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'''Rachel's Tomb''' ({{lang-he|קבר רחל}} translit. ''Kever Rakhel'', {{lang-ar|قبة راحيل}} [[transliteration|translit.]] ''Qubbat Rahil'', or: مسجد بلال translit. ''Masjid Bilal''), is an ancient structure believed to be the burial place of the biblical matriarch [[Rachel]]. Historically located on the northern outskirts [[Bethlehem]], the [[United Nations]] decided in 1947 that the site should lie within an [[Corpus separatum|international zone]]. Following the [[1948 Arab–Israeli War]], the site was incorporated into the [[West Bank]] and subsequently annexed by [[Jordan]]. Israelis were unable to visit the tomb for 19 years until [[Israel]] captured it during the 1967 [[Six Day War]]. Following the 1995 [[Oslo accords]], it was agreed that the tomb would serve as an Israeli enclave within the areas governed by the [[Palestinian Authority]]. By 2005, a deterioration in the security situation led to the tomb being enclosed on the Israeli side of the [[West Bank barrier]], effectively annexing it to Jerusalem. This move together with other Israeli actions at the site have been criticised by international bodies who view the tomb as forming an integral part of the [[Israeli-occupied territories|occupied territories]].
'''Rachel's Tomb''' ({{lang-he|קבר רחל}} translit. ''Kever Rakhel'', {{lang-ar|قبة راحيل}} [[transliteration|translit.]] ''Qubbat Rahil'', or: مسجد بلال translit. ''Masjid Bilal''), is an ancient structure believed to be the burial place of the biblical matriarch [[Rachel]] located in the [[Palestinian]] town of [[Bethlehem]]<ref>Tomb of the Patriarchs, Rachel's Tomb - UNESCO [http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/8F8CBDCA74D7D20385257721007157CF]</ref>. In 1947, the [[United Nations]] favored the site to be a part a [[Corpus separatum|international zone]] but following the [[1948 Arab–Israeli War]], the site was incorporated into the [[West Bank]] and subsequently annexed by [[Jordan]]. Israelis were unable to visit the tomb for 19 years until [[Israel]] captured it during the 1967 [[Six Day War]]. Following the 1995 [[Oslo accords]], it was agreed that the tomb would serve as an Israeli enclave within the areas governed by the [[Palestinian Authority]]. By 2005, the tomb was enclosed on the Israeli side of the [[West Bank barrier]]. This move, together with other Israeli actions at the site, have been criticized by international bodies who view the tomb as forming an integral part of the occupied [[Palestinian territories]]<ref>Tomb of the Patriarchs, Rachel's Tomb - UNESCO [http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/8F8CBDCA74D7D20385257721007157CF]</ref>. Palestinians are currently forbidden access to the site that they believe is a [[mosque]].


The tomb is venerated by the Abrahamic faiths and is considered the third holiest site in [[Judaism]].<ref>[http://books.google.co.uk/books?cd=3&id=araFAAAAMAAJ&dq=%22rachel%27s+tomb%22+%22third+holiest%22&q=+%22third+holiest%22 Israel yearbook on human rights, Volume 36], Faculty of Law, Tel Aviv University, 2006. pg. 324</ref> It is also viewed as the symbol of the return of the Jewish people to its ancient homeland.<ref>Susan Sered, A Tale of Three Rachels: The Natural Herstory of a Cultural Symbol," in ''[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=yaSzAAAAIAAJ&q=%22+contrast,+Rachel's+Tomb+became+explicitly+identified+with+%22&dq=%22+contrast,+Rachel's+Tomb+became+explicitly+identified+with+%22&cd=1 "Nashim: a journal of Jewish women's studies & gender issues, Issues 1-2"]'', Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, 1998. "In the 1940s, by contrast, Rachel's Tomb became explicitly identified with the
The tomb is venerated by the Abrahamic faiths and is considered the third holiest site in [[Judaism]].<ref>[http://books.google.co.uk/books?cd=3&id=araFAAAAMAAJ&dq=%22rachel%27s+tomb%22+%22third+holiest%22&q=+%22third+holiest%22 Israel yearbook on human rights, Volume 36], Faculty of Law, Tel Aviv University, 2006. pg. 324</ref> It is also viewed as the symbol of the return of the Jewish people to its ancient homeland.<ref>Susan Sered, A Tale of Three Rachels: The Natural Herstory of a Cultural Symbol," in ''[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=yaSzAAAAIAAJ&q=%22+contrast,+Rachel's+Tomb+became+explicitly+identified+with+%22&dq=%22+contrast,+Rachel's+Tomb+became+explicitly+identified+with+%22&cd=1 "Nashim: a journal of Jewish women's studies & gender issues, Issues 1-2"]'', Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, 1998. "In the 1940s, by contrast, Rachel's Tomb became explicitly identified with the

