Traditions of Jerusalem
A city holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims, where Shabbat, the Via Dolorosa and the call to prayer meet within a few streets.
Jerusalem is sacred to three faiths. Jews pray at the Western Wall, Christians walk the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and Muslims pray at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. The city is also a place of daily life for many communities, with their own food, dress and calendars.
Three faiths, one city
On Friday evening Shabbat begins with candles and a procession of families to the Western Wall. On Good Friday and at Easter, Christians from many churches walk the old streets, and at Orthodox Easter the Holy Fire ceremony fills the Sepulchre. In Ramadan, Muslims gather for night prayers, tarawih, and the call to prayer sounds from many minarets.
At the table
The Old City souks sell falafel, hummus, knafeh and fresh bread with za'atar. Shabbat tables have challah, cholent and fish. The Armenian Quarter has its own food and ceramics, and the Christian Quarter serves ma'amoul at Easter. Coffee with cardamom is poured in every quarter.
Signature traditions of Jerusalem
Also part of it, and being written: Shabbat (The Jewish day of rest.), Hummus (The chickpea dish.), Tarawih (Ramadan night prayers.).
A trail idea for Jerusalem
- Western Wall Visit on Friday evening to see Shabbat begin.
- Church of the Holy Sepulchre Visit at dawn.
- Mahane Yehuda Market Buy challah before Shabbat.
About this page
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Opening hours, markets and festival dates change; check locally before travelling. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
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🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 moreHanukkahחֲנֻכָּה
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🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelYom Kippurיוֹם כִּפּוּר
The holiest day in Judaism, dedicated to fasting, prayer and atonementSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelSukkotסוכות
A seven-day autumn Jewish festival of temporary booths, harvest prayers and hospitalitySpiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 morePurimפּוּרִים
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🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 5 moreHoly FireἋγιον Φῶς
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🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 5 moreTisha B'Avתשעה באב
A solemn fast day in July or August to mourn the destruction of the Jerusalem Temples and other Jewish tragedies.Spiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 2 moreMezuzahמְזוּזָה (mezuzah)
A parchment scroll with Hebrew verses placed in a case on the doorposts of Jewish homes.Spiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelShavuotשבועות
A late-spring Jewish festival of the wheat harvest and the giving of the TorahSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 5 morePresentation of Jesus at the TempleIn praesentatione Domini
A February feast of candles and welcome, kept forty days after ChristmasSpiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelPassover Sederסדר פסח
A ritual meal opening Passover, told over wine, matzah and symbolic foodsSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 moreShemini Atzeretשְׁמִינִי עֲצֶרֶת
The eighth day of assembly, kept right after Sukkot with a prayer for rainSpiritual
🇪🇹 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and 1 moreMeskelመስቀል (Mesk'el)
A celebration in Ethiopia and Eritrea marking the discovery of the True Cross with a large bonfire.Spiritual
🇲🇦 Morocco and 4 moreMimounaמִימוּנָה
A Maghrebi Jewish celebration marking the end of Passover with sweets and open doorsFestival · Dinner
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelVia Dolorosaطريق الآلام (Arabic) / ויה דולורוזה (Hebrew)
A pilgrim walk through Jerusalem's Old City, marking the last journey of JesusSpiritual
🇮🇶 Karbala, Iraq and 4 moreMuharramٱلْمُحَرَّم
The sacred opening month of the Islamic year, observed through remembrance and fastingSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇩🇪 Germany and 3 moreTashlikhתשליך
A Jewish new year rite of casting sins into flowing water, kept by the watersideSpiritual
🇮🇱 Safed, Israel and 5 moreHakafotהַקָּפוֹת
Circling the synagogue platform with the Torah scrolls, at Sukkot and Simchat TorahSpiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 moreSimchat Torahשִׂמְחַת תּוֹרָה
The day Jewish communities finish the Torah reading and start it again, with dancingSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 3 moreHanukkah menorah
A nine-branched lamp that gains one more flame on each of Hanukkah's eight nightsSpiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 5 moreBar and bat mitzvahבַּר מִצְוָה / בַּת מִצְוָה
