I found chapters 8-10 in Karen Armstrong's book quite interesting. In chapter 8, opening pages struck me. She talks about how the Romans had taken over Jerusalem, and how the Jews were being stricken of their religious practices. These pages really put into perspective what these people were going through. She talks about how symbolic the Temple was, saying "The Temple had represented the heart of the world's meaning, the core of the faith.." After the Temple was destroyed, it was as if most Jews had lost their faith because it was so central to their religion and their beliefs. The Temple seems to me like the heart of their faith, and without it they could not properly practice their beliefs. It is encouraging to know that the Jews did not abandon their faith, and fought to keep their beliefs and practices alive.
Another part of the reading that I found interesting were the photos that were included. It was refreshing to get to see colorful pictures rather than just reading page after page. Seeing these pictures also helped me better understand the geography and architecture of Jerusalem, as well as some of the cultural aspects. It also helped me see how beautiful of a city Jerusalem really is, and that it is full of life and culture. Since our group is doing our project over the culture of the people, I feel like these photos will be helpful when it comes time do to research and put our project together.
I have had trouble reading a majority of the book, but I do agree with your comment about the pictures near the end of the last reading. It really ties together what we have been reading and puts the words in pictures to actually see what is happening. A picture is worth 1000 words and these definitely helped get through the last reading. There are so many unique things about Jerusalem and Karen deciding to show us some in this chapter was a great twist.
ReplyDeleteThe relationship between physical structures and the faith of a religion is very interesting to me, and I agree that is an important part of Armstrong's book. But more than that, I think this is incredibly important when looking at the current conflict, and why so much tension exists. I think it's easy to say that people should be able to look beyond the historic landmarks of a religion, but maybe this is a little naive. I think a better way to approach the issue of holy sites is to recognize the profound significance of their nature, and find a way for everyone to appreciate them.
ReplyDeleteI also think the color photos were a great way to sink us into the heart of the people. Just looking at the first one, the medieval map that is a Christian rendition of the religious world at that time, says a lot. True to the intense struggles of conflict, war, and death we have read so far in the history of Jerusalem, Jerusalem is at the center of the world; pinpoint in the middle and heart of this map. Like the note at the bottom of the picture shares, the other important Christian locations of Rome, France, and England are much closer to the center of the world...sure is apparent whose map this is.....and I wonder what the message is of the various designs, ornamentation, and detail on it? I wonder if this picture is worth a thousand words of explanation of what they thought was happening at that time?
ReplyDeleteThe pictures really were beautiful, and an insight into the world others hold sacred...very beautiful.