by Hillel Fendel
Many thousands of Jews are gathered at the Western Wall plaza this morning, the 2nd of the Intermediate Days of Passover (the first such day for Jews abroad), for the special holiday prayers - especially the Birkat Kohanim, the Priestly Blessing (Numbers 6:23-27).
The ceremony has become a tradition ever since the liberation of the Temple Mount and the rest of the Old City of Jerusalem during the Six Day War in 1967. It is in commemoration of the Biblical obligation to visit the Holy Temple on the three annual festivals, namely, Pesach (Passover), Shavuot (Pentecost), and Sukkot (Tabernacles).
It is also a special opportunity for many Cohanim (Jews who trace their lineage to Aaron, the first High Priest) to fulfill the Biblical obligation of blessing the nation, and for non-Cohanim to be blessed (also a Biblical obligation, according to some).
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