vocational training programs that educate Palestinians to work in the tourism and service industry. Since then, the Institute of Hotel Management has launched a new academic and vocational curriculum that is geared towards delivering the highest standards in the field, ranging from front-office management to food safety practices and culinary ar ts.

Future plans include a state-of-the-art training hotel and restaurant in the former hospital and Handal House at Mount David in Bethlehem’s Old City.

The almost two mil l ion visitors who make their way to Bethlehem annually need to have the most positive experience possible. With religious tourism worldwide on the rise – currently estimated at 300 million travelers spending an estimated US$18 billion every year – we need to have a Palestinian response to that growing market. We have amazing religious and cultural assets in Bethlehem, but as a community we need to make sure that Bethlehem has an appeal to travelers beyond those common landmarks. Generating income for the Bethlehem community is largely dependent on travelers not leaving Bethlehem immediately after their visit to the Nativity Church. That requires a

comprehensive and high-quality service sector.

Bethlehem is uniquely cut out for inspired, experiential tourism. High-quality services will attract longer stays, which will stimulate our local economy. For visitors, staying in Bethlehem longer will give them the opportunity to interweave their spiritual stories with the real stories of our town: stories of distress, but also of hope and resilience.

Annerieke Willemze has an MS in cultural anthropology from Utrecht University in the Netherlands. She lives in Bethlehem where she works in the Advancement Office at Bethlehem University. Annerieke can be reached at willemze@bethlehem.edu.

Article photos from Palestine Image Bank.

Going towards the Nativity Grotto.

PERSONALITYOF THE MONTH

BOOK OF THE MONTH

7372

Rimon Makhlouf

My home is Jerusalem. This is what I always answer when my tour groups ask me where I’m from. I was born on the Mount of Olives and I have lived in Jerusalem all my life. I grew up in the Christian Quarter of the Old City. My father is buried on Mount Zion and my grandfather’s tomb is in the Garden of Gethsemane.

As a child I helped my father, George, when he did contract work at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. I was amazed at this holy place and the number of foreigners who came there to visit and pray. I was fascinated by the tour guides, and soon, I followed tourists inside the church and offered to guide them. And so, in the holiest place in Christianity, the place of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, my vocation as a Christian tour guide took off.

It was on February 19, 1980 when I picked up my first group, American Baptists from Cleveland. On our first full day we awoke in St. George’s Hotel in Jerusalem to find my beloved city knee-deep in snow. As a Latin-rite Catholic, I took the group on the Via Dolorosa and to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, not realizing that Baptists don’t do these things! I had to learn quickly.

A Christian tour guide is different from a secular one. The Christian guide must communicate the Christian faith in the land where it was born. But we are also ambassadors of our land, our people, our culture, our religious traditions, our history, our suffering, and our hopes. As a Christian guide I am a “living stone”

among the ancient stones of this land.

I have worked to pass my experience onto the next generation. After I earned my travel exper t license in 1995, I taught tourism at Bethlehem University for twelve years. At the same time, I was able to convince the Israeli Ministry of Tourism, especially during Oslo peace negotiations, to allow Palestinians who lived in Jerusalem to get licensed as tour guides. We developed a program in English, and the first guiding course for East Jerusalem started in 1997. We now have over 300 Palestinian tour guides who are licensed by the state of Israel.

It is estimated that 80 percent of the tourists that visit our beautiful country are Christian pilgrims. As a Christian tour guide, I always make sure to connect them to the land historically and spiritually, letting the Bible unfold as they see places they have only ever read about. To me, it is not only a profession, but also a ministry.

Many of my pilgrims go home and write me thank you letters for helping them strengthen their faith, and also for opening their eyes to realities, which they never knew about because of the distortions in their media. Sometimes I don’t even have to say anything.

My home is Jerusalem. And when I receive a group of travelers from anywhere on earth, I welcome them home, for Jerusalem is home to the whole world.

Language of War, Language of Peace: Palestine, Israel and the

Search for Justice

Raja ShehadehProfile Books, 2015, 150 pages, £9.99Reviewed by Mahmoud Muna, The Educational Bookshop, Jerusalem

Published last month, Raja Shehadeh’s new book, Language of War, Language of Peace, is a reflection on Edward Said’s interest in culture, language, and politics. This book is the culmination of the accomplished, scholarly work of an experienced jurist, humanist, and clearly gifted writer.

Known for his enduring positivity, Shehadeh stretches his optimism to the limits, exploring the theme of language and its misuse in an attempt to test its relevance regarding the main turning points of the Palestine-Israel conflict. In his own words, he was guided by “Edward [Said’s] often-repeated aphorism, borrowed from Antonio Gramsci: ‘Pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will’.”

He writes subjectively on the wars of 1948 and 1967 and, later, he challenges the “goodness” of the wall, not just as a lawyer but also as a neighbor. Shehadeh goes on to critically reflect upon the dynamics of the peace process, from Oslo to the final round of failed negotiations under the supervision of John Kerry, using his knowledge of the internal affairs and procedures. He also provides a necessarily current, timely, and accurate analysis of the recent violence experienced in Jerusalem, as well as the summer 2014 war on Gaza. All throughout the book, references and numbers are provided, as well as extensive notes at the end of the book, making it not just a very informative volume but also a comprehensively written one.

“And indeed language continues to reveal how censorious Israeli leaders were, even of Palestinians’ dreams. During the course of the negotiation a message sent by prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to US secretary of State John Kerry, included a YouTube video of the popular Palestinian vocalist Mohammed Assaf dubbed Mahboub Al-Arab (beloved by the Arabs), who won first place in the popular TV contest, Arab Idol, and was later made a goodwill ambassador for UNRWA…Israel considered the way Assaf sang longingly about cities in Israel that were once Palestinian an incitement.”

In reading this beautifully written book, you are left without doubt that this is perhaps one of Shehadeh’s most angry and despairing writings. It is so telling to see a writer known for his passion, love, and optimism, writing bleak truths with smaller margins left for hope than ever before. Raja Shehadeh finds this hope in the growing BDS movement, or the “counter-boycott” as he calls it. Drawing inspiration from Archbishop Desmond Tutu, he argues, ”Civil society must step into the breach, as it did in South Africa’s struggle against apartheid.”

This book is perhaps an attempt by one of the most eloquent Palestinian writers to express his anger at the rhetorical use of language itself to stretch narratives, making them fit multiple dimensions of meaning through the possibility of words. Mukharribiin, infiltrators, terrorist, framework, road map, sumoud, aliya, fidayeen, shabab, and Nakba, these are only some of the words that Shehadeh is deconstructing to demonstrate the possible misuse of language, convolution of expression, and the exploitation of words.

ARTIST OF THE MONTH

7574

The Choir of the Custody of the Holy Land

The Magnificat Choir of the Custody of the Holy Land was founded in 1850 by a number of clerics in Jerusalem. After the establishment of the Terra Sancta Boarding School in 1870, the choir expanded and graduates of the school began volunteering their services to the choir. These included Augustine Lama, a choir conductor and organist, and later, organist Salvador Arnita. During the late 1950s, the Franciscan priests took charge of conducting the choir. Among the most famous were Father Teofilo Ciardini and Father Antonio Foley, who developed the Parish Choir. Over the course of time, these two choirs combined and began singing both in Latin and in Arabic throughout the churches of the Holy Land.

At present, the choir has the privilege of having Father Armando Pierucci, who enriches the repertoire of the choirs with his compositions and special arrangements. The conductor of the choir is Mrs. Hania Soudah Sabbara, who devotes her time to teaching music and singing to all ages. The Choir of the Custody of the Holy Land is composed of thirty members, the majority of which are young Palestinian music students, along with few expatriate volunteers who come to the Holy Land for short periods.

The Magnificat Institute (school of music) provides for all the needs and logistics of the choir, which include the rehearsal hall, the music library, voice lessons, and any other needs of the choir. Since 2003, the choir has seen a revival in its activities, while keeping its religious goals as the top priority. The choir has also expanded its repertoire to include secular music.

The choir’s rich, sacred repertoire of music is sung during the official celebration of the high masses of the liturgical year. Not only is the choir privileged to be singing during these official festive masses, but also to be singing at the actual holy sites that mark the history of Christianity.

As for the secular music, the choir has added to its religious songs a variety of operatic songs, folk songs, and more. These have been used in addition to the sacred music in their concerts, which include at least one annual concert in Jerusalem.

MUSEUM REVIEW

7776

After Thirty Years, Bethlehem Museum Finally Opens

On March 1, 2015, the Bethlehem Museum for History, Heritage, and Culture opened after a thirty-year hiatus. The museum – originally Palestinian ethnographer Julia Dabdoub’s dream – began as a project of the Arab Women’s Union of Bethlehem (AWU) in 1977. Over the years, different challenges kept the AWU from finishing the museum. In 2012 the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation (HCEF) par tnered with the AWU to make this dream a reality.

HCEF is a non-profit development organization established in 1998 with the mission of preserving the presence and well-being of Palestinian Christians in the Holy Land by raising global awareness of their present-day struggles and the intrinsic role they

have played in the Holy Land’s history and development. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., HCEF has a regional branch in Bethlehem.

In a span of seventeen years, HCEF has developed over twenty programs to fulfill its mission. These programs aid the Palestinian Christian population in a number of ways, including housing rehabilitation, children’s education, women’s empowerment, elderly care, financial investment, peace advocacy, job creation, and bringing Palestinian diaspora youth of all faiths back to Palestine. HCEF utilizes these programs to promote peace, justice, interfaith dialogue, and reconciliation in the Holy Land by removing the causes of suffering and replacing despair with hope, fear with human security, and

humiliation with dignity. The museum is a natural progression of this mission.

