Aliya's response blog

I filmed this shot on a spring break trip to Israel. I was walking around the old city in Jerusalem and I could hear the call to prayer coming from a small mosque down the lane. I walked towards the mosque and then noticed that directly in front of me I could see manifestations of all three sister religions. On my left was the mosque, on my right an armenian church and further down the lane a large menorah- the symbol of the Jewish people. This moment reminded me that, despite conflict, Jerusalem is a holy city for all three faiths. Though they operate in their own spheres, all three coexist and interact.

In Islamic thought, religions possessing divine books, such as Judaism and Christianity, are distinguished from religions which are not based on divine revelations. These “People of the Book” are known as Ahl al-Kitab. The Prophet Muḥammad gave many privileges to Ahl al-Kitāb. For instance, they were granted freedom of worship. During the early Muslim conquests, Jews and Christians were not forced to convert to Islām and had only to pay a special tax for their exemption from military service. Muslim authorities are responsible for the protection and well-being of Ahl al-Kitāb, for, according to a saying of the Prophet, “he who wrongs a Jew or a Christian will have myself [the Prophet] as his indicter on the day of judgment.” After Muḥammad’s death, his successors sent strict instructions to their generals and provincial governors not to interfere with Ahl al-Kitāb in their worship and to treat them with full respect.

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