Revision as of 19:54, 13 January 2011

Tomb of Rachel
Illustration of the tomb, 1880
Rachel's Tomb is located in the West Bank
Rachel's Tomb
Shown within the West Bank
LocationBethlehem municipality, West Bank
Typetomb
Site notes
ManagementIsraeli Ministry of Religious Affairs
Public accessLimited
Websitekeverrachel.com
Venerated as the third holiest site in Judaism

Rachel's Tomb (Template:Lang-he translit. Kever Rakhel, Template:Lang-ar translit. Qubbat Rahil, or: مسجد بلال translit. Masjid Bilal), is an ancient structure believed to be the burial place of the biblical matriarch Rachel located in the Palestinian town of Bethlehem[1]. In 1947, the United Nations favored the site to be a part a international zone but following the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the site was incorporated into the West Bank and subsequently annexed by Jordan. Israelis were unable to visit the tomb for 19 years until Israel captured it during the 1967 Six Day War. Following the 1995 Oslo accords, it was agreed that the tomb would serve as an Israeli enclave within the areas governed by the Palestinian Authority. By 2005, the tomb was enclosed on the Israeli side of the West Bank barrier. This move, together with other Israeli actions at the site, have been criticized by international bodies who view the tomb as forming an integral part of the occupied Palestinian territories[2]. Palestinians are currently forbidden access to the site that they believe is a mosque.

The tomb is venerated by the Abrahamic faiths and is considered the third holiest site in Judaism.[3] It is also viewed as the symbol of the return of the Jewish people to its ancient homeland.[4] Although doubts regarding Rachel's exact place of burial are raised in Talmudic literature, some Rabbinic material recognises the current location as authentic.[5] Others, relying on biblical texts, place her burial site northeast of Jerusalem in the vicinity of biblical Ramah, modern day ar-Ram.[6]

The site is sometimes referred to by Muslims as the Bilal ibn Rabah Mosque, and claimed by them to have been built at the time of the Arab conquest.[7] However, Muslims have historically referred to the site as “Kubat Rahel,” the Arabic term for “Rachel's Tomb." Due to the political conflict surrounding ownership of such sites, since 1996 Muslims have increasingly referred to the tomb as the Bilal Bin Rabah Mosque,[8] although no significant Muslim worship has ever been conducted there.[9]

Biblical accounts and location

In the Hebrew Bible, Rachel and Jacob journey from Shechem to Hebron, a short distance from Ephrath, which is glossed as Bethlehem (35:16-21, 48:7). She dies on the way giving birth to Benjamin:

"And Rachel died, and was buried on the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of Rachel's grave unto this day." — Genesis 35:19-20

Today, along the ancient Bethlehem-Ephrath road, known as the "Route of the Patriarchs", on the right-hand side if traveling from Jerusalem, stands an ancient tomb traditionally believed to be that of Rachel. At the northern entrance to Bethlehem, this location has been recorded since 4th-century AD. Although it stands within the built-up area of Bethlehem, the tomb is now enclosed within the Israeli side of the West Bank barrier.

Others however suggest that the original location of Rachel's burial was in Benjaminite, not Judean, territory. Evidence for this is confirmed in the Book of Samuel where Saul would "encounter two men at Rachel's grave in the territory of Benjamin" (1 Sam 10:2). Furthermore, Jeremiah talks of the "sound of weeping emanating from Rachel's tomb that could be heard in Ramah" (Jer. 31:15). Ramah is identified with the Arab village north of Jerusalem, ar-Ram, which was also the departure for Saul's journey.[10] A possible location in the area could be the five stone monuments north of Hizma. Known as Qubur Beni Isra'in, the largest so-called tomb of the group, the function of which is obscure, has the name Qabr Umm beni Isra'in, that is, "tomb of the mother of the descendants of Israel".[6]

In the New Testament, a reference to Ramah and to the Jeremiah prophecy about Rachel weeping from her tomb is found in the Gospel of Matthew (2:18), where this prophecy is considered to be fulfilled with the gruesome slaughter of boy children when the Herod was king:

In Ramah was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

History

Early and Medieval periods

The tomb of Rachel the Righteous is at a distance of 1½ miles from Jerusalem, in the middle of the field, not far from Bethlehem, as it says in the Torah. On Passover and Lag B'Omer many people – men and women, young and old – go out to Rachel's Tomb on foot and on horseback. And many pray there, make petitions and dance around the tomb and eat and drink.