Through the Bethlehem Museum, HCEF aims to preserve the legacy of Palestinian Christians. The museum introduces all who visit Bethlehem, not only to the historical treasures of Palestine, but, more importantly, to the lifeblood of Christianity in the Holy Land: its people. They are the “living stones” who have kept the faith alive for thousands of years. The museum honors Palestinian families by recognizing and showcasing their many contributions to the Holy Land’s art and culture.

HCEF President and CEO, Rateb Y. Rabie states, “My vision for the Bethlehem Museum is not just to show the treasure of Palestine, but rather to tell the story of the people behind the Nativity. Through Bethlehem Museum, I hope to build community, show the world these treasures, and bring prosperity to the region.”

One of the few museums owned by women, the Bethlehem museum empowers women through various initiatives and creates jobs in Bethlehem. Another unique aspect of the museum is its effor ts to directly engage the diaspora through two programs: Palestinian Surprises and Know Thy Heritage. The former highlights the achievement of Palestinians from all walks of life and their contribution to the respective countries they live in, while the latter empowers youth in diaspora by connecting them with their Palestinian roots and making them ambassadors of peace.

Due to the various catastrophes that have struck the Palestinian people, priceless Palestinian artifacts have been scattered throughout the world. The Bethlehem Museum has brought, and will continue to bring, these treasures home to Palestine to be restored and displayed as tangible proof of the substantial role Palestinian Christians have played in the Holy Land’s grand story.

Courtesy of Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation (HCEF)

WHERE TO GO?

7978

Sufi Trails

Courtesy of Visit Palestine

Sufism is a mystical path in Islam that leads to an intimate contemplation of God through specific spiritual rituals and practices, including dance, music, and meditation. The term ṣūfi was first used to describe Muslim ascetics who clothed themselves in simple garments made of wool (ṣūf). From it also came the word taṣawwuf, which means mysticism.

In the context of Palestine, the divinity of the Holy Land influenced the gradual spread of Sufism in the area. Although Sufis had already begun forming religious orders (ṭuruq) in the eighth and ninth centuries, their popularity reached its height in the fourteenth century, under the Mamluk Sultanate (1250-1517). During that time, Sufi lodges or zawiyas grew widely in number, mainly in Jerusalem, Hebron, and Nablus.

It was believed that Sufi teachers or sheikhs were given special powers and were capable of arbitrating with God. These mystics were said to be able to exalt the divine grace and direct it towards granting welfare or healing. After their deaths, their graves were venerated as shrines that the faithful flocked to so they could hold festivals and pray for miracles.

After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, which lasted from 1517 to 1918, and with the influence of European cultures, Sufism in the Holy Land declined, and only a few Sufi groups remain here today. However, many Sufi sanctuaries are still hidden among ancient trees, usually on the outskirts of villages, where they adorn the highlands of Palestine. The shrines were often built in proximity to various significant sites: the ruins of Byzantine churches, Roman garrisons, or prehistoric caves, and overlook breathtaking views of the surrounding landscapes.

The Sufi Trails, an initiative of the Rozana Association, invites you to explore these beautiful landscapes, to walk paths through oak forests and olive groves and discover the story of the forgotten shrines while meeting the hospitable people who live in nearby villages. A number of one-day hiking trails have been designed to introduce these places that have been hidden from most travelers until now.

For more information visit:

• http://www.visitpalestine.ps/en/tours/hiking-and-walking-trails/sufi-trails-tour

• www.rozana.ps

• www.sufitrails.ps

8180

Al-Ma’mal: 02-628-3457; Centre for Jerusalem Studies (CJS): 02-628-7517; Popular Art Centre 02-240-3891; The Palestinian Circus School: 02-281-2000; Yabous Cultural Centre: 02-626-

1045; Palestinian Museum: 02-297-4797; FGCC (French-German Cultural Center): 02-298-1922; PACE: 02-240-7610; Cultural

Heritage Enrichment Center (CHEC): 09-237-2863

JERUSALEM

BOOK LAUNCHSaturday 21

17:00 Launching and discussion of “Hidden Histor ies: Pa lest ine and the Eastern Mediterranean” by Basem L. Ra’ad. The event is organized and hosted by Yabous Cultural Centre, Marrakech Hall

CONCERTWednesday 4

18:00 Musical Concert: Watar Band from Gaza. The event is organized and hosted by Yabous Cultural Centre, Marrakech Hall. Please call before to make sure the group managed to leave Gaza

Saturday 718:00 Musical Concert: Perversi Ingenui Jazz Quartet, Italy. The event is organized Yabous Cultural Centre and the National Conservatory of Music, Yabous Cultural Centre, Marrakech Hall

EXHIBITIONSSaturday 14

17:00.” Opening of Arabesque photo exhibition by Azzam Abu Soud. The exhibition will continue daily until Thursday 19 March from 11:00 till 18:00, Yabous Cultural Centre, Mahmoud Darwish lounge

FILMSThursday 5

18:00 The Stories of Land, director: Ahmad Al Budeiri. A documentary film that focuses on the struggle of 1948 Palestinians who rejected military rule, overcame their fear and refused to surrender, since Qufur Qassem massacre up to the present day. The film reviews the rise of political awareness and struggle. Samih al-Qassem, Hasan Aslah, Mohammed Ali Taha and Ahmad al-Saleh are some of the heroes of Land Day who proved, at different stages, that Palestinians have no relation to the label that some attempt to describe as “Israelization”, Yabous Cultural Centre

BETHLEHEM

SPECIAL EVENTSFriday 27

11:00 “Mish Zabta” is a new creation of the Palestinian Circus School that brings us a lot of laughter and joy. It tells the story of four young men filled with hope and ambitions to realize their dreams as they return from abroad carrying their university degrees. But while they are looking for a job and trying to enjoy their time, they face many challenges that turn their images and expectations upside down, Manger Square (during Marathon)

NAZARETH

SPECIAL EVENTSFriday 27 and Saturday 28

19:00 “B-Order” is a production of the Palestinian Circus School. It is a production on the predestination that is put upon us by history, society, gender, religion, nationality and education. We walk on lines drawn for us without understanding or even questioning. Sometimes we are lead to go against the “normal”, we start something new. But do we ever get rid of our memories, education and preconceived ideas? Venue: Mahmoud Darwish Cultural Center

NABLUS

CHILDREN’S ACTIVITIESSaturday 7,14,21,28

11:00 Reading and discussing a story with children (sometimes with the author,) cycling, and educational games, Cultural Heritage Enrichment Center (CHEC) premises; inside Arafat Soap Factory

RAMALLAH/AL-BIREH

CHILDREN’S ACTIVITIESThursday 19

15:30 Sergeant Pepper (a children’s film) (DE 2004, 98 Min., director: Sandra Nettelbeck, German with English Subtitles), French-German Cultural Center

CONCERTSTuesday 3

19:10 Watar Band - Gaza. - Palestine, ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

Wednesday 419:10 Zaridash Choir - Palestine and other countries. ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

Thursday 519:10 International Pianist Tuluyhan Uğurlu - Turkey. ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

Friday 619:10 Innocent Sorcerers Quartet - Italy. ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

Saturday 719:10 Dina Shilleh and Hannah Gallagher - Palestine and Ireland. ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

Sunday 818:00 Musical evening with Fartsha Ajoral – India. Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

Sunday 819:10 Dr. Varsha Agrawal, Pt. Lalit Mahant, and Asit Gosmawi performing Sufiyana Gharana - India, ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

Monday 919:10 Ramallah Jazz Quartet - Palestine and other countries, ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

Tuesday 1019:10 Opus Group - ESCNM Teachers, ESNCM Ramallah Branch Hall.*

DANCESunday 1,8,15,22,29

16:30-20:00 Afro-dabkeh classes for adults, Popular Art Centre

Sunday 1,8,15,22,2916:00-17:00 Contemporary dance course for children, Popular Art Centre

EXHIBITIONSTuesday 24

18:00 Nation Estate. Exhibition opening of Larissa Sansour’s project that explores a ver tical solution to Palestinian statehood through photographs and video, French German Cultural Center

FESTIVALSThursday 26

International Days of La Francophonie. A ten-day festival honoring the French language and Francophone world through concer ts, films screenings, exhibitions, competitions, workshops, and many more surprise activities. Stay tuned for the full program at FB/FGCC, Ramallah

FILMSWednesday 4

17:30 Film screening of Selma, an American film, through the Wednesday Cinema Project. Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

Wednesday 1117:30 Film screening of IDT, a Polish film, through the Wednesday Cinema project. Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

Wednesday 1817:30 Film screening of Bird Man, an Australian film, through the Wednesday Cinema project. Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

Wednesday 25 17:30 Film screening of Trash, a Brazilian film, through the Wednesday Cinema project. Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

LECTURESTuesday 3

18:00 Poetic evening with poet Hilal Hindi and Elias Gharzozi playing the Buzqq player. Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

Wednesday 418:00 No Spring for Syria. Lecture and book presentation in the presence of Matthieu Rey and François Burgat, in cooperation with IFPO, French German Cultural Center

Date and Time: March 4th, 2015 at 18 pmMonday 9

18:00 Poetic evening with poet Faris Sabaaneh reading “Jebril.” Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

Monday 23 18:00 Poetic evening with poet Husam Abu Ghannam reading “Surrounded Myself.” Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

SPECIAL EVENTSFriday 2

11:00 “Mish Zabta” is a new creation of the Palestinian Circus School that brings us a lot of laughter and joy. It tells the story of four young men filled with hope and ambitions to realize their dreams as they return from abroad carrying their university degrees. But while they are looking for a job and trying to enjoy their time, they face many challenges that turn their images and expectations upside down, Birzeit, under the circus tent

Thursday 1218:00 Mahmoud Darwish Award. Mahmoud Darwish Museum.

