Islamization of the Temple Mount
Encyclopedia
The Islamization of the Temple Mount refers to the view that Muslim
authorities have sought to appropriate and Islamicize
the Temple Mount
for exclusive Muslim use. Originally an Israelite and subsequently Jewish holy site, as the location of the First and Second Temple
s, the site was subsequently the location of Roman pagan temples, a Byzantine church, a garbage dump, and later of the Al-Aqsa Mosque
. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest site in Sunni Islam.
At the time of the Muslim conquest, the Temple Mount
is understood to have been the site of an elaborate Byzantine
church with an elaborate mosaic floor, some of the remains of which have been discovered by the Temple Mount Antiquities Salvage Operation. In 682 CE, 50 years after Muhammad’s death, ‘Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr rebelled against the Caliph of Damascus, conquered Mecca and stopped pilgrims from coming south to the Hajj
in Mecca. ‘Abd al-Malik, the Umayyad Caliph, responded by creating a new holy site. He chose sura 17, verse 1, “Glory to Him who caused His servant to travel by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque, whose precincts We have blessed, in order to show him some of Our Signs, He is indeed the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” And designated the Temple Mount in Jerusalem as the "Farthest Mosque" mentioned in that verse.
During the early Islamic period, Jews were permitted to visit the Temple Mount and there was a Jewish synagogue on the Temple Mount.
The Islamization of the Temple Mount climaxed at the end of the seventh century, with the construction of the Dome of the Rock
in the early 690s when Abd al-Malik was developing his program of Islamization. It was built over the Foundation Stone, the site of the historic Jewish Temple
. The al-Aqsa mosque
was built at the southern end of the mount in the 8th-century. Throughout the entire period of the Muslim conquest until the capture of Jerusalem in 1099, various structures were built on the mount including memorial sites and gates. From the 13th-century onwards, after the Muslims had regained control of the city, building projects in Jerusalem and around the Temple Mount sought to further establish the city’s Islamic character. After the conquest of the city by Saladin, the Jews were not permitted to rebuild the synagogue and neither Jews nor Christians were permitted to set foot on the Temple Mount.
In the early 19th-century, the Ottoman authorities began to permit non-Muslims to visit the Temple Mount, a policy that continued under the British Mandate but ended with the Jordanian conquest.
In 1990, the waqf
began construction of a series of outdoor minbar
(pulpits) to create open-air prayer areas for use on popular holy days. A monument to the victims of the Sabra and Shatila massacre
was also erected. In 1996, the Waqf began underground construction of the new el-Marwani Mosque
in the southeastern corner of the Temple Mount. The area, originally revealed by Israeli archaeologists, was claimed by the wakf to be used on rainy days, but some saw the move as a part of a "political agenda" and a "pretext" for the Islamization of the underground space, and believed it had been instigated to prevent the site being used a synagogue for Jewish prayers.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
authorities have sought to appropriate and Islamicize
Islamization
Islamization or Islamification has been used to describe the process of a society's conversion to the religion of Islam...
the Temple Mount
Temple Mount
The Temple Mount, known in Hebrew as , and in Arabic as the Haram Ash-Sharif , is one of the most important religious sites in the Old City of Jerusalem. It has been used as a religious site for thousands of years...
for exclusive Muslim use. Originally an Israelite and subsequently Jewish holy site, as the location of the First and Second Temple
Second Temple
The Jewish Second Temple was an important shrine which stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem between 516 BCE and 70 CE. It replaced the First Temple which was destroyed in 586 BCE, when the Jewish nation was exiled to Babylon...
s, the site was subsequently the location of Roman pagan temples, a Byzantine church, a garbage dump, and later of the Al-Aqsa Mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque also known as al-Aqsa, is the third holiest site in Sunni Islam and is located in the Old City of Jerusalem...
. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest site in Sunni Islam.
Muslim conquest
Temple Mount
The Temple Mount, known in Hebrew as , and in Arabic as the Haram Ash-Sharif , is one of the most important religious sites in the Old City of Jerusalem. It has been used as a religious site for thousands of years...
is understood to have been the site of an elaborate Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
church with an elaborate mosaic floor, some of the remains of which have been discovered by the Temple Mount Antiquities Salvage Operation. In 682 CE, 50 years after Muhammad’s death, ‘Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr rebelled against the Caliph of Damascus, conquered Mecca and stopped pilgrims from coming south to the Hajj
Hajj
The Hajj is the pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is one of the largest pilgrimages in the world, and is the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so...
in Mecca. ‘Abd al-Malik, the Umayyad Caliph, responded by creating a new holy site. He chose sura 17, verse 1, “Glory to Him who caused His servant to travel by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque, whose precincts We have blessed, in order to show him some of Our Signs, He is indeed the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” And designated the Temple Mount in Jerusalem as the "Farthest Mosque" mentioned in that verse.
