Amid silence and sirens: A tour into wartime Jerusalem

Jerusalem stands in silence, a contrast to the wailing sirens.

- By JOSEPH PEDRAJAS

And while the labyrinthine Old City used to echo with prayers, it now only hears the chirps of the birds.

An empty hall greeted Christian pilgrims entering the Cenacle—known as the last supper room, where Jesus Christ spent his last passover before his crucifixion.

In the Book of Acts in the Bible, it was the same room where Jesus’ disciples gathered and spoke in "other tongues" or different languages, on the day of the Pentecost.

The Cenacle is also called the Upper Room because below, in the lower level, lies the tomb of David, king of ancient Israel, venerated by Jews.

There, a complete opposite: Jews, wearing kippah (skullcap) and tzitzit (fringes on garment), recite Psalms at the cenotaph, the monument for the dead.

They are singing praises, as they await the arrival of the Messiah, the divine savior of mankind.

On the alley proceeding to the Old City, pilgrims—those who have made it to Israel and shrugged off the ongoing war—experience yet another hush. There are only whispers in the air.

Jerusalem’s Old City is divided into four quarters: the Jewish, the Christian, the Muslim and the Armenian.