— Rabbi Moses Surait of Prague, 1650.[11]

Traditions regarding the tomb at this location date back to the beginning of the 4th-century AD.[12] Eusebius and the Bordeaux Pilgrim mention the tomb as being located 4 miles from Jerusalem.[13] In the late 7th-century, the tomb was marked with a stone pyramid, devoid of any ornamentation.[13][14] During the 10th-century, Muqaddasi and other geographers fail to mention the tomb which indicates that it may have lost importance until the Crusaders revived its veneration.[13] al-Idrisi (1154) writes "The tomb is covered by 12 stones and above is a dome vaulted over with stone." Benjamin of Tudela (1169–71) mentions a pillar made of 11 stones and a cupola resting on four columns "and all the Jews that pass by carve their names upon the stones of the pillar." Petachiah of Regensburg explains that the 11 stones represented the tribes of Israel, excluding Benjamin, since Rachel had died during his birth. All were marble, with that of Jacob on top."[12] In the 14-century, Antony of Cremona referred to the cenotaph as "the most wonderful tomb that I shall ever see. I do not think that with 20 pairs of oxen it would be possible to extract or move one of its stones." It was described by Franciscan pilgrim Nicolas of Poggibonsi (1346–50) as being 7 feet high and enclosed by a rounded tomb with three gates.

From the around the 15th-century onwards, the tomb was controlled and maintained by the Muslim rulers.[12] Accordingly, Russian deacon Zozimos (1419–21) describes it as a mosque.[12] A guide published in 1467 credits Shahin al-Dhahiri with the building of a cupola, cistern and drinking fountain at the site.[12] The Muslim rebuilding of the "dome on four columns" was also mentioned by Francesco Suriano in 1485.[12] Felix Fabri (1480–83) described it as being "a lofty pyramid, built of square and polished white stone";[12] He also noted a drinking water trough at its side and reported that "this place is venerated alike by Muslims, Jews, and Christians".[15] Bernhard von Breidenbach of Mainz (1483) described women praying at the tomb and collecting stones to take home, believing that they would ease their labour.[16][17] Pietro Casola (1494) described it as being "beautiful and much honoured by the Moors."[18] Rabbi Moses Surait of Prague (1650) described a high dome on the top of the tomb, an opening on one side, and a big courtyard surrounded by bricks.[11]

Ottoman period

Rachel's Tomb, c.1910

Non-Muslims were prohibited from visiting the tomb until 1615 when Muhammad, Pasha of Jerusalem, made repairs to the structure and gave the Jews exclusive use of the site.[19] In March 1756, the Istanbul Jewish Committee for the Jews of Palestine instruted that 500 kurus used by the Jews of Jerusalem to fix a wall at the tomb were to be repaid and used instead for more deserving causes.[20] In 1788, walls were built to enclose the arches.[19] An 1824 report described "a stone building, evidently of Turkish construction, which terminates at the top in a dome. Within this edifice is the tomb. It is a pile of stones covered with white plaster, about 10 feet long and nearly as high. The inner wall of the building and the sides of the tomb are covered with Hebrew names, inscribed by Jews."[21]

When the structure was undergoing repairs in around 1825, excavations at the foot of the monument revealed that it was not built directly over an underground cavity. However, a small distance from the site, an unusually deep cavern was discovered.[22]

In 1830, the Ottomans gave legal recognition of the tomb being a Jewish holy site.[23] Sir and Lady Moses Montefiore visited the Land of Israel seven times. Lady Montefiore first saw Rachel's Tomb on their first visit in 1828. The couple were childless, and Lady Montefiore was deeply moved by the tomb, which was in good condition at that time. Before the couple's next visit, in 1839, the Galilee earthquake of 1837 had heavily damaged the tomb.[24] In 1838 the tomb was described as "merely an ordinary Muslim Wely, or tomb of a holy person; a small square building of stone with a dome, and within it a tomb in the ordinary Muhammedan form; the whole plastered over with mortar. It is neglected and falling to decay; though pilgrimages are still made to it by the Jews. The naked walls are covered with names in several languages; many of them Hebrew."[14]

Plaque dedicated to Montefiore at the tomb

Even now the [Jews] go there every Thursday to pray and read the old, old history of this mother of their race… I met a hundred or more Jews on their weekly visit to the venerated spot.