During the early Islamic period, Jews were permitted to visit the Temple Mount and there was a Jewish synagogue on the Temple Mount.
The Islamization of the Temple Mount climaxed at the end of the seventh century, with the construction of the Dome of the Rock
Dome of the Rock
The Dome of the Rock is a shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. The structure has been refurbished many times since its initial completion in 691 CE at the order of Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik...
in the early 690s when Abd al-Malik was developing his program of Islamization. It was built over the Foundation Stone, the site of the historic Jewish Temple
Jewish temple
Jewish temple:*Jewish temple or The Jewish Temple, may refer to the original two ancient Jewish Temples in Jerusalem.**The First Temple was destroyed by the ancient Babylonians in 586 BCE.**The Second Temple was destroyed by Rome in 70 CE....
. The al-Aqsa mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque also known as al-Aqsa, is the third holiest site in Sunni Islam and is located in the Old City of Jerusalem...
was built at the southern end of the mount in the 8th-century. Throughout the entire period of the Muslim conquest until the capture of Jerusalem in 1099, various structures were built on the mount including memorial sites and gates. From the 13th-century onwards, after the Muslims had regained control of the city, building projects in Jerusalem and around the Temple Mount sought to further establish the city’s Islamic character. After the conquest of the city by Saladin, the Jews were not permitted to rebuild the synagogue and neither Jews nor Christians were permitted to set foot on the Temple Mount.
In the early 19th-century, the Ottoman authorities began to permit non-Muslims to visit the Temple Mount, a policy that continued under the British Mandate but ended with the Jordanian conquest.
Post-1967
Jerusalem Islamic Waqf
The Jerusalem Islamic Waqf is an Islamic trust best known for controlling and managing the current Islamic edifices on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem. The Waqf has governed access to the geographic region since the Muslim reconquest of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in 1187...
began construction of a series of outdoor minbar
Minbar
A minbar is a pulpit in the mosque where the imam stands to deliver sermons or in the Hussainia where the speaker sits and lectures the congregation...
(pulpits) to create open-air prayer areas for use on popular holy days. A monument to the victims of the Sabra and Shatila massacre
Sabra and Shatila massacre
The Sabra and Shatila massacre took place in the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut, Lebanon between September 16 and September 18, 1982, during the Lebanese civil war. Palestinian and Lebanese civilians were massacred in the camps by Christian Lebanese Phalangists while the camp...
was also erected. In 1996, the Waqf began underground construction of the new el-Marwani Mosque
Solomon's Stables
Solomon's Stables or Marwani Mosque is an underground mosque some 600 square yards beneath al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem...
in the southeastern corner of the Temple Mount. The area, originally revealed by Israeli archaeologists, was claimed by the wakf to be used on rainy days, but some saw the move as a part of a "political agenda" and a "pretext" for the Islamization of the underground space, and believed it had been instigated to prevent the site being used a synagogue for Jewish prayers.
See also
- Islamic structures on the Temple Mount
- Islamization of JerusalemIslamization of JerusalemThe Islamization of Jerusalem began in the first year A.H. , when Islam instructed Muslims to face the city while performing their daily prostrations and, according to Muslim religious tradition, Muhammad's night journey and ascension to heaven took place...
- Islamization of Jerusalem under Jordanian occupationIslamization of Jerusalem under Jordanian occupationIslamization of Jerusalem under Jordanian occupation refers to the allegation that Jordan sought to transform the demographics and character of East Jerusalem between 1948 and 1967 in order to make it more Muslim. Egyptian political commentator Bat Ye'or and Mayor of Jerusalem Teddy Kollek have...
- Islamization of PalestineIslamization of PalestineThe Islamization of Palestine occurred as a result of the Islamic conquest of Palestine in 640 CE/A.D. It was a long process by which Islam was gradually accepted by the majority of the indigenous Christian, Samaritan and Jewish population of the area...
- Judaization of JerusalemJudaization of JerusalemThe Judaization of Jerusalem refers to the actions that Israel has sought to transform the physical and demographic landscape of Jerusalem to correspond with a vision of a united and fundamentally Jewish Jerusalem under Israeli sovereignty...
- Religious significance of JerusalemReligious significance of JerusalemThe city of Jerusalem, located in modern-day Israel, is significant in a number of religious traditions, including Abrahamic religions Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, which consider it a holy city.-In Judaism:...
- Temple Mount Antiquities Salvage OperationTemple Mount Antiquities Salvage OperationThe Temple Mount Antiquities Salvage Operation is an archaeological project begun in 2005 dedicated to recovering archaeological artifacts from 300 truckloads of topsoil removed from the Temple Mount by the waqf during the construction of the underground el-Marwani Mosque from 1996-1999...