armstrong 16-18! doneeeeeeeee =)

chapter 16 starts out wth "the nineteenth century started out badly for jerusalem" (armstrong, 347). my automatic thought was well duhhhhhhhhhhh. poor freakin Jerusalem, nothing ever goes their way. at this point the muslims were the majority with 4000 inhabitants, christians has 2750 and 2000 jews. this made me wonder, though, how do they have accurate numbers like that? were records that good back then? it also seems like whatever records they had would probably be exclusive- muslim christian and jewish records kept separately and probably would misrepresent the other groups.

around 1834 christians, jews and muslims started rebuilding, separately, of course. this quote stuck out to me "almost every new development in Jerusalem seemed doomed to increase the sectarianism and rivalry that now seemed endemic to the city" (armstrong 351). what a sad concept. rebuilding a city, repairing the damage that had been done was harming the city further? was ripping it farther apart?

reading about Israel and all the decisions that Great Britian was making about their future slightly annoyed me. i guess because the US has never been an imperial power, its hard for me to understand why the fluff Britain should have ANY say in the formation of Israel, whether its before or after WWII.

the last chapter was much more familiar information to me (FINALLY), both from my own reading and through my middle eastern studies classes. something i had never considered though, was the overlapping israeli/palestinian laws. they were kind of trying to punish eachother by enforcing laws that conflicted beliefs- like the one that was refusing to allow jewish women certain rights, like the right of marriage and divorce. this seemed to be a sort of civil disobediance

thursday's class

the past student who came in thursday (i've forgotten her name and i gave my flier away) blew my mind with her videos.

its one thing to hear about the resettlements in the israeli/ palestinian areas. I've heard that and thought "thats not fair", thinking about how hard it would be to move.

but to see these people? talking about how their homes were taken from them, how their lives were ripped apart.... was literally heart-wrenching to me. the man who had rebuilt his house 4 times was so incredibly brave and you could tell that he was so strong and wont give up. how disheartening, though, it must have been for him every time his house was destroyed, especially when they destroyed the foundation. i mentioned in class how i was surprised that even after international attention was called to this specific event that Israel didn't back down or cut the family any slack.

i also really liked the clip of the jewish woman talking about when the soldiers came to her house to force them out. she tried so hard to talk to them, to make them feel something. it sickened me that for the longest time, they all sat there like stone, totally unfeeling. i was relieved when she told about the one soldier who broke down when her daughter took him into her bedroom, made him actually feel something.

i would LOVE to go to this exhibit, im so upset that im out of town the entire weekend it shows. i want to contact her and see if she would send me the clips??

chapters 14-15

i like chapter 14 for the reason that i described in class when Anthony brought up the usage of the term "jihad". for those of you who werent there, i find the usage of this word, both present and past, interesting because in my Middle Eastern Studies class my professor discusses almost daily the term 'jihad' and how it tends to be wildly misunderstood, both by muslims and by westerners. not so much meaning "holy war" it really is intended to mean "struggle", and mainly the personal struggle to bring their lives closer to the way of God. you hear all the time about muslims "waging jihad" against the united states or the west or some other body.... these people are abusing the term and the religious excuse. in my opinion, anyway.
something that kind of resonated with me was t he confusion that the jews felt when the christians and the muslims were battling for control of jerusalem... a place that they considered to be THEIR city. the jews had returned to their roots to try and find healing, and found themselves to be displaced, yet again.
just like the people were vulnerable, everyone searching for a homeland that they belonged in, Jerusalem was left unprotected when its inhabitants fled as the Crusaders neared. the people must have been terrified, running through the streets weeping and ripping their clothes- clearly mourning Jerusalem, feeling as if the city was already dead and gone.
the ottoman takeover offered relief to the inhabitants, and the ottomans seemed to be generous in early years. is it just me, or am i starting to sense a pattern? the conquerers seeeeeeem to be generous, seem to offer equality to all the people, or stability, or protection.... thennnnn things get nasty. when there are 3 religions living in the same place, all believing that this is their city, their homeland, peace is next to impossible. it sounds cynical and maybe it is.... i hope so actually, because i would love to see a solution in the present-day Israeli/palestinian conflict.... i just dont know if it could happen. when the conflict is in such a core of a peoples' beliefs, compromise seems unlikely.
i also found it interesting that the scientific revolution called attention to the fact that Jerusalem could not be the center of the earth, which in turn led them away from "religions of the imagination". .... yeah, because Christianity, Islam and Judiasm are so unpopular these days?

