Within your walls

In that case, what is it that draws people to the Jewish Quarter?

By TEHILA BIGMAN
Updated: AUGUST 15, 2018 17:22
Age Structure of the Population in the Jewish Quarter (photo credit: JERUSALEM INSTITUTE FOR POLICY RESEARCH)
Age Structure of the Population in the Jewish Quarter
(photo credit: JERUSALEM INSTITUTE FOR POLICY RESEARCH)
The Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research
Lack of accessibility, unbearable noise pollution, community life, and an ideology that make it all worthwhile – these sum up the character of the Jewish Quarter in Jerusalem’s Old City.
The physical conditions in the Jewish Quarter, such as the alleyways, the paving stones, the numerous stairs, the acute lack of parking spots (while those that do exist are far from the homes), and above all the nonstop noise – whether from festivals or groups of local or foreign tourists – might dissuade some of us. But if you ask the people who live there, they will tell you that it’s all worthwhile.
From a population that decades ago included a wide spectrum of religious streams, haredim, and even secular people, today only a negligible minority is not religiously observant, while haredim comprise half the residents. They belong to the “Zilberman” stream, and combine their haredi dress style with a Zionist worldview, a unique type of Torah study, and residence in the Jewish Quarter motivated by religious and Zionist ideologies. Alongside them live the national religious, the national haredim, and a sizable number of Jews from outside Israel.
The population of the Jewish Quarter is relatively young, with about half the residents (55%) aged under 25. However, the number of people in this age group has been decreasing over the past 20 years; for in 1997 it was almost two-thirds (63%) of the population.
During the same period, there was an increase in the 25- to 44-year-old age group (from 18% to 24%), as well as among the 65+ age group, which rose from 4.4% to 8.6% of the population. These data include the many yeshiva students, which influences the distribution of the population into age groups.
Each and every resident named the same issues as the most problematic: parking, accessibility by car or bus, and the various festivals that disrupt life in the neighborhood. They also claim that the neighborhood is perceived as a tourist attraction, saying that the municipality doesn’t concern itself with the residents’ quality of life, as it does in other neighborhoods. The exorbitant rents and cost of living contribute to this feeling.
In that case, what is it that draws people to the Jewish Quarter?
The answer is the community, the social and charitable institutions, the vast courtyards, the strong feeling of personal safety, a childhood like no other – and of course a dwelling place on the cusp of the Temple Mount.
Translated by Gilah Kahn.