The Tragedy of the Western Wall

Tonight I visited the Western Wall, a surviving retaining wall from Herod's temple. The Romans destroyed it in AD70, so Jews regard the wall as sacred, their only tangible link to their temple worship. It is sometimes known as the Wailing Wall although some Jews consider this derogatory, serving as a reminder of their mourning and loss. 

 

I visited mid-evening and seemed to be the only gentile present. Most others seemed to be Orthodox Jews, praying and meditating in sight of the stones. There was a peculiar atmosphere to the place, a sense of mystery and awe pervading the air. Nevertheless, it struck me as tragic. These pious folk have rejected that greater Temple which was destroyed and raised again in three days, instead commemorating one that has been ruined these two millennia and wasn't able to save a soul even when it functioned. 

 

O Lord, open their eyes.