This talk will discuss about how collective memory, identity and space are contested around the shifting narratives of Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa (al-Haram al-Sharif, “the Noble Sanctuary”), the Muslim public and sacred monument built in late antiquity on the site Jews and Christians revere as the Temple Mount. By revisiting its history, architecture and politics, I explore the changing roles, meanings, and positions of al-Aqsa and how this holy place has become a point of both contestation and reconciliation among Muslims, Jews and Christians, within the contexts of Middle Eastern and Israeli politics and its position as a global pilgrimage destination.
Achmad Munjid teaches at the Department of Inter-Cultural Studies, Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM. He holds an MA and PhD in religious studies from Temple University. His forthcoming book is Agama Sebagai Kritik Sosial (Yogyakarta: DuaEnam, 2018). He teaches World Religions at CRCS for this semester.
Look at the full poster of this event here.