— Paulist Fathers, 1868.[25]

In 1841 Montefiore purchased the site and obtained for the Jews the key of the tomb. To conciliate Muslem susceptibility, he added a square vestibule with a mihrab to be used as a place of prayer for Muslims.[12][26] In 1845 he made further architectural improvements at the tomb.[11]

In the mid-1850s, the Arab e-Ta’amreh tribe were paid £30 annually by the Jews in an effort to prevent damage to the tomb.[27][28] In 1864, the Sefardi Jews of Bombay donated the necessary money to dig a well. Although Rachel's Tomb is only an hour and a half walk from the Old City of Jerusalem, many pilgrims found themselves very thirsty and unable to obtain fresh water. Every Rosh Chodesh, the Maiden of Ludmir would lead her followers to Rachel’s tomb and lead a prayer service with various rituals, which included spreading out requests of the past four weeks over the tomb. On the traditional anniversary of Rachel’s death, she would lead a solemn procession to the tomb where she chanted psalms in a night-long vigil.[29]

During the late 19th century, land near the tomb was acquired by Nathan Strauss and Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalischer. (During the first years of the Intifada, the Gush Etzion Regional Council managed to buy back ownership of about 10 dunams of Jewish-owned land near the tomb.)[30]

In 1912 the Ottoman Government permitted the Jews to repair the shrine itself, but not the antechamber.[31] In 1915 the structure had four walls, each about 7 m (23 ft.) long and 6 m (20 ft.) high. The dome, rising about 3 m (10 ft.), "is used by the Moslems for prayer; its holy character has hindered them from removing the Hebrew letters from its walls."[32]

British Mandate period

Rachel's tomb appeared on the 500m. banknote and on 2m., 3m. and 10m. stamps of Mandate Palestine.

Three months after the British occupation of Palestine the whole place was cleaned and whitewashed by the Jews without protest from the Muslims. However, in 1921 when the Chief Rabbinate applied to the Municipality of Bethlehem for permission to perform repairs at the site, local Muslims objected.[31] In view of this, the High Commissioner ruled that, pending appointment of the Holy Places Commission provided for under the Mandate, all repairs should be undertaken by the Government. However, so much indignation was caused in Jewish circles by this decision that the matter was dropped, the repairs not being considered urgent.[31] In 1925 the Sephardic Jewish community requested permission to repair the tomb. The building was then made structurally sound and exterior repairs were effected by the Government, but permission was refused by the Jews (who had the keys) for the Government to repair the interior of the shrine. As the interior repairs were unimportant, the Government dropped the matter, in order to avoid controversy.[31]

During the riots of 1929, violence hampered regular visits by Jews to the tomb. In the same year, the Wakf demanded control of the site, claiming it was part of the neighboring Muslim cemetery. It also demanded to renew the old Muslim custom of purifying corpses in the tomb's antechamber.[33]

United Nations stance

Following the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the UN General Assembly passed Resolution 194 (December 11, 1948) which called for free access to all the holy places in Israel and the remainder of the territory of the former Palestine Mandate of Great Britain. In April 1949, the Jerusalem Committee prepared a document for the UN Secretariat in order to establish the status of the different holy places in the area of the former British Mandate for Palestine. It noted that ownership of Rachel's Tomb was claimed by both Jews and Muslims. The Jews claimed possession by virtue of a 1615 firman granted by the Pasha of Jerusalem which gave them exclusive use of the site and that the building, which had fallen into decay, was entirely restored by Moses Montefiore in 1845; the keys were obtained by the Jews from the last Muslim guardian at this time. The Muslims claimed the site was a place of Muslim prayer and an integral part of the Muslim cemetery within which it was situated. They stated that the Ottoman Government had recognised it as such and that it is included among the Tombs of the Prophets for which identity signboards were issued by the Ministry of Waqfs in 1898. They also asserted that the antechamber built by Montefiore was specially built as a place of prayer for Muslims. The UN ruled that the status quo, an arrangement approved by the Ottoman Decree of 1757 concerning rights, privileges and practices in certain Holy Places, apply to the site.[31]

Jordanian period

From 1948-67, the site was controlled by Jordan and protected by the Islamic wakf. In theory, free access was to be granted as stipulated in the 1949 Armistice Agreements, though Israelis, unable to enter Jordan, were prevented from visiting.[34] During this period the neighbouring Muslim cemetery was expanded, enveloping the immediate area surrounding the tomb.[19]

Israeli control

The tomb in 1978

Following the Six Day War in 1967, Israel gained control of the West Bank, which included the tomb. Prime minister Levi Eshkol instructed that the tomb be included within the new expanded municipal borders of Jerusalem,[30] but citing security concerns, Moshe Dayan decided not to include it within the territory that was annexed to Jerusalem.[35]

