Jerusalem

S1, E3: Sukkot, or the Feast of the Tabernacles, is one of three great festivals in the Jewish calendar when, in ancient times, Jews from across Israel were commanded to come to the Temple in Jerusalem on pilgrimage. But although Jewish pilgrimage lessened in importance after the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 62CE, Christian pilgrims began coming to Jerusalem and the Holy Land within centuries of Jesus’ death. During the week of Sukkot, host Bruce Feiler travels to Israel with Jewish and Christian pilgrims. For many Christians, the road to Jerusalem begins in the Galilee along the Jesus Trail, a route that follows the path of Jesus’ ministry. For a Jewish pilgrim from Philadelphia, spending Sukkot in Jerusalem not only honors ancient Jewish pilgrimage but also her personal time of decision, whether to remain in America or move to Jerusalem on permanent pilgrimage. In coming to Jerusalem, Bruce returns to his own Jewish roots. Whether walking with Christian pilgrims on the Jesus Trail, celebrating Sukkot with American Jews in Jerusalem or exploring the past with scholars of the three faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – who share Jerusalem, Bruce reveals a land where religious and historical divisions have made it the most contentious place on earth. But as the pilgrims from different faiths converge on the many sacred shrines that coexist within Jerusalem’s ancient walls, Bruce also reveals why Jerusalem has been a center of pilgrimage for so long. In spite of its long and turbulent history, it remains a city of faith for all who worship the One God who is the God of Moses, of Jesus and of Muhammad.