Wednesday 11 and 2517:00 Café francophone, French language conversation. Theme to be communicated later on www.fb.com/FGCC.Ramallah. Venue: Flamingo

Monday 3012:00 “B-Order” is a production of the Palestinian Circus School. It is a production on the predestination that is put upon us by history, society, gender, religion, nationality and education. We walk on lines drawn for us without understanding or even questioning. Sometimes we are lead to go against the “normal”, we start something new. But do we ever get rid of our memories, education and preconceived ideas? Venue: Birzeit, under the circus tent

Tuesday 3110:30 “B-Order”, Birzeit, under the circus tent

WORKSHOPSThursday 5

10:00-14:00 Prep-Workshop for German Exam (SD1), French German Cultural Center

Tuesday 1010:00 Star t German 1 Exam (A1), French German Cultural Center

Tuesday 24 and Wednesday 25(All day) Environmental Sustainability in the Cultural Sector. A visual Arts workshop dedicated to the workers in the cultural sector by Nana Petzet (Hamburg, Germany), concerning the behaviour of cultural institutes towards their environment and how to approach their problems, French-German Cultural Center Ramallah

(*) Part of the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music Jasmine Festival, 2015. For more information and reservations, contact ESNCM – Ramallah Branch at 2959070 or George Ghattas 0599265488.

84

EAST JERUSALEM (02)

ARTLABMob. 0544 343 798, artlabjerusalem@gmail.com

Al-Jawal Theatre GroupTelefax: 628 0655

Al-Ma’mal Foundation for Contemporary ArtTel: 628 3457, Fax: 627 2312info@almamalfoundation.orgwww.almamalfoundation.org

Alruwah TheatreTel: 626 2626, alruwahtheatre2000@yahoo.com

Al-Urmawi Centre for Mashreq MusicTel: 234 2005, Fax: 234 2004 info@urmawi.org, www.urmawi.org

America Househttp://jerusalem.usconsulate.gov/americahouse2.html

Ashtar for Theatre Productions & TrainingTelefax: 582 7218info@ashtar-theatre.org, www.ashtar-theatre.org

British CouncilTel: 626 7111, Fax: 628 3021information@ps.britishcouncil.orgwww.britishcouncil.org/ps

Centre for Jerusalem Studies/Al-Quds UniversityTel: 628 7517, cjs@planet.edu www.jerusalem-studies.alquds.edu

Community Action Centre (CAC)Tel: 627 3352, Fax: 627 4547, www.cac.alquds.edu

Educational BookshopTel: 627 5858, Fax: 628 0814info@educationalbookshop.com www.educationalbookshop.com

El-Hakawati Theatre CompanyTel: 583 8836, Mobile: 0545 835 268f.abousalem@gmail.com, www.el-hakawati.org

French Cultural CentreTel: 628 2451 / 626 2236, Fax: 628 4324 ccfjeru@consulfrance-jerusalem.org

Issaf Nashashibi Center for Culture & LiteratureTelefax: 581 8232, isaaf@alqudsnet.com

Jerusalem Centre for Arabic MusicTel: 627 4774, Fax: 656 2469, mkurd@yahoo.com

Melia Art CenterTeleFax: 628 1377, Melia@bezeqint.netwww.meliaartandtrainingcenter.com

Palestinian Art Court - Al HoashTelefax: 627 3501info@alhoashgallery.org, www.alhoashgallary.org

Palestinian National TheatreTel: 628 0957, Fax: 627 6293, info@pnt-pal.org

Sabreen Association for Artistic DevelopmentTel: 532 1393, sabreen@sabreen.org www.jerusalem.usconsulate.govwww.facebook.com/USConGenJerusalem

Sanabel Culture & Arts TheatreTel: 671 4338, Fax: 673 0993sanabeltheatre@yahoo.com

The Bookshop at the American Colony HotelTel: 627 9731, Fax: 627 9779 bookshop.americancolony@gmail.com www. americancolony.com

The Edward Said National Conservatory of MusicTel: 627 1711, Fax: 627 1710 info@ncm.birzeit.edu, ncm.birzeit.edu

The Magnificat IntstituteTel: 626 6609, Fax: 626 6701magnificat@custodia.org www.magnificatinstitute.org

Theatre Day ProductionsTel: 585 4513, Fax: 583 4233tdp@theatreday.org, www.theatreday.org

Turkish Cultural CentreTel: 591 0530/1, Fax: 532 3310kudustur@netvision.net.il, www.kudusbk.com

Wujoud MuseumTel: 626 0916, www.wujoud.org, info@wujoud.org

Yabous Cultural CenterTel: 626 1045; Fax: 626 1372yabous@yabous.org, www.yabous.org

BETHLEHEM (02)

Al-Harah TheatreTelefax: 276 7758, alharahtheater@yahoo.cominfo@alharah.org, www.alharah.org

Alliance Française de BethléemTelefax: 275 0777, afbeth@p-ol.com

Anat Palestinian Folk & Craft CenterTelefax: 277 2024, marie_musslam@yahoo.com

Arab Educational Institute (AEI)-Open WindowsTel: 274 4030, www.aeicenter.org

Artas Folklore CenterMob: 0597 524 524, 0599 679 492, 0503 313 136artasfc@hotmail.com

Badil CentreTel: 277 7086

Beit Jala Community-Based Learning and Action CenterTel: 277 7863

Bethlehem Academy of Music/ Bethlehem Music SocietyTel: 277 7141, Fax: 277 7142

Bethlehem Peace CenterTel: 276 6677, Fax: 276 4670 info@peacenter.org, www.peacenter.org

Catholic Action Cultural CenterTel: 274 3277, Fax 274 2939info@ca-b.org, www.ca-b.org

Centre for Cultural Heritage PreservationTel: 276 6244, Fax: 276 6241info@cchp.ps, www.cchp.ps

Environmental Education CenterTel: 276 5574, eec@p-ol.com, www.eecp.org

Inad Centre for Theatre and ArtsTelefax: 276 6263, www.inadtheater.com

International Centre of Bethlehem-Dar AnnadwaTel: 277 0047, Fax: 277 0048 info@diyar.ps, www.diyar.ps

ITIP Center “Italian Tourist Information Point”Telefax: 276 0411, itipcenter@yahoo.com

Nativity Stationery LibraryMob: 0598 950 447

8786

Palestinian Group for the Revival of Popular HeritageTelefax: 274 7945

Palestinian Heritage CenterTelefax: 274 2381, 274 2642mahasaca@palestinianheritagecenter.com www.phc.ps

Relief International - Schools Online Bethlehem Community-Based Learning and Action CenterTel: 277 7863

Sabreen Association for Artistic DevelopmentTel: 275 0091, Fax: 275 0092sabreen@sabreen.org, www.sabreen.org

Tent of NationsTel: 274 3071, Fax: 276 7446tnations@p-ol.com, www.tentofnations.org

The Edward Said National Conservatory of MusicTelefax: 274 8726info@ncm.birzeit.edu, www.birzeit.edu/music

The Higher Institute of MusicTelefax: 275 2492, highiom@hotmail.comwww.thehigherinstituteofmusic.ps

Turathuna - Centre for Palestinian Heritage (B.Uni.)Tel: 274 1241, Fax: 274 4440 pdaoud@bethlehem.edu, www.bethlehem.edu

HEBRON (02)

Al Sanabl Centre for Studies and HeritageTel: 256 0280, sanabelssc@yahoo.comwww.sanabl.org, www.sanabl.ps

Beit Et Tifl CompoundTelefax: 222 4545, tdphebron@alqudsnet.com

British Council- Palestine Polytechnic UniversityTelefax: 229 3717, information@ps.britishcouncil.org www.britsishcouncil.org.ps

Children Happiness CenterTelefax: 229 9545, children_hc@yahoo.comDura Cultural Martyrs CenterTel: 228 3663, nader@duramun.org www.duramun.org

AMIDEASTTel: 221 3301/2/3/4, Fax: 221 3305 Mob: 0599 097 531

France-Hebron Association for Cultural ExchangesTel: 222 4811info@hebron-france.org, wwww.hebron-france.org

Hebron Rehabilitation CommitteeTelfax: 225 5640, 222 6993/4

Palestinian Child Arts Center (PCAC)Tel: 222 4813, Fax: 222 0855 pcac@hotmail.com, www.pcac.net

The International Palestinian Youth League (IPYL)Tel:222 9131, Fax: 229 0652 itv@ipyl.org, www.ipyl.org

Yes TheaterTelefax: 229 1559, www.yestheatre.org, info@yestheatre.org

JERICHO (02)

Jericho Community CentreTelefax: 232 5007

Jericho Culture & Art CenterTelefax: 232 1047

Municipality TheatreTel: 232 2417, Fax: 232 2604

JENIN (04)

Cinema JeninTel: 250 2642, 250 2455info@cinemajenin.org, www.cinemajenin.org

Hakoura CenterTelfax: 250 4773 center@hakoura-jenin.ps, www.hakoura-jenin.ps

The Freedom Theatre/Jenin Refugee CampTel: 250 3345, info@thefreedomtheatre.org

NABLUS (09)

British Council- Al Najah UniversityTelefax: 237 5950information@ps.britishcouncil.org www.britishcoumcil.org/ps

Cultural Centre for Child DevelopmentTel: 238 6290, Fax: 239 7518nutaleb@hotmail.com, www.nutaleb.cjb.net

Cultural Heritage Enrichment CenterTel. 237 2863, Fax. 237 8275 arafatn24@yahoo.com

French Cultural CentreTel: 238 5914, Fax: 238 7593 ccfnaplouse@consulfrance-jerusalem.org

Nablus The CultureTel: 233 2084, Fax: 234 5325 info@nablusculture.ps, www.nablusculture.ps

RAMALLAH AND AL-BIREH (02)

A. M. Qattan FoundationTel: 296 0544, Fax: 298 4886 info@qattanfoundation.org www.qattanfoundation.org

Al Kasaba Theatre and CinemathequeTel: 296 5292/3, Fax: 296 5294 info@alkasaba.org, www.alkasaba.org