Israeli enclave (1995-2002)
Men praying at Kever Rachel
Sign in Hebrew above entrance to the Kever of Rachel

In accordance with guidelines set forth by the Oslo accords in 1995, the government of Israel was to determine the boundaries of areas which would be transferred to the Palestinian Authority. The tomb was situated 460 metres from the municipal border of Jerusalem, but the first draft placed Rachel's Tomb in Area A under PA jurisdiction. This aroused fierce right-wing opposition, with the Left viewing their protests as a convenient pretext to impede negotiations.[35] Menachem Porush, an aged ultra-Orthodox Knesset member, persuaded former prime minister Yitzhak Rabin that the tomb must remain under Israeli sovereignty.[36] Pressure from Jewish organisations and important figures made Rabin and foreign minister Shimon Peres reach a new agreement with Yasser Arafat that placed the tomb and the road leading to it in Area C under Israeli control. In addition, a yeshiva was established at the site to provide a constant Jewish presence. On December 1, 1995, Bethlehem, with the exception of the tomb enclave, passed under the full control of the Palestinian Authority. Jews could only reach it in bulletproof vehicles under military supervision.[7]

The tomb today located within the complex

In early 1996 it was suspected that the Palestinians would carry out terrorist attacks at Rachel's Tomb. Fearing the tomb would be an easy target, Israel began an 18-month fortification of the site at a cost of $2m. It included a 13 foot high wall and adjacent military post.[37] In response, Palestinians claimed that "the Tomb of Rachel was on Islamic land" and that the structure was in fact a mosque built at the time of the Arab conquest in honour of Bilal ibn Rabah, an Ethiopian known in Islamic history as the first muezzin.[7]

At the end of September 1996, Arab riots broke out in Jerusalem over the opening of the Western Wall tunnel. After an attack on Joseph's Tomb and its subsequent takeover by Arabs, hundreds of residents of Bethlehem and the Aida refugee camp, led by the Palestinian Authority-appointed governor of Bethlehem, Muhammad Rashad al-Jabari, attacked Rachel's Tomb. They set the scaffolding which had been erected around it on fire and tried to break in. The IDF dispersed the mob with gunfire and stun grenades, and dozens were wounded.[7] In the following years, the Israeli-controlled site became a flashpoint between young Palestinian riotors who hurled stones, bottles and firebombs and IDF troops, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets.[38]

A serious escalation occurred at the end of 2000 when the second intifada broke out. For forty-one days the tomb was attacked with gunfire. Fatah operatives and members of the Palestinian security services also attacked Rachel's Tomb. Palestinian daily Al-Hayat al-Jadida published an article describing the site as "one of the nails the Zionist movement hammered into many Palestinian cities....The tomb is false and was originally a Muslim mosque."[7] In May 2001, fifty Jews found themselves trapped inside by a firefight between the IDF and Palestinian Authority gunmen. In March 2002 the IDF returned to Bethlehem as part of Operation Defensive Shield and remained there for an extended period of time.[7]

Inclusion within West Bank barrier (2002-onwards)
Sign in entrance to Kever Rachel building

The Israeli government decided in September 2002, that the tomb would be enclosed on the Israeli side of the West Bank barrier. The short road to it was closed off inside concrete walls and firing positions. In 2003 the Rachel's Tomb Institute was founded. It provides a number of bullet-proof buses which travel each day to the tomb. The Israeli public-transportation system also runs a service to the area and approximately 4,000 people visit the tomb each month.[39]

In February 2005, the Israel Supreme Court rejected a Palestinian appeal to change the path of the security fence in the region of the tomb.[7]

The Palestinian ministry for endowments and religious affairs has defined Rachel's Tomb as a Muslim site.[7] In February 2010, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu announced that tomb, as well as the Cave of the Patriarchs, would become a part of the national Jewish heritage sites rehabilitation plan. The announcement sparked protests from the UN, Palestinian officials, Arab governments and the United States. A State Department spokesman criticized the move as provocative and unhelpful.[40] Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the tomb was "not and never will be a Jewish site, but an Islamic site."[41] In what has been seen as a response to Israel's announcement, the UNESCO's voted on October 21, 2010 to include the tomb as a World Heritage Site and called upon the Israeli government to desist from attempting to unilaterally incorporate the site into Israel. They "reaffirmed" that the site in Bethlehem forms "an integral part of the occupied Palestinian Territories and that any unilateral action by the Israeli authorities is to be considered a violation of international law, the UNESCO Conventions and the United Nations and Security Council resolutions."[42] Remarks made by the Israeli Ambassador to UNESCO were expunged from the record by the chairman of the session. UNESCO's decision to refer to the tomb as "Bilal ibn Rabah Mosque" was condemned by the Israeli government as a politically motivated move to disenfranchise Israel and Jewish religious traditions.[43] The Israeli Prime Minister's Office criticised the resolution claiming that: "the attempt to detach the Nation of Israel from its heritage is absurd... If the nearly 4,000-year-old burial sites of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs of the Jewish Nation – Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah – are not part of its culture and tradition, then what is a national cultural site?” [44][45] Rabbi of Israel's holy sites, Shmuel Rabinowitz, condemned UNESCO's statement, which called the tomb a Palestinian site and mosque, saying it was "contrary to history and the truth," and that the vote was motivated by political considerations.[46]

