Damascus, Syria
And your Lord said, “Invoke me. I will respond . . . ”
—Qur’an, 40:60
Before this triumph of Islamic mosques was built in A.D. 705, the land on which it stands held a succession of sacred structures. First, there was an Aramaic temple to Hadad, which gave way to a Roman temple exalting Jupiter. In the fourth century B.C., Byzantines converted the temple into a church, which, after the fall of Damascus in A.D. 661, they shared with Muslim worshippers: Christians on the west, Muslims on the east. By 670, the Christians had moved into Saint John the Baptist Cathedral nearby. The small church was stripped of its Roman and Byzantine features, and construction of the great mosque ensued.
Umayyad Mosque stands today as the ultimate in Islamic mosque design; it is artistically superior, with a large domed nave and an open courtyard with three porticos. Among the 777 monuments enshrined in this great mosque are one of the three original copies of the Qur’an and the relics of Saint John the Baptist.
Whether you wish to seek guidance from Allah or to see one of Islam’s most important places of worship, visit Umayyad Mosque. Fly into Damascus International Airport and take a taxi to the mosque in the Old City section of Damascus. Observe all Islamic customs.
Pray, asking Allah for the spiritual succor you seek.
One of the mosque’s minarets is believed to be the passage through which Jesus (Issa) will return to Earth.