Al-Kamandjâti AssociationTel: 297 3101info@alkamandjati.com, www.alkamandjati.com

Al-Mada Music Therapy CenterTel: 241 3196, Fax: 241 3197info@al-mada.ps, www.al-mada.ps

Al-Rahhalah TheatreTelefax: 298 8091, alrahhalah@hotmail.com

Al-Rua’a Publishing HouseTel: 296 1613, Fax: 197 1265, Mob: 0599 259 874akel.nichola@gmail.com

AmideastTel: 240 8023, Fax: 240 8017 westbank-gaza@amideast.org, www.amideast.org

ArtSchool PalestineTel: 295 9837, info@artschoolpalestine.com www.artschoolpalestine.com

Ashtar for Theatre ProductionTel: 298 0037, Fax: 296 0326 info@ashtar-theatre.org, www.ashtar-theatre.org

Baladna Cultural CenterTelfax: 295 8435

Birzeit Ethnographic and Art Museum Tel. 298 2976, www.virtualgallery.birzeit.edu

British CouncilTel: 296 3293-6, Fax: 296 3297information@ps.britishcouncil.org www.britishcouncil.org/ps

Carmel Cultural FoundationTel: 298 7375, Fax: 298 7374

Dar Zahran Heritage BuildingTelfax: 296 3470, Mob: 0599 511 800info@darzahran.org, www.darzahran.org

El-Funoun Dance TroupeTel: 240 2853, Fax: 240 2851info@el-funoun.org, www.el-funoun.org

Franco-German Cultural Centre RamallahTel: 298 1922 / 7727, Fax: 298 1923info@ccf-goethe.org, www.ccf-goethe-ramallah.org

Gallery OneTel: 298 9181, info@galleryone.ps

Greek Cultural Centre - “Macedonia”Telefax: 298 1736/ 298 0546 makdonia@palnet.com

In’ash Al-Usra Society- Center for Heritage & Folklore StudiesTel: 240 1123 / 240 2876, Telefax: 240 1544usra@palnet.com, www.inash.org

International Academy of ArtsTel: 296 7601, info@artacademy.ps

Khalil Sakakini Cultural CenterTel: 298 7374, Fax: 296 6820 sakakini@sakakini.org, www.sakakini.org

Mahmoud Darwish Foundation and MuseumTel: 295 2808, Fax: 295 2809Info@darwishfoundation.org www.darwishfoundation.org

Manar Cultural CenterTel: 295 7937, Fax: 298 7598

Mazra’a Qibliyeh Heritage and Tourism CentreTelefax: 281 5825, mazraaheritage@yahoo.comwww.geocities.com/mazraaheritage/

Nawa InstituteTel: 297 0190, info@nawainstitute.org

Palestine Writing WorkshopMob: 0597 651 408, www.palestineworkshop.com

Palestinian Association for Contemporary Art PACATel: 296 7601, fax: 295 1849paca@pal-paca.org, www.pal-paca.org

Palestinian Association for Cultural Exchange (PACE)Tel: 240 7611, Telfax: 240 7610pace@p-ol.com, www.pace.ps

Popular Art Center Tel: 240 3891, Fax: 240 2851info@popularartcentre.org www.popularartcentre.org

Ramallah Center for Human Rights Studies (RCHRS)Tel: 241 3002Ramallah Cultural PalaceTel: 294 5555, Fax: 295 2107rcpevents@ramallah-city.ps

RIWAQ: Centre for Architectural ConservationTel: 240 6887, Fax: 240 6986 riwaq@palnet.com, www.riwaq.org

Sandouq Elajab TheatreTel: 296 5638, 295 3206 sandouqelajab@yahoo.com

Sareyyet Ramallah - First Ramallah Group (FRG) Tel: 295 2690 - 295 2706, Fax: 298 0583sareyyet@sareyyet.ps, www.sareyyet.ps

Sharek Youth ForumTel: 296 7741, Fax: 296 7742 info@sharek.ps, www.sharek.ps

ShashatTel: 297 3336, Fax: 297 3338info@shashat.org, www.shashat.org

Tamer Institute for Community EducationTel: 298 6121/ 2, Fax: 298 8160tamer@palnet.com, www.tamerinst.org

The Danish House in Palestine (DHIP)TeleFax: 298 8457, info@dhip.ps, www.dhip.ps

The Edward Said National Conservatory of MusicTel: 295 9070, Fax: 295 9071info@ncm.birzeit.edu, www.birzeit.edu/music

The Palestinian Circus SchoolTel: 281 2000, 0568 880 024www.palcircus.ps, info@ palcircus.ps

The Palestinian Network of Art CentresTel: 298 0036, 296 4348/9, Fax: 296 0326iman_aoun@yahoo.com

The Spanish Cultural CenterTel. 295 0893, chp@panoramacenter.org

Young Artist ForumTelefax: 296 7654, yaf@palnet.com

Zawyeh Art GalleryMob. 0597 994 997anani.ziad@gmail.com, www.zawyeh.net

GAZA STRIP (08)

Al-Qattan Centre for the ChildTel: 283 9929, Fax: 283 9949 reem@qcc.qattanfoundation.org www.qattanfoundation.org/qcc

Arts & Crafts VillageTelefax: 284 6405 artvlg@palnet.com, www.gazavillage.org

Ashtar for Culture & ArtsTelefax: 283 3565, atlas9@palnet.com

Culture & Light CentreTelefax: 286 5896, ifarah@palnet.com

Dialogpunkt Deutsch Gaza (Goethe-Insitut) Tel: 282 0203, Fax: 282 1602

Fawanees Theatre GroupTelefax: 288 4403

French Cultural CentreTel: 286 7883, Fax: 282 8811 ccfgaza@consulfrance-jerusalem.org

Gaza Theatre Tel: 282 4860, Fax: 282 4870

Global Production and DistributionTelefax: 288 4399, art.global@yahoo.com

Holst Cultural Centre Tel: 281 0476, Fax: 280 8896, mcrcg@palnet.com

Theatre Day ProductionsTelefax: 283 6766, tdpgaza@palnet.com

Windows from Gaza For Contemporary Art Mob. 0599 781 227 - 0599 415 045 info@artwfg.ps

88

EAST JERUSALEM (02)

7 Arches HotelTel: 626 7777, Fax: 627 1319 svnarch@bezeqint.net, www.7arches.com

Addar Hotel (30 suites; bf; mr; res)Tel: 626 3111, Fax: 626 0791, www.addar-hotel.com

Alcazar Hotel (38 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 1111; Fax: 628 7360 admin@jrscazar.com, www.jrscazar.com

Ambassador Hotel (122 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 541 2222, Fax: 582 8202 reservation@jerusalemambassador.com www.jerusalemambassador.com

American Colony Hotel (84 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 627 9777, Fax: 627 9779 reserv@amcol.co.il, www.americancolony.com

Austrian HospiceTel: 626 5800, Fax: 627 1472office@austrianhospice.com, www.austrianhospice.com

Azzahra Hotel (15 rooms, res)Tel: 628 2447, Fax: 628 3960azzahrahotel@shabaka.net, www.azzahrahotel.com

Capitol Hotel (54 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 2561/2, Fax: 626 4352

Christmas HotelTel: 628 2588, Fax: 626 4417christmashotel@bezeqint.net, www.christmas-hotel.com

Commodore Hotel (45 rooms; cf; mr; res)Tel: 627 1414, Fax: 628 4701info@commodore-jer.com, www.commodore-jer.com

Gloria Hotel (94 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 628 2431, Fax: 628 2401, gloriahl@netvision.net.il

Golden Walls Hotel (112 rooms)Tel: 627 2416, Fax: 626 4658info@goldenwalls.com, www.goldenwalls.com

Holy Land Hotel (105 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 627 2888, Fax: 628 0265 info@holylandhotel.com, www.holylandhotel.com

ibis Styles Jerusalem Sheikh Jarrah (91 rooms)Tel: 578 3100, Fax: 578 3129, www.ibis.com

Jerusalem Hotel (14 rooms; bf; mr; res; live music)Tel: 628 3282, Fax: 628 3282 raed@jrshotel.com, www.jrshotel.com

Jerusalem Meridian Hotel (74 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 5212, Fax: 628 5214 www.jerusalem-meridian.com

Jerusalem Panorama Hotel (74 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 4887, Fax: 627 3699 panorama@alqudsnet.comwww.jerusalempanoramahotel.com

Hashimi HotelTel: 628 4410, Fax: 628 4667, info@hashimihotel.com

Knights Palace Guesthouse (50 rooms)Tel: 628 2537, Fax: 628 2401, kp@actcom.co.il

Legacy HotelTel: 627 0800, Fax: 627 7739 info@jerusalemlegacy.com, www.jerusalemlegacy.com

Metropol HotelTel: 628 2507, Fax: 628 5134

Mount of Olives Hotel (61 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 4877, Fax: 626 4427 info@mtolives.coml, www.mtolives.com

Mount Scopus Hotel (65 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 582 8891, Fax: 582 8825, mtscopus@netvision.net.il

National Hotel (99 rooms; bf; cr; res; cf)Tel: 627 8880, Fax: 627 7007www.nationalhotel-jerusalem.com

New Imperial Hotel (45 rooms)Tel: 627 2000, Fax: 627 1530

New Metropole Hotel (25 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 628 3846, Fax: 627 7485

New Swedish HostelTel: 627 7855, Fax: 626 4124 swedishhost@yahoo.com www.geocities.com/swedishhostel

Notre Dame Guesthouse (142 rooms, Su, bf, mr, cr, res, ter, cf, pf)Tel: 627 9111, Fax: 627 1995info@notredamecenter.org www.notredamecenter.org