In Judaism

Rabbinic traditions

  • According to the Midrash, the first person to pray at Rachel's tomb was her eldest son, Joseph. While he was being carried away to Egypt after his brothers had sold him into slavery, he broke away from his captors and ran to his mother's grave. He threw himself upon the ground, wept aloud and cried "Mother! mother! Wake up. Arise and see my suffering." He heard his mother respond: "Do not fear. Go with them, and God will be with you."[47]
  • A number of reasons are given why Rachel was buried by the road side and not in the Cave of Machpela with the other Patriarchs and Matriarchs:
    • Jacob foresaw that following the destruction of the First Temple the Jews would be exiled to Babylon. They would cry out as they passed her grave, and be comforted by her. She would intercede on their behalf, asking for mercy from God who would hear her prayer.[48]
    • Although Rachel was buried within the boudaries if the Holy Land, she was not buried in the Cave of Machpelah due to her sudden and unexpected death. Jacob, looking after his children and hoards of cattle, simply did not have the opportunity to embalm her body to allow for the slow journey to Hebron.[49][50]
    • Jacob was intent on not burying Rachel at Hebron, as he wished to prevent himself feeling ashamed before his forefathers, lest it appear he still regarded both sisters as his wives - a biblically forbidden union.[50]
  • According to the mystical work, Zohar, when the Messiah appears, he will lead the dispersed Jews back to the Land of Israel, along the road which passes Rachel's grave.[51]

Location

Early Jewish scholars noticed an apparent contraction in the Bible with regards to the location of Rachel's grave. In Genesis, the Bible states that Rachel was buried "on the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem." Yet a reference to her tomb in Samuel states: "When you go from me today, you will find two men by Rachel's tomb, in the border of Benjamin, in Zelzah" (1 Sam 10:2). Rashi asks: "Now, isn't Rachel's tomb in the border of Judah, in Bethlehem?" He explains that the verse rather means: "Now they are by Rachel's tomb, and when you will meet them, you will find them in the border of Benjamin, in Zelzah." Similarly, Ramban assumes that the site shown today near Bethlehem reflects an authenic tradition. After he had arrived in Jerusalem and seen "with his own eyes" that Rachel's tomb was on the outskirts of Bethlehem, he retratced his original understanding of her tomb being located north of Jerusalem and concluded that the reference in Jeremiah (31:15) which seemed to place her burial place in Ramah, is to be understood allegorically. There remains however, a dispute as to whether her tomb near Bethlehem was in the tribal territory of Judah, or of her son Benjamin.[52]

Veneration

The depiction of Rachel's Tomb has appeared in thousands of Jewish religious books and works of art.[23] On the anniversary of her death in 2010, 100,000 Jews visited the tomb.[23]

Customs

Rachel is considered the "eternal mother", caring for her children when they are in distress especially for barren or pregnant woman. Jewish tradition teaches that Rachel weeps for her children and that when the Jews were taken into exile, she wept as they passed by her grave on the way to Babylonia. The Torah Ark Rachel's Tomb is covered with a curtain (Hebrew: parokhet) made from the wedding gown of Nava Applebaum, a young Israeli woman who was killed by Palestinian terrorists in a suicide bombing at Café Hillel in Jerusalem on the eve of her wedding.[53]

There is a tradition regarding the key that unlocked the door to the tomb. The key was about 15 centimetres (5.9 in) long and made of brass. The beadle kept it with him at all times, and it was not uncommon that someone would knock at his door in the middle of the night requesting it to ease the labor pains of an expectant mother. The key was placed under her pillow and almost immediately, the pains would subside and the delivery would take place peacefully.

