HERE I SURRENDER

May not be extra-ordinary for some – what you’ll see inside about a divine city.

Jerusalem: The holy city, the city of gold, the city of peace - one of the oldest cities in the world; since centuries it has been conquered and re-conquered, destroyed and ruined, then built and re-built to its present shape. Every stone has a story, every olive tree a history, and every mountain keeps different name, depending on who you ask.

Jerusalem is the largest city in the region. To-day it is a vibrant mosaic of both ancient and modern; the ethnic landscape reflects the diversity of its population, a growing melting pot of Arab-Israeli society. Despite its charm, Jerusalem carries bitter disputes. It is a divided city, part Arab, part Jewish, but jointly owned by all kinds of worshipers, as ever – however, not only surviving with honour - but continues to glow, gleam and glimmer on the horizon of multi-religious culture, as ever too.

The ultra-Orthodox community constitutes about a third of Jerusalem's Jewish population, and as such wields plenty of power over local life – in fact this commune is very closed and insulated against the outside world. The men dress in traditional 19th Century religious garb and devote their lives to [holy] Torah’s study, while the women are required to dress very modestly and are mainly responsible for child-bearing and supporting the household.

AND the same is true for Muslims and Christians who prefer to live in the same primordial, primitive and pre-historic fashions and approach. However, the city's secular population is decreasing now; many complain that the city is becoming too religious, and resent the ultra-Orthodox families in their neighbourhoods; large numbers of secular Jews are leaving for more liberal places like Tel Aviv. Youngsters wish there were more entertainment spots, more places open on Fridays & Saturdays.

The BBC's Erica Chernofsky, in her report of 30th October 2014, takes a closer look at why this city is so important to Christianity, Is-lam and Judaism, the three religions which trace their shared origins back to the biblical figure of Prophet Abraham AS – with centuries of shared though little disputed history. While it has often been the tales of division and conflict amongst people of different religions, they are united in their reverence for this holy ground.

Being one of the oldest multi-layer cities in the world, every layer of its surface reveals a different piece of the past. At its core is the Old City, a maze of narrow alleyways and historic architecture that characterises its four quarters - Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Armenian. It is surrounded by a fortress-like stone wall and home to some of the holiest sites in the world.

Each quarter of the Old City symbolize its population. The Christians have two, because Armenians are also Christians, and their quarter is one of the oldest Armenian Centres in the world. It is unique in that their community has preserved its own particular culture and civilisation inside the St James Church and monastery.

A  QUESTION   OFTEN   ASKED   that

Who are the Israelites and what is

Israel’s TRUE history.

Nabi Abraham AS’s grandson - Prophet Jacob [in Arabic Yaqoob AS]’s name was changed to Nabi ISRAEL AS under the God’s command in his mid-life span. Nabi As’s twelve sons are fully named in holy Biblical book Genesis, along with his only daughter - Dinah. The twelve sons be-came the progenitors of the twelve Tribes of Israel. The generations of Prophet Jacob AS were so dear to God that He addressed them exactly twelve times in the holy Qur’an call-ing them as ‘Bani-Israel’ [Israelites].