Petra Hostel and HotelTel: 628 6618

Pilgrims Inn Hotel (16 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 627 2416, info@goldenwalls.com

Ritz Hotel Jerusalem (104 rooms, bf, mr)Tel: 626 9900, Fax: 626 9910reservations@jerusalemritz.comwww.jerusalemritz.com

Rivoli HotelTel: 628 4871, Fax: 627 4879

Savoy Hotel (17 rooms)Tel: 628 3366, Fax: 628 8040

Seven Arches Hotel (197 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 626 7777, Fax: 627 1319 svnarch@trendline.co.il

St. Andrew’s Scottish Guesthouse “The Scottie” (19 rooms +Self Catering Apartment)Tel: 673 2401, Fax: 673 1711standjer@netvision.net.il, www.scotsguesthouse.com

St George Hotel JerusalemTel: 627 7232 Fax: 627 7233 info@stgeorgehoteljerusalem.comwww.stgeorgehoteljerusalem.com

St. George’s Pilgrim Guest House (25 rooms; bf; res)Tel: 628 3302, Fax: 628 2253 sghostel@bezeqint.net

St. Thomas HomeTel: 628 2657, 627 4318, Fax: 626 4684aset@aset-future.com, www.aset-future.net

Strand Hotel (88 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 628 0279, Fax: 628 4826

Victoria Hotel (50 rooms; bf; res)Tel: 627 4466, Fax: 627 4171Info@4victoria-hotel.com, www.4victoria-hotel.com

BETHLEHEM (02)

Alexander Hotel (42 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 277 0780, Fax: 277 0782

Al-Salam Hotel (26 rooms; 6f; mr; cf; res)Tel: 276 4083/4, Fax: 277 0551, samhotel@p-ol.com

Angel Hotel Beit JalaTel: 276 6880, Fax: 276 6884info@angelhotel.ps, www.angelhotel.ps

Ararat Hotel (101 rooms, mr, ter, cf)Tel: 274 9888, Fax: 276 9887info@ararat-hotel.com, www.ararat–hotel.com

Beit Al-Baraka Youth Hostel (19 rooms)Tel: 222 9288, Fax: 222 9288

Bethlehem Bible College Guest House (11 rooms; mr; pf)Tel: 274 1190, guesthouse@bethbc.org

9190

Beit Ibrahim GuesthouseTel: 274 2613, Fax: 274 4250 reception@luthchurch.com www.abrahams-herberge.com

Bethlehem Hotel (209 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 277 0702, Fax: 277 0706, bhotel@p-ol.com

Bethlehem Inn (36 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 274 2424, Fax: 274 2423

Bethlehem Star Hotel (72 rooms; cf; bf; res)Tel: 274 3249 - 277 0285, Fax: 274 1494 htstar@palnet.com

Bethlehem youth hostelTelefax: 274 84 66, http://www.ejepal.org

Casanova Hospice (60 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 274 3981, Fax: 274 3540

Casanova Palace Hotel (25 rooms; bf; res)Tel: 274 2798, Fax: 274 1562

Dar Sitti Aziza HotelTelefax: 274 4848 info@darsittiaziza.com, www.darsittiaziza.com

El-Beit Guest House (Beit Sahour) (15 rooms)TeleFax: 277 5857, info@elbeit.org, www.elbeit.org

Eman Regency Palace (55 rooms; su (1); cr; res)Tel: 277 2010, Fax: 274 6808info@emanregencyhotel.ps, www.emanregencyhotel.ps

Everest Hotel (19 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 274 2604, Fax: 274 1278

Grand Hotel (107 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 274 1602 - 274 1440, Fax: 274 1604 info@grandhotelbethlehem.com

Golden Park Resort & Hotel (Beit Sahour) (66 rooms; res, bar, pool)Tel: 277 4414

Grand Park Hotel Bethlehem (Has 110 rooms located in 7 floors, main restaurant, dining room, conference room and bar.)Tel: 275 6400, Fax: 276 3736 info@grandpark.com, www.grandpark.com

Holy Family Hotel (90 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res;)Tel: 277 3432/3, Fax: 274 8650 holyfamilyhotel@hotmail.com www.holyfamilyhotel.com

Holy Land HotelTel: 277 8962/3, Fax: 277 8961holylandhotel@hotmail.com, www.holylandhotel.net

House of Hope GuesthouseTel: 274 2325, Fax: 274 0928Guesthouse@houseofhopemd.org

House of Peace HostelTel: 276 4739, www.houseofpeace.hostel.com/

Jacir Palace Hotel - Bethlehem (250 rooms; su; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6770

Lutheran Guesthouse “Abu Gubran”Tel: 277 0047, Guesthouse@diyar.ps, www.diyar.ps

Manger Square Hotel (220 Rooms; bf; cf; mr; res; cr)Tel: 277 8888, Fax: 277 8889 fabudayyeh@mangersquarehotel.com Web: www.mangersquarehotel.com

Murad Tourist ResortTel: 2759880, Fax:2759881, www.murad.ps

Nativity BELLS Hotel (95 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 274 8880, Fax: 274 8870 nativitybells@palnet.com, www.nativitybellshotel.ps

Nativity Hotel (89 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 277 0650, Fax: 274 4083 nativity@nativity-hotel.com, www.nativity-hotel.com

Olive Tree Hotel (20 rooms; 6 su; res; sp; bar; wifi-lobby)

Tel: 276 4660 Fax: 275 3807olivetreehotel@yahoo.comFacebook: olive tree tourist village

Paradise Hotel (166 rooms;cf;bf;mr;res;su;pf)Tel: 274 4542/3 - 274 4544, paradise@p-ol.com

St. Antonio Hotel (36 rooms; mr; cf;res;pf)Tel: 276 6221, Fax: 276 6220

Saint Gabriel HotelTel: 275 9990, Fax: 275 9991 Reservation@st-gabrielhtel.com www.st-gabrielhotel.com

Saint Michael HotelTel: 276 9921/2/3, Fax: 277 2244info@saintmichaelhotel.com www.saintmichaelhotel.com

Santa Maria Hotel (83 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 276 7374/5/6, Fax: 276 7377, smaria@p-ol.com

Shepherd HotelTel: 274 0656, Fax: 274 4888 info@shepherdhotel.com, www.shepherdhotel.com

Shepherds’ House Hotel (Facilities: Restaurant and Bar, WiFi)Tel: 275 9690, Fax: 275 9693

St. Nicholas Hotel (25 rooms; res; mr)Tel: 274 3040/1/2, Fax: 274 3043

Saint Vincent Guest House (36 rooms)Tel: 276 0967/8, Fax: 276 0970svincent@p-ol.com, www.saintvincentguesthouse.net

Talita Kumi Guest House (22 rooms; res; mr; cf)Tel: 274 1247, Fax: 274 1847

Zaituna Tourist VillageTel: 275 0655

JERICHO (02)

Al- Zaytouna Guest House (7 rooms; bf; res; mr)Telefax: 274 2016 Deir Hijleh MonasteryTel: 994 3038, 0505 348 892

Hisham Palace HotelTel: 232 2414, Fax: 232 3109

Oasis Jericho Hotel (181 rooms; su; bf; cf; mr; res; ter; tb)Tel: 231 1200, Fax: 231 1222reservation@oasis-jericho.ps

Jericho Resort Village (60 rooms; 46 studios; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 232 1255, Fax: 232 2189 reservation@jerichoresorts.com www.jerichoresorts.com

Jerusalem Hotel (22 rooms)Tel: 232 2444, Fax: 992 3109

Telepherique & Sultan Tourist Center (55 rooms)Tel: 232 1590, Fax: 232 1598 info@jericho-cablecar.com

HEBRON (02)

Hebron HotelTel: 225 4240 / 222 9385, Fax: 222 6760hebron_hotel@hotmail.com

NABLUS (09)

Al-Qaser Hotel (48 rooms; 7 regular suites, 1 royal suite; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 2341 444, Fax: 2341 944 alqaser@alqaserhotel.com, www.alqaserhotel.com

Al-Yasmeen Hotel & Souq (30 rooms; cf; mr; res)Tel: 233 3555 Fax: 233 3666 yasmeen@palnet.com, www.alyasmeen.com

Asia Hotel (28 rooms, res)

Telefax: 238 6220

Chrystal Motel (12 rooms)Telefax: 233 3281

International Friends Guesthouse (Hostel) (mr; res; ter; cf; pf)Telfax: 238 1064ifriends.house@gmail.com, www.guesthouse.ps

RAMALLAH and AL-BIREH (02)

Al-A’in Hotel (24 rooms and suites; mr; cf)Tel: 240 5925 - 240 4353, Fax: 240 4332alainhotel@hotmail.com

Aladdin Hotel (27 rooms bf; mr; ter)Tel: 240 7689, Fax: 240 7687, Mob. 0598 308 382aladdinhotel1@gmail.com, www.thealaddinhotel.com

Al-Bireh Tourist Hotel (50 rooms; cf; res)Telefax: 240 0803

Al-Hajal Hotel (22 rooms; bf)Telefax: 298 7858

Al Hambra Palace (Hotel Suites and Resort)Tel: 295 6226 - 295 0031, Fax: 295 0032alhambrapalace1@gmail.comwww.alhambra-palace-hotel.com

AlZahra SuitesTel: 242 3019alzahrasuites@yahoo.com, www.alzahrasuites.ps

Al-Wihdah HotelTelefax: 298 0412

Ankars Suites and Hotel (40 Suites & Rooms, su,mr,bf,cr,res,ter,cf,gm,pf)Tel: 295 2602, Fax: 295 2603, Info@ankars.psArea: D Hostel (50 beds, 2 private appartments)Mob: 0569 349 042, Info@RamallahHostel.com