Till this day there is an ancient tradition regarding a segulah or charm which is the most famous woman's ritual at the tomb.[54] A red string is tied around the tomb seven times then worn as a charm for fertility.[54] This use of the string is comparatively recent, though there is a report of its use to ward off diseases in the 1880s.[55]

Replicas

Tombstone in the shape of Rachel's Tomb, Trumpeldor Cemetery, Tel Aviv

The tomb of Sir Moses Montefiore, adjacent to the Montefiore synagogue in Ramsgate, England, is a replica of Rachel's Tomb. During an 1841 visit to Palestine, Montifiore obtained permission from the Ottoman Turks to restore the tomb.[56]

See also

References

  1. ^ Tomb of the Patriarchs, Rachel's Tomb - UNESCO [1]
  2. ^ Tomb of the Patriarchs, Rachel's Tomb - UNESCO [2]
  3. ^ Israel yearbook on human rights, Volume 36, Faculty of Law, Tel Aviv University, 2006. pg. 324
  4. ^ Susan Sered, A Tale of Three Rachels: The Natural Herstory of a Cultural Symbol," in "Nashim: a journal of Jewish women's studies & gender issues, Issues 1-2", Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, 1998. "In the 1940s, by contrast, Rachel's Tomb became explicitly identified with the return to Zion, Jewish statehood and Allied victory."
  5. ^ Sharon, Moshe. Corpus inscriptionum Arabicarum Palaestinae, Brill 2004, p. 190. ISBN 9004131973
  6. ^ a b Strickert, p. 69.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Nadav Shragai (2 December 2007). "The Palestinian Authority and the Jewish Holy Sites in the West Bank: Rachel's Tomb as a Test Case". Jerusalem Viewpoints. Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. Retrieved 2007-11-25. [dead link‍]
  8. ^ UN Org.: Rachel's Tomb is a Mosque INN, 29 October 2010
  9. ^ David E. Guinn (2006). Protecting Jerusalem's holy sites: a strategy for negotiating a sacred peace. Cambridge University Press. p. 137. ISBN 9780521866620. Retrieved 10 November 2010.
  10. ^ Oded Lipschitz, Manfred Oeming. Judah and the Judeans in the Persian period, Eisenbrauns, 2006. p. 630-31. ISBN 157506104X
  11. ^ a b c Susan Sereď, Our Mother Rachel, in Arvind Sharma, Katherine K. Young (eds.). The Annual Review of Women in World Religions, Volume 4, SUNY Press, 1991, p. 21-24. ISBN 0791429679
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h Pringle, Denys. The Churches of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem: L-Z, Cambridge University Press, 1998, pg. 176. ISBN 0521390370
  13. ^ a b c Moshe Sharon (1999). Corpus inscriptionum Arabicarum Palaestinae (CIAP). BRILL. p. 177. ISBN 9789004110830. Retrieved 10 November 2010.
  14. ^ a b Edward Robinson, Eli Smith. Biblical researches in Palestine and the adjacent regions: a journal of travels in the years 1838 & 1852, Volume 1, J. Murray, 1856. p. 218.
  15. ^ The book of Wanderings of Brother Felix Fabri. Vol. I, part II. Palestine Pilgrims Text Society. 1896. p. 547.[3]
  16. ^ Ruth Lamdan (2000). A separate people: Jewish women in Palestine, Syria, and Egypt in the sixteenth century. BRILL. p. 84. ISBN 9789004117471. Retrieved 12 October 2010.
  17. ^ Reflections of God's Holy Land: A Personal Journey Through Israel, Thomas Nelson Inc, 2008. p. 57. ISBN 0849919568
  18. ^ [4] "Further on, near to Bethlehem, I saw the sepulchre of Rachel, the wife of the Patriarch Jacob, who died in childbirth. It is beautiful and much honoured by the Moors."
  19. ^ a b c Linda Kay Davidson, David Martin Gitlitz. Pilgrimage: from the Ganges to Graceland : an encyclopedia, Volume 1, ABC-CLIO, 2002, p. 511. ISBN 1576070042
  20. ^ Strickert, p. 111.
  21. ^ The religious miscellany: Volume 3 Fleming and Geddes, 1824, p. 150
  22. ^ Schwarz, Joseph. Descriptive Geography and Brief Historical Sketch of Palestine, 1850. "It was always believed that this stood over the grave of the beloved wife of Jacob. But about twenty-five years ago, when the structure needed some repairs, they were compelled to dig down at the foot of this monument; and it was then found that it was not erected over the cavity in which the grave of Rachel actually is; but at a little distance from the monument there was discovered an uncommonly deep cavern, the opening and direction of which was not precisely under the superstructure in question."