tuesday readings

this group of readings spans a huge span of time, and i mean huge- from 362 to 1187. its incredible to me how in a book on the history of Jerusalem, this time period is only 4 chapters. no city in the united states has been around NEARLY that long! i am reminded again and again (and again and again and againnnn) that Jerusalem has an incredibly long, eventful and intricate history that almost anyone would have trouble grasping.
here we see the muslims enter the scene- it started out well, too, with a system that let the Jews and Muslims and Christians all live together.... but they were definitely separated to a point (with different districts and shrines, ect).
al-Hakim, who they funnily refer to as the mad caliph. he went so far as to replace Gods name with his own in prayers??? are you kidding me???? how crazy can you get?? and how unfair that when the muslims were appalled by his behavior (and how could they not be) he took it out on the christians and ended up leaving the christian section of jerusalem in ruins. SHOCKING, a huge part of the city being destroyed, once again. this place just cant get a break.
i liked hearing about the crusades from this perspective, where the christians arent portrayed in a positive light. its easy to see, though, how the roots of problems between Muslims and the Christian west start though... the Crusades seem to certainly be a legitimate reason to hold a grudge.

rewindddd

hey guys! i wanted to start out with an apology for missing class on thursday. because, well, im sure i was incredibly missed and some tears might have been shed over my absence. i just dont want you guys to think i was blowing off the class because i was hungover or just didnt feel like coming to class- i was up with a delightful stomach flu-type deal all night and didnt feel like sharing it with you all. but no worries i will be there on tuesdayyy!

it was also brought to my attention that i have been sort of vague in my recent blogs about the readings, so im going to try and highlight better some info from the readings. enjoy!

in the batch of readings for tuesday i kind of was concentrating on what the changes meant to the people of jerusalem. its different to think of things from an abstract point of view- like oh yeah the CITY was taken over by alexander of macedon in 333 bce. but its not the buildings and streets that are important- the "city" should be thought of as the people living there. alexander really took all these people into his empire, became in charge of all of them. luckily for them at this time, life didnt really change for the Jews- they were allowed to practice their religion. but the clash between jewish and greek culture started here.

then when alexander died, a series of battles broke out to see who would be the ruler- jerusalem was conquered 6 times in 20 years. SIX TIMES!!! thats so crazy! these poor people were subjected to so many changes and were in constant turmoil. i, living here all my life, cant even begin to understand what that would feel like.

and it just kept happening! the ptolemies really changed the way of life for the jews because they lived secularly.

the destruction that i talked about in my last post is also sad for the people. these events, the takeovers and the events of destruction, happened over a long period of time, i get that, and an individual person wouldn't experience many changes in their single lifetime, but i bet some of them experinced too much for their own taste. And seeing something as sacred as a temple get torn down and destroyed must have been so hard and demoralizing.

by the time Titus' soldiers were done with Jerusalem, "visitors found it difficult to believe that Jersulame had ever been an inhabited city" (armstrong, 153). the jews had fought so hard and so long to keep their city, which had been utterly decimated. and was now basically a Roman headquarters. i couldnt imagine living in a city that no longer felt like my own.... but it was harder to relocate back then, so what could they do?

by 323 constantine was the emporer of the whole Roman empire. even though he did want to spread christianity, lucky for those of other faiths, it wouldnt be at the cost of their beliefs. he built himself a city (creatively titled Constantinople) that could be an entirely christian city.
as time went on, pagans became the new scapegoat, as christianity spread. though not entirely wiped out, many were pressured to convert. i wonder what it would be like to all the sudden, not entirely of your own will, to start to believe in something entirely different, to change your faith for someone else. it seems to me that some people probably just changed superficially so it would seem to any outsiders that they were christian, but still retained their own believes in their hearts.

armstrong 5-8 yay

ok. when Dr. H told us that this book was chosen for this class and agreed upon by both sides, i figured i was about to read a kick-ass book.
no offense to anyone... and wait, am i allowed to swear??.... but i do not like this book. maybe because its still so far back in the past, still seems so hard to grasp.... like dude seriously what the hell do i know about the byzantinians? i hope that as the book comes closer to modern times that i will be able to get through it easier, bc its a slowwwwwwwwwww process as of now.
random fact- ch 6 is called "Antioch in Judea"- i was born in Antioch, california. yeah. im pretty famous.
and whats with all this destruction and rubble? depressing. imagine working so hard and for so long to build something to call your own, in a place that you believe is so important, just for it all to be demolished in a few decades. jeez.
i like that the chapters are starting to discuss the societies though, not just as a name and date. like how in chapter 8 they started talking about the divide between jews and christians. not that im glad to see these hostile divisions start., im just glad to get some real humanity up in hurr.