Beauty InnTel: 296 6477, Fax: 296 6479beauty.inn@hotmail.com, www.beautyinn.ps

Best Eastern Hotel (91 rooms; cf; res)Tel: 296 0450, Fax: 295 8452, besteastern@jrol.com

Caesar Hotel (46 rooms & su, 2 mr, cr, res, cf)Tel: 297 9400, Fax: 297 9401reservation@caesar-hotel.ps, www.caesar-hotel.ps

City Inn Palace Hotel (47 rooms; bf; cf; res)Tel: 240 8080, Fax: 240 8091cityinnpalace@gmail.com, www.cityinnpalace.com

Grand Park Hotel & Resorts (84 rooms; 12 grand suites; bf; cf; mr; res; sp; pf)Tel: 298 6194, Fax: 295 6950, info@grandpark.com

Gemzo Suites (90 executive suites; cs; mr; pf; gm; res) Tel: 240 9729, Fax: 240 9532gemzo@palnet.com, www.gemzosuites.net

Garden Suites and Restaurant (22 suites (su, res, pf)Tel: 298 8885, Fax: 298 8876, info@gardensuite.net

Manarah HotelTel: 295 2122, Telefax: 295 3274manarah@hotmail.com, www.manarahhotel.com.ps

Merryland Hotel (25 rooms)Tel: 298 7176, Telefax: 298 7074

Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah (171 rooms and Su; bf; mr; cr; res;ter; cf; gm; pf; sp)Tel: 298 5888, Fax: 298 533 hotel.ramallah@moevenpick.com hotel.ramallah.reservation@moevenpick.com www.moevenpick-ramallah.com

Rocky Hotel (22 rooms; cf; res; ter)Tel: 296 4470, Telefax: 296 1871

Palestine Plaza Hotel (100 rooms and suites; bf; res; gym; cf)Tel: 294 6888, Fax: 297 3574reservations@palestineplazahotel.com

Pension Miami (12 rooms)Telefax: 295 6808

Ramallah Hotel (22 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 295 3544, Fax: 295 5029

Reef Pension (Jifna village) (8 rooms; res)Telefax: 2810881, www.reefhousepension.ps

Retno Hotel (33 rooms & su; res; mr; gm; sp)Telefax: 295 0022, Retno@retnohotel.com www.retnohotel.com

Royal Court Suite Hotel (39 rooms; res; mr; ter; cf; pf; i)Tel: 296 4040, Fax: 296 4047info@rcshotel.com, www.rcshotel.com

Summer Bar (Ankars Garden)Tel: 295 2602

Star Mountain Guesthouse (10 rooms; wifi; pf)Tel: 296 2705, Telefax: 296 2715starmountaincenter@gmail.com

Taybeh Golden HotelTel: 289 9440, info@taybehgoldenhotel.comwww.taybehgoldenhotel.com

GAZA STRIP (08)

Adam Hotel (76 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Telefax: 282 3521/19, Fax: 282 5580

Al-Deira (22 Suits; cf; mr; res; ter)Tel: 283 8100/200/300, Fax: 283 8400 info@aldeira.ps, www.aldeira.ps

Al Mashtal HotelTel: 283 2500, Fax: 283 2510mashtal@arcmedhotels.com www.almashtalarcmedhotels.com

Almat’haf HotelTel: 285 8444, Fax: 285 8440info@almathaf.ps, www.almathaf.ps

Al-Quds In ter na tional Hotel (44 rooms; 2 suites; bf; mr; res)Telefax: 282 5181, 282 6223, 286 3481, 282 2269

Beach Hotel (25 rooms; bf; mr; res)Telefax: 282 5492, 284 8433

Commodore Gaza Hotel (60 rooms;su; bf)Tel: 283 4400, Fax: 282 2623

Gaza International Hotel (30 rooms; bf; cf; res)Tel: 283 0001/2/3/4, Fax: 283 0005

Grand Palace Hotel (20 rooms; cr; mr; cf; res)Tel: 284 9498/6468, Fax: 284 9497

Marna House (17 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 282 2624, Fax: 282 3322

Palestine Hotel (54 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: Tel: 282 3355, Fax: 286 0056

JENIN (04)

Cinema Jenin Guesthouse (7 rooms; 2 su)Tel: 250 2455, Mob: 0599 317 968guesthouse@cinemajenin.org, www.cinemajenin.org

Haddad Hotel & ResortTel: 241 7010/1/2, Fax: 241 7013haddadbooking@ymail.com www.haddadtourismvillage.com

North Gate HotelTel: 243 5700, Fax: 243 5701info@northgate-hotel.com, www.northgate-hotel.com

Key: su = suites, bf = business facilities; mr = meeting rooms, cr = conference facilities; res = restaurant, ter = terrace bar; tb = turkish bath, cf = coffee shop; gm = gym; pf = parking facilities, sp = swimming pool

9392

EAST JERUSALEM (02)

Al-Diwan (Ambassador Hotel) Middle Eastern, French, and Italian CuisineTel: 541 2213, Fax: 582 8202

Alhambra Palace Jerusalem Restaurant & coffee shopTel: 626 3535, Fax: 6263737 info@alhambrapalacej.com

Al-Manakeesh Pizza & PastriesTel: 585 6928

Al-Shuleh Grill Shawerma and BarbecuesTel: 627 3768

Amigo Emil Middle Eastern, American, Indian, and Italian Cuisine Tel: 628 8090, Fax: 626 1457

Antonio’s (Ambassador Hotel) Middle Eastern, French, and Italian CuisineTel: 541 2213

Arabesque, Poolside, and Patio Restaurants (American Colony Hotel) Western and Middle Eastern MenuTel: 627 9777, Fax: 627 9779

Armenian Tavern Armenian and Middle Eastern FoodTel: 627 3854

Askidinya Italian and French CuisineTel: 532 4590

Az-Zahra Oriental food and PizzaTel: 628 2447

Borderline Restaurant Café Italian and Oriental MenuTel: 532 8342

Burghoulji Armenian and Middle EasternTel: 628 2072, Fax: 628 2080

Cardo Restaurant Continental CuisineTel: 627 0800

Chinese Restaurant Chinese Cuisine Tel: 626 3465, Fax: 626 3471

Educational Bookshop Books and CoffeeTel: 627 5858

El Dorada Coffee Shop and Internet Café Chocolates, Coffee, and Internet Tel: 626 0993

Flavours Grill International Cuisine with Mediterranean FlavourTel: 627 4626

Four Seasons Restaurants and Coffee Shop Barbecues and Shawerma Tel: 628 6061, Fax: 628 6097

Gallery Café Snacks and BeveragesTel: 540 9974

Garden’s RestaurantTel: 581 6463

Goodies Fast FoodTel: 585 3223

Kan Zaman (Jerusalem Hotel) Mediterranean Cuisine Tel: 627 1356

Lotus and Olive Garden (Jerusalem Meridian Hotel) Middle Eastern and Continental CuisineTel: 628 5212

Nafoura Middle Eastern MenuTel: 626 0034

Nakashian Gallery Café Tel: 627 8077

La Rotisserie (Notre Dame Hotel) Gourmet Restaurant, European and Mediterranean MenuTel: 627 9114, Fax: 627 1995

Dina Café Coffee and PastryTel: 626 3344

Panoramic Golden City Barbecues Tel: 628 4433, Fax: 627 5224

Pasha’s Oriental FoodTel: 582 5162, 532 8342

Patisserie Suisse Fast Food and BreakfastTel: 628 4377

Petra Restaurant Oriental Cuisine Tel: 627 7799

Pizza House Pizza and Oriental PastryTel: 627 3970, 628 8135

Quick LunchTel: 628 4228

RIO Grill and Subs Italian and French CuisineTel: 583 5460

Rossini’s Restaurant Bar French and Italian Cuisine Tel: 628 2964

Philadelphia Restaurant Mediterranean Menu Tel: 532 2626, Fax: 532 2636

Shalizar Restaurant Middle Eastern, Mexican, and Italian Cuisine Tel: 582 9061

The Gate Café Fresh Juices, Coffee, and TeaTel: 627 4282

The Scots Bistro Coffee and PastryTel: 673 2401, Fax: 673 1711

The Patio (Christmas Hotel) Oriental and European MenuTel: 628 2588, 626 4418

Turquoise Lebanese RestaurantTel: 627 7232, Fax: 627 7233

Versavee Bistro (Bar and Café) Oriental and Western FoodTel: 627 6160

Victoria Restaurant Middle Eastern and Arabic MenuTel: 628 3051, Fax: 627 4171

Wake up RestaurantTel: 627 8880

Zad Rest. & CaféTel: 627 7454, 627 2525

BETHLEHEM (02)

1890 Restaurant (Beit-Jala)Tel: 277 8779 restaurant.1890@gmail.com

Abu Eli Restaurant Middle Eastern and BarbecuesTel. 274 1897

Abu Shanab Restaurant BarbecuesTel: 274 2985

Afteem Restaurant Oriental CuisineTel: 274 7940

Al-Areesheh Palace (autumn and winter) (Jacir Palace) Middle Eastern and BarbecuesTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6154

Al-Hakura Restaurant Middle Eastern and Fast FoodTel: 277 3335

Al-Areesheh Tent (spring and summer) (Jacir Palace) Middle Eastern and BarbecuesTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6154

Al Makan Bar (Jacir Palace) Snack BarTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6770

Al-Sammak Sea Food RestaurantTel: 277 0376, 2743530Fax: 277 0377

Balloons Coffee Shop and PizzaTel: 275 0221, Fax: 277 7115

Barbara RestaurantTel: 274 0130 barbra.rest1@hotmail.com

Beit Sahour Citadel Mediterranean CuisineTel: 277 7771

Bonjour Restaurant and Café Coffee Shop and Continental Cuisine Tel: 274 0406

Christmas Bells Restaurants Oriental CuisineTel: 277 6336, Fax: 277 6337

Dar al-Balad Continental Cuisine Tel: 274 9073

Divano Café and RestaurantTel: 275 7276 divanocafe@gmail.com

Ewaan Restaurant (International Cuisine)Tel: 274 3737

Grotto Restaurant Barbecues and Taboon Tel: 274 8844, Fax: 274 8889

Golden Roof Continental CuisineTel: 274 3224

King Gaspar Restaurant & Bar (Italian, Asian and Mediterranean Cuisine)Tel: 276 5301, Fax: 276 5302