  23. ^ a b c Shragai, Nadav. Rachel’s Tomb, a Jewish Holy Place, Was Never a Mosque, Jerusalem Centre for Public Afairs. No. 580, Nov-Dec 2010.
  24. ^ Strickert, pp. 112-3.
  25. ^ Paulist Fathers (1868). Catholic world. Paulist Fathers. p. 464. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  26. ^ Whittingham, George Napier. The home of fadeless splendour: or, Palestine of today, Dutton, 1921. pg. 314
  27. ^ Menashe Har-El (April 2004). Golden Jerusalem. Gefen Publishing House Ltd. p. 244. ISBN 9789652292544. Retrieved 14 October 2010.
  28. ^ Edward Everett; James Russell Lowell; Henry Cabot Lodge (1862). The North American review. O. Everett. p. 336. Retrieved 15 November 2010. The annual expenses of the Sepharedim…are reckoned to be…5,000 [piasters] for the liberty of visiting Rachel's tomb near Bethlehem [paid as a "backshish" to the Turks for the privilege].
  29. ^ Nathaniel Deutsch (6 October 2003). The maiden of Ludmir: a Jewish holy woman and her world. University of California Press. p. 201. ISBN 9780520231917. Retrieved 10 November 2010.
  30. ^ a b Shragai, Nadav. The Palestinians who are shooting at the Rachel's Tomb compound have already singled it out as the next Jewish holy site which they want to 'liberate', Haaretz, (October 31, 2000)
  31. ^ a b c d e United Nations Conciliation Commission For Palestine: Committee on Jerusalem. (April 8, 1949)
  32. ^ Bromiley, Geoffrey W. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Q-Z, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1995 (reprint), [1915]. p. 32. ISBN 0802837840
  33. ^ Shragai, Nadav. The Palestinians Invent a Religious Claim: Rachel's Tomb termed "Bilal ibn", (December 2, 2007)
  34. ^ Daniel Jacobs, Shirley Eber, Francesca Silvani. Israel and the Palestinian territories, Rough Guides, 1998. p. 395. ISBN 1858282489
  35. ^ a b Benveniśtî, Mêrôn. Son of the cypresses: memories, reflections, and regrets from a political life, University of California Press, 2007, P.44-45. ISBN 0520238257
  36. ^ Thousands at burial of Rabbi Menahem Porush, Jerusalem Post, (February 23, 2010)
  37. ^ Strickert, p. 135.
  38. ^ Unrest during the late 1990's:
  39. ^ Mosdos Kever Rachel Imeinu: The Tomb
  40. ^ "US slams Israel over designating heritage sites". Associated Press. 2010-02-24.
  41. ^ 'Rachel's Tomb was never Jewish', Jerusalem Post, March 7, 2010
  42. ^ "Executive Board adopts five decisions concerning UNESCO's work in the occupied Palestinian and Arab Territories". unesco.org. 2010-10-21.
  43. ^ "Until 1996, nobody called Rachel's Tomb a mosque". www.jpost.com. Retrieved 2010-11-09.
  44. ^ http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/140377 UNESCO Erases Israeli Protests from Rachel's Tomb Protocol, INN
  45. ^ PM insists Rachel's Tomb is heritage site, Ynet, 10/29/2010
  46. ^ Rabbi of Western Wall denounces UNESCO decisions Jpost 10/31/2010
  47. ^ [5]
  48. ^ Bryna Jocheved Levy (April 2008). Waiting for Rain: Reflections at the Turning of the Year. Jewish Publication Society. p. 59. ISBN 9780827608412. Retrieved 10 November 2010.
  49. ^ Baḥya ben Asher ben Ḥlava; Eliyahu Munk (1998). Midrash Rabbeinu Bachya, Torah Commentary: Toldot-Vayeshi (pages 385-738). Sole North American distributor, Lampda Publishers. p. 690. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
  50. ^ a b Ramban. Genesis, Volume 2. Mesorah Publications Ltd, 2005. pp. 545-47.
  51. ^ Strickert, p. 32.
  52. ^ Ramban. Genesis, Volume 2. Mesorah Publications Ltd, 2005. p. 247.
  53. ^ ' Review of The Story of Rachel's Tomb, Joshua Schwartz,Jewish Quarterly Review 97.3 (2007) e100-e103 [6]
  54. ^ a b Susan Sered, Rachel's Tomb and the Milk Grotto of the Virgin Mary: Two Women's Shrines in Bethlehem, Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, vol 2, 1986, pp7–22.
  55. ^ Susan Sered, Rachel's Tomb: The Development of a Cult, Jewish Studies Quarterly, vol 2, 1995, pp103–148.
  56. ^ Sharman Kadish, Jewish Heritage in England : An Architectural Guide, English Heritage, 2006, p. 62

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