Kotel
Kotel
The word ‘Kotel’ literally means “wall”. The wall that we refer to as
‘The Kotel’ was the western supporting wall of the Temple. It is also
known as the Western Wall and the Wailing Wall.
After the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in the year
70 CE the Western Wall remained standing and became the focus of
the Jewish World. Jews came to weep and lament over the
destruction of the Temple and pray for its “rebuilding speedily in our
day”.
Today when we take a close look at the Wall we can distinguish
between seven layers of large stones, which form part of the Herodian
wall built 2000 years ago. The lower two layers appear discolored
simply because they were uncovered recently, when Israel repossessed
the areas after the 1967 Six Day War. The next five layers came
several centuries after the Herodian stones, whilst the top layers of
smaller stones were added during the last century in order to prevent
objets being thrown down from the Temple Mount onto the Jews
praying below.
According to Jewish legend this Wall was the contribution of the poor
people to the building of the Temple: When the Temple was being
built, the work was divided amongst the different sections of the
population. The building of the Western Wall was allotted to the poor.
They worked very hard to construct it as they could not afford hired
laborers to work in the place. When the enemy destroyed the Temple,
the angels descended from on high and spreading their wings over the
Wall said: “This wall, the work of the poor shall never be destroyed.”
Many different customs are now common practice at the Wall. One
such custom is placing small personal notes of request in the cracks
between the stones. It is now also possible to send notes to the wall
via a fax service given by the Israeli telephone company. Fax: 972-2-
56112222. Many 13 year old boys and 12 year old girls from Israel and
abroad celebrate their Bar/Bat Mitzvah here. Swearing in ceremonies
for the inauguration of army units, particularly the Paratroopers, who
liberated the wall in 1967, are held at the Wall. Twice yearly during the
Passover (Pesach) holiday and the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) the
priests (Cohanim) gather at the Wall to bless the Jewish people.
Paratroopers
The Paratroopers, considered one of the elite units of the Israeli
Defense Forces, were the first of Israeli troops to enter the Old City
during the Six Day War. Their arrival at the Western Wall signified
Israel’s victory and marked the beginning of the reunification of
Jerusalem under Israeli control.
The Paratroopers Cry
by: Haim Hefer, translated by Michael Graetz
This Wall has heard many prayers
This Wall has seen the fall of many other Walls
This Wall has felt the Touch of mourning women
This Wall has felt the petitions lodged between its stones.
This Wall saw Rabbi Yehuda Halevi trampled before it
This Wall has seen Caesars rise and fall
But this wall has never seen paratroopers cry.
This Wall saw them tired and wrung out
This Wall saw them wounded and mutilated
Running to it with excitement, cries and silence
And creeping as torn creatures in the alleys of the Old City
As they are covered with dust and with parched lips
They whisper “If I forget thee, if I forget thee, Jerusalem”
They are swift as eagles and strong as lions
And their tanks - the fiery chariots of Elijah the prophet
They pass by with noise
they pass by a stream
they remember the two thousand awful years
In which not even a Wall to place our tears before -
And here they stand it and breathe in dust
How they look at it with sweet pain
And tears run down and they at one another perplexed.
How does it happen that paratroopers cry?
How does it happen that they touch the wall with great emotions?
How does it happen that their weeping changes to song?
Perhaps because these boys of nineteen, born at the same time as the state,
Perhaps because these boys of nineteen carry on their shoulders two
thousand years.