Il’iliyeh Restaurant Continental Cuisine Tel: 277 0047

Layal Lounge Snack BarTel: 275 0655

La Terrasse Middle Eastern and Continental CuisineTel: 275 3678

Limoncello (Beit Jala)Tel: 275 8844, Fax: 275 8833

Little ItalyTel: 275 5161

Mariachi (Grand Hotel) Seafood and Mexican CuisineTel: 274 1440, 274 1602/3Fax: 274 1604

Massina (Breakfast)Tel: 274 9110

Noah’s Snack/ Ararat Hotel Snack Food Tel: 749 888, Fax: 276 9887

Palmeras Gastropub Continental Cuisine Telefax: 275 6622

Peace Restaurant & Bar Pasta, Seafood, Steaks & Middle EasternTel: 0595 187 622

Al-Riwaq Restaurant and Coffee Shop snacks and cakes (Jacir Palace – InterContinental Bethlehem) Coffee Shop and Sandwiches Tel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6754

Roots Lounge (Beit Sahour)Tel: 0598 333 665

The Tent Restaurant (Shepherds’ Valley Village) BarbecuesTel: 277 3875, Fax: 277 3876

Sima caféTel: 275 2058

Singer caféMob. 0597 492 175

St. George Restaurant Oriental Cuisine and BarbecuesTel: 274 3780, Fax: 274 1833st.george_restaurant@yahoo.com

Tachi Chinese Chinese Cuisine Tel: 274 4382

Taboo – Restaurant and Bar Oriental and Continental Cuisine Tel: 274 0711, Mob: 0599 205 158

The Square Restaurant and Coffee Shop Mediterranean CuisineTel: 274 9844

Zaitouneh (Jacir Palace) Continental CuisineTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6154

JERICHO (02)

Al-Nafoura Restaurant (Jericho Resort Village) Arabic Cuisine and Barbecues Tel: 232 1255, Fax: 232 2189

Al-Rawda Barbecues Telefax: 232 2555

Green Valley Park Oriental Cuisine and Barbecues Tel: 232 2349

Jabal Quruntul Continental Cuisine (Open Buffet) Tel: 232 2614, Fax: 232 2659

Limoneh Continental Cuisine Tel: 231 2977, Fax: 231 2976

NABLUS (09)

Salim Afandi Barbecues and Oriental Cuisine Tel: 237 1332

Qasr al-Jabi restaurantTel: 238 4180

Zeit Ou Zaater (Al-Yasmeen Hotel) Continental Cuisine and PastriesTel: 238 3164, Fax: 233 3666

RAMALLAH AND AL-BIREH (02)

911 Café Mexican, Italian, OrientalTel: 296 5911

Andareen PubMob: 0599 258 435

Al Falaha Msakhan and Taboun Tel: 290 5124

Akasha OrientalTel: 295 9333

Allegro Italian Restaurant (Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah) Italian fine cuisineTel: 298 5888

Al- Riwaq All-day-dining restaurant (Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah) International, Swiss and Oriental cuisineTel: 298 5888

Awjan Seafood, Breakfast, and Pizza, Coffee Shop, Lebanese and Italian Cuisine Tel: 297 1776

Andre’s Restaurant French and Italian Cuisine Tel: 296 6477/8

Angelo’s Western Menu and PizzaTel: 295 6408, 298 1455

Ayysha Restaurant Oriental CuisineTel: 296 6622

Azure Restaurant and Coffee Shop Continental Cuisine Telefax: 295 7850

Baladna Ice Cream Ice Cream and Soft DrinksTelefax: 295 6721

Bel Mondo Italian CuisineTel: 298 6759

Caesar’s (Grand Park Hotel) Continental Cuisine Tel: 298 6194

Café De La Paix French CuisineTel: 298 0880

Castana CaféTel: 297 1114

Castello Restaurant & Café OrientalTel: 297 3844/55

Chinese House Restaurant Chinese Cuisine Tel: 296 4081

Clara restaurant and pubMob: 0597 348 335

Dauod BashaTel: 297 4655

Darna Continental Cuisine Tel: 295 0590/1

Diwan Art Coffee Shop Continental CuisineTel: 296 6483

Do Re Mi Café (Royal Court) Continental Cuisine Tel: 296 4040

Elite Coffee House Italian and Arabic CuisineTel: 296 5169

European Coffee Shop Coffee and SweetsTel: 2951 7031, 296 6505

Express Pizza American PizzaTel: 296 6566

Fakhr El-Din Lebanese CuisineTel: 294 6800

Fawanees Pastries and Fast FoodTel: 298 7046

Fatuta Reataurant Barbecues, (Birzeit)Mob. 0599 839 043

Fuego Mexican and Tapas GrillTel: 29 59426 - 1700 999 888

Jasmine CaféTel: 295 0121

Janan’s KitchenTel: 297 5444

K5M - Caterers Cake and SweetsTel: 295 6813

Khuzama Restaurant Oriental Cuisine Tel: 298 8289

La Vie Café Cafe, Bistro & BarTel: 296 4115

La Vista Café and Restaurant Oriental and Western Cuisine Tel: 296 3271

Level 5 Fusion EuropeanTel: 298 8686

Cann Espresso Arabic and Italian Cuisine Tel: 297 2125

Mac Simon Pizza and Fast FoodTel: 297 2088

Martini Bar (Caesar Hotel)Tel: 297 9400

Mr. Donuts Café Donuts and Coffee ShopTel: 240 7196

Mr. Fish SeafoodTel: 295 9555

Mr. Pizza Pizza and Fast Food Tel: 240 3016, 240 8182

Muntaza Restaurant and Garden Barbecues and Sandwiches Tel: 295 6835

Na3Na3 Café Italian and Oriental Cuisine Tel: 296 4606

Nai Resto Café - ArgeelehMob: 0595 403 020

Newz Bar Lounge and “Le Gourmet” pastries’ corner

Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah Tel: 298 5888

Osama’s Pizza Pizza and Fast Food Tel: 295 3270

Orjuwan Lounge Palestinian-Italian Fusion Tel: 297 6870

Rama café Resto/BarTel: 298 5376

9594

Palestine Revolving Restaurant (23rd floor, Palestine Trade Tower)Tel: 294 6888, Fax: 297 3574

Peter’s Place Restaurant & Bar (Taybeh) Palestinian CuisineTel: 289 8054, Mob: 0547 043 029

Pesto Café and Restaurant Italian Cuisine Tel: 297 0705, 297 0706

Pizza Inn Pizza and Fast FoodTel: 298 1181/2/3

Philadelphia Restaurant Middle Eastern Menu Tel: 295 1999

Philistia Restaurant & Catering Palestinian cuisineTel: 298 9051

Plaza Jdoudna Restaurant and Park Middle Eastern Menu Tel: 295 6020, Fax: 296 4693

Pronto Resto-Café Italian Cuisine Tel: 298 7312

QMHTel: 297 34511

Roma Café Italian Light FoodTel: 296 4228

Rukab’s Ice Cream Ice Cream and Soft DrinksTel: 295 3467

Saba Sandwiches Falafel and Sandwiches Tel: 296 0116

Samer Middle Eastern Food Tel: 240 5338 - 240 3088

ScoopTel: 295 9189

Sangria’s French, Italian, and Mexican Cuisine Tel: 295 6808

Sinatra Gourmet Italian and American CuisineTel: 297 1028

Sky Bar (Ankars Suites and Hotel) Continental Cuisine Tel: 295 2602

Sky Gate Terrace and BarTel: 294 6888, Fax: 297 3574

Sushi Restaurant (Caesar Hotel) Tel: 297 9400

Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah Tel: 298 5888

Stones Continental Cuisine Tel: 296 6038

Tabash (Jifna Village) Barbecues Tel: 281 0932

Tal El-Qamar Roof Middle Eastern and Western MenuTel: 298 7905/ 6

TCHE TCHETel: 296 4201

THE Q GARDEN Roof-top garden International CusineTel: 295 7727

Tomasso’s Pizza and Fast Food Tel: 240 9991/ 2

Tropicana Mexican Cuisine, Oriental Menu, and ZarbTel: 297 5661

UpTown (Ankars Suites and Hotel) Continental Cuisine Tel: 295 2602

Values Restaurant International and SeafoodTel: 296 6997

Vatche’s Garden Restaurant European Style Tel: 296 5966, 296 5988

Zam’n Premium Coffee Coffee Shop StyleTel: 295 0600

Zaki Taki Sandwiches Tel: 296 3643

Zam’n Premium Coffee Masyoun Coffee Shop StyleTel: 298 1033

Zarour Bar BQ Barbecues and Oriental Cuisine Tel: 295 6767, 296 4480Fax: 296 4357

Zeit ou Zaater Pastries and SnacksTel: 295 4455

Ziryab Barbecues, Italian, and Oriental CuisineTel: 295 9093

GAZA STRIP (08)

