May 30 - June 20, 2010
Topeka, Kansas
Jaffa Gate
  • At the Creation, God dropped the Stone into
    the void and  the Universe expanded
    outward from it.
  • The Stone marked the entrance to the
    Garden of Eden.
  • It was where God sent Abraham to sacrifice
    his son Isaac.
  • It was where Jacob had a vision of Angels
    ascending and descending a staircase
    between Heaven and Earth.
  • It formed the threshing floor that King David
    purchased to build an Altar to make
    sacrifices to God.
  • It was the location of the Holy of Holies in
    Solomon's Temple, where the Ark of the
    Covenant was kept.
  • It was where the Angel Gabriel took
    Mohammed and the point from which he
    ascended to Heaven to receive instructions
    from God to take back to the world.
Medieval map-makers placed Jerusalem at the
very center of the world.  (Click to enlarge.)
The Foundation Stone
is sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims.
For thousands of years,
this site was considered to be
at the very center of the Universe,
the place where God began Creation,
and the closest point between
Heaven and Earth.  
Beliefs that have been associated
with the Foundation Stone
The Temple Mount, site of Solomon's Temple from
960-586 BC and the Second Temple from 516 BC to
70 AD.  The Dome of the Rock, an Islamic shrine, has
housed  the Foundation Stone since 691 AD.

Grace Episcopal Cathedral
701 SW 8th Avenue, Topeka, Kansas 66603
Phone: 785-235-3457

Contact Michael Massey, Ministry Coordinator
email: mjmassey@gracecathedraltopeka.org
This exhibit was created by the
Striar Jewish Community Center and the
Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Boston
Agencies of Combined Jewish Philanthropies of
Greater Boston
This Program is funded in part by the Kansas Humanities
Council, a non-profit cultural organization promoting
understanding of the history, traditions, and ideas that
shape our lives and build community.