One city. Five thousand years. Three young women as tour guides and one incredible experience. These are some of the numbers that figure into the must-see film by National Geographic, Jerusalem 3D, now playing at the IMAX Theater at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.
Sixteen years ago, my parents, my husband and I traveled through Jerusalem at the end of a two-year teaching stint in nearby Syria. I had long been fascinated by the layer upon layer of cultures super-concentrated over one outcropping of rock, the source of both devotion and conflict for nearly all of recorded human history. The four of us had the chance to enter the walled city through one of its majestic gates, imagining Jesus’ journey along the Stations of the Cross while walking the Via Dolorosa. We tucked prayers written on scraps of paper into the cracks at the holy Western Wall and we marveled at the glorious Dome of the Rock. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to experience those things again, let alone experience them with my children.
Last week, I got that second chance. Thanks to some snazzy 3D glasses and passes given us for purposes of this review, my parents, my husband, my children and I experienced Jerusalem together.
Actually, the film shows three Jerusalems, shown through the eyes of three young women who live in the ancient city.
- Farah Ammouri, a Muslim, shares her Arab Quarter. We see the Dome of the Rock and how families mark the holy month of Ramadan.
- Nadia Tadros, from a Greek Orthodox family, reveals the Christian Quarter, including rituals from Palm Sunday and Good Friday.
- Revital Zacharie, a Jew, introduces us to the Jewish Quarter, sharing traditions such as bar mitzvahs and Yom Kippur that are holy to her religion and heritage.
(While the three women know their own quarters intimately, producer/director Daniel Ferguson acknowledged that they knew very little of their adjacent neighborhoods. I was reminded of both the story of the Blind Men and the Elephant, as well as my own battle stories from Adoption World — when people with differing experiences and perspectives have high risk of misunderstanding each other.)
Director Daniel Ferguson will appear at the Museum for a special screening on Saturday, April 5, at 7 p.m. to discuss the making of this IMAX film, which explores on a grand scale the intersection of science, history, and religion in this ancient, enigmatic place. Tickets are $15 for nonmembers and $12 for members.
Ferguson will introduce the film and discuss how, after years of working with government ministries and religious and community leaders, he and his team were finally granted the exclusive permits necessary to capture aerial shots above the Old City and throughout the Holy Land, although a strict no-fly zone has been in place over the region for many years. Ferguson will host a question and answer session immediately following the film.
Run Dates: through June 5, 2014
Run Time: 45 minutes
Showtimes: Mon – Sun: 1:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m., 5:00 p.m.
Fri – Sat: 1:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m., 5:00 p.m., 7:00 p.m.
Tickets: Denver Museum of Nature and Science Jerusalem 3D page
Jerusalem 3D gets multi-generational thumbs up from my husband and me, my parents and my tweens.
Images: Dustin Farrell, photographer. Copyright Jerusalem US LP
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Lori Holden blogs from metro-Denver at LavenderLuz.com and can also be found @LavLuz on Twitter. Her book, The Open-Hearted Way to Open Adoption: Helping Your Child Grow Up Whole, written with her daughter’s birth mom, is available through your favorite online bookseller. If you know anyone who is parenting via adoption (open, closed, foster, international) or donor conception (sperm, egg, embryo), or is a birth parent, check this book out as a thoughtful Mother’s Day gift.
Author: Lori Holden
Amber Johnson
So so dying to go see this!!!!
Lori Holden
I’d love to hear what you think. I bet you will love it, too!