Al Daar BarbecuesTel: 288 5827

Al-Deira Mediterranean Cuisine Tel: 283 8100/200/300 Fax: 2838400

Almat’haf Mediterranean CuisineTel: 285 8444, Fax: 285 8440

Al-Molouke Shawerma Tel: 286 8397

Al-Salam Seafood Tel: 282 2705, Telefax: 283 3188

Avenue Tel: 288 2100, 288 3100

Big Bite FastfoodTel: 283 3666

Carino’sTel: 286 6343, Fax: 286 6353

LATERNATel: 288 9881, Fax: 288 9882

Light HouseTel: 288 4884

Marna HouseTelefax: 282 3322, 282 2624

Mazaj Coffee HouseTel: 286 8035

Mazaj ResturantTel: 282 5003, Fax: 286 9078

Orient HouseTelefax: 282 8008, 282 8604

Roots - The Club Oriental Cuisine Tel: 288 8666, 282 3999, 282 3777

Abu Mazen RestaurantTel: 221 3833, Fax: 229 3111

Al Quds RestaurantTel: 229 7773, Fax: 229 7774

Golden RoosterTelefax: 221 6115

Hebron RestaurantTelefax: 222 7773

Orient House RestaurantTelefax: 221 1525

Royal RestaurantTel: 222 7210

East Jerusalem (02) Armenian Museum, Old City, Tel: 628 2331, Fax: 626 4861, Opening hours: Mon.- Sat. from 9:00 - 16:30 • Dar At Tifl Museum (Dar At Tifl Association), Near the Orient House, Tel: 628 3251, Fax: 627 3477 • Islamic Museum (The Islamic Waqf Asso ciation), Old City, Tel: 628 3313, Fax: 628 5561, opening hours for tourists: daily from 7:30 - 13:30 • Math Museum, Science Museum, Abu Jihad Museum for the Palestinian Prisoners Studies - Al-Quds University, Tel: 279 9753 - 279 0606, foryou@alquds.edu, opening hours Saturday - Wednesday 8:30 - 15:00 • Qalandia Camp Women’s Handicraft Coop., Telefax: 656 9385, Fax: 585 6966, qalandia@palnet.com • WUJOUD Museum, Tel: 626 0916, Fax: 0272625, info@wujoud.org, www.wujoud.org

Bethlehem (02) Al-Balad Museum for Olive Oil Production, Tel: 274 1581, Opening hours: 8:00-14:30 Monday through Saturday • Baituna al Talhami Museum, (Folklore Museum) Arab Women’s Union, Tel: 274 2589, Fax: 274 2431, Opening hours: daily from 8:00 - 13:00/ 14:00 - 17:00 except for Sundays and Thursdays afternoon • Bethlehem Peace Center Museum, Tel: 276 6677, Fax: 274 1057, info@peacenter.org, www.peacenter.org, Opening hours: daily from 10:00-18:00 except Sundays from 10:00 - 16:00 • International Nativity Museum, Telefax: 276 0076, nativitymuseum@salesianbethlehem.com, www.internationalnativitymuseum.com • Natural History Museum, Telefax:02-276 5574, eec@p-ol.com, www.eecp.org • Artas Old Village House/Museum, Mob: 0597 524 524, 0599 679 492, 0502 509 514, artasfc@hotmail.com, Opening Hours: By Appointment • Palestinian Heritage Center, Telefax: 274 2381, mahasaca@palestinianheritagecenter.com, www.palestinianheritagecenter.com

Gaza (08) Al Mathaf, Tel: 285 8444, info@almathaf.ps, www. almathaf.ps

Jericho (02) Russian Museum Park Complex, Mob. 0595 076 143

Ramallah & Al-Bireh (02) Mahmoud Darwish Museum, Telefax: 295 2808/9, sameh@darwishfoundation.org • Museum of Palestinian Popular Heritage - In’ash el Usra, In’ash el Usra society, Al-Bireh, Tel: 240 2876, Fax: 240 1544, Opening hours: daily from 8:00 - 15:00 except Fridays • Ramallah Museum, Al-Harajeh St., Across from Arab Bank, Old Town, Ramallah, Telefax: 295 9561, open daily from 8:00 - 15:00 except friday and Saturday • Saadeh Science House (Alnayzak Science and technology Museum) - Alhaq 1 st. - Old city of Birzeit, Tel. 02-2819040, opening hours Sunday to Thursday from 9:00 - 18:00 • The Birzeit University Ethnographic and Art Museum Tel: 298 2976, vtamari@birzeit.edu, Opening hours: daily from 10:00 - 15:00 except for Fridays and Sundays • The Palestinian Museum, Tel: 297 4797/98, Fax: 297 4795, info@palmuseum.org, www.palmuseum.org

East Jerusalem (02) Car Rental • Car & Drive, Tel: 656 5562/3 • Dallah Al-Barakah, Tel: 656 4150 • Good Luck, Tel: 627 7033, Fax: 627 7688 • Green Peace Rent A Car Ltd., Telefax: 585 9756 • Jerusalem Car Rental & Leasing ltd., Tel: 582 2179, Fax: 582 2173 • Orabi, Tel: 585 3101 • Middle East Car Rental, Tel: 626 2777, Fax: 626 2203, mecarrental@gmail.com • Taxis Abdo,Tel: 585 8202 (Beit Hanina), Tel: 628 3281 (Damascus Gate) • Al-Eman Taxi & Lemo Service, Tel: 583 4599 - 583 5877 • Al-Rashid, Tel: 628 2220 • Al-Aqsa, Tel: 627 3003 • Beit Hanina, Tel: 585 5777 • Holy Land, Tel: 585 5555 • Imperial, Tel: 628 2504 • Jaber - Petra, Tel: 583 7275 - 583 7276 • Khaled Al-Tahan, Tel: 585 5777 • Mount of Olives, Tel: 627 2777 • Panorama, Tel: 628 1116 • Tourist Trans por tation Abdo Tourist, Tel: 628 1866 • Jerusalem of Gold, Tel: 673 7025/6 • Kawasmi Tourist Travel Ltd., Tel: 628 4769, Fax: 628 4710 • Mount of Olives, Tel: 627 1122 • Mahfouz Tourist Travel,

Tel: 628 2212, Fax: 628 4015 • Bethlehem (02) Car Rental Murad, Tel: 274 7092 • Nativity Rent a Car, Tel: 274 3532, Fax: 274 7053 Taxis Asha’b, Tel: 274 2309 • Beit Jala, Tel: 274 2629 • Al Fararjeh Taxi - 24 Hours,

Tel: 275 2416 • Hebron (02) Car Rental Holy Land, Tel: 222 0811 • Taxis Al-Asdiqa’, Tel: 222 9436 •

Al-Itihad, Tel: 222 8750 • Jericho (02) Taxis Petra, Tel: 232 2525 • Nablus (09) Car Rental Orabi,

Tel: 238 3383 • Taxis Al-Ittimad, Tel: 237 1439 • Al-Madina, Tel: 237 3501 • Ramallah and Al-Bireh (02) Car Rental Abe Car Services, Mob: 0595 604 062, 054 981 2946 • AL Kerish Auto Rent, Beitunial, Tel: 290 6662 • Orabi, Tel: 240 3521 • Petra, Tel: 295 2602 • TWINS, Tel: 296 4688 • Taxis A.B.E. Car Services (yellow plate), 0598-36-1818 • Al-Bireh, Tel: 240 2956 • Al-Masyoun Taxi, Tel: 295 2230 • Al-Salam, Tel: 295 5805 • Al-Wafa, Tel: 295 5444 • Al-Itihad, Tel: 295 5887 • Hinnawi Taxi, Tel: 295 6302 • Omaya, Tel:

295 6120 • SAHARA Rent a Car Co., Tel: 297 5317/8 • Shamma’ Taxi Co., Tel: 296 0957 • Gaza Strip (08) Car Rental Al-Ahli, Tel: 282 8534 • Al-Farouq, Tel: 284 2755 • Imad, Tel: 286 4000 • Luzun, Tel: 282 2628 • Taxis Al-Nasser, Tel: 286 1844, 286 7845 • Al-Wafa, Tel: 284 9144 - 282 4465 • Azhar, Tel: 286 8858 • Midan Filastin, Tel: 286 5242

9796

98

Warmly,Sani P. Meo

Publisher

Messed It Up

Spiritual tourists come from all corners of the earth to visit our Holy Land. Whether you’re a Muslim, Christian, or a Jew we have something for you! Each according to his or her beliefs, we have the rock from which Prophet Mohammad ascended to heaven and connected with God. We have the exact places where Jesus Christ was born, crucified, buried, and resurrected, along with the spots where he performed miracles and preached. We have the Western or the Wailing Wall, which has been a site for Jewish prayer and pilgrimage for centuries. Apart from this, we have the sites and shrines of just about every prophet and veracious person who walked on this land and was mentioned in the Quran and both Testaments. This is of course not to mention the landscape, including all the valleys, mountains, and lakes mentioned in the holy books. Welcome to the Holy Land.

Aside from the geography, the sites, and the monasteries, the Holy Land is practically the spiritual center of all monotheistic religions. For Muslims, Jerusalem is the first qibla (direction of prayer), and Al-Aqsa is the third holiest site in Islam. Jerusalem remains one of the holiest cities for the Muslim faith. For Christianity, this is place where it all started, and for the Jews, their religious identity is defined in relation to this land.

Throughout modern history, politics has played a major role in shifting the central place of the monotheistic faiths. Not intending to open Pandora’s Box here, but a very close Muslim friend of mine has often asked me why it is that today that the Vatican seems to be the spiritual center for Christianity when it should be here. Naturally, during those debates the question of a Greek church patronizing the local Orthodox Church emerges. Answers to those queries are surely beyond the scope of this short column, but are certainly worth discussing.

Call it what you wish, but the fact remains that this is the Holy Land, blessed by God and by the prophets who have visited and lived here. Unfortunately, this bestowed honor has also brought wars and misery to this land, which seem to last forever. I personally do not have faith that there will be peace in this troubled region any time soon, and I believe that this is because we all have missed the pure and noble essence of our faiths. We definitely need divine intervention again since we have basically messed it all up!

The way to the Nativity Church. Photo courtesy of HLITOA.