week 2 readings

not at all surprisingly, Jerusalem has had a rich and interesting history for thousands of years. of course a lot of events and changes have happened here- it is the central place to 3 of the world's biggest religions. it is incredible to me how many people, from the Romans and the Byzantines to the Arabs and the Crusaders have fought over this place in the past- how many people have lost their lives to try and gain control of this city.
these articles enforce the fact that there has always been changes, often major ones, in Jerusalem. in the past the changes were sometimes slower- a few hundred years in the control of the Israelites or Greeks, and sometimes quicker; the Babylonians ruled for less than 50 years.
in modern day, though, the changes go quicker.
Khalidi made an important point, though- the histories of the region is different depending on who you talk to.
it is seriously incredibly how many different civilizations have risen and fallen in the same city. sounds like an archeologist's dream!

Identity

this post isn't going to be what Dr. H wanted i think, because A. my camera is broken and B. i dont really think that my surroundings in any way reflect myself.
my room here is incredibly bland- white walls and a plain brown and green bedspread. i meant to decorate it, but never got around to it. i dont think my room at home really reflects my identity at all either- i never spend time in my room.
there are objects in my room, however, that could me min-representations of me.

RUNNING SHOES.
working out keeps me sane. if i skip the gym for more than a day or two i get cranky and i lose all my energy. next to my shoes is usually a pile of clothes i wore to the gym. (ps im messy)

BOOKS
i have piles of books in my room- both from my classes and because I LOVE to read. sadly, because of all the assigned reading i have i dont have as much time as i would like to leisure read anymore, but there is always at least one book (usually from the Twilight or Harry Potter series, my favoritessss do not judge me) next to my bed in the hopes that i can read for a few minutes before i fall asleep

PRODUCTS
i like to smell good and my crazy big/curly hair requires a lot of mateniance and lots of different products to tame it. i have tons of different bottles and jars of random girly things.

CLOSET
full of clothes and shoes-wayyyy too much. my style is really eclectic- one girl hated me in HS because she got mad that I would dress "preppy" one day and wear a band shirt the next. i wear what i want. i dont care what genre its from, as long as i like it.

COMPUTER
its gonna be on my facebook page. ill be honest, i freaking love facebook.

i dont have any religious symbols in my apartment. this was an unconscious choice but its reflective- i consider myself catholic"ish". i share a lot of basic beliefs with catholics, but the God i believe in doesnt hate or discriminate against people (i.e. homosexuals). im a passionate believer in gay rights and this has distanced me a little bit from catholicism, and organized religion as a whole.

OSUUUUUU!
my living room is obnoxiously covered in OSU crap- pillows, blankets, posters, Fatheads, flags, banners, yeahhhhh. we likeOSU. a lot.


part of the reason this assignment was kind of hard for me is because im going through a time in my life where im not so sure about my identity... its hard to find myself sometimes.

video

I really liked this film!
i think i went into it with low expectations, because Dr. H said that it wasnt a good film. but i thought it was good! i liked it a lot.... i thought the part on the bakeries were really interesting- its a cool way to judge the development (or decline) of growth in an area... im excited to visit the bakeries in jerusalem!
maybe Dr H was referring to the quality of the video... it looked like it was old. thats probably because there wasnt a ton of funding?
i liked it though, it made me excited for the class and for the trippp =)

Festival readings

these readings actually kind of discouraged me.
it was so interesting to see all the representations they were looking for of jerusalem- the art, the music, the languages, the history. its incredible how different yet how similar the different sides of the same city can be. no other city in the world has such a divide, and maybe this is why jerusalem is so rich in culture.
which was why it was so sad that a celebration of this city failed to happen. i feel like it would have been really successful, especially since it was in America and it would be more open for cultures to cross. it seems really unfair that they let the planning go so far as that they figured out the actual set-up and then they cancelled it.
i also thought it was super cool to see Dr H mentioned in the article!!! shes famousssss