A Jewish rite of passage marking when youth reach adulthood and take responsibility for their own actions.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 moreFour speciesארבעת המינים (Arba'at HaMinim)
A ritual waving of four plants during the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.Spiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 moreShofarשׁוֹפָר
A ram's horn blown in synagogue to mark the Jewish new year and the end of Yom KippurSpiritual
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreHarvest festival
A thanks for the gathered crop, kept with church meals, songs and shared foodSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 2 moreAssumption of Mary
A feast on 15 August, when Christians remember Mary taken up into heavenSpiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelRosh Chodeshרֹאשׁ חֹדֶשׁ
The start of each Hebrew month, marked by the new moon and kept with prayerSpiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 5 moreKiddush Levanahקידוש לבנה
A Jewish ritual service held after the new moon to bless God for the lunar cycle and seek protection.Spiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 moreSimchat Beit HaShoeivahשמחת בית השואבה
Nightly music and dancing during the intermediate days of the festival of SukkotFestival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelTikkun HaKlaliתיקון הכללי
A set of ten Psalms recited for repentance and spiritual healing within the Breslover Hasidic tradition.Spiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 2 moreDough offeringHafrashat challah
A Jewish ritual where a portion of bread dough is set aside for a priest.Spiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelAliya la'regelעלייה לרגל
A Jewish commandment to appear at the Temple in Jerusalem during three annual festivals.Spiritual
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 1 moreHoshana Rabbahהוֹשַׁעְנָא רַבָּה
The seventh and final day of Sukkot, marked by seven synagogue processions and night-long study.Festival · Dinner
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 2 morePassover sacrificeקרבן פסח
The lamb offering eaten at the start of Passover, from the Exodus storySpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇱 Meron, Israel and 1 moreUpsherinאָפּשערן
A boy's first haircut at three, the day his Jewish learning beginsRite of passage · Sweets given and shared
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelAravahערבה
The ritual waving and beating of willow branches during the festival of SukkotSpiritual
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Presentation of Jesus at the Temple: Gaudenzio Ferrari, Public domain, source
- Passover: User:RadRafe~commonswiki, Public domain, source
- Hanukkah: Vyacheslav Argenberg, CC BY 4.0, source
- Meskel: DanielGirmaTsige, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Yom Kippur: Maurycy Gottlieb, Public domain, source
- Sukkot: Zachi Evenor, CC BY 2.0, source
- Purim: Unknown author, CC BY 2.5, source
- Muharram: Victor Armand Poirson, Public domain, source
- Holy Fire: William Holman Hunt, Public domain, source
- Shavuot: https://www.flickr.com/people/69061470@N05, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tashlikh: Yaakov Saar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Passover Seder: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Shemini Atzeret: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mimouna: U.S. Embassy Tel Aviv, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Hakafot: Meir624, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tisha B'Av: shlomi kakon, CC BY 2.5, source
- Simchat Torah: No machine-readable author provided. Merlin assumed (based on copyrigh, CC BY 2.5, source
- Mezuzah: Adrian Grycuk, CC BY-SA 3.0 pl, source
- Hanukkah menorah: Musée d'art et d'histoire du Judaïsme, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- High Holy Days: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Bar and bat mitzvah: Peter van der Sluijs, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Pre-Cana: Jebulon, CC0, source
- Four species: עוטה אור, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hoshana Rabbah: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Harvest festival: High Contrast, CC BY 3.0 de, source
- Passover sacrifice: מפוכח, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Rosh Chodesh: beth woodrum, CC BY 2.0, source
- Kiddush Levanah: Wacław Koniuszko, Public domain, source
- Simchat Beit HaShoeivah: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Dough offering: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Upsherin: Vered Peer, CC BY 4.0, source
- Aravah: DRosenbach ( Talk | Contribs ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source